Chapter 6
Chapter 6
Nina turned around and stared at the prize wheel in disbelief. She’d calculated the force and speed just right—she was supposed to win the 700-dollar prize.
But Yvonne was overjoyed. “Nina, you’re so lucky!”
“Congrats!” the store owner said as he boxed up the phone and handed it to her. “Recharge 60 dollars today and get 30 dollars free credit! This kind of deal won’t last.”
Nina instantly got it. This was one of those “free phone with phone plan” tricks that had gotten popular lately.
But Robert was already pulling out 60 dollars in cash, all smiles. “My daughter doesn’t even have a SIM card yet. Go ahead and set one up for her!”
The moment he saw the money, the owner grinned even wider. “No problem! I just need her ID info.”
Nina found the guy super shady. So she quickly tried powering on the phone-just in case it was broken or, worse, a fake
model.
The phone did turn on, but the startup screen showed a lemon with a bite taken out of it. It was a total knockoff.
Still, Nina didn’t want to ruin her parents’ mood. So she accepted it without saying anything.
“Come on, let’s get you some clothes,” Yvonne said, gently pulling her out of the store.
Meanwhile, Robert stayed behind for a second. He gave the store owner a big thumbs-up and smiled in a way that felt kind of mysterious.
The owner nodded and smiled back, walking them out with great enthusiasm.
But after the van drove off, he stood there shaking his head with a puzzled look. “Rich folks make no sense,” he muttered. “He gave me 6000 dollars just to make sure his daughter won some knockoff phone? What the heck for?”
He also couldn’t figure out why Robert and Yvonne dressed in old clothes and drove a beat-up car. To him, the rich were just plain weird.
There weren’t many clothes to choose from at the little town shop.
‘But Nina didn’t mind. She let Yvonne carefully pick out two outfits that fit her well and paid for them. Then the family headed back home.
On the way, Nina pretended to be really into her new phone, fiddling with it like it was the best thing ever. At the same time, she texted Chris: [Here’s my new number.]
Chris replied right away: [Got it. Your parents got you a new phone, didn’t they? Nina, take good care of yourself. If anything happens, call me right away. I’m always here.]
Nina stared at the screen for a while, her brows slightly furrowed.
Robert and Yvonne caught that look. They thought she was feeling frustrated because she didn’t know how to use the phone. It broke their hearts-life must’ve been really hard for her at the orphanage.
Trying to keep the mood light, Yvonne glanced over from the driver’s seat and said, “Nina, how’s the phone? Want Dad to
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Chapter 6
help you save our numbers in the contacts?”
It was her way of helping without hurting Nina’s pride.
Nina caught on to what Yvonne was trying to do. But she didn’t mind. She actually liked being cared for like this. So she just smiled and said, “Dad, just tell me what to do. I’ll do it myself.”
“Okay,” Robert nodded right away, then started walking her through the steps.
Once she saved their numbers, Nina blinked and asked, “Dad, can I call you?”
Robert thought she was just excited to try calling someone. He smiled warmly. “Go ahead.”
Nina tapped his name and hit “Call.”
“Hello?” Robert answered with a goofy tone. “Is this Nina?”
3
“It’s me, Dad,” Nina said, looking at him with eyes full of warmth.
For four years, she had typed in their numbers over and over, never daring to press “Call.” But from now on, her parents would always answer.
9:08 pm & d
