Rebirth of the Billionaire's Abandoned Wife

Chapter 6: Father

Alana gazed curiously at the phone in her brother’s hand. Meanwhile, Jayden only glanced at her and said, “Go to bed. It’s already late at night.”

With that, he turned around and left. She didn’t think about them anymore and went to her bedroom. It was still the same as she left, simple and clean. After she threw her body to the bed, she quickly fell asleep out of exhaustion.

When she woke up again, it’s already morning. Feeling more refreshed, she washed herself to look presentable and prepared to go down to the first floor for breakfast. As she looked at herself in the mirror, she felt horrified to discover that there appeared to be something wrong with her skin.

On her hand, the originally fair skin had turned red and bumpy. She also felt itchy in some parts. It was quite unbearable that her mood turned irritable. She snatched the long-sleeved T-shirt and trousers and swiftly put them on.

Others already waited at the dining table when she climbed down the stairs. She quickly picked a seat beside her grandfather, away from the stepmother.

“You are finally here, Alana.” Olivia smiled at her. “I woke up a bit early to ask the chef to cook your favorite food again.”

“Sorry, I have taken a long time to come down.” Alana said, instantly realized what she was trying to discreetly imply with her words.

“You spend a lot of your time working, so it’s natural for you to feel tired. Sleeping is good to rest your body,” Jayden suddenly said and the grandfather just grunted as if agreeing with him.

“Oh, that’s right.” Olivia’s expression didn’t change. She turned to Alana and stood up. “Do you want me to pick food for you again, sweetheart?”

“No, no, it’s okay. I can do it myself.” Alana pursed her lips. Her right hand silently gripped her other hand tighter to lessen the itchy feeling. She bit her lips, and after the feeling was more bearable, she quickly picked the food that suited her taste. After receiving Jayden’s discreet glance, she also helped him pick his food. She felt funny after seeing his smug face.

They ate in silence and in no time; they finished dinner. Jayden had to go to the company, so he left shortly after. The grandfather also went back to his study, only leaving three people in the room.

Suddenly, Olivia stood up and approached Alana, putting her hand on her shoulder while saying, “Sweetheart, I have a gift for you. Wait here. I’ll pick it up from upstairs first.”

The woman walked away without waiting for her response. Alana glanced at her father, who was still sipping coffee at the table across, then quickly looked away.

Her father was quick to remarry after her mother’s death. She didn’t expect him to be alone, but the time was so quick that she just found it unbelievable. It was only nine months.

“How are you doing with your job now, Alana?” Her father asked.

“It’s okay.” She was succinct in her answer, not willing to say much. He must have heard the news, and she didn’t want to accompany him with this pretense.

“I heard that a director is interested in your script.” He continued, and didn’t give up.

“Yeah.” Alana nodded, her hands playing with the phone on her lap. “There is a director who is interested in one of my scripts.”

“That’s good…” he trailed off, then said in a serious tone. “If you encounter any trouble, don’t keep it to yourself. We are your family. We will surely support you.”

Alana was silent. At the same time, Olivia quickly arrived at their table, and she beamed at seeing their interactions. “I hope I don’t interrupt you two chatting. There must be a lot of things to catch up on since it’s been a while since you father and daughter have met.”

“It’s alright. We were just discussing a small thing.” He shook his head.

Olivia approached her and handed a small box. Alana looked at the box with not much interest, but she still accepted it.

“Don’t you want to wear it now, dear?” Olivia still had a smile plastered on her face. “I can help you put it on for you.”

She opened the small box and found a bangle inlaid with a lot of gems. The size, however, seemed a bit too small on her that she wondered if it would fit in case she put it on.

Olivia took the bangle from the book without any warning. She already gripped Alana’s hand before she could refuse. The sudden action caused her to be so surprised that she instinctively tried to retract her hand back.

“No need for trouble.” Alana shook her head and struggled to free her hand. Beneath the fabric, a sore feeling accompanied the itch on her hand.

Olivia didn’t bother to listen to her as she tried to fit the small bangle to her hand. It was to the point that she squeezed the fingers together until it hurt. As time passed, she still couldn’t put the bangle on her despite the redness that began to appear on the skin.

She was feeling more irritated now, and blurted out, “The bangle is too small, it won’t fit on my hand.”

“Oh.” Olivia stopped what she was doing, and while still clutching the bangle, she said in a weak voice. “I use the previous size to pick the bangle since I think it will look good on you. It’s me who is inconsiderate in being too hasty that I have forgotten there might be a change in size.”

“Alana, don’t act like that.” Her father suddenly spoke. “If you don’t want to wear it now, just speak to your mother.”

“I am only speaking the truth.” Alana retorted flatly, and her words seemed to have annoyed him.

“Follow me to the study. I need to speak to you.” His eyes narrowed, and he breathed out. He turned to Olivia. “Thanks for the gift, Oliv.”

The man turned around and left the room after that. There was only deathly silence, but Alana followed her father a few seconds later, only leaving Olivia in the room with an unreadable expression.

“What do you want to talk about? You are going to be late for work.” Alana asked him as soon as she entered the room, facing the man who was sitting in a chair with an impassive face.

“You need to grow up and start to learn how to appreciate other people’s kindness now.” He began, looking at her straight in the eye. Perhaps he might have misunderstood a bit that she struggled when Olivia was trying to put the bangle on her, which was why it didn’t fit.

“I just don’t want to wear that thing. It’s too small and doesn’t fit my wrist.” Alana let out a deep breath, suppressing the chaotic emotions that were gradually clouding her mind.

“She has prepared that gift especially for you. Last night, she went out and insisted on buying you something.” Her father explained further.

“I never said I didn’t accept it.” Alana furrowed her brows.

“Can you try to get along with her more?” He sighed.

“I have tried before. It didn’t work.” She paused. “But you know what, father? After she comes here, I wonder if all along, she is your only family and I was the child you picked off from the street.”

After she said that, she felt her emotions exploding and tears uncontrollably spilled from her eyes. She never liked going back home because of this. Even if she did, it was always for her brother or grandfather.

“Alana, mind your words!” He suddenly raised his voice, looking at her sharply.

She frantically wiped her tears. “Am I wrong?”

With some difficulty, she walked closer to him and peeled her long sleeve slightly, showing the bumpy skin on her hand as well as the redness on the fingers that hadn’t faded away. Olivia probably felt ashamed that the bangle didn’t fit and tried to force it no matter what.

“However, continue to turn a blind eye to me, just like you always did.” She shook her head, and muttered something to herself with a self-deprecating smile, then followed by saying, “Nevermind, forget about what you just saw.”

The father seemed a bit too stunned to react that by the time he recovered himself, Alana had walked out of the room with quick strides. He opened her mouth and his raised hand just hung in the air like that.

Meanwhile, she went to the first floor and snatched her bag. Striding towards the garage, she took out the car key her brother gave her. After she got in the car, she drove away without looking back.

She drove aimlessly for half an hour until she decided to come to a certain place. It was a lake that few people visit. Ever since she was a child, she often visited this place to calm down her emotions.

With a quiet sob, she walked to the edge of the lake and slid down there, not caring if her clothes got wet because of the water. She continued to vent her emotions there by crying, feeling very pathetic.

After a while, she dragged her body away from the water and laid down on the grass. She closed her eyes and gradually managed to control her breathing better.

“Alana?” The sudden voice sounded above her, which made her startled that she hurriedly sat down. The figure reflected in her eyes instinctively made her inch her body backward a little in shock.