Marvin''s eyes, deep and dark as obsidian, rested quietly on Keen.


    "No matter if wee in first orst, no matter how Ste does, I''ll never be embarrassed by her," he said, his tone steady and sincere.


    Keen shot him a re, crossing his arms stubbornly. "Hmph! Wait until you''re the one making a fool of yourself-let''s see if you still talk like that! And don''t you dare cry if we lose, you troublemaker!"


    It hadn''t always been like this. Keen hadn''t always felt so ashamed of his own mother.


    But everything changed the day Rachel came back into their lives.


    Ever since then, it seemed like Mom was always the one gettingughed at. The worst was on his birthday, when she got into an argument with one of Mr. Wilkinson''s friends. Everyone at the party stared and whispered, watching her


    make a scene.


    He''d overheard grown-ups-uncles and aunts-murmuring that his mother wasn''t ssy enough, that she was an embarrassment. Some even said it was no wonder Dad was always taking Rachel to important events instead.


    At the time, Keen was still at his old preschool, and everyone there knew Ste was his mom.


    The birthday fiasco was all anyone could talk about the next day. The story spread like wildfire, and soon every kid in his ss was snickering behind his back, calling his mom a joke and mocking him as the "country bumpkin''s son."


    Friends who used to y with him now kept their distance. He feltpletely alone, shunned by nearly everyone.


    Thankfully, soon after, he transferred to a new school.


    Here, no one knew who his mother was.


    He excelled at everything, quickly winning over the teachers and making new friends. He even got Rachel to join him at parent-child events, soaking up the envious looks from his ssmates.


    Keen loved this new life.


    Buttely, his mom barely spoke to him. The emptiness gnawed at him, leaving him feeling lost and miserable.


    If only Mom could be as amazing as Rachel, he thought.


    Rachel smiled gently. "Keen, if there''s nothing else, let''s go back and rehearse, okay?"


    Keen nodded. "Okay."


    Haynes gave Ste a long, searching look, then turned to leave as well.


    "Wait," a low,manding voice broke the tension. Neville''s words seemed to vibrate through the room. "Mr. O''Brien, Ms. Pearce-you just used Star of something she didn''t do. Don''t you think you owe her an apology?"


    Rachel turned, her expression cool. "Ms. Cameron may be Keen''s mother, but she took him without telling anyone... I''d say she''s the one who owes us an exnation."


    Marvin stepped in, unfazed. "Keen just told everyone himself-he came with us on his own. Ms. Pearce, you''re the one who insisted Keen never lies. Have you already forgotten your own words?"


    Rachel''s retort caught in her throat.


    Neville watched them both with a faint, knowing smile. "So, what is it? Mr. O''Brien, Ms. Pearce-do you never admit to being wrong, or is it just that you can''t bring yourselves to apologize to Star?"


    "Is this the example you want to set for Keen?"


    His words hung in the air. Haynes and Rachel''s faces darkened, the weight of the moment pressing down on them.


    Keen stood by their side, watching with wide, hopeful eyes.


    If they refused to admit their mistake, how could they expect Keen to trust them in the future?


    After a few seconds of heavy silence, Haynes finally spoke, his voice rough. "I''m sorry."


    With Haynes apologizing, Rachel had no reason to hold back. She managed a contrite smile. "Ms. Cameron, I''m sorry. I misunderstood."


    Seeing this, Keen looked away.


    He didn''t think there was anything wrong with Dad and Rachel apologizing to Mom. He''d been taught since he was little-if you make a mistake, you say sorry.


    And this time, Dad and Rachel really had misunderstood. Apologizing was the right thing to do.