Just as the Cooper family dinner was coming to an end, Brenda happened to knock on the door, holding a few dressed hens.
The storm this time had also severely damaged Brenda's house, and the chicken coop in her yard hadn't escaped the misfortune either, having been completely destroyed by the strong wind.
Brenda brought the chicken meat this time partly to mend her relationship with the Cooper family, and partly because there was too much chicken meat to handle in time.
"What are you doing here?" Seeing who it was, Mary didn't give her a pleasant look.
"Uh, I have a bit too much chicken at home, so I wanted to bring some over for you to taste." Although nothing had happened with George, seeing Mary, Brenda still acted a bit guilty.
"Thank you, you can go now." At the door, Mary took the "gift" from Brenda's hand but had no intention of letting her in.
Brenda, knowing she was in the wrong, originally wanted to apologize to Mary, but seeing Mary's expression, she didn't know how to start. So, after hesitating for a while on the spot, unable to find a chance to apologize, she could only turn around and walk back.
On the other side, Mary returned to the dining room triumphantly carrying the "spoils of war."
"Who sent the chicken? It looks pretty good." Looking at the dressed chicken, Meemaw Connie commented.
"It was Brenda; she said they couldn't finish the chicken at home and sent us some to taste." While Mary was speaking, her gaze unconsciously glanced at George.
"It was Brenda; I'm afraid her chicken coop is gone. How pitiful..." Meemaw Connie sighed.
Being next-door neighbors, Meemaw Connie and the Cooper family could see Brenda's situation. Brenda's wages at the bowling alley weren't high to begin with, and she had a teenage son to support, so life was quite difficult. The eggs produced daily by the chicken coop in her yard could subsidize the household expenses somewhat.
Now, after the strong wind, the chicken coop was gone. One could imagine that the life of the widow and orphan would only be more difficult in the future.
"How about we go help Brenda repair her house?" Georgie suggested.
The damage to Brenda's house was similar to the Cooper house before. And because there was only one woman in the family capable of doing things, more than half a month had passed, and her house was still in a damaged state.
Georgie meant well, a bit of returning a favor.
But as soon as he finished speaking, he felt the atmosphere in the house become wrong, especially Mary's face turned dark. George Sr. aside also seemed to be having a seizure, constantly winking.
"What's wrong with you guys? Did I say something wrong?" Georgie, clueless, showed Young Sheldon's habitual "ignorant" expression.
Just as the atmosphere was gradually becoming tense, Mary suddenly said: "Georgie is right. As neighbors, we should help Brenda. How about this, tomorrow we'll organize people to go help repair her house."
Believing in God, Mary ultimately softened her heart. Just as a warning, while speaking, she glared fiercely at her husband again.
George Sr. could only maintain a smiling face.
...
After the strong wind, the weather in Medford gradually cleared up.
In the following half month or so, the residents of Medford also successively completed the reconstruction of their homes. Including Brenda's house; with the help of the Cooper family and Mike's group, her house was quickly repaired.
Then another month passed. When the weather entered summer, the trend pushed by environmentalists and animal lovers also slowly subsided.
It was under these circumstances that Mike welcomed his high school graduation ceremony.
"Mike, stand in the middle. Sheldon, Paige, you two stand on Mike's sides..."
"Yes, just like that, keep smiling~"
With the "click" of the camera, Mike's class finished taking their graduation commemorative photos.
Then, Mike, Paige, and Young Sheldon, the three outstanding students, were kept behind alone to take photos with a group of school leaders.
It is worth mentioning that Tom, the newly appointed principal, finally expressed his feelings to Ms. Sharon of the Math Olympiad team in the past half year. The two had now officially become lovers.
"Mike, the school has prepared your university recommendation letters." After the photo, Principal Tom, accompanied by Ms. Sharon, specially found the three of them and said: "No matter which university you choose later, I represent Medford High School to wish you a bright future~"
As the most outstanding students in the history of Medford High School, the three of them were very likely to become the pride of the school in the future. Therefore, they were worthy of the principal's attention.
After greeting various subject teachers, Mike and the other two, having completed the graduation process, finally relaxed.
By the playground, Meemaw Connie, Mary, and others witnessed this graduation ceremony on the spot. Among them, Mary, seeing her younger son graduate successfully, was moved to tears.
"Hi, Mike. Congratulations on graduating from high school!" Surprisingly, Jack from the TV station also came to the scene.
Because of betting on Mike successfully several times, he was now doing very well in the local TV station.
"You look even more handsome today, more handsome than on the poster." Switching to TV media, Jack's compliments came naturally.
But he wasn't wrong. Mike, specially dressed up for the graduation ceremony, wore a stiff white T-shirt on top, black casual pants on the bottom, and his hair was specially styled. Combined with his tall and straight figure of 1.87 meters, plus his exquisite features like a dream elf, he was indeed more charming than usual.
"By the way, have you decided which university to go to?" After some greetings, Jack got to the main topic.
"Oh, are you going to recommend a university to me?" Mike asked back with a smile.
These days, he had indeed received invitations from many famous universities, but he hadn't decided which university to attend ultimately. Being too excellent academically and having too many choices was also a kind of distress.
Young Sheldon and Paige were in the same situation; they also received sincere invitations from many universities.
"That's not it." Jack shook his head and talked about his situation: "Recently, due to work reasons, I have an opportunity to intern at a TV station in New York. If I perform well, there is a possibility of staying there. So I want to ask if there is a possibility for us to continue on the same path."
Sticking together for warmth is human nature. It seemed Jack had already regarded Mike as his lucky star.
"Congratulations on your promotion." Seeing Jack having a bright future, Mike was also happy for him. Then, he stated: "As for which university I will go to, I haven't decided yet. But the prosperous New York is a good choice. I will consider it."
New York, as the economic and cultural center, was indeed very competitive.
"Alright, take your time to consider. If you go to New York, remember to contact me." After stating his intention, Jack didn't take up more of Mike's time.
On the other side, Princess Mia, accompanied by the little maid, was already waiting for Mike.
Graduation season for Princess Mia meant separation.
The girl had decided to return to Genovia in a few days. So, she cherished every day spent with Mike.
Beside her, the little maid, who had been "developed," also looked at Mike with deep reluctance.