When fate plays its hand
hand 555

Chapter 0555

Miranda hurriedly dressed. She slipped on her winter jacket, raced down the stairs, and wrapped a scarf around her neck.

When she reached the ground floor, she was greeted by a swarm of kids already outside, armed with their snow gear to play in the snow. This first snowfall of the winter was a rare delight.

Standing beneath a snow–laden tree, Paul watched her with a smile. Miranda’s eyes lit up, and she dashed toward him.

As she got closer, she noticed a round bucket at his feet filled with snowball makers, tiny shovels, and small plastic rakes. There were even a few snowball makers in different fun shapes.

“These are…” She swallowed hard.

“Feel free to have fun with them,” Paul replied.

Miranda said exasperatedly. “But I’m not a child anymore.

Two minutes later, she was gleefully waving at him. “Dr. Jefferson! Look at this duck. Can you believer how real it looks? And this little dinosaur is so cute.

“Dr. Jefferson, can you use that tiny shovel to scoop up some clean snow from over there? I want it to be totally white without any gray stuff.

“Dr. Jefferson…” she called out again. “Dr. Jefferson…”

Miranda was bubbling with excitement. As she played, curious neighbors cast bewildered glances her

way.

What could they expect from someone who came from the South? Only a Southerner truly understood the wonder of a heavy snowfall. After all, she was having a blast.

Paul watched her play. He occasionally followed her instructions as he darted around like a devoted sidekick. Despite everything, he felt genuine happiness.

At that moment, Silas scratched his head anxiously in the lab. “What time is it? Why hasn’t Paul shown up yet? Two sets of data went wrong yesterday, and we need him to fix them.”

Bryan looked surprised. ‘Dr. Quinton, are you waiting for Dr. Jefferson?”

“Yeah. Why?”

“Well… he took the day off,” Bryan replied.

“Took a day off? When did he request that? Why wasn’t informed?”

Bryan hesitated before saying, “Dr. Jefferson sent an email late last night. He said… you’d be responsible for the lab work while he was away.”

Silas‘ jaw dropped in disbelief.

It was early morning, and the day was already off to a chaotic start.

Chapte 0555-

+25 BONUS

Sandy walked over to the window. “The first snow of the winter is beautiful. It would be great to see it in Old City.”

Bryan shrugged. “Forget it. I tried to snag tickets last night on the app, but I couldn’t get any.”

“Oh, Bry! A snow date in the Old City? You’re really stepping up your game!”

“Heh! I’ve seen so many articles and big production videos online about it, plus all the influencers posting their pics. I figured I’d join in on the fun,” he said.

“Are you taking Elizabeth with you?” Sandy asked.

“Yeah. What’s the point of going alone? It’s way more fun with someone else.”

Sandy thought for a moment. “Then, you better practice your photography skills.”

Bryan replied thoughtfully, “I’ve been working on that. I’ve been watching a ton of tutorial videos lately.”

She was teasing him but was surprised to see him already ahead of the game. She gave him a thumbs–up, but her eyes held a hint of knowing sympathy.

He was too busy grinning like a fool to notice anything amiss.

Sandy sighed and thought maybe it was for the best.

“Going to the Old City? Now?” Miranda blinked.

After playing in the snow for half an hour, her gloves were soaked, and she had to remove them. She continued for a few more minutes, but soon her fingers grew cold and stiff.

Despite her pleas, Paul insisted she was done playing. In the end, he confiscated her snow–playing tools.

Miranda raised an eyebrow, taken aback. He knew how to handle her.