Madam Jones stared straight at Sophia with a look of disgust that she did not even bother to disguise. "She set Leah up and turned her into this state.
Youâre generous enough to invite her to your birthday party and even allow her to follow you around? Arenât you afraid that this murderer will put poison in your champagne when you arenât paying attention?"
Her remarks were acid and mean, but none of them currently present thought it was too much.
In their opinion, if Sophia had crippled their perfect daughter, then they would not be looking at her with a smile on their faces either!
Jenny lowered her head, feeling even more awkward and embarrassed now. She cleared her throat, trying to speak up for her daughter but did not know how to start.
Yvette smiled and said casually, "I happen to have a cold these two days but didnât want to take my medicine because it tastes awful. Soph has always been a considerate child, she would most probably put cold medicine in my drink."
Having said that, she turned her head and looked at Sophia. "Certain cold medicines canât go with champagne. You need to pay attention or someone is going to say that youâre attempting murder again if something happens to me."
"If you don't like to take liquid medicine, then I can make you brown sugar ginger tea. I remember that you like sweet drinks," Sophia took her lead and got herself out of the embarrassing situation.
Yvette chuckled. The wrinkles at the corners of her eyes formed shallow ripples. "It must be hard for you to remember my taste so well."
The two echoed each other, choking Madam Jones up with so much anger that it disrupted her blood circulation. Her face turned crimson.
Jenny stood next to her, feeling even more guilty and embarrassed now. She raised her head and glanced at Sophia. "Soph, hurry up and apologize to Aunt Lewis. You canât talk to your elders like that next time.â
"Your words puzzle me, Madam White. Did I say something wrong?" Sophia asked nonchalantly.
Jenny widened her eyes. They had turned completely red. She was completely taken aback by the two words âMadam Whiteâ.
"You didnât say anything wrong. Maybe because Jenny has advanced in years, so her ears arenât working so well now. She mustâve misheard you."
Yvette took Sophia's hand and patted it several times to console her.
Sophia lowered her eyes and did not make a sound. However, her chest felt as though it was clogged up by a ball of cotton soaked in water. It was humid and suffocating. It felt exceptionally difficult to even breathe.
This feeling of having her own mother taking somebody elseâs side, whereas an elder who had no blood relations with her whatsoever was taking hers, felt beyond awful.
Madam Jones' face was overcast when she saw Yvette taking Sophiaâs side.
The atmosphere was more awkward than ever. No one said anything. With the noisy crowd around them, they simply looked out of place.
"Sigh, Lew looks really unhappy. I'm afraid she will start having a knot in her heart if I continue to keep you by my side," Yvette spoke at last.
Upon hearing her words, Madam Jones' face finally smoothed out a little. "I apologize for putting you in such a difficult situation, but Sophia nearly killed my daughter, so I really don't want to see her. Please understand my situation."
Jenny had already snapped back from the shock she received earlier. She looked at Sophia with reddened eyes. There were accusation and confusion in them.
Sophia lowered her eyes slightly and refused to look at her.
"Weâve been sisters for so many years, you really donât need to be so polite to me." Yvette curled her lips, beckoning to Charles standing not far away. "Charles, come here!"
Charles turned his head to look, then raised his eyebrows slightly. He said something to the person next to him and walked over. "What's the matter, Mom?"
"Aunt Lewis doesn't like Sophia. It wonât be appropriate for me to keep her by my side. Take her with you," Yvette said regretfully.
Upon hearing her words, Sophia's heart dropped with a thud. She raised her head and was just about to say that there was no need to trouble Mr.
Harris when she heard Charles saying, "Let's go."
"Iâll excuse myself, then," Sophia said to everyone present there before treading on Charlesâ heels restlessly.
Madam Jones watched as the two figures walked away. Frustration clogged up her throat, but she could neither cough it out nor swallow it. It felt inexplicably uncomfortable.
"I honestly have no idea what you drugged Mother with." Charles turned around to look at her, then looked in front again, during which someone greeted him and he nodded in return.
Those people were surprised to see Sophia walking behind him.
Two years ago, Sophia would follow him wherever he went. After the car accident, however, they never saw such a scene anymore. Furthermore, it was rumored that the two were not close at all at the moment.
Despite their surprise, no one was stupid enough to question anything about it.
Sophia did not know how to respond. After measuring her words for a long time, she whispered, "I shanât disturb you any longer. I'm going to meet some friends."
There were no friends. Even if she had friends before, they were no longer her friends now. She said this simply because she was worried that he would be unhappy to have her following him around.
"Are you going to meet some friends or are you going to meet William?" Charles stopped in his tracks and looked down at her. Indifference and a hint of mockery were written all over his face.
Sophia stopped when he did. She opened her mouth but made no sound.
She could tell that he was upset, yet she had no idea how she offended him. She might just end up upsetting him more if she explained herself.
Charles did not wait for her to answer before turning around and continuing to walk forward.
Sophia stood still, not knowing whether to follow him or leave. She had always failed to grasp his thoughts.
"Come with me. Shelter me from the toasts." Charles did not stop nor look back. It looked as though he had eyes behind him.
Sophia murmured a reply, then smiled bitterly at her stomach area before treading on his heels.
âI may need to make another trip to the hospital again tonight. Who knows, this may even develop into stomach cancer. If I die of cancer, then Charles wonât make things difficult for Sterling and the rest. I hope...â
There were many people who came to talk to Charles, and many people who clinked glasses with him, but almost no one would persuade him to drink.
When no one persuaded him to drink, Sophia would just stand on one side holding a glass of champagne in her hand and play possum, taking no initiative to drink either. She was no fan of self-harm. If she could, she would try her best to take good care of herself.
Despite that, there were also those who persuaded him to drink. When that happened, Sophia was left with no choice but to raise the champagne in her hand and drain every last drop of it.
She did not notice that someone was constantly watching her, but Charles did.
Atrophy of Love: Mr. Harris, Stop Fooling Around!
ï¤Chapter 52 Go And Keep Charles Company He glanced across the crowd, and his gaze landed on William who was looking in their direction from time to time. He took a sip of the champagne. It tasted pretty bad.
Though Sophia did not drink much, her stomach still sent stabbing and burning pain when the curtain of night fell.
"Can I go to the bathroom, Mr. Harris?" Sophia's face was pale. A layer of cold sweat had gathered on her forehead.
Charles glanced at her, frowned imperceptibly, then nodded.
After thanking him, Sophia then clutched her abdomen area and staggered toward the bathroom.
"Iâll excuse myself for a moment." Charles looked at her departing back and his eyes flashed a dull color. He turned around and spoke to a few people standing next to him before striding toward the bathroom.
William was one step ahead of him as he hurried inside holding a glass of water.
He paused for a moment and walked toward the bathroom. Instead of going in, he stood outside, took out a cigarette, and placed it in his mouth.
"Blargh!"
Sophia did not eat a lot. After vomiting a few times, what was left was her stomach acids.
She had a bad stomach and was basically a terrible drinker. Naturally, she had low tolerance for alcohol. Even though she did not drink much, she was still nauseous and her stomach was hurting. It was awfully uncomfortable.
She heard footsteps approaching, yet she chose to ignore it. She figured that no one would care for a murderer like her.