Francine stood speechless for a moment. She completely forgot that she was supposed to prepare food for the picnic!
Pamela emerged slowly from the kitchen and said, “Corinne! I just had some desserts made for the children. There are cookies
and cakes. We also have plenty of bread at home. I’ll have the nanny make some sandwiches for you. I’ll have all the food
packed up nicely, and I trust that should suffice for a picnic.”
Francine burst into a smile upon hearing that and rushed toward her grandmother enthusiastically. “Your timing is impeccable,
Grandma!”
Pamela was not particularly fond of her vivacious granddaughter and pushed her away.
By contrast, she looked at Corinne lovingly and said, “You’ve been working very hard recently, and it’s about time you take a
break this weekend.”
Corinne smiled and replied, “Okay. I will.”
The three children were thrilled and called out in unison, “Thank you, Great-Grandma!”
Hearing her great-grandchildren address her as great-grandmother was a source of pride and joy for Pamela.
“Wait right here, kids! I’ll prepare some more delicious treats for you. Be sure to listen to your mother and aunt when you’re out
later. Don’t run around unsupervised.”
“Okay!” Joey said.
“We’ll be good!” Bryan added.
“Yes, Great-Grandma! I’ll be good, too!” Christine said.
Pamela beamed with delight. “Such good kids you all are!”
After Corinne changed into her clothes, she helped the three children prepare some extra clothes and directed them to fill their
water bottles. She then prepared for their departure downstairs.
Pamela had already loaded all the food into the cooler box in the car.
Once everything was set, Corinne and Francine bid Pamela farewell. They, along with the kids, got into the car and set off on
their outing.
Children’s songs were played in the car, and the three kids sang along in high spirits. They were as bright as the weather
outside.
Corinne’s mood was greatly uplifted when she saw her children in such good spirits.
All of a sudden, Francine instructed the driver to pick up someone from the University of New Capital City.
The driver complied and turned the car around.
Corinne seemed to have guessed what was going on and cocked an eyebrow at Francine. “Are you seeing someone?”
Francine’s face turned beet red. “N—No! He’s just a classmate. He said he wanted to join us, so I said yes! Having more people
means more help with the kids!”
Corinne shrugged and decided not to press further. She knew that Francine was picking up Chester, one of Corinne’s juniors.
Francine always had a crush on him.
Corinne’s guess was spot on. When the car reached the university, Chester was waiting readily at the gate.
The two girls and children were in the back seat, so Chester got into the front passenger seat. As he settled in, he turned to
Francine with a smile and greeted Corinne politely, “It’s been a while, Corinne.”
Corinne nodded, “That, it has. I see you’ve chosen to stay at the university as a tutor?”
Chester ran his fingers through his hair and replied, “Yes! I’m not cut out for workplace politics. Being a tutor suits me much
better.”
Corinne smiled and commented, “That’s good. You make a great teacher, and I’m sure you’d be better at teaching others if you
had been able to ‘teach’ Francine.” She could not resist teasing them by placing some emphasis on the word ‘teach’.