My Birthday, My Downfall novel Chapter 60

I couldn't help but laugh.

I had already gotten through all these years, and now, twenty days felt like too much?

Ethan was being stubborn, holding onto my waist.

"Back then, I could only imagine hugging you.

"Now that I've hugged you, it's so hard to endure."

I blushed at his words and pushed him away.

"That's enough! Go back and spend Christmas with your uncle and the others, I'll call you."

Ethan lifted his head and looked into my eyes.

"Then kiss me again."

I couldn't resist his gaze.

But thinking about being apart for twenty days, my heart softened again.

I raised my hand to cover his eyes and leaned down to kiss his lips.

...

After the break started, my mom was still rarely at home.

Sometimes I wouldn't see her for two or three days.

Luckily, I had already learned not to rely on anyone.

Ethan called me every day.

Sometimes for half an hour, sometimes just a few minutes.

He said I didn't miss him.

I never took the initiative to contact him.

I smiled, keeping quiet, and listened to him act spoiled.

One day, my mom unexpectedly came home early.

I was lying on the sofa reading when she walked in and asked me if I had made dinner.

I stood up to cook dumplings for her.

Then I heard her say something else.

"Tomorrow, buy some things and go to the Carter family. Let Philip pick you up."

I turned on the stove, hearing the sound of the ignition.

At the same time, I replied.

"No need. I'll just take the bus there."

My mom didn't hear clearly and raised her voice.

"What did you say?"

I didn't want to yell, so I walked out of the kitchen and repeated it to her.

"I said I'll go by myself, no need for him to pick me up."

My mom stared at me, her once beautiful eyes now lined with wrinkles.

Her gentle gaze turned into a sharp, scrutinizing stare.

I turned back to the kitchen, hearing her suddenly laugh behind me.

"Did you have a fight with Philip?"

I froze, feeling the hairs on the back of my neck stand up under her intense gaze.

"No, I just don't want to trouble anyone."

In a few more minutes, the dumplings would be done.

I turned off the heat with a snap.

I started to wonder if she was really my mom.

Had she been switched with someone else after she left me when I was five?

Why couldn't I see any trace of the love she once had for me in her anymore?

I scooped out the half-cooked dumplings and placed them on the dining table.

"So quick? What's the filling?"

I stared at her back for a while before coldly saying,

"Mom, I have nothing to do with Philip. Please don't mention it again."

But of course, my mom didn't listen to me.

While I was in my room, wearing headphones and drawing, Philip had already arrived at my house.

The lock on my bedroom door had been broken during a fight with my mom and couldn't be locked.

I was startled when Philip silently appeared behind me.

"How did you get here?"

Seeing my startled expression, Philip bitterly smiled.

"Auntie asked me to pick you up. I called your name a few times, but no one answered, so I came in to check. Sorry for scaring you."

Since we cleared things up last time, Philip and I hadn't seen each other.

In just over a month, he had lost a lot of weight.

His once rebellious aura had turned into one of desolation.