Chapter 4

I had no idea how Matthew, Ryan, and Alex had found us there. But all this commotion no longer stirred much in me.

I even caught myself glancing behind Matthew, almost out of habit, curious to see if Jonathan had come too. But he hadn't.

Jonathan really didn't seem to care whether Elena stayed or left.

The three of them stood outside. No one spoke. They all had that same uneasy, lost look, like they didn't know how to start.

After all, none of them had ever humbled themselves enough to say a kind word to me or Elena. Not once.

I looked at them for a moment, then reached to close the door. The food was getting cold. It would be a shame to let Elena's cooking go to waste.

But Ryan suddenly spoke up. His voice was low, a little awkward. "Alex, say something."

Alex looked up at me. His usual swagger was gone. For the first time, he looked scared and nervous. "S-sorry."

Ryan snapped in a low voice, "Address her properly."

Alex flinched. He dropped his head and stared at his shoes. In a voice so faint that it was barely a whisper, he said, "Mom."

It had been so long since he had called me that. I even wondered if he knew who he was talking to.

Ryan reached out and yanked Alex forward, as if trying to push him in front of me.

Ryan couldn't bring himself to say a single nice word to me. So he dragged the defenseless kid over to apologize in his place.

I stepped back right away, avoiding Alex's hand as he reached out to me. Then, I frowned and signed to Elena, "Ask Ryan what he wants."

Just as Elena was about to repeat my question, a look of frustration crossed Ryan's face, and he spoke first, "There's no need for that, Hailey. We've been together for years. I've been able to read your sign language for a long time."

I had almost forgotten about the dead mute girlfriend he couldn't get over. He already knew sign language well long before he met me.

Elena turned to him. She was always gentle and kind. But now, for my sake, her voice carried a hint of disgust. "If you could understand, then did you ever really pay attention to my sister?

"Ryan, in five years, have you once ever shown her any respect or care?"

Instantly, Ryan's face froze. He stopped mid-step, right where he was about to come closer.

He couldn't deny it. He never had the patience to pay attention when I signed. Many times, when I signed to him, he would cut me off. "Can you just write it down? It gives me a headache."

Sometimes, when he got annoyed, he would just turn his head away, leaving me standing there, my hands frozen mid-air, feeling stupid.

Alex had picked that up from Ryan. Whenever I tried to teach him sign language, he'd just shut his eyes.

Then, he'd gloat, "I can't see. I can't see. Say it if you can. I swear I won't cover my ears."

They saw my embarrassment and shame as their victory.

They both clearly hated me. Yet, there they were, showing up at my door. Maybe they just couldn't handle losing their favorite punching bag all of a sudden.

After a long silence, Ryan finally spoke. It seemed to cost him something. "I was wrong. From now on, I'll... pay more attention."

He sounded like he was doing me a huge favor. Then, like he expected me to go along with it, he looked at me and said, "Let's go home. It's late. Alex has school tomorrow."

Matthew also seemed to think I would go back with Ryan and Alex. Matthew had been standing there quietly for a while.

When Matthew saw the way things were going, he couldn't wait any longer. He instantly stepped forward and looked at Elena carefully. "Mom... why don't you come back too?

"Dad's actually been worried about you lately. He's been drinking almost every day and even ended up in the ER a few times. If you come back, he'll be... really happy."

Matthew was clearly not used to saying things like that. When he finished, his face flushed awkwardly.

I didn't know where they got the illusion that Elena and I would turn back just because of a few words from them.

I raised my hands and calmly signed to Ryan. "We're done. From now on, Alex is your son. He has nothing to do with me."

Elena looked at Matthew, whose eyes were almost begging. She said quietly, "Same goes for you."

I was about to pull Elena inside when Ryan suddenly rushed forward and grabbed my arm.

Annoyed, I tried to shake him off. But then, I saw his eyes turn red and his face full of desperation.

He said, "I know you're angry about what I did to your leg that day. Look, my leg is hurt too. Just as bad as yours. Consider it payback. Is that enough?"

He hurriedly rolled up his pant leg. On his calf, a long, hideous scar was exposed. It looked terrible.

Ryan seemed genuinely panicked as he blurted out, "I wanted someone to run me over too. But none of those cowards would do it. So I had to do it with a knife."

"But the wound is really no less serious than yours. Hailey, I'm not lying. Here, feel it yourself." He grabbed my hand and tried to press it against that long scar.