Chapter 497: Chapter 497: Father and Daughter
On the other side, in the hallway.
The dim yellow light splashed across the clean floor, casting shadows of anyone who walked across it, adding to a sense of uncanny gloom in the environment.
Justin Battleson leaned slightly against the wall with his arms crossed. From his angle, he could only see the side profile of Oliver Hudson, but not Charlotte Thompson, who was talking to him inside the room.
As Justin watched Oliver enter the room and the door to the sickroom closed, he suppressed an unusual look in his eyes, preparing to turn and leave.
He had done what he needed to do, so why should he make himself feel uncomfortable here?
Besides, she... probably didn’t want to see him either.
Just as he was about to turn around, there was a sudden click coming from not far away. Subconsciously, he lifted his eyes towards another room. The door was slowly being pulled open, and a tender voice came out.
"Didn’t anyone notice Annie had gone out?"
As he was speaking, the door was fully opened, and a small pink silhouette appeared in Justin’s line of sight.
It was Grace Thompson who opened the door.
The little girl had finally woken up and was as bubbly as usual. After noticing that Olivia Thompson was not in the room, she likely assumed that Annie Anne’s check-up was done, so she called her brothers to go see their godmother.
Grace turned her head after speaking and spotted the man, whose eyes were slowly falling on her.
Their eyes met, and Justin’s eyelashes trembled slightly. Looking at the little girl’s clear eyes, misted as if by a thin layer of fog, a soft spot in his heart suddenly dipped.
Grace was startled at first, but then her face bloomed into a wide smile. She ran towards Justin with her short legs, and quite familiarly, hugged his leg.
Her soft chin rested on Justin’s leg. Blinking her large eyes, she looked up at him and giggled.
Looking at her innocent smile, Justin couldn’t help but let a smile creep into his own face. He crouched down, reached out, and affectionately rubbed the little girl’s chubby face. His voice unconsciously became much softer, "Grace, you’re here too?"
At this, Grace nodded heavily, pointing back at the room she just left. Standing at the door were Cyrus Thompson and Hank Thompson, both their gazes also looking in this direction.
With a babyish tone, Grace said, "All my brothers and sisters are here."
As soon as the door opened, Chad Thompson and Jack Thompson had slipped out to find Adam Ross, leaving Justin Battleson and three children behind.
Following the direction Grace pointed to, he immediately saw two children who bore a resemblance to him.
He looked at them with complex emotions, unsure of what he was feeling.
After thinking for a few seconds, he got up, pulling Grace with him and heading towards the two children. Even Hank Thompson, who was usually jovial, quieted down as they approached, his eyes filled with apparent tension.
Even the usually unflappable Cyrus Thompson couldn’t help fidgeting with the hem of his clothes, attempting to mask his sudden nervousness.
Despite the longing in their eyes, neither of them reached out to make contact with Justin Battleson. They were even cautious of their seemingly foreign father. It wasn’t until he crouched down in front of them that their eyes, filled with a trace of panic, shifted away.
Justin naturally noticed their discomfort and defensiveness, a twinge of bitterness flashing in his eyes.