Chapter 5 Playing Hard to Get
Watching Isabella's expression carefully, Olivia thought her silence meant she didn't want to go, so she quickly added with thoughtful consideration, "Wherever Mommy wants to take me is fine! As long as I'm with Mommy, I'll be happy anywhere!"
This display of sweet understanding only made Isabella's heart ache more.
She was just a five-year-old child. Why did she have to be so considerate?
"We're definitely going to the amusement park!"
Isabella bought tickets online and researched which attractions were suitable for five-year-olds.
She took Olivia out early that morning.
Since it was the weekend, the amusement park was filled with families enjoying their day together.
Isabella hated waiting in lines, so she immediately purchased two fast-pass tickets at the gate.
After entering the park smoothly, Olivia stared at the map with wide eyes, overwhelmed by all the choices.
Since it was a family-themed amusement park, there were plenty of rides suitable for children.
After biting her lip and studying the options for what felt like forever, Olivia finally settled on the carousel.
Isabella held Olivia's small hand as they walked toward the ride, chatting along the way.
The carousel line was quite long, but Isabella and Olivia used their fast passes to skip ahead.
After one round, Olivia was still beaming with excitement.
Isabella decided to get in line again, this time standing below to take photos of her daughter.
Olivia's bell-like laughter echoed in Isabella's ears, infectious joy that made her smile despite everything.
Isabella stepped back to get a full-body shot of Olivia on the carousel.
She accidentally bumped into someone behind her.
"Sorry!" Isabella said, turning around to check if she'd stepped on the person's foot.
As she turned, she found herself looking directly into a pair of cold eyes.
William's gaze was frosted over with ice, his expression utterly indifferent as he looked down at Isabella.
"Isabella! What a surprise! I never expected to run into you here!" Laura was wearing bunny ears and had painted her face with cute, girly makeup. Her pink dress made her look like a playful rabbit.
Laura stood beside William, beautiful and radiant.
The three of them together looked more like a family.
Isabella stood opposite them, making their trio appear even more united and harmonious.
Isabella gripped her phone tighter and took a step back. "Not a surprise at all."
The last person Isabella wanted to see was William, yet somehow they'd managed to bump into each other even at an amusement park.
"Mom, you obviously knew Dad's and my plans, so you deliberately came to the amusement park to ambush us, didn't you?"
Nathan held an ice cream cone, looking at Isabella with obvious disdain.
Isabella felt her heart grow colder. Her son actually looked at her like this.
In that moment, Isabella felt like all her past efforts had been nothing but a joke.
She'd actually believed that giving up her career to become a full-time housewife would help her manage the family better and raise her children properly.
Seeing how Nathan had turned out made Isabella feel like her parenting had been a complete failure!
Nathan's accusation made William's expression even darker.
What coincidence? It was obvious that Isabella was having second thoughts and was too embarrassed to say so directly, so she was playing hard to get by showing up in front of him!
"Are you two some kind of celebrities that I'd need to go through the trouble of tracking you down?" Isabella let out a cold laugh.
"Mommy!"
Hearing Olivia's somewhat anxious voice behind her, Isabella immediately turned to leave.
She hadn't figured out how to tell Olivia about the divorce yet.
This wasn't the right time for Olivia to see William.
Taking Olivia's hand, Isabella headed decisively toward the next attraction.
Olivia looked up at Isabella with concern. "Mommy, you don't look very well. Are you feeling sick?"
Isabella shook her head gently. "I just saw something disgusting."
Olivia nodded thoughtfully, then pointed toward a shop in the distance.
"Let's go buy some water! If Mommy sits down and rests for a bit, you'll probably feel much better!"
Olivia's warmth exceeded Isabella's expectations.
Olivia helped Isabella sit on a bench outside the shop and took charge of buying the water herself.
She soon returned carrying two bottles of spring water.
Olivia sat obediently on the bench beside her mother, her little legs swinging back and forth.
Like any child her age, she was naturally curious about her surroundings.
After looking around, Olivia tugged on Isabella's hand and whispered, "Mommy, that looks like a souvenir shop over there. Could we go browse around later?"
Isabella put the water bottles in her bag and immediately stood up, pulling Olivia with her. "Of course we can!"
Most of the souvenirs in the amusement park were themed around the park's main attraction—an animated series featuring a little rabbit character.
Isabella remembered that both Nathan and Olivia loved this cartoon.
The souvenir shop was filled with merchandise from the rabbit cartoon.
There were plush toys and various themed products.
As soon as they entered, Isabella immediately noticed the counter display full of plush rabbit headbands.
Exactly like the one Laura had been wearing.
She looked away and followed Olivia to the plush toy section.
Olivia's eyes lit up as she carefully picked up a large stuffed animal, hugging it close and looking at Isabella hopefully.
"Mommy, could you take a picture of me with this little rabbit?"
Isabella pulled out her phone but asked, "Since you like it so much, why don't we buy one to take home?"
Olivia was clearly tempted for a moment, but quickly shook her head firmly. "Grandma doesn't like me playing with these things. She says they're frivolous distractions."
Hearing such mature words from a child's mouth shocked Isabella.
A five-year-old being accused of frivolous behavior?
And it was just a stuffed animal, nothing inappropriate!
After taking Olivia's photo, Isabella walked over and touched her daughter's head with complex emotions.
"Today you can buy whatever you want. Olivia has been so good—this is your reward."
Olivia's little face flushed with happiness as she stood at the counter, spending a long time choosing from the dazzling array of plush toys.
Finally, she pointed to a spot on the counter she couldn't reach. "I want that pink bunny!"
This particular style seemed to be a recent hot seller—there was only one lonely specimen left on the counter.
Just as Isabella reached for the rabbit, another hand shot out from the side, grabbing the bunny by its ears and snatching it directly from her grasp.
Turning irritably to confront the person, Isabella once again found herself face-to-face with Laura, who was still wearing her bunny ears.
Laura took the rabbit and handed it directly to Nathan.
Nathan hugged the beautiful bunny happily and said, "Thank you, Mom!"
Despite the noisy, chaotic environment around them, Isabella clearly heard what Nathan had called Laura.
In that instant, it felt like lightning had struck Isabella directly.
She stood frozen, unable to move.
Isabella opened and closed her mouth, asking in disbelief, "What did you just call her?"