Chapter 4
The next day.
The rain had stopped.
I pushed open the window. The sky was high and clear, and the fresh air after the rain rushed toward me.
A breeze rustled through the treetops.
Through the gaps in the leaves, a figure flashed past my view.
Looked kind of familiar.
I leaned out, trying to get a better look.
"Sue." Lily knocked and came in. "Breakfast is ready."
Her eyes looked tired and kind of scary.
I walked quickly toward her and asked, "Did you stay up late again last night?"
Lily yawned and linked her arm with mine, tilting her head to rest on my shoulder. "Yeah, there's a novel that needs to be adapted into a script. I was discussing the plot with the screenwriter. After breakfast, I'll drive you to work, then come back and get some good sleep."
She yawned again as she spoke.
"Never mind." Seeing how tired she was, I wouldn't let her drive me to work. "The air is pretty nice after the rain. After breakfast, I'll walk Jessica to school. I can get some fresh air, and you just stay home and sleep."
Lily didn't refuse again.
After breakfast, by the time I finished washing the dishes, Jessica had already changed her clothes, put on her blue backpack, worn a pale yellow cap, and was waiting obediently for me in the living room.
On the way, Jessica, who was usually cheerful, hung her head low and kicked pebbles on the road with the tip of her shoe as she walked.
One pebble flew off and hit the tire of a black car ahead.
Jessica hopped on one foot in pain, squatted down, and looked up at me pitifully. Her big eyes were full of tears, about to cry.
"Jessica, what's wrong with you today?" I squatted down and rubbed the top of her head.
She used to skip and hop to school every day, happy as could be. Today she'd been down the whole way, and now she looked like she was about to cry.
Something was definitely bothering her.
Jessica's teary eyes fixed on me, her lips slightly pursed. "Mommy, can I not go to school?"
I asked in surprise, "Why?"
She lowered her head and said softly, "The kindergarten is having a parents' sports day soon. The teacher said both mommy and daddy need to come."
She swung her feet uneasily, her shoe tips drawing marks back and forth on the ground.
So that was it.
This was Jessica's first year in kindergarten. She was starting to interact with kids her own age and becoming strongly aware of how she was different from other children.
She didn't have a father.
Seeing her looking so upset and pitiful, my heart ached. I held her hand to comfort her. "I promise you, when the parents' sports day comes, I'll make sure you have both a mommy and daddy there with you, just like the other kids, okay?"
"Really?" Jessica was thrilled.
Seeing me nod, the sadness on her face disappeared completely. She raised her hand and wiped her face.
She took my hand, singing a children's song, skipping and hopping forward.
Her cheerful singing woke Jason in the car.
He slowly opened his eyes and fumbled to adjust his seat back upright.
The sunlight was harsh. After adjusting for a moment, he opened his eyes and saw two figures, one big and one small, holding hands, walking a few meters past his car before turning onto another sidewalk.
He saw Sue's profile.
Her head was slightly lowered, with fallen strands of hair covering the side of her face. Her eyes were slightly curved, lashes fluttering, smiling gently and peacefully.
The little girl beside her had a blue backpack and a pale yellow baseball cap. Her cheeks were rosy, baby fat on her face bouncing gently with each step. Her little mouth opened and closed as she chatted and laughed with Sue.
Was that her daughter?
A wave of irritation surged up. Jason opened the window and took a deep drag on a cigarette.
A long, piercing honk shattered the morning quiet.
The driver behind him shouted out the window, "Are you blind? Is this a parking spot? Get lost!"
Jason's memory went back five years.
That month, he'd earned over ten thousand for the first time. He'd specially bought Sue's favorite wagyu beef and her favorite Sassicaia wine, planning to celebrate properly when he got home.
But he didn't expect that just one intersection away from home, he'd receive her breakup call.
She said she wanted to marry a rich man. That's when Jason realized she wasn't joking.
Right then, the same honking sound came from the car behind him.
His breakup scene had been harsh and noisy.
The car window was pounded several times, pulling Jason back to reality.
A twisted face pressed against the window outside, holding an iron rod in his hand, pointing at him and roaring, "Are you deaf? Blocking the way and not moving, you looking to die?"
Before he finished speaking, Jason grabbed the iron rod and yanked it forward hard.
The man was pulled into the car. Jason grabbed the iron rod and smashed it down hard on his elbow.
The man fell with a scream, clutching his elbow and wailing.
Jason tossed out a business card and threw it on the ground. "Contact him for compensation."
Then he started the car and drove off.
The man's screams caught Lily's attention upstairs. When she stood by the window looking out, she seemed to see Jason sitting in that black Alfa Romeo.
The distance was too far, so she wasn't sure if she had seen wrong.
At that moment, I had no idea what was happening in the neighborhood.
After dropping Jessica off at kindergarten, I rushed to the subway station and finally squeezed into the car just before the doors closed.
It was rush hour. The car was packed with people, shoulder to shoulder. Sweat mixed with various perfume smells made my head hurt. I could only huddle in a corner of the car, trying to keep some distance from the crowd.
Big cities have high population density. Rush hour subways are always like this.
Looks like I really need to work hard and save money to buy a car as soon as possible.
I'd joined the company a year ago and was assigned as Brian's assistant six months ago.
In one year, he'd gone through six senior assistants. Five of them were his ex-girlfriends, and one was a male special assistant left by his father.
Company rumors said that Brian appeared to be promoting female employees to special assistant positions, but was actually finding companions for himself.
Some people even privately bet on how long it would be before I became Brian's senior assistant, and whether I'd also become his girlfriend.
I knew all this, but I didn't care.
I agreed to be Brian's assistant for only one reason: the pay was good enough.
At my previous position, I only made a few thousand a month. After necessary living expenses, I could barely save anything.
But since moving to my current position, I made over ten thousand a month, plus other benefits. In six months, I'd already saved tens of thousands.
So no matter what, I had to do everything I could to keep this job.
An hour later, I finally got to the company and clocked in at the last minute.
I was still catching my breath when I saw a woman in a tight short dress and black red-bottomed high heels, wearing heavy makeup, burst into the company, surrounded by several bodyguards. She stood at the entrance and shouted loudly, "Where's Brian? Tell Brian to get out of here!"