Chapter 105: Why Julian Forrester Likes Sienna Everett

Chapter 105: Chapter 105: Why Julian Forrester Likes Sienna Everett

Julian Forrester’s birthday was just a few days away.

Sienna Everett grew increasingly anxious. She still hadn’t decided on a birthday gift for him, and she knew she had to give him a proper one.

After all, a birthday only comes once a year.

That guy Keith Sterling was over at Veridian Gardens every other day.

Seeing his smug expression, Sienna Everett’s eyes darted around. She quickly called out to Keith Sterling and pulled him over to sit in the garden gazebo for a bit.

This gazebo was Sienna Everett’s favorite spot in Veridian Gardens.

Next to it was a vast man-made lake. The breeze was gentle, and the scenery was pleasant.

As it happened, Julian Forrester had gone to the office and wasn’t back yet, so Sienna Everett planned to get some intel from Keith Sterling.

Keith Sterling sat down on the gazebo bench and asked with a suspicious look, "What’s this about, Sienna?"

Sienna Everett cleared her throat and casually inquired, "Have you gotten a birthday gift for your brother yet?"

Keith Sterling: "Of course!"

Sienna Everett continued with a grin, "So, what did you get him?"

Keith Sterling crossed his arms and raised a smug eyebrow. "It’s a secret!"

Sienna Everett: "..."

’He’s pretty cautious.’

Keith Sterling’s eyes darted around, his clever gaze quickly seeing through her. "Sienna, are you still struggling with what to get my brother for his birthday? You’re agonizing over it so much... looks like this birthday is really important to you."

Sienna Everett sat across from him and waved her hand. "Whether it’s important or not, he’s given me so many gifts. Don’t I have to give him something nice in return?"

Hearing this, Keith Sterling’s inner gossip flared to life. "What other gifts did my brother give you? Quick, tell me!"

Sienna Everett: "..."

’Why is he gossiping literally all the time!’

Keith Sterling stroked his chin. ’Sierra is being so proactive and putting so much thought into a gift for his brother. That’s rare.’

’In that case, he, the amateur love guru, had to come up with a brilliant plan.’

Keith Sterling was instantly filled with a sense of great purpose. He excitedly scooted over next to Sienna Everett. "Sienna, what did you get my brother for his last birthday?"

"The last time?" Sienna Everett racked her brain.

’Oh man, now that she thought about it, she realized the last time she’d celebrated Julian Forrester’s birthday was a very long time ago.’

Keith Sterling looked heartbroken. ’How did they have a falling out in between?’ He quickly asked, "Well, when you were kids, what kind of gifts did you give my brother for his birthday?"

Sienna Everett touched her nose sheepishly. "Uh, the gifts I gave him back then were all handmade. Nothing valuable."

"No! Sienna, don’t sell yourself short!"

’A handmade gift from Sierra would definitely be the best possible gift for his brother.’

’Who knows, his brother might have kept it all this time!’

Curiosity tickled Keith Sterling’s heart like a kitten’s paw. "Sienna, when did you and my brother meet?"

Sienna Everett gazed nonchalantly at the scenery outside the gazebo. "When we were kids. We were only a few years old."

Keith Sterling kept prodding, "Come on, tell me. I’m so curious."

Sienna Everett thought back for a moment. The Julian Forrester from her childhood was very different from the man he was today.

Back then, she lived in the countryside with her grandparents.

Her grandfather was obsessed with farming at the time, though nothing he planted ever bore fruit. His peanuts didn’t grow peanuts, and his beans didn’t grow beans.

But her grandmother loved her grandfather very much and always indulged him, so the three of them moved to the countryside together.

Howard Forrester brought his young grandson to the countryside to visit her grandfather.

That was the first time Sienna Everett ever saw Julian Forrester.

Cicadas chirped in the height of summer. The wind blew through the treetops, and the leaves made a RUSTLING sound.

The boy had soft black hair, fair, delicate skin, and exquisite features. He could be described as beautiful—more handsome than any other child she had ever seen.

But his eyes were somewhat lifeless. He seemed cold and distant, not lively like other children.

While Howard Forrester and her grandfather were talking, Sienna Everett took young Julian Forrester outside to play.

Sienna Everett was quite taken with this beautiful older boy. She played with him, pointed out the nearby bridges and trees, and even told him where he could watch crickets fight.

But young Julian Forrester didn’t say a single word.

Sienna Everett couldn’t help but wonder to herself. ’This boy doesn’t talk, and his expression never changes... Is there something wrong with his head?’ She had just learned the term "intellectually disabled" from a picture book two days ago, and now she’d met a living example.

Sienna Everett felt a little sorry for him. She told him to wait under the shade of a tree outside the door while she went home for a moment.

Thinking he was intellectually disabled, Sienna Everett was still worried, so she reminded him twice to stay in the shade and not wander off.

Young Julian Forrester glanced at her, still silent, his face still expressionless.

Sienna Everett, in her little floral dress, PITTER-PATTERED back home, took out her most treasured fruit-flavored milk, and came back to invite the quiet older boy to drink it with her.

But when she came out holding the drink, she saw a few naughty kids from the village surrounding young Julian Forrester, about to bully him.

Sienna Everett immediately ran over and chased the kids away.

Sienna Everett looked at the silent, bullied boy she thought was intellectually disabled. She took his hand, her eyes curving into smiling crescents, and said in a clear, childish voice, "Don’t be scared. None of the kids here can beat me. I’ll protect you!"

Young Julian Forrester looked at her for a moment, but in the end, he pulled his hand out of hers.

Later, Julian Forrester’s grandfather, Howard Forrester, went back home, but young Julian Forrester stayed behind to live there for a while.

Sienna Everett really liked this beautiful older boy and was thrilled that he was staying. She wanted to play with him every day.

But the beautiful boy stayed cooped up in his room all day, showing no interest in playing. Besides, he was intellectually disabled; he couldn’t talk or laugh.

One time, Sienna Everett wove a wreath from wildflowers and grass and ran to young Julian Forrester’s room to give it to him.

Young Julian Forrester was in his room, practicing his calligraphy.

Sienna Everett ran over like a little sunbeam and accidentally knocked over the ink bottle on the desk.

Black ink spilled out, splashing onto her pretty little dress.

Sienna Everett immediately tried to wipe it with her hand, but as soon as she did, the ink soaked into the fabric.

Just as she was getting frustrated, she was shocked to hear the boy she thought was intellectually disabled speak: "I’ll wipe it for you."

Sienna Everett was stunned. Her dark, grape-like eyes went wide. ’He’s not mute! He can talk!’

After spending more time together, Sienna Everett realized that not only was young Julian Forrester not mute or intellectually disabled, but his mind was perfectly fine—in fact, he was incredibly smart.

And what’s more, he could actually laugh.

One time, she pestered him by telling him jokes and finally made him laugh.

Sienna Everett looked at him as if she’d made an amazing discovery, her eyes sparkling. "You look much better when you laugh than when you don’t! No, no, you were already good-looking, but you’re even more handsome when you laugh!"

After that, young Julian Forrester started to laugh more and more, no longer as cold, distant, and lifeless as before.

As Sienna Everett recalled these old memories, she realized that while she thought they had been buried deep in her mind, some images and phrases were still surprisingly clear.

It was as if they were carved into her brain, uneroded by the passage of time.

Sienna Everett finished telling Keith Sterling about the first time she and Julian Forrester met.

Keith Sterling slapped his forehead in a moment of realization. "I remember now! Sienna, when you first met my brother, he wasn’t in a good state. It must have been because there was trouble in the Forresterer Family."