She's My Sleeping Pill

Dominic came back once again to the Olivares family after graduation. They haven't told him yet of his current situation and he didn't intend to keep it from them. He wanted to share the good news to this family who helped him so much without asking anything in return from him.

"Good evening, auntie." Dominic greeted Marnie's mother when he saw her getting the dried clothes that she washed earlier.

"Dom! It's nice to see you again." She smiled at him and gestured for him to get inside.

"Brother!" The two little girls ran towards Marnie and when she saw him carrying lots of things, they stopped few feet away from him and changed direction. They ran towards Dominic instead who already placed down the groceries he bought. "Big brother Dom!" Both the little girls hugged his legs and clung to him. "What are you two bringing?"

"Well, we have good news for you and we wanted to celebrate it a little." Dominic stated while rubbing the small little heads. "These are all for you. Your brother bought lots of your favorite food and he also bought a lot of toys and clothes. Would you like to look at them?"

"Can we?"

"Of course." Dominic led the two of them to the kitchen where he placed the grocery bags. Marnie's mother also went along with them to see what the two of them carried earlier. She was so busy with her laundry that she didn't pay attention to it.

"Marnie, you're home." His father came back from their little farm and saw his son in the living room. "Oh! Dom is here, too." He smiled happily and walked over to greet him.

Marnie also watched his parents getting along with Dominic. "Pa, Dom and I have something to tell you." Marnie told his father. "Can we talk in the living room?"

"I'll bring your sisters inside their room first." His mother stated and gave her children something to eat and sent them back to their room. After making sure that the girls were settled, the four of them sat in the living room. "What is it?"

"Marnie and I got a full scholarship. We received a discounted apartment as well where we can live along with our two other friends. We were also offered a good part-time job to earn some money while studying." Marnie told his parents about the good news he got, making them tear up in happiness.

Her mother smiled and wiped the tears hanging on her lashes. "Is that true? How did you get such a good opportunity?"

"It's all thanks to Dom." Marnie stated and turned to his best friend. He wanted to keep this thing a secret from his family like what Stefan said but he decided to tell them the truth instead. "He found his long-lost relative and he turned out to be so rich and well-known."

"Really?!" His father exclaimed in shock. "That's good. That's good. Someone can help you now with your grandparents' medication." He added in relief. Before taking in Dominic, they knew almost everything that has happened to his family and it was out of worry and pity that they took him in. It's really a good thing that someone has come to rescue them.

Dominic moved closer and took the woman's hand and held it tightly. "Auntie, thank you so much for taking care of me all these years. You and uncle are like parents to me. I am so happy that I met all of you. I will never forget all of you."

"That's nothing." She rubbed Dominic's head and smiled at him. "You're such a fine young man. We're glad that we helped you. You don't have to worry about us. Just work hard to reach your dreams. I'm sure that Marnie will do the same."

"So, what about those things you bought?" Marnie's father pointed out the things on the table. "I don't think you've started working yet so, where did you get all the money to buy those things?"

"Earlier, we had lunch with Dom's cousin. He gave me these things as a little token of appreciation. He's also the one who arranged for our works, scholarships and apartment."

"Hmm? Why do you have to get scholarships if he's rich? Can't he pay for your tuition fees directly?" Marnie's father asked.

Dominic thought of his words carefully to make sure that Stefan won't look bad to other people. "Actually, the top student of our class is my cousin's brother-in-law. Even though they have lots of money because his sister married my cousin, they didn't really depend that much on him. He's still studying through scholarships and he's also working to earn his own pocket money. I wanted to be like him. I want to earn my own money as well."

"I see. What work will you be working, then? Won't it affect your studies?" Marnie's mother asked in worry. She knew that the boys weren't like those top students. They have average intelligence and it worried her that their studies will be affected if they divide their focus between studied and work.

Marnie told his parents about his job which really surprised them. They knew a long time ago that their son wanted to become a nautical engineer. They just didn't expect that he'd work part-time in a shipping company. They thought he'd work in a fast food restaurant or a café like what other students do.

"Send my thanks to your cousin, Dom."

"Same here. We can't thank him enough for helping us."

Dominic scratched the back of his head with a faint and helpless smile on his lips. "My cousin told me to extend his gratitude to you for helping all these years. And here you are, asking me to extend your gratitude to him for helping Marnie. Just when will this extending of gratitude ends?"

They all burst out laughing at this and knew that he was right. They were just going back and forth.

"Have dinner with us. You will be busy in the future and we don't know when we can have dinner again." Marnie's mother stood up and went to the kitchen. "I'll just prepare the dinner quick."

"Thank you, auntie. Let me help you."

Once again, Dominic helped the lady in the kitchen just like he used when he was still studying in X university.

Later on, because of the money added to his saving, Marnie didn't ask money from his parents and he started helping with the bills at home. He was able to buy in advance the school supplies for his sisters and bought some materials for his father's farm. Little by little, they were able to save up some money and improve their living.