The Eye Of The Storm
When Sasha woke up the next morning, she realized the boy was nowhere to be found on the bed.
“Little Ian?”
She hurriedly crawled out of the bed and exited the bedroom.
The new unit was not far from Leah and Ambrose’s unit—they were in the same building but on
different floors—so she guessed that they must have invited the boy to their place.
To her surprise, when she reached the old couple’s dorm, Leah was surprised to see her.
“I didn’t see him this morning. I was just about to ask if you want to come for breakfast too,” she said, a
plate of toast in her hands.
Sasha frowned.
He’s not here?
Worry started to seep into her heart, and she quickly turned around to look for him.
Leah followed her.
However, when she returned to her dormitory unit, she spotted her son. He had a small paper bag in
his hands as well as a loaf of bread. There were two glasses of hot milk on the dining table as well.
Sasha asked, “Little Ian, where did you go? What are these?”
“Mommy, I bought these downstairs. Come and eat!”
The boy excitedly waved at his mother, motioning her to enter the unit.
Sasha was dumbfounded.
So he went out to buy breakfast?
Why didn’t he tell about it? Moreover, he has bought a lot. How did he bring them all back?
Confused, Sasha took slow steps into the dorm as Leah followed her in.
“Little Ian, did you go to the cafeteria alone? How did you bring these back by yourself?” Leah
wondered out loud once she was inside the dorm.
Almost immediately, the smile on Ian’s face dropped, and an emotionless look replaced it.
He had no intention to reply her at all.
Leah was speechless, and Sasha hastily answered on his behalf, “Maybe the staff at the cafeteria
helped him bring them up. Mrs. Pence, my apologies to have disturbed you early in the morning.”
It was only then Leah glanced at the other woman and the boy before retreating from the room.
A while later, Ian said, “Mommy, ignore her from now on.”
“What?”
Sasha, who had just sat down, was taken aback by her son’s sudden request.
“What’s the matter? Don’t you like her? She told me you’ve always had meals in her house and that
she has always taken good care of you. Why are you asking me to ignore her all of a sudden?”
Sasha could not wrap her mind around the matter.
Although the boy was not as good-tempered as Matteo and Vivian, his father had taught him to be well-
mannered. Thus, Ian rarely expressed his dislike for someone so honestly.
Sasha wondered what Leah had done.
However, just as her question was out of her mouth, the boy fell silent again.
Perhaps he had sensed that it was inappropriate of him to voice his thought. Despite not wanting his
mother to speak to the other older woman, he did not elaborate it to Sasha.
Sasha quietly watched him instead of forcing him to continue.
Even after Ian was brought to the base—she stayed in the dorm—she was still ruminating about his
words.
“Sasha, the boy has gone to the base, hasn’t he? Let’s go grocery shopping.”
Just as she was deep in her thoughts, a familiar voice sounded outside. It was Leah, inviting her to a
grocery shopping trip.
Sasha cocked her head to the side, contemplating.
In the end, she agreed to it and went to grab a bag. “All right, Mrs. Pence. Give me a second.”
Half an hour later, in a mini mart.
As the researchers were the only ones who lived long-term in the base, the supply and demand in the
area were low. Therefore, they only had a small mart that sold groceries and daily necessities.
Sasha and Leah stepped into the mart.
“Oh my, the vegetables are quite fresh today. Look at the variety. Sasha, why don’t you buy these fresh
shrimps? Your boy loves to eat shrimp rolls.”
“Is that so?”
Sasha walked over to Leah.
Indeed, the shrimps in the seafood section were fresh.
“The spinach is fresh too. So are the pumpkins. Maybe you can get a pumpkin to make pumpkin pie for
him.”
Leah seemed excited as she happily pointed at all the fresh vegetables to Sasha.
At the start, Sasha thought nothing of her enthusiastic introductions. However, as time went by, her
expression darkened. Nearing the end, when Leah suggested for her to buy the tomatoes, she shot a
glare at her.
“Mrs. Pence, is this what you used to make for Little Ian?”
“Yes. He’s a kid, so it’s not surprising that he’ll like these, especially shrimp rolls. He always eats a
huge portion of that dish when he comes over, so I’ll always prepare a large amount for him,” Leah
said, beaming.
At that, the last trace of friendliness in Sasha’s eyes disappeared.
“Mrs. Pence, what research do you do at the research institute?” Sasha suddenly asked.
Leah tensed up for a second.
“Me? I’m not as great as Ambrose. I only research basic things.”
“Then you must be good at chemistry and biology, right? I heard that the researchers at the institute are
all science students. For you to work here, I’m sure you must be great in either subject,” Sasha
mentioned as a look of admiration crept over her face.
62fb1bb41dcb31934bd49bda