His Rotten Apple

28 ~ No Second Chaunces

Lilia and Ron examined Zailey as she ate her bowl of cereal, however, she was too lost in thought to notice anything happening around her.

"Just look at her. Doesn't that look like someone who's... Lovestruck?" Lilia whispered to Ron.

"Come on, guys... I'm 10 inches away from you," Zailey chimed in.

The two let out a sigh of relief, as Ron swiped the bowl of cereal away from Zailey, "So who is it, Zai?"

Lilia smacked Ron at the back of his head, "We already know the answer to that question! More importantly, when can we expect grandchildren?"

"Ma!"

"Honey!"

"What? I'm joking," Lilia said. "But listen, it's important that you go for it! Take matters into your own hands... You can't let the soap slip away."

"Soap? Ma, I'm not trying to bathe myself."

"You still don't get it? What do you use soap for? You use it for your body, right? Don't you want him rubbing-"

"Ma!"

"Honey!"

Lilia laughed jokingly, "You both really can't take a joke."

"Why are you guys so loud today?" Macy asked, walking into the kitchen.

"Ma's being dirty. My gosh, she needs that soap more than I do," Zailey said.

"Hey, I'm a mother looking out for her overly clean daughter," Lilia said and nudged Ron. "Now, if you'll excuse us... We have to go to work."

"That's right, our work!" He exclaimed proudly.

Zailey laughed, relieved and happy to know that her parents finally found a stable source of income, "Alright, be good you two!"

Lilia and Ron both worked in different departments, though their coworkers in their respective departments admired their near flawless adaptation to the workload and willingness to cooperate.

Lilia walked into the office and found Janine standing next to the printer, completely lost in thought.

Lilia walked over to her, "Hey, are you okay?"

"Oh, Lilia," Janine greeted her in a weak voice. "I'm fine... Just thinking."

"Do you need help with anything?"

"No, it's not about work," she said through a sigh. "My parents called me last night and..."

"Do you not have a good relationship with your parents, either?"

She nodded, "Not at all. I grew up pretty sheltered. The moment I wanted to step away, things got hard for me."

"Seriously?! I guess we have a lot more in common than we thought!"

Janine laughed, relieved that she finally found someone that could understand her, "Well, long story short, they've been nagging us to come back home."

"And how do you feel about it?"

"Well, they've apologized for everything, and they said they promise they would finally accept me for who I am," Janine said. "They said they'd help me divorce William."

"What? Divorce?"

"I'm not happy anymore, Lilia. In fact, I was never happy. I was forced into this marriage, and I don't want to put up with it anymore."