Chapter 84

I thought it was Mike at first, but listening carefully, the voice was different.

Then I saw the woman rush to the bedroom after hearing the sound, and heard her say, "I've told you so many times, if you need to use the bathroom, you have to call out. Now look, you've soiled your pants! Cathy, come help!"

I looked toward Cathy, who had gone to the bathroom to wash the mop.

Cathy must have heard, but she ignored it.

The woman simply raised her voice and yelled, "Cathy, get over here! Believe it or not, I'll kick you out!"

Only after being threatened did Cathy reluctantly go to help.

At this point, I was completely stunned.

My God, why were Mike's biological parents like this?

Just as I was thinking of going to the door to calm down and see when Mike would be back, Cathy suddenly rushed out carrying a bedpan. Luckily, I dodged in time, or it would have splashed all over me.

The air instantly filled with a terrible smell.

I held my breath and quickly walked outside, taking big gulps of fresh air.

From the corner of my eye, I saw Cathy in the bathroom frantically scrubbing her hands with soap.

Standing at the door, I finally had time to look around properly. What was originally a fairly spacious two-bedroom apartment now looked very cramped, with bedding simply rolled up and placed next to the sofa.

"They're Mike's biological parents. The one lying in the bedroom is Mike's brother, and he's paralyzed - no feeling in his lower body. A family like this, it would've been better if they'd never been found. They're nothing but burdens! Mike and I have been sleeping on the floor in the living room these past few days, and no matter how much you clean this place, there's always a terrible smell!" Cathy was really at her breaking point. She didn't have a job and stayed home, so naturally, all the cleaning fell on her.

If Cathy weren't still counting on Mike to help pay off her debts, she would have left long ago.

She hadn't wanted to find work before, but now she was willing to do anything, just to have an excuse not to stay here and be treated like a servant.

After hearing Cathy's words, I just felt a headache coming on.

I never imagined Mike's family of origin would be in such a situation.

I looked at Cathy and asked, "What, you've been staying at Mike's place recently?"

"Yeah, I lost all my money in a failed investment. Now I have nowhere to live, so I can only stay at Mike's." Cathy stared at me coldly and said, "Susan, you must be really happy seeing me doing so badly, right? All this time, Mike and I have been going through such hardship, and you haven't cared about us at all, just focusing on being with Clair!"

My expression darkened, but I didn't argue with Cathy.

I had indeed been having a sweet time with Clair recently, but I had no idea about Mike's situation. Otherwise, how could I have just stood by and done nothing?

Seeing me stay silent, Cathy got even angrier, perhaps thinking about me living the good life made her feel miserable.

The more she thought about it, the more bitter and envious she became.

"Susan, you can help us, you can ask Clair for..."

"Cathy!" Mike happened to come out of the elevator just then, quickly cutting off Cathy's words.

He looked at me and forced a smile, "Susan, why did you suddenly come over?"

Because of Mike's sudden appearance, Cathy didn't dare continue. I looked at them both with some curiosity.

Mike handed his briefcase to Cathy.

"Susan, let's go downstairs to talk."

Cathy took the briefcase and went inside angrily. I had no choice but to follow Mike.

Downstairs, Mike told me everything.

From Mike's words, I learned that his father was called Andrew, his mother Lyanna, and his brother Ruud.

His parents worked the lowest-level jobs in the slums, barely scraping by, living an extremely difficult life.

Ruud dropped out of school after middle school and went into business with friends, which was actually just petty theft and scams. When being chased by police, he accidentally fell from a high bridge, leaving his lower body paralyzed.

After Ruud became paralyzed, the wife he'd finally managed to marry ran off one night with all the money, leaving behind their five-year-old son.

Since it wasn't convenient to bring the child along, they left him with an aunt living next door.

The couple brought Ruud to Mike because they wanted Mike to pay for Ruud's medical treatment.

After hearing Mike's story, my mood was heavy. "Did they say why they abandoned you back then?"

Perhaps feeling very depressed, Mike smoked in front of me for the first time. He blew out a smoke ring, "Yeah, they said I was running around at the station, and when they weren't paying attention, a human trafficker took me. They looked for a long time, but the station had no surveillance cameras, and with so many people, the police couldn't do anything."

"Now that my brother is paralyzed, they have no choice but to rely on me."

"So you're planning to let them all stay?" As an observer, I could look at the problem more rationally. "Mike, I understand it's not easy for you found your biological parents, and it's normal for you as a son to want to take care of your parents. But you're struggling yourself. Now, with a paralyzed brother added on, how are you going to survive?"

Faced with my question, Mike fell silent. He didn't know how to answer.

I sighed deeply. "I was only in there for about ten minutes and couldn't stand it. I can imagine what it must be like for you living there..."

Suffocating, oppressive, even desperate.

In fact, Mike was exactly as I described.

His biological parents brought Ruud to find him, and the next day, they went to the hospital for tests. Just the tests cost several thousand dollars. Andrew also had bronchitis. Lyanna was getting old and in poor health too, barely able to do any heavy work, and there was a young nephew - it all made him feel like he couldn't breathe.

It was like a mountain had suddenly been placed on his shoulders.

Without any mental preparation.

To help Cathy pay off her debts, he'd already spent almost all his money.

He understood what I was saying, but he was so desperate for family that he couldn't bear to turn them away, so he let them all stay.

Mike didn't speak, and I remained silent too, knowing that his mind must be very conflicted right now, as if any decision he made would be wrong.

One cigarette burned down between Mike's fingers like that.

Having known Mike for so many years, this was the first time I'd seen him look so helpless. Before, he'd almost always played the role of big brother, taking care of Cathy and me.

As if he could do anything, nothing could defeat him.

I wanted to say something, but held back.

"It's okay, my parents are just bringing Ruud here for medical treatment. They'll go back before long." Mike forced a smile, but the exhaustion in his eyes couldn't be hidden.

Now I really didn't know what to say.

That's just who Mike was - he'd rather suffer himself than trouble others.

I really felt for Mike.

His biological parents came here not to reunite with Mike, but to bring Ruud for treatment and spend Mike's money.

If they truly wanted to reconnect, they definitely wouldn't have brought Ruud along.

I also noticed that when Mike arrived at the door, the couple inside showed no reaction, didn't even think to care whether Mike was tired from work or if he'd eaten.

They showed none of the joy of finding their lost son.

So I felt Mike's efforts were completely not worth it.

However, while I was talking with Mike, Cathy was hiding in the distance eavesdropping, and his biological parents were also quietly talking by the window.