Michael had already spent so much money on my family, so there was no way I’d let him deal with the issue at hand.
A few hundred thousand meant nothing to him, but for common folks like me, it was an enormous debt. I had already owed him so much, and I didn’t want that debt to become bigger.
“Do you honestly think that you can handle this on your own? If I’m not mistaken, you’ve already spent all your savings, haven’t you?”
Michael wasn’t angry about my rejection at all. He knows me so well! He actually guessed it right, and I have spent all my savings.
I tilted my head down in shame when faced with his nonchalant gaze. I didn’t know what to say because I truly couldn’t afford to make ends meet with the money I had on me at that moment. Despite that, I still didn’t want to owe him more.
“I’ll come up with something. Please don’t involve yourself in the matter.”
I looked into his eyes and had a straight face on when I spoke.
I didn’t want Michael to get involved in the matter because I didn’t want to owe him more than I already had, and I didn’t want my family to keep asking him for money.
Michael never owed us anything, and my family had no right to keep asking him for money.
He frowned a little after hearing what I said, but he never replied. I guess his silence means that he’s agreed to stay away.
“Anna, you don’t need to keep shouldering all the responsibilities yourself. I can help you out financially.”
Michael was quiet for a long time before he spoke up. His words touched my heart, and I appreciated the way he could always lift me up when I was at my lowest.
I understood that my family had a lot of issues and knew that it would be very difficult for me to shoulder it all on my own. However, it was still my family’s matter, and I couldn’t drag him into it.
“There’s no need for that. My parents will just become greedier if you keep helping them out. They will ask for more money as time goes on.”
It would not be inappropriate to call my family members worthless bloodsucking parasites. All they ever did was daydream about how they could get rich without working. They never thought about making an effort to lead a fruitful life.
“The same applies to you, doesn’t it? If you want to solve the issue within your family, then you must ignore them and stop letting them take advantage of you.”
Michael was a smart man, and he understood all that as well. He could even analyze the pattern clearly. Unfortunately, I couldn’t bring myself to ignore my family completely.
As a member of the family, I simply couldn’t stand idly by and watch as they suffer. I especially couldn’t ignore my parents, who were getting older. They were from a small village and had little income.
“My parents are getting older, and I don’t want them to suffer.”
I had my head down and spoke calmly. After that, I kept quiet.
Truth was, my parents wouldn’t need much money. They were two elders who lived in the village, so how much could they really spend? The only problem was that my stupid brother had a knack for dragging the entire family down with him.
We wouldn’t be in that terrible state if he weren’t addicted to gambling. There were times when I truly hated him, but it didn’t matter what I said or yelled or scolded. Nothing worked on him because he never listened.
I only prayed that he had learned his lesson after his debtors broke both his legs. Hopefully, the pain and the heavy price will change him into a better person.
“It’s late. You should go shower and rest.”
No one dwelled on that topic. Michael got up and walked to the bedroom after saying his piece.
I sighed as I watched his figure walk away. After that, I followed him along.
I felt much better after the shower. When I got out of the washroom, I saw Michael lying on the bed and swiping on his phone. There was no saying what he was looking at.
I didn’t say anything. Instead, I laid down beside him right away and prayed that the man would let me rest that night. I worked all day and went to look for a place to rent after I clocked off. Hence, I was exhausted and had no intention of dealing with him.
Michael put his phone away after I went to bed. He turned around and held me in his arms. I stiffened. He’s not thinking about doing something dirty tonight, is he?
I closed my eyes as I tensed up. That was not a good night, and I truly wasn’t in the mood for anything romantic.
To my surprise, he was simply letting me rest in his arms. He had his other arm hold me, but he did nothing else.
I opened my eyes then. All I saw was that he had already closed his eyes and was going to sleep. That got me to sigh a long breath of relief. I guess the guy still has a conscience. He knows that I am tired, so he didn’t ask for anything.
I closed my eyes and went to bed. It was nice. I had always slept better when I was in his arms.
Unfortunately, the rare peace didn’t last long. My mom was waiting for me on the ground floor of my workplace the following afternoon. I didn’t know that she was there and had been waiting for a long time until it was time for me to go have lunch.
When lunchtime came, my colleagues left one after another. I got ready to leave as well. However, Michael texted me just before it was time to clock off. He asked me to go to the parking lot.
When I got to the ground floor, I saw my mom sitting on the stairs outside the entrance. I frowned a little upon seeing her, but I walked to her, anyway.
“Mom, what are you doing here? How did you know this is where I work?”
I didn’t know how my mom found this place, but I had a bad feeling about it. She must be here to ask for money again.
“Like I have a choice? I had to come here. Honestly, how long has it been since you went to the hospital? Do you still remember that the man lying on the hospital bed is your brother? Do you even still take us as your family?” scolded my mom. She was quick to get angry when she saw me.
I was angry when I heard her scolding me like that, but I didn’t say anything. We were at the entrance of the company, and there were many spectators. If we got into a fight, it would affect my reputation at work.
“Mom, why are you here?”
I had to suppress the anger within me and look at my mother when I asked that question as calmly as possible.
“What else could I have come for? I came to ask you if you have found a place to rent. Steven is getting discharged on the day after tomorrow,” said my mom while frowning at me.
“Mom, it’s not that easy to find a place to rent in a city like this. I tried looking for one after I clock off yesterday, but everything is just too expensive, and nothing fits. I’ll go search again later,” I promised.
I worried that my mom would think that I didn’t work hard on it, so I hurriedly explain myself.
“Too expensive? I bet you’re deliberately making it so that your brother can’t have things easier. He’s a patient now, so what’s wrong with spending some extra money to get him a better place? Are you really that stingy?”
