Wilson clutched his heart dramatically and said, “You’re my sister. We’re practically family now. Are you going to kick me to the curb already?”


    Aria remained silent. And she decided to ignore him.


    Just as the five of them reached the exit, they ran straight into the entire Saxon family.


    Zoe’s eyes lit up with surprise and delight. “Aria!” Aria nodded ndly.


    Wilson let out a whistle and raised an eyebrow. “Did hell just freeze over? The whole Saxon family practically gathered here. Wasn’t Lincoln supposed to be back? Did he run off again?”


    Lincoln had indeed taken off again, leaving Joseph with a pang of frustration.


    Luke’s face darkened. “What’s going on? Just say hi to all of us.”


    Wilson remained unfazed. “Dad, you’re getting worked up again. I’m just surprised. In twenty-odd years, this is the first time my family has evere to pick me up.”


    He turned to Joseph, feigning surprise. “You’re here too, Grandpa? Legs all better now?” The atmosphere instantly froze.


    Joseph looked at Aria with aplicated expression. “Thanks to your prescription. It worked wonders.”


    Aria remained perfectly serene at the mention of the prescription. The 30 million dors from that single prescription built many schools and supported countless students. Every penny was well spent.


    Silvia was the first to break the silence. “Aria, it’s been a while.”


    Aria gave a slight nod. “Yeah, it’s been a while.”


    Wilson’s


    eyes widened in disbelief as he watched the unexpectedly harmonious interaction between Aria and Silvia.


    ‘Hold up, since when did Aria and Silvia stop being mortal enemies?’ Wilson mused in disbelief.


    Before Zoe could speak, Aria cut in bluntly, “I’m leaving.”


    Owen promptly took the luggage from Wilson, gave a polite nod to the Saxon family, and said, “Mr. and Mrs. Saxon, Grandpa Joseph, we’ll be taking our leave now.”


    Joseph’s gaze lingered on the two of them. “You two…” He thought in astonishment, ‘Damn, Aria actuallynded Owen Shaw.


    Caleb caught up with Aria and Owen, then turned back to say, “Grandpa, Mom, Dad, I’ll be home tomorrow.”


    As Caleb walked away, Myrtle followed closely.


    Zoe’s eyes widened in shock. “Who is she? Is my Caleb seeing someone?”


    Wilson offered no exnation as he turned to leave. “I’m going to Aria’s too. Caleb and I will be back tomorrow.”


    Luke wondered, ‘Since when did my son get so close to Aria? After being away for so many years, with Joseph himselfing to pick him up, he goes straight to Aria’s ce the moment he returns? What kind of nonsense is this?’


    Just as Luke frowned and was about to speak, Joseph’s cane came down sharply on his leg. Luke yelped in pain. “Dad, why’d


    you hit me?”


    Joseph snapped, “It’s good for siblings to bond. Don’t you dare stand in their way.” He was utterly exasperated with his obtuse


    son.


    Joseph thought, ‘Even I, this old man, havee to my senses, so why is Luke still so clueless? It wouldn’t hurt to get on good terms with Aria.’


    Silvia hesitated for a long moment before saying, “Mom, Dad, my boss asked me to give a message to Aria. I’ll be back a bit


    With Zoe’s nod, Silvia jogged after them.


    From a distance, Joseph watched as Aria tilted her head and said something to Silvia, making her break into a smile.


    Joseph was taken aback. “Since when did Silvia and Aria get along so well?”


    Nathan was just as shocked, but when he turned to look at his mother, he found her expression unchanged, as if she’d known all along.


    Zoe exined gently, “They get along just fine.”


    Joseph thought, ‘Even Silvia can get along with Aria, so what’s Nathan’s problem?’


    Joseph cast a sidelong nce at Nathan. “You’ve been at Mandino University all this time, yet you still haven’t managed to get along with your sister?”


    Nathan clenched his fists. “I…” He thought, ‘Caleb, Wilson, even Silvia, none of them had ever harmed Aria. But I had, and that was a fact I could never escape.’


    “Well, never mind,” Joseph said, waving his hand. Leaning on his cane, he started out. “Let’s go.”


    Luke stood there,pletely baffled. He thought to himself, ‘Weren’t we here to pick someone up? Not only did we fail to bring anyone home, but even Silvia ended up leaving with them?’