Melgrave looked at his daughter in law and felt that she was indeed perfect for his daughter. Mr. and Mrs. Watts frowned but stayed silent. If Yuki wanted Melgrave to come over, it was not their place to say anything. Trisha also stayed silent. She decided to just sit next to Yuki and not pay attention to the old man. She knew Yuki was not doing this to make her feel uncomfortable. She was doing it to stay on good terms with the old man who was her good for nothing father. But this still left her two brothers, who were standing there unsure of what they should do.
Yuki could care less about them since she knew them well enough. Her only concern was not burning a bridge with the man in front of her so that Trisha and her could live happily. Trisha may not want anything to do with him and would show it openly. But for someone like Yuki, who never had proper parents, a father who was trying to show his love late was better than no father at all, even if you did not want to see his face. Yuki did not want to let Trisha completely shut him out in case in the future she suddenly regrets it. Over time feelings can change, and she did not want to see Trisha regretting her actions later on and getting hurt in the process.
"I saw the memorial of your friend. The craftsmanship was well done. I made sure to say a few words before coming in." Melgrave said as he sat down across from Yuki. The other side was already filled with her grandparents, so he had to settle for sitting across from them.
"Vank you for your mindess" (Thank you for your kindness.) Yuki forced a smile. This was not a subject she wished to talk about with the ruler of the world, the person who did not even care about those kids who are ending up on the streets addicted to drugs because the orphanages were not even willing to look after them properly.
Melgrave did not continue the subject. He could tell by the forced smile on Yuki's face that he should not say more. Melgrave rubbed his head. He felt like he was failing at everything today. Then a thought came to mind. "May I ask what kind of security system you have here?"
"Vi… Ahem..." Yuki suddenly went into a coughing fit, causing Trisha to panic. "Yuki!"
"Yuki, are you okay!?" Mr. and Mrs. Watts quickly stood up and began patting Yuki on the back.
"She's fine. Let her cough. It will help." Melgrave stood up and said.
Everyone else ran over. Yuki's face was bright red. Seeing this, Melgrave walked forward and put his hand on her chest. His hand began to glow with a greenish light and entered Yuki's body. Greg panicked and came running over, "Father, if you do that!"
"Shut up!" Melgrave yelled out. His brow had beads of sweat forming on it. After about a minute, Yuki's face returned to its normal color, and her breathing became steady as she stopped coughing. Melgrave finally removed his hand and stumbled back, almost falling over but was caught by someone he never expected. "Thank you..."
"Humph!" Trisha only snorted in response before quickly backing away from him and asked: "What was that just now?"
"I used some of my own life force to fix the adverse reaction in her body from her treatment. It is something only I can do. I have a mutated gene in my body that allows me to use such an ability." Melgrave explained before adding: "I would prefer everyone here keeps this a secret."
"No issue, no one will say a word." A calm melodic voice entered everyone's ears. Trisha's eyes suddenly began to water up as she covered her mouth with her hands. Yuki was freely moving her neck around with ease, unlike the slow motion before, and was now speaking normally! That cool crisp voice that was always filled with a bit of attitude and sarcasm was like honey to Trisha's ears.
"Yuki!"Trisha almost dove at Yuki as she hugged her tightly.
Yuki chuckled and used her chin to hug Trisha. She looked up at Melgrave and said with all sincerity: "Thank you, very much. Ummm… You said you used your life force. What exactly does that mean?
"Don't worry, it is only a little bit of time. Nothing to worry about." Melgrave's face was slightly pale as he forced a smile.
"Nothing to worry about, my ass!" Two people yelled at the same time Greg and James ran over and supported their father, helping him sit down. Greg's face was red with anger as he yelled out: "You just took a few years off your life!"
"A few years is nothing! Evergreen's live to be almost 200 years old if they don't die early." This was true. The Evergreen family did indeed live long lives. They could even live forever if they used the newer technology that was coming out. But a normal life span was 200 years for an evergreen.
Yuki did not know what to say. The man in front of her had just used his own life span to help her. Now she felt like she owed Melgrave for what he had just done. When the coughing fit started so suddenly, she felt like something was lodged in her throat, blocking off her airways.
"Whether that is true or not, Father, you still can't go around doing that!" Greg was still not happy about what just happened. If something happens to his father right now, then the Evergreen family will see another bloodbath like it did during his grandfather's reign.
"This is nothing! This little girl took a damn bullet and almost died for my princess! Why the hell would I care about a few fucking years!? Even if I had to give up 100 years of my life, I would do it without a second thought!!" Melgrave suddenly burst out with anger. He was angry because Greg was basically saying the life of the little girl who saved his precious daughter was worth less than a few years of his own.
"Enough!" Yuki yelled out. "Greg, go tend to your girlfriend and shut up. Today is a day of celebration. Father, thank you for just now. If you need anything from me just ask. I will do what I can to help unless it has to do with Trisha. I will not force her to do anything she does not wish to do. But I still wish to at least be in a friendly relationship with you. A father and daughter can hate each other all they want, but the blood that flows within them will bind them together for all eternity."
Greg lowered his head and walked towards Jen, who shook her head and let out a sigh. She reached out and took his hand while whispering: "Whether it is in game or out, she doesn't change."
"Yes, and the worst part is I can never retort!" Greg glanced over at Trisha, who was still hugging Yuki and felt depressed. "Jen, do you think she will ever come around?"
"Maybe one day. Just hold on, and one day she may forgive you." Jen interlocked her fingers with Greg's.
Melgrave was speechless. He never expected this little girl to be so overpowering. But her words touched him. He now understood why she was being nice to him instead of ignoring him like Trisha. He bowed his head and said: "I thank you. The only thing I will ask of you is to treat my daughter well."
"Isn't that a given? I mean, who could resist spoiling such a cute girl as my Trisha?" Yuki said teasingly. This caused the mood to lighten up and also caused Trisha's cheeks to blush, so she kept her face hiding in Yuki's chest. Yuki's words just now did register in her mind. Whether she could accept her father one day was another story, but as Yuki said, it would not be proper to totally disown him even if he was a shitty father.
With the drama finally over and Yuki lightening the mood once more, everyone began talking as Tina brought out some snacks for everyone and sat down to join the conversation. When she saw Yuki speaking normally again, she burst out crying and joined Trisha in hugging her. As for Yuki, she felt that her recovery was moving a little too fast. She didn't understand why she would feel like she was choking if her injury was in her head. This should not and would not cause her to feel like something was in her throat. Not to mention Melgrave seemed to know what was happening. She had many questions but right now was not the time or place to be asking. She decided she would ask him the next time they meet if they ever do meet again.
[AN: You all may have realized this chapter was longer! I have decided to go back to 1 chapter a day but longer chapters. Chapters will be almost the same as you get, with 2 chapters ranging between 1.5k to 2k words. This does not affect your , so you will still get them if we reach the goals!]
