Awkwardness was palpable, but it was probably for the best that Ernest found out., Grabbing his phone from the table, Ernest stormed off, leaving Deborah muttering,

"This is a disaster.

", I wasn't fazed, though. Ernest and I never intended anything serious, so whether he was angry or misunderstood didn't bother me one bit., After all, we met by chance, I had no plans to date again. It wasn't that one heartbreak had turned me cold; I simply lacked the emotional bandwidth. After breakfast, I planned to drop Deborah off at work before heading to a job interview., I was surprised to get an interview call so soon after sending out my resume just yesterday. But hey, the sooner I started working, the better., Reaching the parking lot, I spotted Dustin's car. He parked, got out, and opened the back door for Jacqueline to step out., Clearly, they were here for me.,

"Jacqueline,

" I greeted her first.,

"Felicia,

" Jacqueline took my hand, tears suddenly streaming down her face., Her emotional display caught me off guard. Turning to Dustin for help, he handed her a tissue, saying,

"Mom, you're going to overwhelm Felicia. If you've got something to say, just say it. Why the tears?

" Jacqueline dabbed at her eyes,

"Felicia, can we go home to talk? Please?

", I glanced at Dustin for an explanation.

"Mom's been trying to reach you. She couldn't get through to you, and you didn't respond to her messages. She's been worried sick all night and insisted on coming here first thing. She's found out about what Rad did.

", It was clear why she was here.,

"Jacqueline, let's sit down in the diner over there. You probably haven't had breakfast. We can eat and talk,

" I suggested, preferring not to head to the Wagner's., Jacqueline hesitated but eventually agreed,

"I'm not hungry.

",

"We'll just talk then,

" I convinced her, and she nodded., Turning to Dustin, I proposed,

"Why don't you take Deborah to the amusement park? I'll chat with Mrs. Wagner and take her home afterward.

" Dustin looked at Jacqueline, then nodded at me,

"Thanks for this.

", As Deborah left with Dustin, I led Jacqueline to the diner. She refused to let me order breakfast, but I insisted on getting her favorite.,

"Felicia, I've heard about the crap Conrad pulled. It's not your fault. If you slapped him, he deserved it,

" Jacqueline's words made me look away.

"Felicia, it's because I didn't educate him well that he hurt you after doing so many wrong things,

" Jacqueline said with a guilty shake of her head.,

"Mrs. Wagner, it's not on you. Conrad's to blame for his actions, not a child anymore,

" I bit my lip., Though I wasn't sure why Jacqueline was here, it seemed clear she hoped to persuade me to forgive Conrad., But whether I forgave him or not was irrelevant. What worried me was that Jacqueline might still want me to give him another chance., Nodding, Jacqueline said,

"You're right. So, please don't feel bad about any of this.

",

"Jacqueline, you're overthinking it. I'm not the one in the wrong here,

" I stated deservedly, catching her off guard., She quickly agreed,

"Right, right. It's Rad's fault, not yours.

", We didn't dwell on the topic. Instead, Jacqueline added,

"About your resignation, Mr. Wagner disagrees too. Conrad will personally apologize and ask you to come back.

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