Chapter 16 Indifference Is Dislike
Caroline glanced at Leopold from the corner of her eye, watching him silently serve himself. She shifted away, turning her back to him as she spoke into the phone.
"Mom, I'm out having dinner. I'll call you back when I get home."
Elysia's voice nagged from the other end, "Always eating out. Those restaurants aren't sanitary. If you don't want to cook, just come home to eat."
Caroline lied, "I'm having dinner with colleagues. Look, I have to go now."
She had barely put down her phone when Leopold mimicked her in a mocking tone, "I'm having dinner with colleagues."
She knew he would tease her about this.
Caroline said, "Haven't you ever told a little white lie when your mother was nagging you?"
Seeing her self-righteous expression, Leopold couldn't be bothered to engage. "Sure, you're absolutely right."
Noticing his reluctant attitude, she challenged him, "Can you honestly say you never have?"
Leopold's face remained expressionless, offering no response to Caroline.
The truth was, he wasn't bothered by the lie itself, but by the fact that his mother had never cared enough to nag him like that.
After dinner, Leopold drove Caroline home.
Back at his place, he sat on the sofa, lost in thought for a moment before dialing a number.
The long ringtone nearly exhausted his patience. Just as he was about to hang up, the call connected.
A cold female voice came through the speaker, "Why are you calling so suddenly?"
Leopold paused before asking, "How have you been feeling lately?"
Her tone remained distant, "Fine. Anything else? I need to rest now."
His fingers tightened around the phone as he replied, "No, nothing else." Before he could say goodnight, she had already hung up.
The dial tone felt as numb and detached as her attitude. Leopold regretted making the call.
Deep down, he understood that indifference toward someone usually meant dislike.
After spending Saturday touring nurseries with Leopold, Caroline had hoped to relax on Sunday, but Elysia called again, saying she'd made Caroline's favorite pizza.
As Caroline parked in her building's lot, she spotted a middle-aged man walking past with two bags of trash.
She quickly got out of the car and called, "Dad."
Elijah turned, regarding Caroline with a serious expression. "You're here."
Caroline automatically took the garbage bags from Elijah's hands. "Where's Mom?"
It seemed children always asked for their mothers first. No matter what the situation, the first question was always about Mom. Even when seeing Elijah, she immediately asked about Elysia.
Elijah gestured upward, "Upstairs cooking. Day off today?"
"Yes," Caroline nodded. "You're not working overtime today?"
Elijah opened the building door and walked in. "My driver's coming to pick me up shortly."
Of course, Elijah wouldn't be resting. Always working or attending meetings, big and small, busy 365 days a year, not even taking Christmas off.
"It's almost holiday season. Too many things to handle. I don't have time to rest."
Caroline could hear the exhaustion in his voice.
"If you're really tired, maybe you should step back to an advisory role," she suggested.
Elijah turned to look at her, and Caroline instantly felt a wave of pressure descending from above.
"You think I'm getting old?" Elijah asked.
"No, I'm just concerned about your health," Caroline replied.
The elevator arrived, and father and daughter stepped in one after the other.
Elijah stood firm and unyielding, making Caroline seem fragile by comparison.
Suddenly, Elijah broke the silence, "Has Atticus been bothering you at work again?"
Caroline's first thought was how Elijah knew about this.
"No," she answered.
Elijah's tone grew serious. "I spoke with Atticus's supervisor about your situation. He shouldn't be troubling you anymore."
Caroline frowned. "You talked to his boss?"
Elijah grunted affirmatively. "Atticus is a grown man. Harassing you in public is embarrassing for him."
Caroline couldn't understand. "How did you find out? Did one of my colleagues tell you?"
The only people at her workplace who could speak to someone of Elijah's rank would be her manager or the deputy director. She recalled that the company had participated in a city-wide conference a few days ago; they must have met there.
"I can handle this myself. Why did you need to talk to his supervisor?" Caroline felt Elijah shouldn't have interfered.
For her father to intervene on her behalf gave Atticus too much importance.
But Elijah misinterpreted Caroline's meaning, thinking she felt he was interfering with her freedom and being annoying.
Elijah's face grew stern. "I can't get involved in my own daughter's affairs? As your father, I don't have the right to help?"
"Now you're angry again. What did I say?" Caroline felt both helpless and irritated.
Father and daughter couldn't seem to exchange more than three sentences without arguing. Perhaps their personalities simply clashed.
As the tension mounted, the elevator doors opened at the perfect moment.
Elijah stepped out with his bottled-up frustration, and Caroline followed at a distance.
Upon entering the apartment, they could hear chopping sounds from the kitchen. Caroline rolled up her sleeves and headed toward the noise. "Mom, what are you cutting?"
Hearing her, Elysia turned around. "You're back. Did you see your father?"
Caroline's unhappy expression was evident. "Met him downstairs."
"Argued with Elijah again?" Elysia detected the issue. "I asked you to come today specifically so you could talk to him about your promotion. Now you've upset him. How are we supposed to bring it up now?"
Caroline disliked leveraging Elijah's position in her career. Being Elijah's daughter, many assumed her current position came from his influence, which made Caroline feel her hard work was overlooked.
Having a high-ranking official for a father wasn't something she could choose. Since childhood, she'd been proving herself, demonstrating both her diligence and capability.
"Don't mention it. I never wanted Dad to step in. I'll earn my own promotions. Please don't bring it up with him," Caroline said, turning to get the tableware.
"This child," Elysia sighed, helpless with Caroline. "Stubborn just like Elijah."
The dining room was quiet, occasionally interrupted by the soft clink of utensils. Elysia's gaze shifted between father and daughter before she cleared her throat, breaking the heavy silence.
"Elijah, Caroline's boss is retiring. I hear they're doing some kind of selection process. Could you find out what's happening?" Elysia's words carried an obvious hint.
Elijah took a bite of salad, chewing as he looked across at Caroline. "You want to be the manager?"
His tone suggested she wasn't qualified, prompting Caroline to respond, "It's a competitive selection. Whoever has the ability gets the position."
If I was capable, why shouldn't I take the manager's seat?
Elijah replied, "Since it's competitive, work hard for it."
Hearing that Elijah wouldn't help, Elysia interjected, "You won't help Caroline? You assist others when they ask, but when it comes to your own daughter, your heart turns to stone."
"Stop interfering. Caroline has been working for several years now. If she wants to be a manager, let her prove she's capable of the position. If I push her into that role and she can't handle it, if problems arise later, will you bail her out, or should I?" Elijah countered.
Just as he finished speaking, his phone rang. His driver had arrived to take him to a meeting.