You More Than Anything In The World

Darius glanced around. Since no one dared to speak, he attempted to lighten the mood by suggesting, “Let's eat first. We can talk about other things after the meal!”

Arissa glanced at the six children beside her and raised her voice, “So, you guys are just going to eat plain pasta, right?”

Noticing that she was speaking to them, the kids gradually lifted their heads to look at Arissa. As their eyes met hers, they quickly averted their gaze, blinking guiltily.

“Mommy, it's all our fault! Don't blame Mr. Bailey and the others!”

Gavin spoke up, pleading for Arissa's mercy. Their father hadn't even decided on their punishment yet but had already started punishing Shaun, Ethen, Jack, and Bradley. Gavin felt extremely guilty.

If it weren't for their insistence on teaching Justin a lesson, the men wouldn't have gone along with the children's scheme.

“Yes, Mommy, it was all our idea. Mr. Bailey and the others only came with us because they were worried about our safety!” Zachary quickly explained, not wanting Shaun and the others to face harsher punishment.

Tim, Oliver, Jasper, and Jesse all nodded in agreement. “Mommy, we were the ones who wanted to teach that bad guy a lesson. It has nothing to do with Mr. Bailey and the others!”

Arissa chuckled. It was starting to seem as if she was the one punishing everyone.

Nonetheless, she knew it was necessary to discipline them. She said, “Last time, you all admitted your mistakes to me and even reflected on them. But what happened? As soon as my back was turned, you were at it again. Were all the promises you made just to deceive us?”

The children were drowning in guilt. Oliver bit his lip and explained quietly, “Mommy, we couldn't let that bad guy off the hook. We couldn't swallow our anger. That person was just too bad.”

As he spoke, he chanced a look at Darius, not daring to mention Julian.

“Mommy isn't against you standing up for yourselves. There are many ways to teach someone a lesson. But you're still young and could easily get into danger. If something were to happen to you, what would I do?”

After all, children were weaker than adults. They tended to act without thorough consideration, often putting themselves in danger.

“Mommy, I'm sorry!” Oliver apologized.

“Mommy, we remember everything we promised you, but it's hard for us not to teach that bad guy a lesson,” Jasper looked at her and explained softly.

“Mommy, we've been careful. That bad guy doesn't even know it was us!” Jesse was scared as she glanced at Arissa, fearing her anger.

“Mommy, we were wrong. You can punish us however you want!” Tim shot Arissa a cautious look.

Arissa glanced at them, noticing their frightened and wary stares. She didn't know whether to laugh or cry at their behavior.

“Would you still hide it from us if you knew you were wrong?”

The six children hung their heads in shame.

Benjamin glanced at the children, then looked at Arissa and served her a bowl of soup.

“Have some soup!”

Arissa glanced at Benjamin and said, “You're the one punishing them, yet they're scared of me!”

Upon hearing the hint of resentment in her tone, Benjamin scratched his nose and said softly, “They're afraid you'll punish them.”