"Isn't he taking way too long to park the car?" Rebecca asked Elena.
"Maybe he can't find a good parking spot."
"What's there to find? You can park in any empty area as long as parking is allowed, am I right?"
"You are not wrong, but… there are some things to keep in mind. Knowing Rudy, I am sure he is looking for a spot, from where it will be easy to take out the car."
"Oh! I know that one. If someone parked behind you or beside you with little to no space, it can get difficult to park out."
"Yes."
A few minutes later, Rudy returned with a frustrated look on his face.
"What's wrong?" Elena asked curiously.
"Something happened?"
"I had just entered the parking lot, and some bitch blamed me for hitting her car because she saw a dent on the rear side. I tried to explain to her that I just got there, but she didn't listen.
So I had to take her to the office and asked the man there to show her the footage. Fortunately, they got the car number of the car that hit the lady's car. And you might have guessed, but she didn't think of apologising to me for what she did."
The tables at the restaurant were round, and there were four chairs around it. Elena and Rebecca were seated next to each other, and the other two chairs were vacant.
Now, Rudy had to make a tough decision— To sit next to Rebecca or Elena.
'Well… I should get used to this since I am sure I am going to experience this daily now that I will live in the castle.'
Rudy sat beside Rebecca and ignored looking at Elena.
"Still a mommy's boy, I see," Elena teased with a grin on her face.
She got up from her seat and sat on the vacant chair next to Rudy. Now he was sitting between them.
Rudy raised his brow with a judging look on his face and asked, "You two did this on purpose to test me, didn't you?"
"It was Rebecca's idea."
"Hey! You promised not to tell him!"
"I am sorry, but I am saving my skin at the first chance I get."
Rudy glared at Rebecca from the corner of his eyes and asked, "You sure love to test me like this?"
"This is my first time doing it."
"I highly doubt. Rias told me that you also did the same when she had come to our house for the first time."
"Who is Rias?"
"Stop playing dumb. I had Jane remove the spell."
Out of nowhere, a girl who seemed to be the same age as Rudy stopped at their table and said, "Sorry, I am late."
"You are here, finally." Elena pointed her hand at the empty chair and said, "Sit."
"You should stop calling me at random hours and ask me to meet you at random places. I have a life, too!" she shouted at Elena.
"Okay, first of all, I called you in the morning to inform you. And this is not a random place. And mind your manners, you are in the presence of elders."
The girl looked at Rebecca and muttered, "She does seem a bit older than me, but…"
She stared at Rudy.
"There is no way someone can be older and look like a teenager."
"Ahem!" Elena cleared her throat and moved her lips, as if she was saying something to the girl without speaking out a word.
"What?" The girl rolled her eyes. "Speak out. I am not a psychic that I would understand what you are trying to say without you speaking it."
"Yes, you are not a psychic, but he is."
"Huh?" The girl looked at Rudy and gasped in realisation.
"Oh! Could it be that he is…" she lowered her voice.
"Yes."
Rudy nudged Elena and whispered, "Hey, who is she?"
"Who does she remind you of?"
Rudy inspected the girl as his eyes widened.
"Looks like you got it."
"Yeah…"
'She looks a lot like Elena and Erika, and she is about the same age as me.'
"Could it be that she is…" Rudy's face turned pale.
"Hmm?"
"Please don't tell me you had triplets, and she is my daughter."
Elena laughed out loud and covered her mouth after saying, "Sorry."
"What are you apologising for? For laughing or for keeping this a secret? And is that what you meant by 'I have something important to tell you'?"
Rudy had so many questions, and it was one of those rare moments when he didn't want the answers.
"I apologised for laughing and I laughed because of your assumption."
"Oh! Did I guess wrong?"
"Yes. She is not my daughter, but sister."
"Huh? But… I remember you telling me that you were an only child…"
"Yes. But after I was pregnant, and I moved in with my parents, it must have reminded them of their youth days. As you know, my mom got pregnant in high school and had me. And when I was pregnant, they were about my current age," Elena explained calmly.
"In short, they made her."
"Yes. You made it too short."
"I… don't know how to feel. But I am sure you feel weirder than me. Having a sister at the same age as your children…"
"Yeah, but Eric and Erika feel the weirdest. They have an aunt who is the same age… well, actually, younger than them."
"Would you two please stop using me and the word 'weird' in the same sentence?" the girl uttered in an emotionless voice.
"Her name is Yelena," Elena introduced her to Rudy and Rebecca.
"Short for… Yeleanor?"
"Pft!" Elena laughed out loud. "No, it's Yelena, only."
"..."
"When you two were talking about feeling weird, I felt the weirdest. I have a brother-in-law who is almost the same age as me."
"That's not strange, actually. It's normal, is it not?"
"Uhh… yes. But not the… having children, too."
"Wait…" Rudy turned to Elena with a surprised look on his face and asked, "You… you told her…?"
"Yes, she knows everything I know."
