Bryan left the house without taking a glance at his mother. Once again, Katrina had miscalculated and underestimated her son's capabilities. After the mountain stacks of acting and lies she had shown for the past decade and a half, how would he not see through her mask? Only she would think her words were believable.
After buckling his seatbelt, Bryan crossed his legs and said, "Let's go. I got what I needed."
"That was fast." Alfred said as he started the car and realized it's only been fifteen minutes since he had been listening to his playlist. He had expected this to last longer than half an hour.
"Mm. Our next target is still Shirley Han. To summarize my whole conversation with her, she confessed to taking pictures of the proposal that led up to Peter suspecting Selina. She said the only thing she didn't expect would happen was the chest injury. In my opinion, even if she knew what would have happened before giving away the information, she would have still done it."
"Is she really Selina's mother? What benefit does she get from leaking confidential information like that? Does she hate Peter's family or something that she wants to ruin his company?" Alfred stopped in front of the red light and tapped his fingers against the car wheel.
"She's covering up for Shirley Han. I tested her and confirmed my thoughts. Oh, right. She thought we could go back to how we used to be as mother and son if she told the truth. As she cried to me about how regretful she was, her remorse was nothing but another act. Out of the entire conversation, she never once apologized to Selina."
Letting out a mockery laugh, Bryan pressed his lips together. His smile was filled with sorrow. "Isn't it ridiculous how life plays you? No matter what, she was the one who raised Selina for years and provided for her. How could she be so cruel as a mother?"
Alfred sighed, "I just hope this gets over with. Let's see what Peter's parents say when their deadline is up."
Turning his head towards Alfred, Bryan said. "Alfred, Peter's parents have already exposed their greedy tails. Think about it. My mom has been lying this entire time and could have continued saying she didn't do anything to Selina. Since I have no evidence and only suspicions, I can't do anything about it anyways."
"Literally a day or so after I told Peter's parents about the deal, she comes to me and sucks up the responsibility for the incident. Moreover, she refused to tell me the person's name involved. Of course, she still failed to hide it at the end and I confirmed Shirley Han being the third party. Was it really just a coincidence?"
Alfred's lips twitched as he cracked his knuckles. "Oh? So, we have two tattling rats, huh? Fabulous. The Sin family must not want to last in the industry anymore. I'd like to see how the Han family deals with us if we insist on taking Shirley Han at all costs."
Time flew by like a summer's breeze; the deadline was here. On this sunny day, Alfred went around the city to pick up reserved gifts he had previously customized and pre-ordered for Selina. At the same time, Bryan also gathered balloons, juice, wine and the present he had prepared for her.
After everything was collected, both of them arrived at the party room they've reserved for Selina's birthday party. Since she is no longer here to join the party, it was just them two. It was supposed to be a joyous occasion, but it turned out to be a farewell party instead.
Ken and Fanny came right on time to give their final answer. The frown on their faces deepened as they saw the number twenty-three printed on all balloons. Even though Selina isn't here anymore, they did treat her like their daughter-in-law in the past. In the end, they were human and would still feel bad for her.
"Mister Sin, what is your final decision?" Bryan jumped straight to the point.
"We've decided to accept the deal and hand over Shirley Han." Ken replied with certainty.
"Then, very well. I'll look forward to receiving this gift by the end of this month. Until you fulfill the requirements of our deal, your family will not be under my protection. I've already given you a free month of protection without requesting for a fee. While you're working on this gift, I can guarantee nobody under my watch would make a dirty move on you."
Bryan stuffed his hands to his pocket and started walking out. He stopped midway and warned the couple. "Right. Only my people would listen to my words. Mister Sin should be cautious when making deals outside my circle. Just a friendly advice."
His words were deeper than what it sounded like on the surface. After Bryan and Alfred had left the room, Ken took a seat on the side and Fanny wiped away the sweat on his forehead. "Did you think he noticed?" She asked as her eyes lingered to the door.
"No, but he must have suspected something. We should be more careful for the rest of the month. If he wants Shirley Han, then I'll give him Shirley Han." Ken took deep breaths to calm his anxiety.
Meanwhile, Bryan and Alfred had already driven off to the bridge. Tying balloons on the rails where Selina had jumped, they started making a picnic there. On top of a table cloth, they started arranging the foods they've bought.
Taking a shot cup out, Bryan poured red wine into it and bumped it against the juice he bought for her. "Little sister, happy twenty-third birthday. Every year of today, from the past to the future, it'll always be left for you. Originally, we planned to have a surprise party for you. Since that can't happen without our birthday girl, we can only make our own picnic here."
Alfred closed his eyes and felt the cool breeze brush against his face. "Selina, I don't know how you felt when you were here that night. Today is your birthday, so I hope you are feeling much better wherever you are at now. I purposely customized your favorite almond Mille crepe cake. I also bought you this bracelet."
Opening the black jewelry case, he revealed a delicate butterfly bracelet with mini floral pieces dangling around it. "It looks beautiful. She would have liked it a lot considering she also has a butterfly birthmark on the top right section of her back. Maybe that's why she loved painting nature so much." Bryan said as he took the bracelet into his hands.
"She has a birthmark there? I remember seeing her wearing an off-shoulder outfit before, but I don't recall seeing a birthmark." Alfred looked at him with a confused expression.
"Ah, that's because her birthmark is unique. For some reason, the butterfly mark doesn't appear unless it gets wet. I accidentally spilled wine on her before and noticed it. Even she didn't know she had a birthmark there. But it disappeared after it dried up. I even thought it was a tattoo." Bryan shrugged as he also felt it was unbelievable when telling this story.
Alfred nodded, "I see. That's probably why I never got to see it. Anyways, let's light up the candles and sing to her. She loves this part the most."
After lighting up two candles on the cake, they started singing to the ocean. "Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday dear little sister. Happy birthday to the cutest Selina~~"
Closing their eyes, they made a wish for her to be well and happy. When their wish was made, they opened their eyes and blew out the candles. "Happy birthday, Selina. Your beautiful smile will always be in our memories. We'll never forget you. "