Maxine shook her head helplessly. “How would I know?”

    ? ???? 40% –

    +33)

    Lisa drew a sharp breath and thoughtfully touched her chin. “Maybe it’s because of that guy we met today. Vivian’s got a little crush on him, right?”

    Lisa repeated her guess in Hathndian, and after getting Maxine’s confirmation, she cheered, “See? My Hathndian is really getting good now! I wasn’t just staring at the exhibits in the museum anymore!”

    “Lisa!” Vivian called out from across the room. “I can hear every word of that!”

    Lisa shrugged and mimed zipping her lips shut at Maxine, then quickly grabbed Jessica’s arm. “Come on, let’s go upstairs. I’ve got something to show

    you

    Lisa thought, ‘No way am I eating Vivian’s cooking. Once we dodge this bullet, I’m taking Jessica out for takeout!‘

    Maxine walked over to Vivian, watching her carefully press down on the steak in the pan with a spat. She couldn’t help but ask, “Did something happen today? You seem really stressed out.” The fact that Vivian had evene up with that bizarre sweet–and–salty tomato and mushroom soup said it all.

    Vivian sighed. “You always see right through me, Maxine.”

    Maxine couldn’t help butugh as she watched Vivian. ‘She probably doesn’t even realize it herself,‘ Maxine thought, noticing how Vivian always wanted to cook whenever she was stressed, despite having absolutely no talent in the kitchen. Every meal turned into such a kitchen disaster that even Lisa, who tried tofort her, would end up fleeing in terror.

    Thankfully, these cooking episodes were rare. Over the past few years, there had only been a handful.

    To avoid burning the food again, Vivian turned off the stove, then turned to Maxine and recounted the day’s events. At the end, she said, “Can you help me figure this out? I feel like there’s something off about him, but I’m worried I might be misreading things.”

    After all, he was someone Vivian had genuinely liked in her youth. She didn’t want to jump to the worst conclusions about what was between them.

    But Maxine shook her head. “From what you’ve told me, I don’t see any red gs,” she said, “except when he saw you reviewing the contract and asked, “Where do you work?‘ That was a bit odd.”

    “Exactly!” Vivian’s face lit up with recognition.

    But Maxine continued, “But many Hathndians would ask that sort of question. I know it might seem a bit forward to you, but even friends who haven’t seen each other in years would ask. Think of it as an indirect way of showing concern, maybe?”

    She seemed hesitant.

    Lisa waved from the second floor and called out, “Hey, Vivian! Am I finally getting a stepdad? Is he hotter than Dad?”

    Only then did Maxine realize Lisa had been standing by the upstairs railing all along, eavesdropping on their conversation.

    With mock annoyance, Vivian tossed the dish towel up the stairs. “If you’re really that bored,e help with dinner, or better yet, try my ‘special‘ mushroom soup. I even added some extra water this time!”

    in a sh, Lisa’s head vanished from sight above the second floor railing.

    Maxine couldn’t help but smile wryly, but still advised, “If you’re really not sure, go out with him again and see. Just keep your guard up. It might just be something he did without thinking”

    Vivian’s eyes lit up. “You’re fight! I’ll ask him out againter and see!”

    True to her decisive nature, Vivian immediately dropped the spat and marched to her room to test Hugh track.

    09:35 Sun, 31 Aug

    ? ., 40%

    +33

    Maxine smiled wryly, rolled up her sleeves, and stepped forward to help Vivian pour the remaining ingredients into the pan, doing her best to salvage tonight’s hard–won dinner gathering. ‘Guess it’s up to me to save this meal,‘ she thought, shaking her head at how chaotic things always got around here.

    09:35 Sun, 31 Aug 20