Love Burned, She Rose Unscathed

His oldest son Neville took over the family business, the middle son Gorman became a top-notch lawyer, and the youngest, Owen, dedicated his life to scientific research. "Did anything happen when you visited Owen this afternoon?"

Silver frowned, speaking deliberately, "Something's off about him."

"What do you mean, 'off'?"

"When I went to drop off some food for him today, he actually asked for two portions! Two, can you believe it?!"

Uh...

Ferdinand didn't quite get it: "And? What's wrong with that?"

"My gut tells me our son might have a girlfriend!"

Why else would he ask for two portions?

Ferdinand thought it was going to be some earth-shattering news. "So, he asked for an extra meal. What's the big deal? Maybe he's planning to eat twice. Or maybe it's for a casual friend. You're overthinking it."

He got himself a cup of tea, savored the aroma before taking a sip, a picture of relaxation in stark contrast to Silver's anxious demeanor.

"You know Owen. All he does is bury himself in experiments and data. He hardly ever comes home for meals, let alone has time for dating. Besides, our son's at the age where having a girlfriend should be good news, right? You've been nagging about setting him up with someone from this family or that. Now it seems like he's taken matters into his own hands. What's there to worry about?"

Kids grow up; they're meant to spread their wings. You can't control them forever.

Not that you could if you tried.

Silver knew this to be true.

son dating some girl who

"I'm off to bed!"

done stepping on ants

to bed, early

Owen's rented place first thing in the morning

...

September mornings dawn early.

by sunlight piercing through the curtains before her alarm even

up, yawned, and

the kitchen and seeing it was about time, she headed out to the

by the fourth

heard a

in high heels and a long dress

the third floor had a habit of leaving their trash out overnight for the morning cleanup. Sometimes, it would

half the

both unsightly

because of her tall heels and unfamiliarity with

alright?" Roseanne helped

Silver started to say,

Hiss...

she look

take long for her to remember; this was the barista from the tea tasting

remembered

ladies snickered in the