Love Unspoken

After finishing the meal, it was almost time for dinner, and Quinn was at a loss for words.

Last night, after those folks tried the food Quinn guided them to make, they attempted to follow the steps themselves today. The result was still unappetizing food. Kyle had no choice but to come back to her.

Quinn had to cook for them again, but she made sure they did the actual cooking while she directed.

She tried to teach them all, but it seemed like she overestimated their skills. They could remember other stuff, but not cooking.

After sleeping too much during the day and being wide awake at night, Quinn found herself stuck in a cycle of day sleeping and night waking.

After three days, she started to break down. Determined to fix her schedule, she decided to stay awake the entire next day and night, hoping to finally sleep through the night. Alexander didn't agree with her plan. "Your body just recovered, and now you're neglecting it again. Don't worry about whether it's day or night; if you're tired, just go to sleep." Quinn looked at the sunlight outside, her eyes a bit dazed. She hadn't slept for almost 24 hours since last night.

She shook her head and said, "No, I can hold on a bit longer. It's almost afternoon, and then, it'll be evening."

Alexander sighed helplessly. "I think we should go back."

Quinn turned to look at him, her mind a bit foggy from lack of sleep. "Why?"

"Don't you want to see Sprout and Brandy?" Alexander asked.

Quinn nodded along with his words. "Right, I almost forgot about them. We should go back."

Seeing her in a dazed state, Alexander stepped forward and picked her up. "Then sleep. We'll go back when you wake up."

Quinn yawned. After staying up for so long, she was really tired.

Hearing Alexander say they would go back after she woke up, she fell asleep without any worries.

After Quinn fell asleep, Alexander went to find Maddox and told him they would be going back tomorrow.

Maddox was surprised. "So sudden? Why the rush to go back? Did something happen?"

Alexander shook his head. "Nothing happened. Quinn's been struggling with the time difference and isn't adjusting well to life on the island. I'm worried about her health," he explained.

Maddox thought for a moment. He hadn't seen Quinn during the day these past few days, so it turned out her schedule was opposite to theirs. "Alright then, you guys go back. I'll arrange a boat for you later," he said. "Thanks, Maddox," Alexander replied.

Maddox patted him on the shoulder, looking more serious than usual. "Don't just take care of her; take care of yourself too. Try to live a few more years, okay?" Alexander chuckled. "I will."

Maddox nodded. "Alright, I'm off to work."

Alexander headed back to the house to keep an eye on Quinn while she slept.

The next morning, Quinn woke up and was pleasantly surprised to see it was just seven o'clock.

Alexander was still asleep beside her, so she quietly got out of bed to wash up.

After a good night's sleep, she felt refreshed. Today, she could finally catch lunch and even have breakfast with everyone.

She went to the cooking area, and as expected, they were still at it.

Seeing her, Kyle lit up. "Mrs. Kennedy, you're up early today!"

Quinn smiled. "Yep, finally got my schedule sorted. What are you making?"

"Just some porridge. This one's easy for us; we don't need your help. Just sit and relax," Kyle replied.

"Alright," Quinn agreed.

She sat down and waited. After about half an hour, their mixed porridge was ready.

Quinn held the bowl, looking at the various veggies inside, and couldn't help but take a bite. Despite the mix, it tasted surprisingly good. "Mrs. Kennedy, is Mr. Kennedy still asleep? Should we bring him a bowl?" Kyle asked.

"Don't worry about it. I'll take it to him after I finish eating," Quinn said.

"Okay," Kyle responded.

Maybe she was just really hungry, but she downed three bowls before taking one to Alexander.

When she opened the door, she found him packing the suitcase. She asked, confused, "What are you doing?"

Alexander finished packing and set the suitcase aside, then turned to her. "Didn't we agree to go back today?"

Quinn was stunned for a moment and thought carefully. "When did we say that?"

"Yesterday. Did you forget?" Alexander replied.

"Really?" She thought about it and seemed to recall.

Then she handed him the porridge. "Forget about that for now. Drink the porridge first. Kyle made it, and it tastes pretty good."

Alexander took the bowl, drank a couple of sips, and then asked, "So are we going back today?"

"I've adjusted my schedule, but yeah, we can go back. I do miss Sprout a bit. I wonder if they've been causing trouble since they haven't seen us for so long," Quinn said.

Sprout had always been with Quinn. Even when she went abroad, she took Sprout with her. This was the first time they'd been apart for so long, and they couldn't even call. It was better to go back and check. Alexander nodded. "Then let's go back. We'll leave after breakfast."

"Okay," Quinn agreed.

Alexander finished the porridge in a few gulps and then went with Quinn to say goodbye to Maddox.

The boat was already waiting at the shore, and Kyle was there too.

Quinn said, "You don't need to see us off. Go back."

Kyle scratched his head. "I'm not here to see you off. I want to go back too. It's been a long time, and I want to visit home," he explained.

"I thought you were here to see us off," Quinn said, glancing at Alexander. "Shall we go together then?"

Alexander didn't say anything and turned to board the boat.

Kyle eagerly helped them with their luggage and happily got on the boat.

"When we get back, I want to have a good meal first. The food here is really terrible. So many people, and not a single decent cook. It's really disappointing," Kyle complained.

Quinn sympathized with him. She had missed proper meals these past few days and had been surviving on instant food for three days straight. She couldn't stand it anymore, let alone Kyle, who had been here much longer. They left the island and, after several transfers, finally returned to Amber Bay.

Upon getting off the plane, Kyle had a bowl of noodles at the airport. Quinn also took Alexander to eat something.

Sitting in the car on the way back, Quinn called home. Briar's voice came through the phone. "Mrs. Kennedy, you finally called back. I couldn't reach you these past few days, and I was worried something had happened to you," Briar said. Quinn sensed something was wrong from her tone. "What's the matter?"

"Well, after you left, Brandy was fine, but Sprout ran to your room every day. Every time he couldn't find you, he would cry and couldn't be comforted. A few days ago, he even had a high fever," Briar explained.

Quinn became extremely anxious. "How is Sprout now?"

"He's better now, but he still insists on checking your room every day," Briar replied.

Quinn felt a wave of guilt. She thought she would be back in two or three days, but ended up staying in the fishing village for so long and then a few more days on the island. Sprout must have been heartbroken not being able to find her. She urged the driver to go faster.

Alexander comforted her. "Don't worry. We'll be there soon," he said.

Quinn couldn't suppress her worry. This was the first time she had heard of Sprout being sick; he had always been healthy before. She wondered if it was because she wasn't there.

If that was true, she felt even more guilty. The hardest part was that Sprout was sick, and she wasn't there for him. She felt like an awful mother.

They soon arrived at Regal Riverside, and Quinn rushed into the house as fast as she could. "Sprout, Briar!"

She didn't see them in the living room. After she called out, Briar came down the stairs holding Sprout.

Seeing her, Sprout immediately called out, "Mommy!" and struggled in Briar's arms.

Quinn ran over and took Sprout from Briar. "Alright, Mommy's back."

Sprout looked up at her, staring for a long time as if to make sure she was really there. After a while, he finally confirmed that Quinn was back, and then started crying. Quinn patted his back. "Alright, don't cry. It's Mommy's fault. I shouldn't have left you at home. I'm sorry."novelbin

Her words made Sprout cry even harder.

The sound was deafening, making Quinn feel terrible.

Quinn comforted him for a long time before his crying gradually subsided. He continued to hiccup, with snot and drool running down his face.

Quinn took a tissue to wipe his mouth. "Don't cry anymore. Mommy's back, and Daddy's back too."

Alexander watched them from the side, sighed, and turned to go to the bathroom.

Brandy had somehow come over to Quinn. When Sprout stopped crying, she finally spoke, "Sprout is such a crybaby."

Quinn glanced back at Brandy, feeling a mix of gratitude that she wasn't crying and guilt for making her so independent at such a young age.

Quinn freed one hand to pat Brandy's head. "I'm sorry for leaving you at home for so long," she said.

Brandy shook her head and said in her childish voice, "It's okay."

Quinn forced a smile. "How about I take you out to play later?"

"Okay," Brandy agreed.

Seeing that Sprout had stopped crying, Quinn asked, "Sprout, do you want to go out and play?"

Sprout, still not very articulate, said something that roughly meant, "Mommy doesn't want me anymore."

Quinn sighed helplessly. "How could I not want you? I'm back now, aren't I?"

She had never been away for so long before, at most a day. But this time, she had been gone for almost a month. So, it was normal for Sprout to be unaccustomed. Quinn finally managed to comfort Sprout, saying many nice things before he stopped feeling so aggrieved.

She touched his forehead, and it wasn't hot, which made her feel relieved.

Quinn then turned to Briar. "Briar, thank you for all your hard work these days."

Briar smiled. "It wasn't hard. It's my job. There wasn't much else, just that Sprout kept looking for you and crying, which made me feel bad too," she replied.

Quinn sighed. "It's my fault. I thought Sprout was so naughty that he wouldn't cry," she said.

Previously, when she had to go out for a whole day, Sprout didn't cry. It seemed she had really been gone too long this time.