Chapter 43 Unsealed
Sophie was getting more and more attached to Daisy.
Every morning, she would sit obediently at the dining table, and no matter what Daisy cooked, she ate with a great appetite.
At first, Daisy thought she naturally had a poor appetite, but unexpectedly, the little girl said that at home, her meals were either mashed potatoes or potato chunks, or vegetable salad with sandwiches and burgers.
Daisy's cooking skills amazed Sophie so much that the little girl would eat at least two bowls of rice every meal!
To encourage her, Daisy praised her a few times.
And whenever this happened, Luna would silently poke at the food in her bowl with her fork over and over.
That day after school, Luna stood at the school gate waiting for the driver to pick her up.
But for some reason—whether it was traffic or something else—most of her classmates had already been picked up, and she was getting anxious.
Standing on her tiptoes and craning her neck to look around in the crowd, she suddenly saw her mom walking over hurriedly.
Luna was instantly delighted. She turned to tell the teacher, "My mom's here," and ran toward Daisy, only to watch helplessly as another figure got there first, opening her arms and throwing herself into her mom's embrace.
Luna froze, her steps stopping. Then she watched as her mom bent down, picked up Sophie, kissed her face over and over, and turned to leave.
The whole time, she never saw Luna standing in the crowd.
Luna's feet seemed rooted to the spot as she watched her mom's back getting farther and farther away, finally disappearing into the crowd.
She opened her mouth, wanting to call out, "Mom," but before she could, a sob came out first. Her eyes burned hot, and her nose stung.
She rubbed her eyes hard, not letting the tears fall.
Just then, the driver who was supposed to pick her up finally arrived.
"Sorry, sorry, there was traffic. You must have been waiting anxiously..."
Luna turned her head, glared at him fiercely, threw her backpack at him, got in the car, and sat with her legs raised.
That evening, Luna curled up under her covers, holding her tablet to video call Vanessa. She needed to pour out all the grievances from the past few days!
This time, Vanessa answered quickly.
Before she could even ask what was wrong, Luna's eyes reddened, and she burst into tears.
"Nessa Mom..."
She was crying too hard to speak.
"What's wrong, Luna? Who's been bullying our Luna? Tell Auntie, and Auntie will stand up for you!"
After a long time of comforting, Luna finally told her about how her mom had brought home a little sister over the past few days, then cried. "Nessa Mom, do you think Mom doesn't want me anymore?"
She cried with tears streaming down her face, completely failing to notice that in the video, Vanessa's eyes flashed with a gleam, revealing a terrible expression she'd never seen before, which was gone in an instant.
Vanessa smiled and said, "Luna, don't be sad. Listen to what Nessa Mom tells you—everything your mom is doing is on purpose, to show you."
Luna was stunned. "On purpose?"
"Yes." Vanessa's voice was soft, like she was telling a secret. "She wants you to know that without you, she can still be good to other children. She wants to make you jealous, make you scared, and make you obediently listen to her."
Luna's eyes widened.
"Then... then does she not love me anymore?"
"That's hard to say. After all, you were crying like that, but she didn't even look at you. Even I feel sorry for you. If she really loved you, how could she bear it?"
Luna thought about it—it was true!
Her mom didn't love her at all. She only loved that new child!
Thinking this way, her heart felt very painful.
Seeing her like this, Vanessa quickly comforted her. "Luna, don't be sad. You need to know that not all mothers love their children. Some mothers will even control their children to achieve their own goals."
Luna didn't understand this, but felt that it must be bad, wrong.
She asked carefully, "Then... does my mom want to control me too?"
Vanessa stared at her. "I think so. Think about it—doesn't she always force you to do things you don't want to do?"
"Yes!"
Vanessa sighed. "Then that's it. But don't be afraid—no matter what happens, Nessa Mom is on your side!"
Luna nodded firmly.
They chatted for a while longer before hanging up. She lay under the covers, Vanessa's words running through her mind.
Her mom was deliberately trying to upset her. She didn't love her anymore. Only Nessa Mom loved her most.
But...
She couldn't help remembering the gentle smile on her mom's face when she picked up Sophie, the doting look when her mom kissed Sophie.
Was all of that really done on purpose to show her? And what could her mom possibly use her to achieve?
She only knew that she really wanted her mom to hold her like that too, kiss her, tell her that she would always be her dearest, most beloved baby.
...
Half a month later, Shawn came to pick up Sophie, saying her mother had finally finished her business trip and come back.
Sophie was especially reluctant to leave, pulling on Daisy's clothes at the door, hesitating to go.
Actually, Daisy was a bit reluctant too. She'd been taking care of her for so long that she'd developed feelings.
When the little girl left, her heart felt sour too. She gently touched her head. "Sophie, after you go home, listen to your mom, eat your meals properly, and come play at Auntie's house again when you have time, okay?"
Sophie nodded hard, kissed her on the cheek, and left with many backward glances.
Daisy stood at the door, smiling and waving at her until she was far away.
With Sophie gone, no one was happier than Luna.
The annoying person was finally gone. Her mom could love only her again. She could have her mom's coconut pudding all to herself, her mom's hugs all to herself, and all of her mom's tenderness all to herself!
But then, she suddenly remembered what Vanessa had said in the video that night.
"She wants to control you, use you."
The smile on Luna's face slowly faded. She was lost in confused thoughts when Daisy's phone rang.
She was tidying up toys and casually put the call on speaker. The voice on the other end came through clearly.
"I have good news for you. The investigation results are in. Your lab has been cleared of insurance fraud suspicion and can now be unsealed. Tomorrow morning, the police will come to remove the seals. You should prepare on your end too."
Daisy's previously dejected mood instantly improved! She grabbed the phone and said a lot.
Luna quietly lowered her eyes beside her.
The lab was being unsealed? Did that mean her mom would be like before, spending all day in the lab with no time for her?
This made her already somewhat fearful mood even worse.
That evening, she curled up under the covers and video called Vanessa.
"Nessa Mom, Mom's lab is being unsealed."
Vanessa's eyes brightened for a moment, but she quickly returned to a gentle expression.
"Really? That's wonderful." Her gaze became even more meaningful.