?Chapter 1286:


    She would have forgotten about Nick and the other kids entirely. Nothing else mattered more than being there for Jerome on his special day.<fn937d> ???? ????s? ???????s ?? Find_Novel(.</fn937d>


    “Why don’t we throw him ate birthday party?” Nina proposed eagerly, her voice picking up with hope.


    “There’s no need.” Jesse, who didn’t think much of birthdays to begin with, brushed off the suggestion without a second thought. “We can do it next year. Same difference.”


    “It’s not the same!” The more she dwelled on it, the heavier the guilt settled. Shetched onto Jesse’s arm, her pout in full effect as she begged, “Come with me, please?”


    Jesse pursed his lips, giving her a long look.


    “Jesse, please?” she whined again, stretching the word out.


    “Mom and Dad will be home in two days,” he reminded her gently. “And you haven’t finished the homework Dad assigned. If you run off to see Jerome now, you know Dad won’t let it slide when he gets back.”


    Nina paused, her resolve faltering. Their dad usually had aid-back attitude, but when it came to discipline, he didn’t mess around. Even their mom couldn’t get him to back down once he’d made up his mind.


    Still…


    “Jerome’s going to the same kindergarten as us.” Jesse offered the bit of information like a constion prize. “You’ll have plenty of time to make it up to him.”


    “Really?” Her eyes lit up, a spark of excitement returning.


    Jesse nodded. “Yeah.”


    “How do you even know that?” Nina asked, her curiosity piqued.


    She’d been to Jerome’s house with Jesse earlier that same day. How had she missed that part?


    Jesse shot her a nce and replied coolly, “Do you even pay attention to anything else when Jerome’s around?”


    “I do!” she protested, clearly not liking that answer.


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    Jesse didn’t say anything else.


    Earlier that day, while Nina had been busy ying with Jerome, he had taken the chance to chat with Donna. That was when he learned that Donna and Kevin had finalized their ns. Starting next semester, both Jerome and Jasper would be attending the same kindergarten as them.


    And perhaps the most surprising part: Jerome and Jasper were twins. They were mirror images of each other.


    Jesse couldn’t help but wonder what Nina’s reaction would be the first time sheid eyes on Jasper.


    “So, are you still thinking about throwing Jerome thatte birthday party?” Jesse asked, looking at her directly.


    Nina thought it over, then gave a slow shake of her head. They’d see each other again soon enough. She’d make it up to himter. Right now, avoiding her dad’s punishment took top priority.


    The next two days flew by in a blur, with Nina throwing herself into piano practice and sketching like her life depended on it. Then, atst, Freya and Ellis returned.


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