Chapter 85 The Grandma Across

Lee Seng slipped on socks and grabbed his phone, wallet, and keys. He slipped them into his orange shorts and walked out of his room and towards the front door. He grabbed a windbreaker jacket on the hook near the front door and put it on. He slipped on his gym shoes and unlocked the front door. He stepped out, locked the door, and turned to leave.

An older lady was standing near the elevator, patiently waiting as Lee Seng made his way over. She glanced over and noticed him and immediately smiled. She noticed his tail and ears and focused on them for a while before looking back at his face.

"Ah, Lee Seng. It's been a while, dear. You look different." The old lady smiled. Lee Seng stood slightly behind her and waving at her.

"Hi, Mrs. Penelope. It has been a while. How're your grandkids?" Lee Seng greeted. Mrs. Penelope was the old lady who lived across from him. She was the first person who greeted him when he moved in. She brought over food for Lee Seng, here and there, so Lee Seng decided to run errands for her once in a while. She was a small woman with white curly hair. She treated Lee Seng like her own grandchild and made sure he was okay.

"They're the same, hun." Mrs. Penelope answered. She wrapped her arm around Lee Seng's, who happily allowed her and she beamed another smile. "I heard on the news you got your powers and you look very different. I couldn't believe it, dear. I'm so happy your powers came in. Now you won't be bullied too hard."

"Ahh, Mrs. P, I told you didn't have to worry about me too much."

"Oh, c'mon, dear. We both know you like to stick your nose into other people's problems. It's the reason why you get into trouble a lot." Mrs. Penelope wagged her finger as the elevator dinged. It pulled open and Lee Seng walked, slowly, with Mrs. Penelope into the elevator.

"What floor are you going to, Mrs. P?" Lee Seng asked.

"To the lobby, dear. My daughter is coming to pick me up. She has to leave for business so I agreed to watch over Erik and Ronny."

"Ah, Mrs. Vasquez is going out of the city, again?" Lee Seng asked as he hit the first floor button.

"Yes, dear. I wish my little Whit didn't work so hard, but she insists its all for her children." Mrs. Penelope nodded. "I'm so glad I raised such a well-mannered and hardworking kid. My other one, Aaron, doesn't visit me as often. He's too busy handling Adventurer guild stuff, apparently. I wish I could see him more, but he insists on putting me in this nice of a place with Miss Alice as the landlord. Bless his heart."

"You must be proud of your son and daughter. They work really hard to provide and try to keep your around as much as possible. Director Fulgrum is a big name, Mrs. Penelope. He works really hard and provides all this for you, too."

"Mmm, when you get to my age, dear, you just want your children and grandchildren to visit you." Mrs. Penelope finished when the elevator dinged. The two walked out to the first-floor lobby. Lee Seng led her towards the front entrance and Mrs. Penelope smiled and waved at a woman in business attire. "Ah, Whitney, dear! Hello." Mrs. Penelope and Lee Seng made their way over to Whitney who happily hugged her mother.

"Hi, Mom. It's so good to see you. Are you doing well? Is your home giving you any trouble?" Whitney asked.

"Oh, no dear. Aaron picked a great place. I have nice kiddos like Lee Seng and the landlord to help me when needed." Mrs. Penelope motioned at Lee Seng. Whitney looked up and watched Lee Seng's white tail sway side to side.

"Lee Seng, it is true. You got a tail and ears." Whitney motioned at him.

"Yeah, I did. It's great to see you, again, Mrs. Vasquez." Lee Seng nodded.

"Thank you for taking care of my Mom. I read you took the Exam. Did you get your results back yet?"

"Oh, I made it in." Lee Seng smiled.

"That's great news! I'm so glad. Mom will miss you lots then."

"Ah, I will try not to miss you too much, dear. As I said, I want you to achieve your dreams." Mrs. Penelope patted Lee Seng.

"Mmm, thank you for giving me loads of food and making sure I was okay, Mrs. P. I'll be gone for two years, but I hope you won't miss me too much." Lee Seng smiled widely. Mrs. P pinched Lee Seng's cheeks and chuckled. Whitney glanced at her watch and tugged at her mother's hand.

"Mom, we should get going before the kids get off school." Whitney said.

"Alright, Whitty. We can go." Mrs. Penelope smiled. She glanced back at Lee Seng and cupped his hands and pulled him in for a hug. "Do well, dear. I won't be around to see you off, so I'll say my goodbyes here. Do well in school, 'kay?"

"Mmm, I will, Gran P. Have a safe trip, 'kay?" Lee Seng squeezed her back. The two pulled away and Lee Seng began to wave at Whitney and Mrs. Penelope.

"Bye, Lee Seng. Thank you for taking care of my Mother. I hope you do well at the Academy. Stay outta trouble, alright?" Whitney waved.

"Mm, will do, Mrs. Vazquez. Have a safe trip." Lee Seng waved. He watched as the two waved and began to walk out. Lee Seng waited until they were gone and turned to enter the stairwell near the elevator. He walked down two flights of steps and reached the underground parking lot.

Lee Seng walked towards his car, clicking the unlock button and watching his car lights glow and the car give off a small beep. He opened the door and slipped into his car. He pushed on the brake and clicked the button, listening to the car roar to life. He pulled his phone out and turned on the Bluetooth, syncing it to the car and shuffling his playlist.

He set his phone to the side and seat belted. He shifted the automatic car into drive and pulled out of the parking lot.

Lee Seng drove for twenty-five minutes before he reached the graveyard. He pulled to the side of the road and parked his car. He grabbed his phone and noticed he had a new text from someone. He tapped on it, realizing it was from Akio.

Akio: Hey, lil' bro. I saw the transfer list go up on the Academy site. You made it! Congrats!

Lee Seng smiled and sent a "thank you" to him. He shut off the car and slipped the phone into his pocket as it buzzed again. Akio sent him another text message.

Akio: You need help packing? I have some time today and tomorrow if you need help.

"That's fine with me," Lee Seng typed away. "I'm visiting Mom. I'm gonna stop by the floral shop across the graveyard before I head over. I'll let you know when I'm done."

Akio: Alright, sounds good. Say hi to your Mom for me. :)

Lee Seng unlocked the car door and stepped out. Cars slowly whizzed by as he shut the door. He looked both ways before walking in the middle of the street to the floral shop. He entered the shop, listening to the familiar wind chimes greet him.

Lee Seng walked over to the counter and a lady greeted him with a big smile.

"Hello, how may I--" She was staring at his tail and ears. Lee Seng waved his tail and nodded at her. "H-how my I help you?" She finished.

"I'm visiting my Mom today. I wanted to set some flowers at her grave. Something bright and fun like her personality." Lee Seng smiled.

"Alright, dear. Hold on a bit, kay?" The woman wandered off to start collecting flowers. Lee Seng scrolled through his social media platforms, glancing at what random things were happening with acquaintances who were brave enough to ask for his SNS platforms. As he was scrolling, he got a notification.

Olivia Ok has sent you a friend request. Would you like to answer the request?

Lee Seng smiled and hit accept. He tapped the notification and was dragged to her profile page. He scrolled her page and realized she was somewhat active on her SNS. He clicked her photos and scrolled through them. She had taken a lot nice photos and seemed very happy in them. There were a lot of photos of an older woman, Lee Seng assumed to be some sort of relative.

'I wonder if that's her grandmother or something. She seems to knit a lot and there're a lot of pictures of the two of them.' Lee Seng thought.

"Sorry for the wait. Here you go. I assumed you wanted something big since you're visiting your mom so I did the 450 cred version." The florist said. Lee Seng nodded and tapped the debit card app on his phone and lifted it towards her. She scanned it and nodded when it was completed. "Thank you. See you next time."