Chapter 296 - Hazel's Birthday

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In the morning, Hazel sat in her bed for a long time after she had woke up. The little girl was staring out the window with a dazed expression. A few minutes later, her hips quivered and Hazel quickly bit at her lips to suppress her tears.

There was a knock on the door and Hazel quickly buried her face in the pillow. She listened as the door swung open but continued to stay unmoved. The mattress beside her sunk and by the rose-scented perfume, Hazel knew right away that the person who had entered her room was her grandmother.

"Hazel?" Sophie touched at the little girl's shoulder softly. Judging from the way Hazel breathed, Sophie knew that Hazel had woke up a while ago and now, she was just pretending to sleep. "Are you not going to wake up?"

"Grandma, let me sleep a little longer," Hazel muffled against her pillow. Her hands moved to rub her eyes and Hazel was not surprised to find it wet with tears. "I don't feel good."

Sophie stared at her granddaughter for a long time. As seconds passed by, Sophie felt her heart grew heavy. Her eyes stung and her nose soured. It was not as if she did not know that Hazel was hiding her tears on the pillow.

Hazel might think that she could not see anything, but Sophie had long noticed the stains on her pillow. Her eyes moved and Sophie caught her granddaughter hugging the pink plushy bunny in her hand. 

The plushy was her mother's birthday present last year and Hazel especially loved that bunny that she would often imprint that bunny in her drawings.

It was Hazel's birthday and the little girl was missing her parents terribly.

Last year, both her mother and father were still around to celebrate her birthday. That morning, her parents had come into her room to shower her with kisses.

This year, her parents were no longer around to wish her a happy birthday. Hazel thought that she could not get used to it.

Recently, Hazel has been trying to overcome her sadness. But now that she thought of how her parents would not be by her side to celebrate her birthday, Hazel grew sad. At this time, Hazel thought that she did not mind if her parents did not prepare any birthday present for her. As long as her parents could accompany her a while longer, the little girl would be satisfied.

"Baby…" Sophie could no longer suppress her feelings. She leaned forward and hugged the little girl in her embrace. Her hands moved to rub at Hazel's back as if to console the little girl. However, only Sophie knew whether she was consoling the little girl or herself.

As Hazel's grandmother, she only wished for her granddaughter to live well and happy. Seeing how Hazel had tried to hid her tear made her sad. Sophie could not stop a few drops of tears from falling. 

Sophie had planned to coax the little girl, but in the end, she could not find anything suitable to say. She was worried that her quivering voice would give away her feelings.

It took Sophie a while before she recovered herself. She held Hazel tightly in her arms and whispered, "Grandma has made a bowl of noodles for you. Come over and eat before the noodles get cold, alright?"

Hazel was about to decline when she heard her grandmother speak again.

"Get up alright," Sophie coaxed. "Later, your uncle is going to take you to the cemetery."

Hazel hesitated before she finally nodded. She rubbed her face against her pillow and finally sat up. Her face was a little red and tears hung at her eyelashes. "Grandma, I will come down after changing."

Sophie heaved a breath of relief as she watched her granddaughter look at her. "Do you want me to help?"

The little girl shook her head. "I will be fine. Grandma, I'm a big girl. I can get ready by myself."

Seeing the look in Hazel's eyes, Sophie nodded before she left the little girl to get ready. When she walked into the kitchen, Edith was preparing some breakfast with Auntie Emma. 

Edith handed over the task to cook the dumplings to Auntie Emma and walked over to her mother-in-law. "Mom, how is Hazel?"

Sophie flashed a weak smile. "I managed to coax her to come down and have breakfast together. She will come down soon."

Edith nodded before she turned to look towards Hazel's bedroom. Her heart grew anxious as she waited for the little girl to come down. Edith could imagine what Hazel was feeling on her first birthday without her parents.

The grownups who were sitting around the dining table finally heaved with relief when they saw Hazel walked down the stairs. Hazel might have washed her face, but the evidence of her tears was still there. 

Sophie stood up and walked over with a bowl of noodles for her granddaughter. 

Seeing that Hazel had started to eat her breakfast, everyone at the table was relieved. Their heart ached, knowing that Hazel did not have much appetite, but would still eat her noodles clean  because she didn't want them to worry.

After breakfast, Edith accompanied both Neil and Hazel to the cemetery. As soon as they arrived, Neil and Edith sat at the side as Hazel went to talk to her parents.

It was the first time that Edith had come over to the place and watching how Hazel stood quietly in front of the tomb made her heart grew heavy. 

Once upon a time, Edith had gone through the same feelings as Hazel. The first year she celebrated her birthday without her mother made her feel terrible. Everything around her does not seem right.

Edith seemed to remember how much she was missing her mother. Because she was a little rebellious as a kid, Edith had run away from home to find her mother and caused her grandfather to worry…

She snapped out of her thought when Neil pulled her head to rest on his shoulders and the two stayed in that pose as they waited for Hazel to finish. 

After ten minutes, Hazel turned around and walked over to them.

Edith peeked at the little girl's face and saw her reddened eyes. However, the little girl's expression was a little calmer.

The three of them went back to Neil's SUV in silence. 

Neil hesitated for a few seconds before he reached his hand to pat at the little girl's head awkwardly. "Hazel, happy birthday."

The little girl stared at her uncle in a daze before she nodded. After a while, she found that her cheek was a little damp when her auntie kissed her on the cheek.

"Hazel, happy birthday," Edith said.

Hazel looked at the two of them alternately and felt her lips quivered again. Suddenly, she wrapped her arms around Edith's neck and sniffled. "Auntie Edith.. I missed my mama and papa."

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