A hint of tenderness flickered in Paige's eyes.

Due to her apartment being flooded, it was only logical for Rose to move into Moonlit Lake.

The next day.

It was the kids' last day before winter break. Rosalynn was in high spirits, had a quick morning meeting at the office, and left early. Rose came along.

Rosalynn drove to the flower market, ordering a bounty of beautiful blooms to be delivered to Moonlit Lake. After that, she headed to the farmers' market to pick up Hilaria's favorite fruits, veggies, and fresh cuts of meat.

Rose, as far as she could remember, had never set foot in such a lively, bustling place and stayed close to Rosalynn's side.d2

Once they had everything, Rosalynn sent Rose back to Moonlit Lake to hand over the groceries to the staff for preparation. She needed to pick up the kids.

Rose obediently did as told.

Meanwhile, Rosalynn was off to meet Paige and Trista.

Paige always had a quirky sense of ceremony.

For instance, she thought that since Trista had missed Ivy and Cory's first day of school, then she had to be there for their first winter break kick-off.

For the occasion, Paige had even prepared a brand-new outfit for Trista.

Granny Owens joined them as well. Her color had returned substantially.

The prospect of seeing the children brought her joy and seemed to lift her spirits even more.

Not long after the winter break homework was handed out, the school gates began to see the kids emerge.

Typically, little Ivy was at the front of the pack, but not today.

After waiting a bit and not seeing her, Rosalynn and Paige went in to replace her.

Soon enough, they spotted Ivy. She was standing in front of the bulletin board.

A school stuff was busy replacing last semester's ranking chart with the new one, and the top student of each grade had a prominent section all to themselves, complete with a photo. This year, without Liam's push and discipline, Ivy had slipped to fifth place.

Molly was still holding steady at first, leading by a significant margin.

The previous year, it was a girl who had taken Liam's spot at the top. Rosalynn and Paige exchanged a glance.

They saw a kind of dejection in Ivy they had never witnessed before.

"Sweetheart." Rosalynn spoke up.

Ivy started, then glanced over, her head drooping as she approached upon seeing Rosalynn, and buried her face in her arms, "Mommy, does Liam hate me?"

"Of course not. He's been so careful in teaching you and even went to Norhaven with you," Rosalynn comforted her.

"But he never replies to my messages," Ivy said, her lower lip quivering, on the verge of tears.

Rosalynn gently patted her back, unsure of the right words to console her.

Ivy was smart; the usual platitudes that might fool other kids wouldn't work on her.

"If you never see each other again, whether or not he replies to messages might not matter as much. But if you meet again, then you can just ask him why he didn't reply. Liam will have an answer for you." "We will meet again!" Ivy sobbed, "I don't want to never see him again..."

Rosalynn continued to gently pat her back. Hoping deep down that when little Ivy learned the truth about why Liam had to leave, she wouldn't resent her father.

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