The children stood in line uneasily when they heard the word “punishment.” Solemnly, Roxanne swept her gaze past the three of them and remained quiet for a while. Then she pointed at the wall. “All of you will stand there for fifteen minutes.” Although the boys were usually well-behaved, they had been punished before. They made their way to a corner and stood facing the wall. Estella moved exceptionally slowly.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtWhen Roxanne saw that, she furrowed her eyebrows. Thinking that Estella still thought herself innocent, she urged, “You'll need to stand there longer if you walk this slow.” Upon hearing that, the girl gathered the courage to turn back to Roxanne. Roxanne was puzzled. Is the punishment too severe? Is that why she’s looking at me? Aggrievedly, Estella asked, “If | accept the punishment, will you still like me, Ms. Jarvis?” The girl's question melted Roxanne’s heart into a puddle. “If you learn from your mistake and don’t repeat them, I'll continue to like you, just as | always did.” Playvolume00:00/00:00TruvidfullScreen Estella’s eyes lit up as she promised, “Okay, Ms. Jarvis! I'll definitely behave myself!” She quickened her pace and arrived next to the boys. “I'm sorry. It’s my fault for getting us punished.” Archie and Benny shook their heads. “We're best friends, and best friends share the joys and sorrows in life together!” When she heard that, Roxanne wasn’t sure if she should laugh or cry.
Those in the know would know that they were being punished, but those not in the know would think they had done something incredible.
As Roxanne gazed at Estella’s back, she fell into deep thought. The punishment was something | cup with after careful deliberations. While | don’t think Lucian will consider my punishment a little too much, | still feel uncertain about it since | don’t technically have the right to educate his child. This is the best harmless solution | could conjure. When he arrives, | still need to explain the situation to him. Essie does tend to go to extremes. | wonder if it’s because it’s her nature or a symptom of her autism. She'll require a psychologists intervention if it’s the latter.
Fifteen minutes later, the children’s punishment was over.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmUpon glancing at the time, Roxanne realized it was almost noon, yet Lucian still hadn't shown up. When is he going to pick up Essie? The children were similarly nervous.
Archie turned to Estella, looking serious. “Since Mr. Farwell hasn't arrived, let's play hide and seek!” Her desire to play that gdidn’t slip his mind.
When she heard that, she lowered her head apologetically at him. “I'm sorry for lying to you earlier, Archie. | just wanted to...” She had only used that excuse to hide her wrongdoing.
But after being lectured by Roxanne, she knew what she had done wrong It was then Archie realized what she meant. Upon glancing at Roxanne, who was busying about in the kitchen, he turned back to Benny and Estella. “We still need to keep Mr. Damaris away from Mommy, but we can’t act rashly.” The other two nodded in agreement.