Rudy wanted to go to bed and have a nice sleep, but he thought he should let Lucy know that he was home.
He decided to go downstairs while making minimal noise of his footsteps descending the stairway.
'I might as well eat.'
When Rudy reached the living room, he saw Rebecca sitting on the couch with an anxious look on her face.
"Mom? You didn't go to your night shift?" Rudy asked calmly.
Rebecca slowly raised her head and looked at Rudy.
"You are back…"
"Uhh… yes?"
"You have never been so late without informing me, so I thought something happened to you…" she muttered.
"Oh, come on. I sometimes never come home. And why were you even worried knowing nothing could happen to me?"
"Well…" Rebecca gulped down nervously and responded, "You left in anger in the morning, so I thought you were still mad at me…"
"Hmm…?" Rudy recalled Lilim's prank in the morning that led Rudy to burst out of the house.
"Right…" He glanced around the house and asked, "Where is Lilim? And… Lucy?"
"Lucy is taking a bath. And… Lilim was too afraid to face you, so she left while I was sleeping…"
"I see." Rudy sat on the couch beside Rebecca and let out a soft sigh. He looked her in the eyes and calmly said, "I am not angry at you."
"But… you yelled at me… and you never yelled at me… like that…"
"No, no. I was just… disappointed. You didn't believe my words, and that made me… a bit angry… I guess. But I am not mad. It was just one of Lilim's harmless pranks. Her intention wasn't to make us fight.
She didn't know anything about house rules and all. She just wanted to tease you, but you reacted in a different way… and so did I."
"Then why did you come so late?"
"I was with Elena," Rudy replied instantly.
"Oh! I didn't know she was back. Usually, she would let me know the moment her flight lands. I guess she was so excited to meet you that she forgot everything."
"Nah… we met in an unimaginable way. She had no time to tell anyone. And besides, that wasn't something she could tell everyone."
"So…" Rebecca turned to Rudy's side and calmly asked, "Did you talk things out with her?"
"Yes. We had a long… very long chat. She told me everything," Rudy nodded.
"What did she say?"
"I can't possibly tell you everything. We don't have that much time."
"But I want to know what she told you. What if she said something wrong about me, and you hold a grudge against me? I am not saying that she lied to you about anything. But hers and mine perspectives were always opposite whenever it came to you.
She could be right on her side and me at my side. And opposite views and opinions usually create unnecessary misunderstandings. I just wanted to make everything clear, leaving no misunderstanding behind."
"It's okay. I honestly don't care about all that. It was Elena and your personal matter, which you had already solved. And that happened in the past, so there is literally no meaning to dig that up.
Nothing is going to change. All I care about right now is for you two to get along now, in the present where I am present. Of course, I want you to understand and get along with my other harem members too.
I know it won't be easy, and you don't have to be super friendly with each other, either. Uhm…" Rudy scratched the back of his head and said, "All I am trying to say is that you… you need to stop thinking that you are superior to them."
"But I am!"
"You are not," Rudy shook his head.
"I raised you! I have done so many things for you. I deserve to have some kind of authority over you! Every mother does! I am not trying to list my favors, really. I don't care about them, but… I wanted to be special to you…"
Rudy placed his hand on Rebecca's cheek and rubbed his thumb on her lips.
"You are. You have authority over me."
A happy smile appeared on Rebecca's face after hearing that.
"But… as my mother. As my lover and harem member, you are equal to them."
"...." And her smile vanished faster than it appeared.
"Don't sulk now."
"I am not. And your point makes no sense."
"You can order me around and make decisions for my life, just like every mother does for her son. But you can't do the same in my love life and relationships, that's the limit a mother never crosses.
You are both, my mother and my lover. It might be confusing for you, but you will get used to it once we all start living in the same room."
"But this is my house, and everyone needs to follow my rules."
"And that is why I bought a castle."
"...you what?"
"Castle."
"Like… is that a metaphor…?"
"No, an actual castle."
"Why would you do that?!"
"They all can't live in this small house."
"Where do they currently live?" she asked curiously.
"At the pool house; the same waterpark I used to take you and Jessica to when you were kids."
"Then let them live there."
"I promised them their own separate rooms. Also, that land doesn't belong to me, so I can't hoard it for forever."
"So they will live in the castle, but you will continue living here with me… right?"
"What are you talking about? You are coming with me to live in the castle."
"I am not leaving this house."
"Come on, stop being childish now."
"No, this house is important to me. I can't leave it behind."
"Why are you talking as if you are going to demolish this house? We can come here once in a while. You sleep during the day, so you can sleep there. And if you miss this house, I can teleport you at any time."
"What about Lucy and Joe?"
