The next morning, Yvonne Sutton cooked the bag of dumplings he had left.

The villa was hers now, wasn’t it? Since he was secretly staying at her place and using her fridge, eating this bag of dumplings would count as collecting rent.

After cleaning the villa, she went to the clinic. Faced with the utter mess, she truly didn’t know where to begin.

Just then, the door of the house opposite hers opened, and the boy walked out. He showed no trace of shame upon seeing her. He even walked right up to her and held out his hand.

Yvonne Sutton frowned, not understanding what he meant.

"I’m hungry. Give me money for food."

Yvonne Sutton blinked. ’What is he talking about? He’s hungry, so he’s asking me for money?’

’Do I owe him something?’

’And with such a sense of entitlement!’

Yvonne Sutton let out a breath. "You’re asking the wrong person. I’m not giving you any money."

"My dad’s still locked up at the police station." The boy’s voice hardened as he glared at Yvonne Sutton. "You’re the one who called the cops and got him sent there!"

"Your dad trashed my place!"

"Whatever. You let those officers lock up my dad. Now there’s no one to feed me, so I have to come to you."

Yvonne Sutton scoffed. ’His dad is one of a kind, but I never expected the son to be, too. And he’s even more ridiculous.’

She gave up on reasoning with him, unlocked her door, and went inside. The boy followed her in, chanting, "I’m hungry, give me food."

A neighbor, an older woman, was pouring water and overheard. She rushed over, furious. "You two, father and son, don’t get too arrogant! You see a young woman by herself and think she’s an easy target, is that it? Let me tell you, we neighbors may be old, but we can still pack a punch! If you try to bully her again, we’ll fight you to the end!"

The boy, realizing he wasn’t going to get any food, pressed his lips together and went back home. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

"Honestly, like father, like son. What kind of people are they?" The neighbor lady was so angry she patted her chest.

Yvonne Sutton gave the woman a grateful smile. "Thank you for worrying on my behalf."

"We’ve been neighbors for over a decade; no need for such formalities. Look at the mess they made of your place. You wait here, I’ll go get the others to help you clean up."

Yvonne Sutton wanted to say they didn’t have to bother, but the woman was fast and had already gone to round up help.

Soon, her kind-hearted neighbors arrived and helped her clean, restocking the medicines on the shelves.

With the neighbors’ help, they made significant progress by noon.

To thank everyone, Yvonne Sutton ordered takeout, and they pushed two tables together in the courtyard to eat.

"It’s such a shame about this pomegranate tree," the neighbor lady lamented, looking at the toppled tree.

Yvonne Sutton felt the loss of the pomegranate tree most keenly of all. She and her mother had planted it together, and for all these years, it had stood guard over their mother-daughter home.

The fallen tree was still laden with many ripe pomegranates.

Yvonne Sutton told everyone to pick them and take them home to eat.

While they were eating, the boy from across the way came back. When no one was looking, he snatched a box of food and ran off.

"A boy that age should be in school. If he were, at least he’d learn some basic decency."

"I know, right? Spending all day with a father like that, what good could he possibly learn?"

"But what about his mom? I don’t think I’ve ever seen her."

The group began discussing the father and son, thoroughly disgusted by their recent actions. They ultimately agreed that the pair should be driven out of the alley to restore peace for everyone.

In the afternoon, Yvonne Sutton had someone come to install the glass windows. She was busy until the evening, when the work was finally done.

As she was locking up to leave, she saw the boy rummaging through the trash bin with the takeout containers from lunch. He was picking through the leftovers and eating as he went. When he saw her looking, he shot her a glare before nonchalantly continuing to eat.

’It’s a miracle this kid has survived this long with a father like that.’

Just then, an old man selling steamed buns from a small electric tricycle came down the alley. She hesitated for a moment, then waved for him to stop.

She bought a large bag of buns and placed it in front of the boy.

The boy stared at the buns, stunned, then looked at Yvonne Sutton in confusion.

"Don’t eat that dirty stuff; you’ll get a stomachache. And your hands—go wash them before you eat the buns." After saying this, Yvonne Sutton turned and walked away.

Once on the subway, she took out her phone and saw that Daisy Shaw had messaged her again.

"I’ve come to a very beautiful place. I think I’ll stay here for a while and just think quietly."

She thought for a moment before replying, "If you get too lonely by yourself, I can come keep you company anytime. I’m not much of a talker, so I won’t get in the way of your quiet thinking."

Daisy Shaw sent a mischievous emoji. "I know you’re on Wyatt Shaw’s side."

Yvonne Sutton smiled. "I can be on your side, too."

"The sunset here is so beautiful."

"I wish I could see it, too."

"Hmph. Don’t think you can fool me with your little tricks."

Yvonne Sutton sent a sighing emoji. "Alright, I give up."

After she sent that message, Daisy Shaw didn’t reply.

She took a screenshot of their chat history and sent it to Wyatt Shaw. He replied with two words: Thank you.

Ten days later, Stewart Pace’s injuries had mostly healed, and Yvonne Sutton’s clinic finally reopened.

After a busy day, as they were closing up, Stewart Pace glanced at the house across the way and said, "How come I haven’t seen that kid today?"

Yvonne Sutton shook her head. It was strange, indeed. The boy hadn’t come to ask them for food. Before, even though the clinic was closed, he knew she came by every day, so he would wait at the door to ask her for food when she arrived.

She had taken to buying him buns or sometimes bringing him a meal from home.

"By the way, has his dad been released?"

Yvonne Sutton shook her head again. "I haven’t asked."

"Who cares. It’s best if people like him stay far away from us."

The two exchanged a few more words and then went their separate ways home. That night passed without incident. The next day at the clinic, it was almost noon, and Stewart Pace still hadn’t shown up for work.

Yvonne Sutton called him, but his phone was off.

She had a bad feeling, so at noon, she closed the clinic and went to Stewart Pace’s house. She knocked for a long time, but no one came to the door.

Yvonne Sutton grew more and more worried. Just then, her phone rang.

"Hello, do you know a Stewart Pace?"

Yvonne Sutton froze for a second. "Yes, I know him. Who is this?"

"Stewart Pace was in an accident last night. He’s in the hospital now, undergoing emergency treatment."

Hearing this, Yvonne Sutton stood stunned for a long moment before she reacted, rushing to Seacliff Hospital.

When she arrived, Stewart Pace was just being wheeled out of the operating room, still unconscious.

"Yvonne Sutton, what is your relationship to the patient?" The doctor who had operated on Stewart Pace recognized her.

"He’s my friend. How is he?"

"It looks like he was hit by a car and thrown into the roadside greenery. A sanitation worker found him in the early hours of the morning and rushed him to the hospital for emergency care. He has multiple fractures all over his body, but fortunately, nothing life-threatening. We’re moving him to the ICU for observation first. If there are no issues, he can be transferred to a regular ward."

Yvonne Sutton looked at Stewart Pace, his body covered in bandages, her mind a complete jumble.

"By the way, the police have already been here to investigate. You might want to follow up on that."