The year was 1983.
The sun had set. It was dark outside. Only one dim light was in the Foster family’s living room.
“Dad, Mom, I’m willing to live abroad with you.”
When they heard their daughter’s words through the phone, Philip York and Angela York were moved to tears of excitement.
“That’s great, Joy. If it weren’t for that earthquake, we wouldn’t have been separated for so many years. We never abandoned you on purpose, really. We’ll come pick you up right now.”
When she heard her biological parents weeping, Joy Foster felt her heart clench in pain. She sucked in a deep breath to calm herself down. “Give me another two weeks. I still need to take care of some matters here. Once I’m done, I’ll go over to where you two are and keep you company.”
Her parents seemed to have been reminded of something. “You’re right. How silly of us. No matter what, the Foster family took care of you for years. I heard that your adopted brother has always doted on you, so you do need to say goodbye to them properly.”
At the mention of Samuel Foster, Joy stiffened for a moment, and her heart was filled with pain.
When she was six, there was a huge earthquake, and she was separated from her parents. In the end, the government had the Foster family adopt her.
The Foster family was wealthy, powerful, and had a long history. Even though they took her in, her adoptive parents were busy with work and seldom paid attention to her.
Hence, instead of saying that her adopted parents brought her up, it would be more accurate to say that Samuel was the one who took care of her.
When she was seven, she was terrified of thunder, so he would hold and coax her to sleep by singing her lullabies.
When she was ten, she wanted her classmates’ snacks and toys. He had bought out the store beside the school to spoil her rotten. She was the object of everyone’s envy.
When she was fourteen, she had her period. He taught her the knowledge of menstruation and took care of her when she had a stomachache.
He gave her everything she wanted, like hair clips, shoes, clothes, phonographs, and cars.
Everyone who knew him would tease him by saying that he was an overprotective brother and no one could possibly marry her in the future.
