Chapter 598: What Kind Of Person You Are (part one)

"Justin, don't you think you're being too dramatic?" Unlike usual, Daisy wasn't very enthusiastic about indulging her son today. As the buildings and trees along both sides of the road quickly moved backward and disappeared from the rear view mirror, she felt a touch of sadness filling up her chest. She thought about Brian, and wondered how he was doing now. Would he ever treat her the same after what she had done to him the other night? Learning the truth about her mother's death was too much for her to handle and she had lost it. Although she never meant to, she hurt his feelings. She only hoped that he wasn't too upset with her and would let her explain everything to him when the time was right.

"Er... I was only saying what I felt, all right? You really think that was too dramatic? Okay, maybe I should keep my mouth shut for a while." As Justin spoke, he turned to look out of the car window. Soon, his attention was drawn to the other cars on the street. Resting his elbows on the window frame, he started to make faces at the people in other cars driving by, amusing himself more than them. Seeing that he was perfectly content to play by himself, Daisy relaxed and smiled at him. The car became a lot more quiet now that Justin wasn't talking. Letting out a sigh, Daisy gathered her thoughts and focused her attention back on driving. Since she was not familiar with Tea Fragrance and its surroundings, she needed to use the car navigation to get there.

Tea Fragrance was a coffee house far away from the hustle and bustle of the city. Despite its location, Daisy was also curious about why the owner would give the place a name that didn't quite describe the cafe at all. People could have mistaken it for a tea house. But apart from that, the place looked perfectly comfortable and elegant. It was very suitable for someone who wanted to indulge in an afternoon's solitude.

With Justin's hand in hers, Daisy walked slowly towards the house. As they stepped into the cafe, the quietness of the place became more intense, sending a chill up Daisy's back. She immediately had a bad feeling about the place, but couldn't exactly tell why. From left side to right, she studied the entire coffee house and tried not to leave out any suspicious spots, but found nothing unusual. Finally, she shook her head with a sigh and gave up, telling herself that she was just being paranoid. After all, what could go wrong in a public place in broad daylight?

"Mommy, are you okay?" asked Justin, his brows furrowing. His hand hurt because Daisy's grip had gone tight. It was obvious that she was nervous. Justin knew that it was one of his mother's habits to unconsciously clench her hands whenever she got nervous. Sometimes, she got so overwhelmed by her emotions that she forgot she was holding something, like today. The same thing happened when she brought him to see his father at the office.

"Oh. Yes, I'm fine. I'm sorry. Did I hurt you again?" Daisy hurriedly bent down to check her little boy's hand. It had turned red from her hard squeeze. A surge of regret rose up inside her. She pulled him near and gave him a hug. When their eyes met again, Justin's face broadened into a warm smile and he said, "No, it doesn't hurt at all." He meant what he said. After all, he was no longer a child and he wasn't bothered by such mild discomfort. He remembered his father telling him once that he was a big boy now and should shoulder some responsibilities. One of the things his father mentioned was to help him protect his mother for the rest of their lives. Since then, he'd decided to be a man and not to let small things get to him. A little pain in his hand was nothing to him.

A few steps away from them, Mary sat at a dimly lit table. She had arrived early and had been waiting for Daisy for quite a while. As the one who set up the whole meeting, she was anxious to begin it and see how her brilliant plan would play out. For the twentieth time, she poked her head out to see if Daisy had arrived. This time, she wasn't disappointed.

"I thought I told you to come alone. Why do you bring this little brat with you?" Mary's face lit up when she saw that Daisy had come, but the sight of Justin tagging along irritated her. She couldn't help blurting out her complaints.

Yes, I bring a kid with me. What's the big deal? I'm only here to take a few things. I have no intention of staying here any longer than necessary, so you might as well deal with it," Daisy said with a sneer. Stepping forward, she took Justin to sit on the chairs opposite Mary. Though she acted indifferently just now, a flicker of doubt crossed her mind. Why did Mary care so much about her not coming alone? Was she planning something?

Thinking of the great disparity of power between them, she decided that Mary wouldn't dare to play any tricks on her because she wouldn't be able to handle the consequences. Mary broke the silence with a burst of laughter. "Oh, Daisy. You haven't changed at all. Still so naive! You know me. Do you really think that I'm that easy to deal with? And that I will easily give you what you want without getting anything in return?"

A wicked look flashed in her eyes as she finished her words. 'It's actually a good thing that Justin is here too. It's about time that I teach him a lesson and have him realize the consequences of having no respect for others. He will never dare to disrespect me again after today!' Mary thought to herself, thrilled by her genius plan that she was about to carry out.

"Old woman, a fly just fell into your big mouth," Justin said. He was so serious that a passer-by would have believed that he was just an innocent boy voicing out his observations.

"You brat, who are you calling old woman? Have you ever seen an old woman as young and beautiful as I am? And don't interrupt adults when they're talking; that's rude. Haven't your parents taught you any manners?" scolded Mary.

She always hated Justin. Every time they met, he would always find a way to humiliate her. She hadn't been able to fight back because Edward was also present on those occasions. She didn't want him to think that she couldn't get along with children. But today, she practically owned the place and no one could stop her from getting her revenge.

"My manners are reserved for people who deserve my respect. As for you, I don't think it's necessary. My parents have nothing to do with how I treat people. It depends on what kinds of person they are."

Justin could be very protective, especially when it came to his parents. If Mary hadn't involved his parents and only messed with him, he would have let it pass. But deliberately hinting that his parents hadn't done a good job in raising him was absolutely unacceptable. He fought back mercilessly with cutting words.

"What? What kind of person I am? With that attitude towards me, your elder, what kind of person you are then? You have some nerve talking about that with me!" retorted Mary. 'I'll let you talk whatever nonsense you want for now. I'll teach you real manners later. The very first thing I'll make you understand, little devil, is that your mouth is for eating and not for offending people,' Mary thought as she shot a sardonic smile at Justin.

Instead of getting intimidated by her words and hard stare, Justin showed even more confidence. "I only know that we are not the same kind. Please don't mistaken one thing for another. Your criticism of my character is inevitable because your lack of depth hinders you from making good judgments, so I don't blame you. How can I blame someone for something that she doesn't know she lacks? I'm only asking you not to put yourself in the same category as me. We are from different worlds. As a woman of your age, I'm surr you can understand that. Unless, something you can't accept.