I've Been There Before (Grace and Caden)
Chapter98 Family

Things were the same day after day. It's time to get off work today, Gloria gave those cheques to Grace all together.

"Thank you, Gloria..." Grace thanked and didn't reject her money. She would accept it then hide it well until Caden finished his endless game. She would run away as far as she could this time.

She walked out of Gloria's office and put that bag with piles of cash and cheques from Gloria, into her cotton bag. She caressed it by her hands, "Leona, this is the key of Erhai lake. Wait for me there, I will fulfill our dreams very soon, I promise." Thought Grace. Suddenly, she noticed Leona's ash was still kept in that funeral home. "Leona, waiting for me, I will bring you to see the Erhai Lake, as well as the blue sky and white clouds!"

She decided to grab a taxi home this time, to treat herself.

The taxi dropped her at the dormitory building. Grace went off and stuffed her bag carefully in her arms. She paid and headed upstairs in a hurry.

Her building was quiet as usual. She got used to it already. She walked upstairs while searched for her key in the bag.

All of a sudden, she looked up and saw two people standing outside her door beneath the dim light. She was so surprised to see them that dropped her key on the floor.

Watching them afar in shock, Grace froze there, the time seemed to stop by this moment. She opened her mouth and tried to say that familiar words, "Mr and Mrs. James..." She whispered then lowered her head.

They were her mom and dad to be honest! However, she couldn't call them out naturally as before.

She gazed at the ground, trying to hide her face in front of them. She couldn't let them see her embarrassing moment. She held her temper, trying to be normal and calm.

After she called them "Mr and Mrs. James", things had changed. She swallowed hard and acted normally, however, her choking has exposed her uneasy heart. "Grace, how are you?" Mrs. James asked, with her watery eyes. She was still elegant and beautiful though she was becoming aged.

Grace felt sad with havoc stirring in her heart, when she heard her mother's calling.

It was perfectly quiet in this building.

Grace lowered her head even more and tried to hide her head as much as she could in her chest, although her hands jerked uncontrollably on both sides.

Jafar stared at his daughter in rage. He said nothing in silence. It was not proper to trigger a fight with his daughter at this moment in this building. Otherwise, he would slap her without a doubt!

"How could I have such a shameful daughter? She must feel shame on herself too, otherwise she wouldn't even scare to look at us!" Jafar thought.

"Mrs. James," Grace was trying to control her choking voice, tears spread out her eyes. She never imagined she could meet her parents again in such kind of condition after she went out of jail. "I'm fine..." Grace replied, holding her sob. "Grace, oh, open the door and your dad and I have something to talk to you." Mrs. James said in calm. She was not sure what was in her mind right now. Would she sad or happy, Grace didn't know.

Grace was frustrated, she bent down and picked the key up then went to the door, "Click!" The door pushed open. "Come in."

She tried her best to be polite and not raise her voice after she saw her parents. She also tried to hide her emotions well enough to be perfect and good in front of them!

On the other side, Mr. and Mrs. James didn't get her mood. They thought she might just catch a cold from her shallow voice.

"Mr and Mrs. James, I...I will get you some water." Grace became uncomfortable after entering the room, she was in a mess.

She put the bag on the table and rushed into the kitchen to get water.

The hot water in the bottle was made this morning. She found two white porcelain bowls and poured the hot water into them. Looking at the bowls, she was regretful. Why she didn't get some normal glasses before? She felt awkward at this moment.

She carried the bowls by each hand then walked back to the living room. "Please forgive me, Mr and Mrs. James, I forget to prepare some glasses at home. But don't worry, these are clean..." Hearing her words, Mrs. James felt sad and sorrowful. She couldn't believe this girl in front of her was really her precious well-educated daughter!

Grace went close to the table and she was about to place the bowls on the table, she came to a daze after raising her head. Her face faded to pale. She saw her bag was widely opened on the table. Piles of cash and cheques were revealed completely in her bag! "Grace! Tell me, where this money came from?"

Mr. James asked in a severe voice, it shocked Grace and the bowls were shaking in her hands with the hot water splitting out from time to time. Despite the water was made in the morning, it's still quite hot after the whole day. However, Grace felt nothing at this point. She just let the hot water spray onto her hands.

"Mr. James, drink some water please." She tried to calm down herself.

"Clap!" Jafar went mad and pushed the bowl away from Grace. The hot water dropped on her arms and face even neck, all over! She felt burning pain due to the hot water was soaked by the clothes. She frowned in pain.

"Jafar, what are you doing?" Mrs. James yelled then went to check Grace's arms at once, "Grace, are you alright? Let me see..."

"Deirdre! Go away! It's all your fault to spoil her as before, that's why she became like this! Look at her!" Jafar pushed his wife away to the ground rudely. "Jafar, please calm down! Let's listen to her first! No matter what she did, don't be rough to her, she's your daughter!" Grace's face turned white. She came to help her to stand up. "Hey! Get your dirty hands away from your mother!" Jafar interrupted and grabbed Grace's arms. His gesture astonished her, she froze there like a statue.

"Mr. James, please let me go... don't touch me and get your hand dirty."

Jafar argued back, pushing Grace's arm away, "Grace, stop playing tricks on us here! Tell me how did you get this money? I need an explanation!" He pointed at the bag on the table.

Grace didn't reply, she was lowering her head all the time. Mr. and Mrs. James didn't see through Grace from the very beginning. What they knew was just that Grace was their daughter as they were familiar with her from when she was born, and the documents which proved that Grace was living here.

Grace lowered her head, her hands were shaking severely. Listening to her father's scolding, she stood in the corner of the wall, she curved her lips and sneered.

"Well, Mr. Jafar. If you asked me how did I get this money, I suggested you to ask which man I got the money from, and asked me how did I get the money from the man."

Grace sneered, she knew the fact that she had been abandoned by her parents. That was the truth and she would never forget. 0000000