Chapter 249: Sister, You Don’t Like Mr. Crawford Anymore?
Dominic Crawford clasped his head in his hands. "It’s not the stuff I care about..."
"I know you don’t care about the stuff." Nathan Thorne looked at Dominic Crawford, exasperated. "But she’s gone. She’s already found someone new! Does what you care about even matter anymore? You care about her, but does she care about you? There’s no point caring about her anymore, so of course you should care about your things! Are you stupid? How did I never realize you were like this!"
The more Nathan Thorne spoke, the angrier he got, until his face was flushed with rage.
Seeing Nathan so furious, Dominic Crawford was at a loss. He looked back at Nathan, completely bewildered.
Sierra Sullivan, watching this from the side, almost burst out laughing.
This was classic Nathan Thorne, getting furious over someone else’s problems.
Yet the person at the center of it all just looked bewildered, as if he had no idea what was happening.
’Faced with a situation like this, the best thing to do is stay out of it.’
Just as Sierra was thinking this, Jayce walked over to Nathan and gently patted his shoulder.
"Look at you. It’s his stuff, not yours. He’s not even worried, so why are you so worked up?"
"I—"
Dominic Crawford wanted to explain.
But after uttering that single word, he clamped his mouth shut again.
He didn’t know what to say.
He knew, of course, that Nathan Thorne was genuinely looking out for him and truly had his best interests at heart.
But he also really didn’t want to go to Joy and ask for his things back.
Seeing Nathan so angry, he felt a pang of guilt. He wanted to apologize and comfort him, but he didn’t know how to begin.
Most importantly, he was afraid that if he opened his mouth, Nathan would just tell him to go get his things from Joy...
Looking at Dominic Crawford’s anguished face, Sierra Sullivan understood him, but she also couldn’t help but feel frustrated by his lack of fight.
Sierra took a deep breath. "You were waiting here for us, weren’t you?"
’If he wanted to be miserable, he could have easily been miserable alone at home.’
’Dominic Crawford wasn’t the type to put his pain and weakness on display for strangers.’
’For him to be squatting here, there was clearly only one reason: he was waiting for them.’
Dominic Crawford nodded. "Yes..."
"Then why were you waiting for us?" Sierra continued to ask.
’You always have a reason for doing something.’
Dominic Crawford raised his head and looked into Sierra Sullivan’s eyes.
Her eyes were placid, revealing no emotion.
Under her gaze, Dominic Crawford felt his own heart begin to calm.
"I just... I’m feeling awful, and I wanted to talk to someone."
"You didn’t want us to help you with anything?" Sierra pressed.
’Sierra knew, of course, that it wasn’t exactly nice to keep pressing him like this.’
’It was a bit aggressive.’
’But since this was already happening, Sierra hoped to resolve it as quickly as possible.’
’Beating around the bush and hesitating would only make things more troublesome.’
’It was better to just get the unpleasant words out of the way now.’
This time, Dominic Crawford didn’t answer right away, lowering his head instead.
He was clearly hesitating.
Sierra didn’t press him. She just waited quietly.
After a moment, Dominic Crawford finally looked up.
"I want you to help me convince Joy. I really can give her the life she wants. I’ll work hard!"
Nathan Thorne, who had only just calmed down, raised his foot to kick Dominic Crawford the moment he heard those words.
But halfway through the motion, Nathan forced himself to change direction, kicking the wall hard instead.
"Fuck."
Nathan’s curse was like a hard slap across Dominic Crawford’s face, causing it to instantly flush crimson.
Looking at Dominic Crawford’s beet-red face, Sierra Sullivan gave a silent little laugh. "I can’t help you with that."
’It’s not like she was crazy.’
’And even if she were, there’s no way she would try to persuade Joy Warren.’
Dominic Crawford glanced at Sierra, not as tense as he had been a moment ago.
"Actually... after I said it, I already guessed what your answer would be. But I still feel a lot lighter. Thank you. I’m sorry for all the trouble I caused you guys today. It won’t happen again."
Dominic Crawford’s apology seemed quite sincere.
After apologizing, he turned, went into his room, and gently closed the door.
Nathan Thorne stared at the closed door, dumbfounded.
"What... What was that supposed to mean?"
"He was the one waiting here for us!"
"He dumps all his problems on us, gets us all worked up, and then he just waltzes back into his room like nothing happened!"
"Who does that?"
Jayce looked at Nathan helplessly. "Well, what did you want him to say to you? What could he have said?"
"He could have—"
Nathan’s voice trailed off, and his expression froze.
It was obvious that he, too, didn’t quite know what to say next.
Sierra stepped forward. "Alright, don’t overthink it. His relationship problems are his own business; we shouldn’t have gotten so involved in the first place. It’s getting late, and you’re tired. Go home, take a shower, and get some rest. Come over for breakfast tomorrow morning."
"Nah." Nathan refused this time. "I’m heading straight home when I wake up tomorrow! But I should be back in the evening. We can all have hot pot then! It’s been so long since I’ve had hot pot! I’m dying for it!"
After being locked up with so many people for so long, forget hot pot, they couldn’t even eat anything remotely decent.
It was one thing not to think about it, but now that the idea was there, the craving was maddening.
Sierra Sullivan was also quite fond of hot pot.
Mostly because it was convenient. You just prepare the various ingredients, and you can cook them right at the table.
After settling on the plan, Nathan Thorne went back to his own place.
Sierra and Jayce also led Candice Tate back inside.
Closing the door, Sierra took Candice to the bathroom.
During her bath, Candice Tate suddenly asked a question.
"Sierra, you don’t like Mr. Crawford anymore, do you?"
Sierra was taken aback by the question.
But she quickly started to laugh.
’They say a child’s perception is the sharpest, and it’s absolutely true!’
’She hadn’t said a thing, but Candice could still sense how she felt.’
On this matter, Sierra didn’t lie.
"Yes, I’m a little annoyed with him right now," Sierra said honestly. "Liking someone is his choice, and I have no right to interfere with that. But to change who you are for someone, to the point where it affects your friendships and even your friends’ moods—that’s what’s really irritating."
’If Dominic Crawford hadn’t brought his issues with Joy Warren into their lives from the start, if he hadn’t let it damage his friendships or distanced himself from them for the sake of Joy and his own pride, then Sierra wouldn’t have cared what happened between them, good or bad. She certainly wouldn’t have gotten so involved.’