Chapter 105: How could she forget
Naomi stood in the middle of the room, her mind racing, but her mouth felt glued shut. How could she have forgotten? Today was her father’s birthday. It wasn’t like her to forget something so important, especially when her father usually spent days leading up to the occasion talking about it.
He would lament about how old he was getting, grumbling about his age, and reminiscing about the good old days. But now, with the reality of the moment crashing down on her, Naomi realized she hadn’t even thought to prepare something for him. It was unthinkable.
She couldn’t believe it had slipped her mind, and yet, here she was, dumbfounded. Even though he hadn’t been the best father, only caring about his public image, he had supported her many times in shielding her from her mother’s wrath.
But before she could respond, Zylan’s calm voice cut through her thoughts.
"Oh, it seems there are two invitations," Zylan said smoothly, pulling out a smaller card from the envelope.
His voice was effortlessly cool, like a gentle breeze that carried no urgency, but Naomi knew him too well to mistake the quiet authority that came with his words. "One for lunch and another for dinner. So, what do you think? Do you want to attend both, pick one, or maybe skip them entirely?"
Naomi blinked, taken aback for a moment by the ease in his tone. She hadn’t expected him to bring this up so nonchalantly, especially not when her thoughts were still reeling from her own slip-up.
But his eyes were warm, the faintest hint of a smile tugging at the corners of his lips. The way he spoke suggested that no matter what she chose, he would support it without hesitation.
"Let’s go for both," she said before she could even stop herself. The words tumbled out, surprising both herself and, perhaps, Zylan.
She couldn’t place the reason for her choice. After all, that place—the one where they were supposed to attend her father’s birthday—had been nothing short of a living hell in the past. It had been a paradox, a place that no one would willingly return to after escaping it. But for some strange, inexplicable reason, she found herself wanting to go. She wanted to go with Zylan, to face it together—as a family.
The word "family" echoed in her mind, and for a moment, she felt the room shift. It was a word she could barely utter without pain, a word that held so much weight, so many unresolved emotions.