"Matthew, what do you think you're doing!?" May screeched like a banshee when she finally saw Matthew walk in. Behind Matthew were people carrying large boxes of gifts.
However, Matthew ignored her and instead asked the people behind him to deliver the boxes to Miss Thea.
"What do you mean by that, Matthew?" Elisa also asked. They glanced at the maids carrying the boxes and paper bags from well known Luxury stores. Those looked like expensive gifts. Weren't they supposed to be for Catherine?
"What do you mean?" Matthew asked. Then he turned to the cake. "Why is the cake here? It's for the chef Thew. Cristoff, have someone help you. Take the cake to the kitchen." Since he arrived, he hadn't even spared Catherine or Lenox a glance.
It took everyone a few minutes to process what just happened.
"Eh? What are you all—" Matthew paused. "Oh, you are here to celebrate Miss White's birthday?"
Before anyone could react, however, Lenox had already approached Matthew. He held his arm and pulled him to the side. "What are you doing?" he whispered, anger apparent in his eyes.
"What do you mean? Didn't you know that today is Chef Rhea's last day?" Matthew blinked—almost innocently. "She's retiring."
Lenox tightened his grip on Matthew's arm, pulling him further to the side near the entrance. "Why are you doing this? You know that it's Catherine's birthday. Do you want her to be upset with you?"
Matthew didn't resist. He looked at Lenox like he didn't understand the question. "Catherine doesn't even like this kind of thing," he said. "What's the point of throwing a party when her mother's dying in the hospital?"
Lenox blinked, caught off guard. "What are you talking about? What about the cake? The food?"
Matthew raised an eyebrow. "What about them? Her mother's dying. Does she still have the mood to enjoy those?"
Before Lenox could explain, May's voice echoed through the dining room. "How could you be this vindictive, Matthew? Just because Catherine refused your gift, now you want to embarrass her like this?"
Matthew turned his head toward her. "Embarrass her? How did I do that?"
May stepped forward, clearly angry. "Are you seriously asking that? You walked in here with gifts and ignored the birthday girl!"
Matthew shrugged. "We're inside my house, eating food paid for by my family. I brought gifts for someone who worked here for thirty years. How exactly am I trying to embarrass Catherine?"
Elisa cut in before May could answer. "How dare you say that in front of the real master of the house?"
Matthew looked at her but didn't speak.
She continued. "Just because the chef and Cristoff are on your side doesn't mean you can do whatever you want. If Lenox tells Uncle Lindberg about this, you're done. All of you."
Lenox stepped in quickly. "Wait. This is a misunderstanding." He forced a smile and looked around. "Today's also Chef Thea's last day. She's been with us for three decades. I forgot to mention it earlier."
He turned toward Catherine. "I was going to do this later tonight, but I didn't want to disappoint you, Cathy. So I'll just give it to you now."
He reached into his jacket pocket and took out a small velvet box. He held it out to her.
Catherine hesitated. "What is it?"
"Open it," Lenox said. "I made it myself."
He glanced at Matthew as he spoke, watching closely for a reaction. He waited for the moment Matthew would step in, say something, maybe pull out a more expensive gift to upstage him.
That was how it usually went. Lenox could already picture it—Matthew getting jealous, trying to one-up him like always, and in the process, making Catherine feel insulted again.
To Lenox's surprise, Matthew didn't say anything. He simply pulled out his phone and started typing. He looked more bored than upset.
Gasps echoed across the room as Catherine finally opened the box. Inside was a delicate bracelet—small pearls linked with silver wire, each piece shaped like a flower. It looked handcrafted. May clapped her hands once.
"See? Now that's thoughtful," she said, glancing at Matthew. "Not like people who just throw money at someone and call it a gift."
A few classmates chuckled. Lenox allowed himself a small smile. He waited, still watching Matthew for any sign of irritation.
Matthew tucked his phone away and stepped back from the table.
"Where are you going?" Lenox asked, his smile faltering.
"The kitchen," Matthew said.
Elisa looked at him, confused. "What about your gift?"
Matthew stopped. "What gift?"
Elisa blinked. "Your gift for Catherine."
Matthew looked at her like she had asked him if the sky was green. "I didn't know she liked gifts. Her mother's in the hospital. Why would she want to celebrate anything?"
The room quieted.
Catherine's face immediately turned red. She lowered her hands and slowly closed the box. "Don't ask him for a gift, Elisa. He's right. This isn't proper. I shouldn't be celebrating today. Lenox, please take your gift back. I should be spending time with my mother instead."
Matthew gave a short nod. "You're a filial daughter. You should be spending dinner at the hospital with the one who gave birth to you. Not blowing out candles while people pretend nothing's wrong."
Catherine didn't respond. Her eyes dropped to the floor.
May stepped in quickly, placing a hand on Catherine's arm. "Cathy, no. Don't say that. You deserve to be happy. Your mom's surgery is going to go well. This is what she wanted. She told you to celebrate, remember?"
Catherine didn't answer right away. She kept her head down, fingers still resting on the closed box.
Seeing this, Matthew snorted inwardly. He already knew what Lenox was trying to do. However, he wasn't in the mood to continue playing with them. "Since that's it. You should continue celebrating." He wanted to count his winnings tonight in his room!
"Where are you going?" Lenox asked.
"To the kitchen," he answered for the second time. He was starving. He needed food!
"But—"
"I am not invited to this celebration. Besides, Miss White hated me. How could she enjoy her birthday when she's forced to celebrate it with someone that she hated?"
"Matthew, you should just stop playing hard to get!" Elisa suddenly said.
This made Matthew pause. Hard to get? He couldn't remember playing hard to get at all! What is this woman talking about?
Elisa stepped forward. "Stop pretending. Just bring out the real gift already."
Matthew looked at her, not saying anything.
"You think we don't know?" she added. "You were planning a surprise, weren't you? Everyone saw it coming. If you keep this up, Catherine will never forgive you again."
Matthew blinked. He wasn't sure what she was talking about. He had prepared something earlier that morning—a setup at her favorite restaurant, a private dinner, even a music ensemble. But that was before everything. Before he remembered. Before he was reborn. Earlier, he had already called to cancel everything. That plan no longer mattered.
May crossed her arms. "This whole 'I don't care' act? It's getting old. If you keep pretending, you're just giving Catherinee more reasons to hate you."
Matthew sighed and looked at both of them. "You're both delusional."
Elisa's eyes widened. "What did you say?"
"I said you're delusional," Matthew repeated. "You're talking about some plan I don't even have. Making up stories about surprises I'm not giving. All because you can't believe I actually stopped caring."
He turned back toward the hallway. "Enjoy the party and don't forget to clean up before leaving."