Chapter 304 - 304 : Convincing.

Chapter 304: Chapter 304 : Convincing.?

[Edward POV]

"Here is the solution to all of your problems." I directed the family members to a dark room filled with dust.

"The basement?" Haley asked, confused. "Alex's going to move here?"

Alex rolled her eyes, arms crossed. "You're the one moving here!"

Claire shook her head, "Uh-uh, there's no way any of my daughters are moving here."

"What about me? I like it here." Luke chimed in, looking around. "Then Alex can move into my room."

"Your room is filthy!" Alex grumbled. "But I'll take it."

"No one is changing." Claire was clearly anxious. Haley grumbled, "Mom, no one is against this but you."

Claire shot a glance at Phil and said, "I'm not alone in this. Your dad feels the same way."

Phil sighed and turned to Claire, whispering nervously, "You're kinda alone in this, hun."

"No one is moving rooms! No one is getting the independence they want without showing they are ready for it." Claire made a zipping gesture. "This is final."

"Oh, so that's it? The matriarch of the family speaks, and no one can go against her?" Alex said sarcastically. Phil mumbled slowly, "Hey!" but as he saw the matriarch's glare, he kept quiet about his opinion.

"Alex!" Claire looked at her with disappointment. "I'm not wrong for this!" The room erupted into clamoring and arguing.

"Alright, everyone. Stop." I clapped my hands, quieting the discussion. Everyone turned their attention toward me as I looked at Claire with a smirk. "To be honest, I understand what your mom is worried about."

"You do?" Claire asked, disbelief evident in her voice.

I nodded. "You have three children. Let's say, if Luke moved in here, he would definitely turn it into his man cave—TV and game setup everywhere. You wouldn't see him as much anymore. Your mom just hates to lose you, Luke; that's why she doesn't want you to move."

"Oh," Luke exclaimed, turning to Claire. "I guess I won't move out right now, Mom."

"This is never about moving out," Alex grumbled, but Claire and Luke were already embracing.

"Let's say Alex moved out here," I continued. "With her antisocial tendencies, her science experiments, and being in a basement—it could interfere with her mental health. Plus, her middle child syndrome... Alex is sure to become a mad scientist or a comic book villain."

"Nooo!" Phil exclaimed, fully believing my fib. Haley, Luke, and Claire took a step back from Alex. She rolled her eyes at her dad. "Don't believe everything he says!"

I chuckled and corrected myself, "Eh, some of those points are legit. Otherwise, they wouldn't believe me so easily. Anyway, Alex needs a place with sunlight, somewhere people won't forget about her. Treat her like a houseplant; otherwise, she'll wilt."

Phil hugged Alex, saying, "I won't let you turn into a villain, Alex."

"I'M NEVER GONNA!" she protested, but Phil hugged her tighter.

"Now, let's talk about the final daughter: Haley." I turned to her.

Haley grinned, brushing a stray hair from her forehead. "I don't have any big problems, right?"

"Nope. Yours is the biggest concern your mom could have," I corrected her.

"What?" Haley mumbled in disbelief.

"First of all, with direct access to the door, you can sneak out easily—or even sneak someone in. At the height of your teenage rebellion and sexual promiscuity, your mother's worst fear is that moving down here equals getting pregnant in high school."

"MOM!" Haley shot an angry glance at Claire, who nodded firmly. "That's right. So none of you are suitable to move down into the basement."

Alex burst into laughter. "So what Mom is worried about is that you're too slutty!"

"Shut up, house plant!" Haley retorted.

The argument flared up again, but this time, I let it happen. As they bickered, I looked around the basement. Descending the stairs from outside the house, I noted that the basement was split into two parts. Both were used for storage, but one of them was emptier than the other.

I checked the structure, even taking some pictures with Robin for potential improvements. It was a basic AI remodel project in the works. There weren't a lot of databases for renovations she could learn from, so the remodel was pretty straightforward. Robin could also scan the house's structure, giving me insights into any hidden or modified areas.

Suddenly, Claire grabbed my arm and said, "Let's get out of here. You don't have to worry about us, Edward. You already have a lot on your plate."

Claire wanted to wrap up the discussion and headed upstairs again.

[Claire's Commentary]

"His house is gone, yet he's worried about us?" Claire thought, a hint of sadness in her eyes. With a slight smile, she added, "He's a sweet kid. But I hope he'll take care of himself, not just others."

[Phil's Commentary]

"How did I never see it before... I need to give extra attention to Alex from now on, or... she'll destroy the world."

[Commentaries End]

"Alex, do you want to go to an amusement park with me and Luke? Or should we check out the science museum you always wanted to visit?" Phil asked.

Alex rolled her eyes and shouted at me, "Edward! Whatever you're planning to do, do it now!"

Everyone paused when they heard Alex's shout. "Plan what?" Claire pulled back, a skeptical look on her face as she gazed at me.

I shrugged and said, "Well, the basement room plan, of course."

"I thought we already decided not to do that," Claire replied, slight irritation in her tone.

I smirked and said, "Can you keep an open mind and let your children make the case first? After that, if you really think it can't happen, then they'll just give up on the topic."

"I won't give up!" Haley and Alex chimed in at the same time. I called the three kids to my side. Claire and Phil exchanged glances, and then Phil said, "Alright, we'll hear you out."

"Upstairs! Not here! There's too much dust down here," Claire insisted, leading us all to the living room.

She returned to the living room and continued, "Alex and I promised not to fight anymore if I move out. Um, errr..." She stammered, momentarily forgetting her talking points.

But then her eyes lit up. "Tomorrow's my 16th birthday. Mommy, Daddy, your little girl's growing up. I want to know what I'm capable of, and I want to do that with peace of mind. Even if there are no renovations, can I still move to the basement? I'll even clean up the place myself."

In the future, Haley did move to the basement. It was messy, but still, it was her own space. That's all that mattered.

Inside my mind, I gave Haley an 8.5/10 score for her speech. If she hadn't made the mistake at the beginning, it would've been higher. She didn't demand the room as a birthday gift, which showed her maturity. Asking to move even if she didn't get it because she wanted to work on her craft showed initiative. If that didn't move her parents, I didn't know what would.

"No." Claire suddenly spoke up with a serious tone, interrupting my thoughts. Haley deflated at the sound of it. I was shocked too; I really thought it would work.

"The place is too dilapidated. Wait for your dad and your grandpa to work on it first, then you can move in," Claire added with a slight smirk. Haley brightened up and rushed to hug her parents. "Thank you! Thank you so much!"

Phil beamed and immediately stood up from the couch, walking toward me. "Ed, do you really think I can get my own TV show?"

"There's a chance," I replied simply. "But don't be sad if you don't get it. Creating an online channel is still a good thing."

Phil continued, fully excited about the premise. "Jay and I can work on it together. Also, Ed, when the room is finished, you can use it as a safe house in case you're in trouble again."

Claire liked that idea. "Ooh, that sounds nice."

I suddenly said, "No. I won't come here. Ever." My rejection stunned them, and then they turned depressed.

"Why not?" Haley asked, incredibly concerned.

I scoffed. "Why would I want to put the people I love in danger? If anything were to happen to you guys because of me, I don't think I could live with myself—"

Haley and Claire hugged me suddenly before I could finish my sentence. "Ugh, enough with the mushy stuff," Luke grumbled.

I checked my watch. "I have to go now if I want to make it to the shoot early. I'll have to leave, but we'll discuss more about it later."

"Ed, you want to work on this too?" Claire asked with disbelief. I chuckled. "Claire, my therapy is breaking stuff and building it back up. I did that with my first house too. I need this." My therapy was also being with those guys, but I didn't want to told them that lest Luke said I was being mushy again.

"Alright, Ed will be part of the project!" Phil declared. "Oh, do you have anywhere to stay tonight?"

"On the yacht, maybe," I replied. I wanted to check on my lab stuff too, so I needed to go there anyway.

"Why don't you stay here with Luke?" Claire offered. "I'll make up a bed for you."

"Ed, what about Jenna's party?" Alex asked with a slight concern. I muttered exasperatedly, "Oh yeah. That too. I don't know if I can make it."

"WHAT?!" Alex was anxious. "But you said you will come."

"I will try. It's just that the movie shoot was delayed yesterday. No one could work because of the terror attack. We'll have to make up for the delay today," I replied apologetically.

"Hmm..." Alex slumped in disappointment and said, "Break the news to Enid yourself. I can't do it to her."

As I said my goodbyes to the family and walked toward the living room, Haley asked me in a whisper, "So, if you can't make it to the party, I guess you can't celebrate my birthday with me tomorrow, right? There will be a small party at Grandpa's house. They want to make it a surprise party, but I already know about it."

"You're not throwing a birthday bash?" I asked teasingly. "Hundreds of people will be invited? It'll become the talk of all high school kids?"

Haley rolled her eyes and said, "I don't feel like it. You have any problems with that?"

I chortled and said, "No, of course not."

[Haley's commentary]

"Rather than having a lot of people at the party, I'd rather be with one, but I cannot tell him that."

[Commentary ends]

Before I could respond, Phil called out from afar, phone in hand, "Ed! Are you sure you only want a beach house?"

"Yeah. Nearer the better. Oh! If the mansion looks like Batman's house up in the hills, I can consider it too," I replied to Phil before turning back to Haley. I had mentioned my intention to buy a new house, and he was excited to help.

"You know what? You're already busy enough," Haley interrupted. "It's just a birthday. We can hang out later when you're less busy."

I chuckled a bit and said, "It's your birthday. I want to take you out. If you don't mind, can we go to McDonald's after I get back? What do you think?"

She beamed and teased me slightly, "You're the richest kid on the planet, but you're taking me to McDonald's? You're lucky I'm not that hard to please."

We both laughed a little before I remembered something. "Oh damn. I forgot about your present."

"It's okay. I don't need one," she replied honestly. "You don't have to get me anything~"

"No, what I meant is, I forgot your present inside the house," I said, stunning her. "It's burned to the ground now."

Haley was shocked. "What? What did you get me?"

"A Birkin bag," I replied with a wry smile. Haley gasped, her eyes wide. "You got me a Birkin?!"

"But it's burned down." I stressed it out.

Haley was speechless for a second, her face blanked out. Her face contorted a few times between sadness and acceptance before she finally accepted it.

Her voice cracked, "I'm fine."

"I mean, I can buy you another one—"

"NO!" She stopped me immediately. "I didn't want you to spend more money on it. 10...15 thousand– Urk– Promise me!"

"Alright alright. I promise you not to buy you another birthday present this year." I said defeatedly. Both of us laughed a bit before she sent me off to go to work.

"I'll watch your movie trailer when it comes out!" She said as she waved me goodbye.

The trailer for the movie, 'Self Made' was finally released to the public when I was shooting my scenes. And the review was...mostly positive.