Since Lanie was going to participate in the math competition, Tommy should too.
Tommy nodded and said, “Yes, Ms. Luca. I want to compete too, but the teacher said I'd
have to wait until next week because my competition date is different from Lanie's."
"Okay." Luca nodded.
They did not have to worry much as parents because the kids were smart.
"Lanie and Tommy are so smart." Rainie could not help but sigh as she was not as skilled
in mathematics as her brothers. Although her grades were not bad, the math competition
was too advanced for her.
Her teachers were aware of that, so they did not ask her to participate in math
competitions. Instead, she joined other types of competitions, including dance.
Tommy shook his head and genuinely praised Rainie, "You're the smart one, Rainie. You've
joined so many competitions. Lanie and I don't have nearly as many awards as you."
"You always know what to say. I still have some snacks from yesterday that I haven't
finished yet. I'll give them to you later." Rainie was pleased to hear what he said, so she
wanted to reward him with food.
There was nothing Tommy liked more than delicious food, so he nodded repeatedly with
beaming black pupils.
Rainie was then reminded of how he had overstuffed himself yesterday, so she warned
him, "Don't have them all at once and overstuff yourself."
"Don't worry, Rainie. I'll never overeat again!" Tommy raised one hand as if he were
swearing, but he secretly thought to himself, 'Mom's cooking is an exception.'
Tommy's gestures and words made the whole family laugh.
After dinner, Luke went upstairs to deal with work, while Luca sat in the first-floor living
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtroom with the kids as they watched cartoons. In the meantime, she checked their
homework.
Luca did not have time to pack up her documents because Johann called her right after
she got off work, so she left empty-handed. Luca wanted to bring her documents back, but
they were still on her desk and in a complete mess.
When she was done checking the kids' homework, she did not want to disturb Luke. Since
the kids already knew her identity, she signed Luke's name on their homework on his
behalf.
After giving the books back to the kids, she opened up their handwriting copybooks.
Luca could tell what the children were feeling from their handwriting. It seemed like all
three of them were not very focused when writing. It looked like it was written impatiently
because they were worried about her.
Luca knew how they felt, so she did not comment on it. Instead, she praised them, “Your
handwriting is so neat."
Tommy smiled and took the copybook from Luca as he said, "Ms. Luca, I realized that
practicing my handwriting is not that hard. I'll keep on practicing in the future!"
Luca knew that the child only said so because he liked hearing praise from her.
How could playful children like them be gladly willing to practice their handwriting?
However, it was important to encourage children, so Luca nodded. "Great, keep it up,
Tommy. From now on, everyone is going to compliment your handwriting!"
Tommy nodded in agreement.
Just then, the cartoon was starting, so the kids diverted their attention to the television.
Then, the doorbell rang, and before Luca could even stand up, she heard Rainie uttering,
"Could it be Uncle Louis?"
"Did Uncle Louis get kicked out by Grandma again?" Tommy added.
Luca smiled wryly at how much the kids loved their Uncle Louis. Then, she stood up and
said, "That's enough. If it really is Uncle Louis, you'd better watch your words."
"We know, Ms. Luca. We won't embarrass him," said Tommy as he playfully stuck out his
tongue.
Luca smiled as she walked toward the video phone, and sure enough, it was Louis.
However, there was someone next to him this time. Luca took a closer look, and it was
Yuri.
She opened the gate and told the kids, "It's your uncle and aunt."
When Tommy heard that, he quickly asked, "Is Thea there?"
Then, Luca shook her head. "I don't see her, so she should be at home."
Tommy nodded and continued to watch the cartoon show. He liked Uncle Louis, but not
Thea because of her personality.
He always thought that she was unfriendly, so he did not like playing with her very much.
Thea would play with them occasionally, but the more they played together, the gloomier
she looked as if they were bullying her. That was why Tommy did not like her.
The reason he asked was because he was worried that Thea would come. If that was the
case, he was willing to give up the cartoon show and go into his room to say that he was
sleeping just so he could avoid her.
Luca placed two pairs of disposable slippers on the ground as she stood at the entrance,
waiting for Louis and Yuri.
Louis quickly walked in, holding Yuri's hand as he greeted Luca with a smile on his face.
"Ms. Luca, I'm so sorry to bother you again."
Luca smiled and shook her head, failing to understand what he meant. "Mr. Louis, are you
looking for Mr. Crawford?"
She thought that if Louis was coming over to stay the night, he probably would not have
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmbrought Yuri. She did not think that he got kicked out again this time.
“Yes, I came to talk to my brother about something. He should be home, right?" Louis
asked as they both changed into the slippers.
"Yes, he's working upstairs," said Luca, pointing upstairs with a smile.
"Alright, I'll go up then." Then, Louis looked at Yuri and asked, "Do you want to go up with
me, or do you want to sit here for a while?"
Yuri noticed that the kids were watching cartoons. If she were to stay down here, not only
did she have to chat with the children, but she would have to talk to Luca too. She had
nothing to say to her.
Thus, she immediately decided. "I'll go up with you. It's not like I can't listen to what you
have to say to your brother."
"Sure." Louis did not try to talk her into staying even though his intention was to have Yuri
sit downstairs and chat with Luca.
Although Yuri still did not know about Luca's true identity, they were still a family. It was
not good to keep a distance. When Luca revealed her true identity in the future, she would
still be their sister-in-law.
Things would be much easier if the sisters-in-law were closer.
Luca watched as Louis and Yuri went upstairs while she sat back on the sofa.
Tommy heard their conversation and muttered, "So, Uncle Louis wasn't kicked out?"
Luca flicked his little head. "Why do you ask?"
"I just think that Uncle Louis is fun to play with. If he was kicked out, I could sneak into his
room again tomorrow. Uncle Louis is a heavy sleeper, so I could draw a turtle on his face...
Hehe..." Tommy giggled mischievously.
Lanie listened to his brother's prank idea and warned him, "If you do that, Daddy will scold
you. He might even ask you to draw a hundred turtles on paper."