The Apple of My Eye
Chapter 800 Moving Out

Before Arthur brought Sheryl back home from the police station, Shirley insisted on waiting in the living room instead of sleeping in her bedroom. No matter how much Nancy had tried and persuaded her, all the effort had been in vain. Shirley was so worried about her mother that she decided to not sleep.

Suddenly, there came a sound of click from the door. Shirley noticed it and immediately ran towards the doorway. When the door opened and Sheryl came into her sight, Shirley got excited and rushed into Sheryl's arms and hugged her tightly.

"Shirley? why didn't you go to sleep yet?" In a surprise, Sheryl asked her with a warm smile on her face.

Nancy sighed and spoke, "Such a stubborn child she is! She insisted that she should wait until her mother comes home. I couldn't do anything about it".

Sheryl felt so cheerful and proud that Shirley cared so much about her even if Shirley was so young. It was always said that a daughter's love for mom signified warmth same as a cotton-padded jacket. That could not be truer, Sheryl realized in that very moment.

Sheryl stooped down, gave Shirley a reassuring smile and said, "Shirley, don't worry! Mom's fine. Now you should let Nancy take you to bed."

Her little face showed a little unwillingness. In fact, she desired to sleep with her mom tonight, but she still chose to listen to her mom at last. She nodded her head with a cute gaze and said, "Good night, mom."

"Good night, honey." Sheryl watched Shirley enter her room, then turned to Arthur and said, "Grandpa, it is quite late now. Don't stay here for too long. You should go home and get some sleep. You must be tired too."

As for Sheryl, she hadn't planned to sleep that night. She had made up her mind to move out, so she had a lot of stuff to pack. Though she hadn't found a place to move into, yet she was not at all willing to stay in this place any longer. She was even willing to book a room in a hotel for several days before she could replace a place to live in.

"I am fine." Arthur looked at Sheryl and asked thoughtfully, "Are you sure that you want to move out of here, Sher?"

"I'm very sure." Sheryl nodded and spoke to Arthur, "I am pretty sure I don't want to live here. Sue will not feel comfortable if I continue to live just opposite to her door. And, neither will I."

Then she let out a burst of wry laughter and continued, "Besides, you know how Laura has badgered me about my private life, which makes me feel disgusted. Shirley is so young, but at this age, she will know things. I don't want to ruin her childhood with such unpleasant circumstances."

She paused to sigh and went on uttering, "What's more, Shirley used to suffer from autism. In order to prevent such a nightmare from happening again, moving out is the best choice that I could make for me and my daughter."

Even in ancient China, Mencius' mother left her home three times just to safeguard his childhood. It was not a bad idea to learn from Mencius' mother and give it a try.

(*TN: Mencius' mother moved her home three times to change her son's surroundings to provide her son with a better education.)

"Indeed, it's great to change a place." Arthur slightly nodded with agreement and spoke to Sheryl, "I've told you before that you should move into my home with Shirley. I have a spacious house for you two. And again, your grandma and I both can help you take care of Shirley too. Cindy and Rick can be Shirley's good friends."

"Sorry, grandpa. I won't move to your place. I just can't do this." Sheryl interrupted Arthur, "This is my own business and I am old enough to handle this mess alone. From now on, every time I run into trouble, I should be brave enough to handle it by myself, instead of crying and turning to you for help. Besides..."

Sheryl paused and continued, "Besides, I have Nancy. She is very helpful. She can help me take care of Shirley. And, in fact, she has never failed to help me in times of worries."

"Oh, my child. What are you just talking about like this?" Arthur got frowned and mentioned, "I am your grandpa, why can't you turn to me for help? If not me, then who? Charles? Do you want to ask that guy fo help and move into his house?"

After Arthur had finished his words, a look of hesitation just crossed Sheryl's face. Apparently, she didn't know how to respond. After quite a while of silence, Sheryl looked up at Arthur and said, "I don't want his help, either."

"That's it!" After hearing what Sheryl had said, Arthur felt relieved to know that. Sheryl and Charles had been a couple but were now separated for three years. Now it was a rare opportunity for Sheryl to move on. But if she still chose to move to Charles' house at this time, this opportunity would be wasted. And, Arthur never wished this to happen.

Arthur knew what kind of person Charles exactly was.

To Sheryl, Charlie was just a stranger now. Though they had once been very close, it all had ended now. Arthur definitely hoped that Sheryl must think twice before she made up her mind about moving out.

"It is so late at night. Where do you plan to go even if you pack up all your stuff?" Arthur looked at Sheryl with concern and continued, "You are so stubborn just as your father who always wanted to take care of all his own problems by himself. But this is a bad situation; you can't stay stubborn. It will just bring more trouble for you if you reject my help."

"

Arthur gave a frown with annoyance, 'Laura is such a mean woman and she must have treated Sheryl very badly all the time.' As soon as he thought of that, he regretted not punishing Laura harder. "Grandpa, I am sure I can make it by myself. Don't worry!" Sheryl quickly responded, "If I can't replace anywhere to stay, I will stay in a hotel for a few days until I replace someplace to live. Trust me, it is just a matter of time. I will replace a place to stay soon."

"My child, how can you be so stubborn at this moment?" Arthur tried to keep smiling and urged, "I can even offer you a separate place to stay. Why do you still choose to live in a hotel with Shirley?" Arthur kept looking at Sheryl and continued, "Think over it! Since Shirley was brought back from abroad, she hardly spent a settled life. As a mother, you really want to keep living such a hard life with such a young child?"

Arthur's words made Sheryl hesitate again. To be honest, she had the stamina to face anything alone, but for her daughter, she wanted to give the best of everything to her and keep her far away from unhappiness and suffering.

"You should be cautious of Laura. The things that happened today..." Arthur stopped to not hurt Sheryl anymore and continued, "Fortunately, someone in the police station recognized you and Andy. Otherwise, we don't even know how worse this would have resulted to." Arthur gave a cold smile. "You are my granddaughter! I know you so much. You look mild and weak, but inside, you are just like a man with an impatient temperament. However, Laura is cunning and eloquent. If you try to argue with Laura, you will always lose."

Arthur let out a sigh and continued, "Your grandma and I are too old now to expect too much. We just want you live a happy life. Now that Shirley and you have suffered so much for all these years, it's time for you to settle down for a while, at least... or the sake of your grandparents, please? Accompany our two old men and just live with us."

"Or..." Arthur paused, and then said, "Or if you don't like living in my house then, you can move out later. But for now, you two can move to my home first until you replace a place to live. Is that all right?" Arthur's words and his good intention made it very hard for Sheryl to refuse any longer.

She looked at Arthur and accepted, "Well, I think you are right."

"Good, it is settled now." Arthur got very pleased and continued, "You can pack up your things tonight, and I will pick you both up tomorrow."

"Okay, Grandpa." Sheryl nodded. After she said goodbye to Arthur, Sheryl decided to start packing. Just as soon as she turned around and stepped into the door, she saw Nancy standing by the door.