Chapter 1:

What's Happening?

The Unknown Haunter


As the professor finished the lecture and left the lecture hall, Lauren finished the simulation by pressing the button on the remote next to her. Grabbing her books and the baby monitor with her, she left the simulation room and headed to her room.

Michelin curled up restlessly in her crib, in the final hours of her afternoon nap. Lauren came quietly to her side and covered the Michelin. Michelin's newly growing thin blond hair stuck to her forehead, forming a cute appearance. Lauren smiled and gently smoothed the hair that was stuck to her forehead with her hand. She picked up the baby monitor and headed towards the kitchen.

The maid, who came every weekday, had started dinner preparations in the kitchen. They had decided on some kind of bakery meal in the morning. When the maid saw Lauren wearing the kitchen apron, she said, "Miss, you don't need any help. I'll get things done in the evening." Lauren said with a smile that she had nothing to do and wanted to help.

Margaret, the regular, said as she grazed the chicken pieces, "I'm glad the young master married you. "

Lauren glanced at Margaret, startled. Not expecting this startle, Margaret said, "Sorry if I've overstepped my bounds."

She remained silent for a while as she placed the ingredients on the baking tray, "It has been twenty years since I started serving the young master. That's why I thought it was normal for me to say that I was happy about something." then she added.

Lauren soon gathered herself, "You thought our marriage was pointless, too?" she asked. She asked with quite a smile as she didn't want to say anything that would offend this old veteran woman.

Margaret sighed, a little embarrassed. Then, with a slightly sad expression, "After the little lady's mother died, the gentleman suddenly said that he was going to marry someone younger than him, which surprised me as well as everyone else." she replied.

Then she said more cheerfully, "I am so glad to have met a helpful, kind-hearted person like you," she added, and stopped speaking.

Lauren watched the woman adjusting the oven for a while as she waited for the pan in front of her to heat up. The woman was embarrassed, probably thinking that she was talking too much. Lauren really liked this.

For more than twenty years, Margaret had approached someone who had lost her mother as a child, like a mother rather than a maid. Moreover, that child's child had lost his mother at a young age.

"Unfortunately, that's not the case," Lauren muttered inside in a broken mood, remembering the prenup.

She hadn't noticed that the oil in the pan was getting hot. The oil suddenly splashed onto Lauren's arm. Margaret turned to the sound and saw Lauren, lost in thought, right in front of the hot oil that continued to splatter.

She called out to her, but Lauren didn't hear her. With a sudden reflex, Margaret pulled Lauren from the ceiling and prevented a large speck of oil from reaching her. Then she put out the bottom of the ceiling. If Lauren hadn't been pulled, the oil might have splashed onto her face.

Before Margaret realized what was going on, she checked Lauren for any burns. Seeing the small burn on her right arm, she dragged Lauren to the sink. She washed the burned place for a while in cold water.

"Are you okay, ma'am?"she asked. Lauren said in a calm voice that she was fine.

Margaret said in a worried tone, "Taking care of a baby is exhausting even though you are attending your lessons from home. I wish you would have listened to me and rested a while before the young master came home."

Lauren was staring at her with a dazed expression, still not understanding what was happening. The sound of a baby crying over the radio woke Lauren up. She ran to the room and picked up Michelin, who was crying in her crib.

She just didn't realize what had happened. The last thing she remembered was that she was looking at Margaret. Then she found herself in the kitchen by the fountain, washing her burning arm. She couldn't remember how many seconds in between.

After meeting Michelin's food and diaper needs, she sat down on one of the sofas in the living room with the baby. Michelin, who has just learned to sit, used to play well on the play carpet at this time, but today she would play it herself. Margaret probably wouldn't let her into the kitchen again.

Brendon made his way to the table and sat down for dinner. He had folded the sleeves of his shirt as he washed his hands, and didn't want to open it again. After all, he was so tired that he would take a shower after dinner and go to sleep.

As Lauren reached for the table, bringing the last missing item from the kitchen, Brendon saw the bruised part of her right arm. It didn't look like anything serious, but even being uncovered meant that Lauren wasn't taking good care of that wound.

Knowing that she wouldn't be going out today, Brendon wondered how that wound was, but he held himself back and didn't ask her.

Before Lauren began eating, she took the Michelin in the baby chair and placed it next to her. Because Brendon came home late, Michelin had already eaten her dinner. That's why she had toys to keep her busy, not her food. She seemed in good spirits.

"I hope she doesn't wake up often at night," Brendon said to himself. Lauren usually consoled her before the sound came into the bedroom, but Brendon especially wanted to sleep well tonight.

It's been busy in the last few months, but it will get even more intense after today. He told Lauren not to wait for him to eat dinner anymore. As Lauren grabs the salad, she looks at Brendon, who is focused on his food for a moment, then "Okay," she replied.

Lauren thought how much more late this man who usually came home late for work could be. She wanted to tell him that he had worked so hard that it was detrimental to his health, but she couldn't dare it. Even if she said something like that, the cold man in front of her, his reply would probably be "It's not your duty."

She was pulled out of his thoughts when Michelin threw the toy in her hand into the soup bowl. Soup had splattered on her shirt and face, as well as on many other things on the table. Realizing what she was doing even though she was only eight months old and very pleased with it, Michelin raised her hands and clapped them with joy.

Brendon was proud to see Michelin's understanding beyond her age, but thought of scolding her, as she could also understand the reprimand for her mischief. Because what she had done had done a lot of work for Lauren.

He was surprised when Lauren started laughing. Lauren continued to laugh as she checked to see if anything had splashed on the Michelin without cleaning herself.

"It's very nice that you put that toy in that bowl, but the soup was hot, you could burn yourself," she said. Michelin gave babyish answers. When Lauren was sure that Michelin was good, she wiped her face and then herself with a napkin.

While she was saying "We ruined your meal. Let's clean up, please." she caught Brendon's short smile as she turned to look at him. Although they had known each other for four months, she had never seen his smile in that time.

Brendon himself was surprised for a moment to relax and find his daughter and the woman looking after her seem charming to him.

"I guess carelessness is contagious, too," he said as it embarrassed him a little to be caught in this way with Lauren.

Lauren looked at him again, not understanding what Brendon meant as she took Michelin out of the baby chair.

"You carelessly burned your arm," Brendon said carelessly as he grabbed the salad with his fork-tucked hand. "Be careful so that Michelin doesn't do anything to herself," he added.

It was then that he noticed the momentary darkness on Lauren's face. It wasn't a woman's face hurt by his sharp tongue. It seemed to Brendon that there was something else worrying Lauren.

Lauren smiled as she left the table, "Don't worry, sir. Michelin was not near me when this accident happened. I will be more careful while sitting at the table." she replied and went to her room to clean herself with Michelin.

After Lauren changed, she checked Michelin's diaper and put her in her crib. Michelin, whose sleep time passed, fell asleep in a short time. Lauren, who went into the living room to clear the table and do the dishes, noticed that the dining table had been removed and wiped.

She thanked Brendon as she walked into the kitchen and saw him go to the laundry room to get fresh towels. The cold faced man left without any answer.

"Brendon…" he said on his way back. Lauren looked back at him.

"Not sir, call Brendon," he added as Brendon headed to his room.

"If you don't get used to it, you may one day break pots in public," he continued.

Before he could hear Lauren's answer, his door was closed.

Katsuhito
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Feristah
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