A short while later, Clara Grant knocked on Sarah Shelby's door with Cherie in tow.
"Clara, you—" Sarah Shelby didn't finish her sentence. Her eyes fell to the little boy standing before her, and she changed the subject in surprise. "Clara, who is this?"
Clara Grant didn't answer. She simply led Cherie inside and sat down on the sofa.
Baffled, Sarah Shelby closed the door and followed them in. She glanced at Clara Grant's dejected expression, then at the cute little boy. Just as she was about to speak, Clara spoke first, addressing Cherie. "Cherie, there are some toys over there. Why don't you go play for a bit? I have something to talk to Miss Shelby about."
Cherie nodded obediently, got up, and walked over to where Clara Grant was pointing.
'I have to listen to her. I can't let her start to hate me. What if she throws me out and abandons me? Then I'll never be able to complete my mission!'
"Clara, what on earth is going on?" Sarah Shelby finally tore her gaze away from Cherie and fixed it on Clara Grant's face.
"Sigh..." Clara Grant let out a heavy sigh and explained everything, though she left out the part about Seth Quinn trying to assault her. She didn't want Sarah to worry.
"So..." After Clara Grant finished, Sarah Shelby looked at her in disbelief. "That's... insane! It's like something out of a drama. How could a great kid like him have a mother and father who don't want him?"
Sarah Shelby naturally had a loud voice, but she lowered it when Clara shot her a look, gesturing toward Cherie and shaking her head. She understood Clara was afraid the boy would be heartbroken if he overheard that his parents didn't want him.
"Clara, what are you going to do now? You're not actually planning on raising him yourself, are you?"
'Clara's only twenty-two and still in school. How could she possibly afford to raise a child?'
'Besides, if word of this gets out, who knows what kind of rumors people will spread.'
Clara Grant was silent for a moment. "What else can I do? I can't find his mom, and his dad won't claim him." 'And I wouldn't trust a scumbag like that with him anyway.'
"I can't just abandon him... I'll take care of him for the time being, at least. I'll keep looking for his mom. Maybe I'll find her."
"Clara, you need to think this through," Sarah said, her expression unusually solemn. "Life is already hard enough for you and your mom. Now you're adding a child to the mix. Can you really handle it?"
"Sarah, don't look so worried." Seeing her friend's expression, Clara Grant actually burst out laughing. "It's not like I'm going to raise him for the rest of his life. I'll do everything I can to find his mom. Who knows, I might find her in a couple of days."
"It's not that easy. If she was really determined to ditch this 'burden,' she wouldn't let you find her. Otherwise, she wouldn't have given you a dead phone number." Sarah Shelby shot her an exasperated look. 'How can she still be laughing at a time like this!'
"Those parents are unbelievable. This should be between them, but somehow they dragged you into it. You're completely innocent in all this. You took on a small job and ended up with a huge problem. Hey, why do you think Cherie's mom sought you out in the first place?"
That was a question Clara Grant couldn't answer either. Back when she didn't know what was in the suitcase, she'd assumed the woman was a student. Now, it was obvious she wasn't.
If she wasn't from the university, how did she even know who she was?
"Maybe my reputation as the campus 'errand girl' has spread far and wide," Clara Grant said with a self-deprecating laugh.
Sarah Shelby shot her an exasperated look, but Clara Grant paid it no mind. Her tone turned serious. "For now, I can only take it one step at a time. It's just... Cherie is the one I feel sorry for. He's never had a proper family or felt the love of both a mother and a father, and now even his mom doesn't want him..."
Sarah Shelby's expression suddenly darkened. Her eyes drifted toward Cherie as she murmured faintly, "We're all pitiful children."
Clara Grant was suddenly reminded of Sarah's own past and her situation. She felt a pang of guilt. "I'm sorry, Sarah, I..."