Chapter 78: Mother Gives It Back to You

Felix Ford squatted on the ground, clutching his head and sobbing his heart out. When he grew tired, he plopped right onto the ground, not caring in the least about how he looked.

All he knew was that he was sad, so very, very sad. He thought he had found his mommy, but it turned out he still didn’t have one after all.

He could have stayed by her side, claiming he was her child too, but he couldn’t bring himself to cling to her selfishly after finding out they weren’t related.

’It wouldn’t be fair to her real child.’

’If her own child was lost and alone somewhere, she would be heartbroken.’

’He didn’t want to see her sad.’

’But he didn’t want to leave her, either.’

With his mind in a tangled mess, Felix Ford cried even harder, filled with helplessness and despair.

’Why? Why was he the only one without a mommy?’

’I want a mommy too, WAHHH...’

He was crying so hard that it drew a teacher over. As soon as she saw Jean Vance standing there, she felt a headache coming on. "Felix Ford, are you bullying other kids again?"

Jean Vance pressed his lips together, not saying a word in his own defense. In a way, he had bullied him.

’I’m sorry.’

He added silently in his heart, his gaze lowered and his hands clenched together tightly.

Seeing his silence, the teacher took it as a lack of remorse. But thinking of his family background, she swallowed the words she wanted to say. She bent down to soothe the child wailing on the floor, but no matter how gentle her voice was, Felix Ford didn’t react at all. He just kept on crying.

His sobs were so painful, it was heart-wrenching to listen to. The teacher glanced at Jean Vance and sighed helplessly, wondering what on earth he had done to set the boy off.

’Sigh.’

The teacher tried to soothe him for a long time to no avail. In the end, Felix Ford simply cried himself out and stopped on his own. After a moment, he pushed himself up from the ground. His mask, soaked through with tears, was plastered haphazardly to his cheeks. The only part of his face visible, his eyes, were clean and clear, making the pain within them all the more apparent.

"I’m... I’m sorry." Felix Ford said through a hiccuping sob. "I’ll give... your mommy... back to you."

After he spoke, he squeezed his eyes shut, and fresh tears streamed down his face.

Jean Vance’s fingertips twitched. His lips parted as if to speak, but in the end, not a single word came out. He turned and left in silence.

Once around the corner, he leaned against the wall, pressing a hand to his chest. He took a deep breath, barely managing to suppress the painful pang in his heart.

It wasn’t his own pain, but the other boy’s.

The connection between twins.

It was a pity. They were simply not fated to be brothers.

「Time for school to let out.」

With his backpack on, Jean Vance walked out of the school. When he saw Amanda Vance waiting outside the gate, a slow smile spread across his face. He walked toward her, his steps quick and eager, but then he stopped himself just before reaching her. He simply looked up at her and called out, "Mom."

Amanda Vance was a little surprised. She had thought he would leap into her arms and had braced herself for it, but she didn’t expect him to stop.

Looking at his familiar little face, she pushed those thoughts aside and reached out to ruffle his hair. Noticing his slight frown, she chuckled and fixed it for him. Bending down, she gave his cheek a gentle squeeze. "Okay, okay, I won’t mess with your hair. Let’s go. Time to go home. What do you feel like eating?"

"I want something you make."

"Sounds good. Let’s stop by the supermarket first, then. We need to buy some groceries."

"Okay."

"..."

The mother and son chatted as they walked hand in hand to the car.

In the distance, from behind a pillar, Felix Ford stared down at his own hand. He clenched it into a fist, but there was no warm, delicate touch—he was only holding air. Tears immediately started to fall again.

’Why isn’t she his mommy?’

’She’s exactly like the mommy he’d always imagined.’

’Gentle and beautiful, she dotes on him, tells him bedtime stories, and stands up for him when he’s being bullied.’

’Why couldn’t he be her child?’

’He was so, so envious of Jean Vance.’

’If only he were Jean Vance.’

As he thought this, his eyes filled with undisguised envy. After a moment, prodded along by his teacher, he wiped his eyes and trudged out with his backpack, his shoulders slumped. When he reached the gate, he couldn’t help but glance in the direction they had gone.

The car was long gone.

"What are you looking at?" a deep male voice suddenly asked from above him. Felix Ford looked up and saw Samuel Ford’s handsome face.

’He had no expression, as usual. Just a grumpy face.’

He looked away without any real interest and headed for the car with his backpack.

Samuel Ford didn’t miss his red, swollen eyes. He paused. ’He’s been crying?’

He got into the car and saw that the boy had turned his head to stare out the window, leaving Samuel with only a view of the back of his head.

"Did you make Colt angry again, Brother?" Shawn Ford peeked over from the front seat. Meeting his brother’s cold gaze, he sheepishly shrank back.

Looking away, Samuel Ford watched Felix Ford. Seeing that the boy was unwilling to talk, he didn’t press the issue and just told the driver to go.

When they got home, he watched the boy jump out of the car and storm inside without a word. Only then did he speak, his voice slow. "If someone is bullying you, you can tell me. No one in the Ford family just stands there and takes it."

Not wanting to hear that, Felix Ford suddenly whipped his head around and glared at him, his big eyes filled with resentment. "What’s so great about the Ford family?!" he yelled. "Who wants to be part of the Ford family?!"

’All he wanted was a mommy! He wanted his last name to be Vance, he didn’t want to be a Ford!’

The hurt he had just managed to suppress burst forth again. He let out another shout as he ripped off his backpack and threw it on the ground. "I don’t want to be a Ford! I want a mommy! WAHHH..."

At the mere mention of the word "mommy," he finally couldn’t hold back any longer and burst into tears again.

Samuel Ford’s brow furrowed. He took a single step forward, but the boy flinched as if startled, watching him warily. Then, he turned and bolted upstairs. The door slammed shut with a loud BANG, seeming to make the very floor shake. It was immediately followed by the sound of furious wailing from within the room.

Shawn Ford clicked his tongue, patting his chest, still a little shaken. "Whoa, what got into him? I’ve never seen him so angry. Brother, are you sure you didn’t do something to set him off?"

At that, Samuel Ford shot him a cool glance before looking upstairs, his brow furrowed even tighter.

After a moment, he picked up the backpack from the floor and headed upstairs.

He instructed quietly, "Bring some food up to him later."

"Aren’t you going to check on him?"

Samuel Ford paused. "He probably doesn’t want to see me."

’That was true. Every time Colt threw a tantrum, seeing his father only made it worse.’

’It had been so long since the boy had a meltdown that Shawn had almost forgotten.’

Watching his brother’s retreating back, he couldn’t help but shake his head and mutter, "So there are times when even you get the cold shoulder."

Who would have thought that the man every woman wanted to marry and every man wanted to be, would be brought to his knees by his own five-year-old son.

’Everyone meets their match, I guess.’

’Tsk, tsk. How interesting.’

Upstairs in the study, Samuel Ford listened to his son’s crying, his brow deeply furrowed with irritation. He reached into a drawer, pulled out a pack of cigarettes, and tapped the end of one on the desk. His gaze hardened for a moment before he loosened his grip, letting the cigarette fall from his fingertips and roll across the tabletop.

The boy’s cries rang in his ears. His voice had grown hoarse, but he was still sobbing his heart out.

Finally unable to listen any longer, he stood up and walked to Felix Ford’s room, rapping his knuckles on the door.

"Colt, open the door."