THIRD PERSON'S POV
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"Guess who'll be a legal adult in a few weeks time?~"
"Cut it out."
George tried shoving Donald away, but the boy stubbornly clung to him like a koala hugging a tree.
And because Donald was slightly taller than George, the whole scene looked even more ridiculous.
Eventually, Donald's legs gave out and he collapsed to the floor—making sure to drag George down with him.
It had been three weeks since the friendly match between Ivy and Nora.
Team 5 tried their best to treat Ivy normally while still being extra careful so another incident wouldn't happen again.
George attempted crawling away while Donald tightly held onto his legs.
"Get off me dude!"
"It's early birthday vibes."
"I don't want birthday vibes!"
Albert came downstairs and calmly stepped over the two boys before making his way into the kitchen where the others were gathered.
Nathan and Fiona were cooking while Lily filled the room with nonstop chatter. Zoe helped chop vegetables while Ivy sat nearby drinking strawberry milk and occasionally eating whatever Nathan placed in front of her.
Albert walked in with purpose and stopped beside Ivy to examine her.
It had now become routine.
He checked her temperature, blood pressure, eyesight, and even proceeded to inspect her teeth.
"Einstein, I'm eating."
"I'll be quick."
Albert mumbled as he lightly gripped her jaw to keep her mouth open.
Seeing no issues—or cavity in his case—he finally let her go, grabbed her bowl of fruits and immediately ran away with it.
Ivy frowned and threw her shoe at him.
"Ah!"
Albert stumbled but still protected the bowl as he kept running towards the stairs.
Meanwhile, George finally managed to crawl into the kitchen with Donald still holding tightly onto his legs.
"HELP ME."
Lily quickly snapped a picture before hurrying over to assist. She grabbed Donald's legs and tried pulling him away, but he refused to budge.
"Leave boss alone. What kind of weird idol are you?"
"The real kind. Let go shortie. George and I are bound for life. Especially now that he's almost an adult. I personally get to initiate him into adulthood."
The others rolled their eyes simultaneously at his declaration.
Lily narrowed her eyes before suddenly tickling him.
"No—that's cheating—!"
Donald burst into loud laughter, trying to wiggle away while still refusing to release George.
Eventually he surrendered and quickly scrambled away from Lily, breathing heavily like he had just completed a marathon.
Lily smiled proudly before returning to her position, engaging Nathan and Fiona in more discussions.
George stood up, dusted himself off, then took a seat by the kitchen island.
His gaze drifted toward Ivy, who was carefully arranging her salad on a plate, separating each vegetable one by one with chopsticks.
Once she finished, she mixed them together again before finally eating.
George smiled lightly.
"What was the arrangement for?"
"I'm reminding the vegetables that they're not the same."
Ivy answered seriously.
"Then why mix them again?"
"'Cause they're perfect together but still different."
George shook his head, amused.
For a brief second, a trace of melancholy crossed his face before disappearing completely.
Nathan and Fiona finally finished cooking and served everyone.
Donald immediately sat beside Ivy, occasionally adding more food onto her plate.
"Eat more. You've lost weight."
Ivy slowly squinted at him.
"Are you calling me skinny?"
"What? Of course not. You're not—"
"So I'm ugly?"
"NO. Please don't do this to me, angel. Just eat. You're gorgeous. I just want your granny smile gone."
Ivy shoved him off the chair.
The others burst into laughter, already used to the never-ending saga of Ivy and Donald bonding.