Serena Tucker mendengar Potato mengeluarkan teriakan dan menoleh ke arah Renee untuk meminta bantuan. "Apa yang dia katakan?"
Renee mengatupkan bibirnya, ragu-ragu apakah dia harus menjawab dengan jujur.
'Mungkin aku harus sedikit lebih bijaksana...'
"Potato bilang kamu harus berhenti bersikap jahat," katanya.
"Aku? Jahat? Aku begini hanya karena dia membuatku sangat marah!" Emosi Serena meninggi, matanya berkaca-kaca saat dia menahan isak tangisnya. "Aku mengira dia sakit! Aku gelisah setiap hari, takut sesuatu terjadi padanya..."
Sylvia Brooks, yang tidak pernah memiliki hewan peliharaan, tidak bisa sepenuhnya memahami apa yang dialami Serena.
Namun, Renee dan Michelle Fuller, yang sudah hampir setahun bertugas memungut kotoran hewan peliharaan mereka sendiri, bisa sepenuhnya berempati.
"Potato, ibumu hanya sangat peduli dan khawatir padamu." Renee mengulurkan tangan dan menggendong kucing itu, yang meringkuk seperti bola. "Kamu tidak bisa berbicara seperti itu padanya. Kamu akan membuatnya sedih."
Potato awalnya menolak untuk digendong, tapi dia tidak berdaya melawan aroma harum Renee.
"Kamu biasanya makan banyak. Ketika tiba-tiba berhenti makan, tentu saja ibumu khawatir." Renee berkata sambil mengangkat Potato di depan Serena. "Ayolah, minta maaf pada ibumu."
Serena menatap Potato dengan mata merah.
Dia bicara ingin memukulnya, tapi sendal jepit yang digenggamnya tidak bergerak satu inci pun.
Awalnya, Potato tidak menyadari bahwa dia telah melakukan kesalahan, tapi setelah penjelasan sabar Renee, dia akhirnya mengalah dan menyerah pada Serena.
"Bu, maafkan aku. Aku tidak akan mengulanginya lagi." Dia mengeong dengan nada tinggi yang sengaja dibuat imut. "Tolong jangan marah padaku, oke? Aku berjanji akan baik-baik saja dan memakan semua makananku mulai sekarang."
Meskipun Serena tidak bisa mengerti apa yang dikatakan Potato, dia bisa mendengar bahwa kucing itu sedang mencoba merayunya dan ingin kembali mendapatkan hati baiknya.
Dia mendengus pelan. "Begitu dong."
"Ayo, hibur dia," bisik Renee sambil menyerahkan Potato.
Serena dengan cepat melempar sendal jepitnya ke samping dan menangkap Potato.
Potato segera menggosokkan kepalanya yang berbulu ke tubuhnya.
Senyum muncul di bibir Renee saat melihat pemandangan itu. "Kamu benar-benar harus menjaga pola makannya mulai sekarang, ya," ingatnya pada Serena sambil tersenyum. "Dan pastikan dia lebih banyak berolahraga. Dia sedikit kegemukan."
"Akan kulakukan," Serena langsung setuju, matanya penuh rasa terima kasih. "Renee, terima kasih banyak untuk hari ini. Kamu sangat membantu. Aku akan mentraktir kalian semua makan malam besok sebagai ucapan terima kasih."
Karena dia adalah teman Sylvia, Renee tidak menolak. "Baiklah, kami terima dengan senang hati."
Keesokan harinya, Renee dan Michelle pergi menemui mereka untuk makan malam.
Setelah makan malam, saat mereka bersiap untuk pergi, Serena tiba-tiba menyerahkan sebuah kotak beludru hitam kecil kepada Renee.
"Ini hanya tanda kecil penghargaanku. Terima kasih sudah membantuku menyelesaikan masalah besar."
"Aku hargai niatmu," kata Renee, dengan lembut mendorong kotak itu kembali sambil tersenyum. "Tapi tidak perlu hadiah. Kamu kan teman Summer, jadi tidak usah formal."
Saat Sylvia mendengar ini, matanya berbinar seperti dipenuhi cahaya bintang, senyum hangat dan gembira menyebar di wajahnya.
Dia tersentuh.
Bertemu Noel Lee adalah kemalangannya.
Tapi bertemu Renee adalah keberuntungan terbesarnya.
"Summer, kamu melamun?" tanya Serena sambil melambaikan tangan di depan wajah Sylvia.
Sylvia tersadar. "Ada apa?"
"Renee dan Michelle sudah pergi," kata Serena. "Mereka baru saja pamit padamu, tapi kamu tidak menjawab."
Pipi Sylvia memerah karena malu. "Aku tadi sedang memikirkan sesuatu."
Dia segera mengeluarkan ponselnya untuk mengirim pesan ke Renee di WeChat, memintanya untuk mengirimkan kontak Michelle juga.
**
「Dua hari kemudian.」
Keluarga Renee pindah ke Villa 8 di Eastgate Villa.
Villa itu memiliki total enam belas kamar. Lantai pertama dirancang hanya dengan dua kamar, sementara lantai dua dan tiga masing-masing memiliki tujuh kamar.
Salah satu kamar di lantai pertama adalah kamar hewan peliharaan, dan yang lainnya dibiarkan kosong.
Lantai dua memiliki tiga ruang belajar: satu untuk Renee, satu untuk tugas sekolah Zane dan Jasmine, dan satu lagi untuk penggunaan umum.
Empat kamar lainnya adalah kamar tidur besar dengan lemari pakaian dan kamar mandi pribadi.
Keluarga berenam itu pas di lantai dua, jadi seluruh lantai tiga digunakan untuk kamar tamu.
"Rumah ini luar biasa!" seru Dalton Jenson sambil tenggelam ke dalam sofa kulit yang empuk. Dia menengadahkan kepalanya untuk mengagumi lampu gantung kristal mewah yang mempesona, tersenyum lebar.
Rhea Dempsey juga menghela napas, "Aku masih merasa ini tidak nyata, seperti sedang bermimpi."
"Aduh, aduh..." Dalton Jenson tiba-tiba berteriak sambil memegangi pahanya.
Renee dan Diana serentak melemparkan tatapan bertanya ke arahnya.
"Ayah, ada apa?"
Dalton Jenson menarik napas karena kesakitan. "Ibumu mencubit pahaku."
Rhea Dempsey menjelaskan dengan penuh keyakinan, "Aku hanya mencubitmu untuk melihat apakah aku sedang bermimpi."
Dalton Jenson memelototinya. "Lalu kenapa kau mencubit pahaku?"
Rhea membalas, "Apa kau tega kalau aku mencubit pahaku sendiri?"
Dalton Jenson: "Tentu saja tidak."
"Nah, itu dia," kata Rhea sambil memutar matanya ke arahnya.
Renee mengangkat tangannya, menutupi matanya sendiri dengan satu tangan dan mata Diana dengan tangan lainnya. "Aku tidak tahan melihat ini."
Diana tertawa terbahak-bahak.
Renee menatapnya dengan terpesona. Sudah lama sejak dia melihat kakaknya tertawa sebebas ini.
Setelah beberapa saat, dia berkata dengan lembut, "Kak, tidak ada halte bus atau stasiun kereta di dekat s
Serena Tucker heard Potato let out a cry and looked to Renee for help. "What did he say?"
Renee pressed her lips together, hesitating over whether she should answer truthfully.
’Maybe I should be a little more tactful...’
"Potato says you should stop being so mean," she said.
"Me, mean? I’m only like this because he made me so angry!" Serena’s emotions escalated, her eyes welling up as she choked back a sob. "I thought he was sick! I was a nervous wreck every day, terrified something had happened to him..."
Sylvia Brooks, having never owned a pet, couldn’t quite understand what Serena was going through.
However, Renee and Michelle Fuller, who had been on poop-scooping duty for their own pets for nearly half a year, could completely empathize.
"Potato, your mom is just really concerned and worried about you." Renee reached out and scooped up the cat, who had curled into a tight ball. "You can’t talk to her like that. You’ll make her sad."
Potato was initially resistant to being held, but he was powerless against Renee’s pleasant scent.
"You usually eat so much. When you suddenly stop eating, of course your mom is going to be worried." Renee said, holding Potato up in front of Serena. "Go on, apologize to your mom."
Serena stared at Potato with red-rimmed eyes.
She talked about hitting him, but the slipper clutched in her hand didn’t move an inch.
At first, Potato didn’t realize he’d done anything wrong, but after Renee’s patient explanation, he finally relented and yielded to Serena.
"Mom, I’m sorry. I won’t do it again." He meowed in a deliberately cute, high-pitched tone. "Please don’t be mad at me, okay? I promise I’ll be good and eat all my food from now on."
Although Serena couldn’t understand what Potato was saying, she could hear that he was trying to coax her and get back in her good graces.
She snorted lightly. "That’s more like it."
"Go on, cheer her up," Renee whispered as she handed Potato over.
Serena quickly threw the slipper aside and caught Potato.
He immediately rubbed his fluffy head against her.
A smile touched Renee’s lips as she watched the scene. "You really should watch his diet from now on, though," she reminded Serena with a smile. "And make sure he gets more exercise. He’s a little overweight."
"I will," Serena immediately agreed, her eyes full of gratitude. "Renee, thank you so much for today. You were a huge help. I’ll treat everyone to dinner tomorrow to say thank you."
Since she was Sylvia’s friend, Renee didn’t refuse. "Alright, we’ll gladly accept then."
The next day, Renee and Michelle went to meet them for dinner.
After dinner, as they were getting ready to leave, Serena suddenly handed Renee a small, black velvet box.
"This is just a small token of my appreciation. Thank you for helping me solve a huge problem."
"I appreciate the thought," Renee said, gently pushing the box back with a smile. "But there’s no need for a gift. You’re Summer’s friend, so you don’t have to be so formal."
When Sylvia heard this, her eyes lit up as if filled with starlight, a joyful, warm smile spreading across her face.
She was moved.
Meeting Noel Lee had been her misfortune.
But meeting Renee was her greatest fortune.
"Summer, are you spacing out?" Serena asked, waving a hand in front of Sylvia’s face.
Sylvia snapped out of it. "What’s up?"
"Renee and Michelle left," Serena said. "They said goodbye to you just now, but you didn’t respond."
Sylvia’s cheeks flushed with embarrassment. "I was just thinking about something."
She quickly pulled out her phone to message Renee on WeChat, asking her to send over Michelle’s contact information as well.
**
「Two days later.」
Renee’s family moved into Villa 8 at Eastgate Villa.
The villa had sixteen rooms in total. The first floor was designed with only two rooms, while the second and third floors each had seven.
One of the rooms on the first floor was a pet room, and the other was left vacant.
The second floor had three studies: one for Renee, one for Zane and Jasmine’s schoolwork, and a third for general use.
The remaining four rooms were all large bedrooms with walk-in closets and bathrooms.
The family of six fit perfectly on the second floor, so the entire third floor was used for guest rooms.
"This house is amazing!" Dalton Jenson exclaimed, sinking into the soft leather sofa. He tilted his head back to admire the dazzling, luxurious crystal chandelier, grinning from ear to ear.
Rhea Dempsey also sighed, "I still feel like this isn’t real, like I’m dreaming."
"Ouch, ouch..." Dalton Jenson suddenly cried out, clutching his thigh.
Renee and Diana shot him questioning looks in unison.
"Dad, what’s wrong?"
Dalton Jenson sucked in a breath from the pain. "Your mom pinched my thigh."
Rhea Dempsey explained righteously, "I just pinched you to see if I was dreaming."
Dalton Jenson glared. "Then why’d you pinch my thigh?"
Rhea retorted, "Would you have been able to bear it if I pinched my own thigh?"
Dalton Jenson: "Of course not."
"Well, there you have it," Rhea said, rolling her eyes at him.
Renee raised her hands, covering her own eyes with one and Diana’s with the other. "I can’t watch this."
Diana was doubled over with laughter.
Renee watched, mesmerized. It had been a long time since she had seen her sister laugh so freely.
After a moment, she said softly, "Sis, there are no bus or subway stations nearby. I’ll go with you to pick out a car tomorrow."
"No need, I can just buy an electric scooter."
Diana had already considered this. It was about a nine-kilometer ride from the villa complex to the nearest subway entrance on an electric scooter. If she rode fast, she could get there in a little over ten minutes.
"Just listen to me." Renee took her hand and explained, "The main thing is, it’s not safe to carry the kids on an electric scooter."
"That’s true," Rhea chimed in. "Bella, you have to listen to Renee on this. Your dad and I will pay for the car."
Diana bit her lip, feeling both touched and guilty. "Mom, there’s no need. I have some savings of my own, and with what Renee gave me before, it should be enough to buy..."
Renee suddenly realized something. She dug her fingernails into her palm, her chest feeling tight.
’I made a mistake.’
’I hurt her pride.’
Renee tilted her head to look at Diana’s profile and apologized silently in her heart: ’Sis, I’m so sorry.’
She didn’t hear any of the conversation that followed. She was thinking, ’If I had just told Jaden Forrest right after I ’awakened’ that Diana was the person he’d been looking for all along...’
’Ugh, so frustrating.’
Renee’s thoughts were a tangled mess.
She left the living room and went back to her room, tossing and turning on the soft mattress.
’At first, I was afraid Jaden Forrest would retaliate, so I didn’t dare tell the whole truth.’
’But what about now?’
Renee thought for a long time. She still believed she should tell Diana first and let her make her own choice.
She walked out of her room and found Diana in the first-floor kitchen, preparing dinner.
Renee frowned slightly. ’We need to hire a housekeeper for this place, and soon.’
"Sis, let me." She walked up to Diana and took the kitchen knife she was using to cut tomatoes from her hand.
Diana smiled. "But Renee, you didn’t wash your hands."
Renee: "..."
She quickly let go of the knife and turned to wash her hands.
After washing her hands, Renee turned off the faucet, took a deep breath, and said slowly, "Sis, actually, there’s something I need to tell you..."
"What is it?" Diana glanced at her, confused.
Rhea Dempsey’s panting voice suddenly cut in. "Living in a villa is great, but it’s just so far from the grocery market!"
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