“This is a very normal mental self-protection mechanism. When we experience grave harm, if someone helps us greatly, we’ll be extremely thankful for that person, and we’ll naturally think that that person is very safe. It’s very simple for adults to handle such situations, but it’s different for a child. The current problem stems from two points, one, Emma’s less than 2 years old, and her actions are fully instinctive; two, the impact and harm she experienced are way beyond normal situations because not everyone witnesses their parents’… Death. This caused her to be irrationally reliant on Mr. Adrian, and her subconscious tells her that she’s only safe when she’s with him, so she can’t accept being away from him!
“Of course, this can be treated. If she refuses to talk or make a sound as she did in the beginning, the extreme pressure that causes her to ignore everything other than the person she wants to hold on to will make it extremely difficult to treat her. Fortunately, Emma cried earlier, and vented half of the negative emotions that she accumulated from the incident, so she’ll slowly recover after gradual counseling. It goes without saying that Mr. Adrian has to assist in this because her reliance on him is so strong that it can’t go away in just a day or two. If Mr. Adrian doesn’t have the time to do this, I can only give Emma these medicines.”
That was what Dr. Shaun concluded about Emma’s unusual behavior because she had been crying in Adrian’s arms for a long time even though they tried to comfort her. After wailing for a long time, she was so tired that she even slept on his shoulder, which was why they had time to consult the doctor about her situation.
Needless to say, Adrian was not satisfied with the result. In a way, Dr. Shaun meant that he needed to stay by the little girl’s side, but how would he have the time to? Putting aside the post-production work for ‘The Shawshank Redemption’, he needed to follow up on ‘Terminator 2’ that was about to be screened, as well as ‘Jurassic Park’ that was under preparations. He would not mind if he could bring Emma over to America, but would that be possible?
Unfortunately, upon seeing the old Watson couple’s earnest looks, he found it hard to reject them. No matter what, their son and his wife indeed died because of him, although he was the only one who knew.
If Adrian was not aware of their existence, he would not have conversed with them, and would not be bothered at all. This was just like how he considered the single mother in Edinburgh, but neglected the many screenwriters in Hollywood. Humans were just contradicting beings.
After the final discussion, the old Watson couple decided to rent another apartment in London, and they invited Adrian to keep the little girl company for some time—since their son and his wife had just passed away, it was inappropriate to invite an outsider to their home—they would then arrange for someone from a related agency to take care of Emma.
During this period, Adrian would not have to bear any of the expenses. The Watson couple had quite some savings, and the London Bus Service Co. Ltd compensated them with a lump sum. A thorough investigation had been done on the event, and it was confirmed that the bus driver had a moderate heart attack that day. Luckily, there were not many passengers on the bus. That being said, there were a total of 4 fatalities including the Watson couple, 7 who were severely injured, and 11 who suffered minor injuries. For the capital of the “British Empire”, this was considered a terrific traffic accident. As such, London Bus Service Co. Ltd would likely be doomed due to their carelessness in their employee’s medical examination.
Other than that, Adrian could leave England anytime he wanted to. Nonetheless, since they needed to find an apartment, and Emma followed him closely all the time, he had to let her stay in his hotel room for the next few days.
This was not an easy thing to do, and he understood from the two days why little demons were the hardest to take care of.
“If you’re done, can you put on your pants?” Adrian was quite irritated when he spoke, “Also, if you can, please stop pulling the corner of my shirt, I’m not going anywhere.”
“I’m sorry,” Emma, who wore her pajamas after getting down from the toilet seat, lowered her head as she responded.
Upon seeing her like that, Adrian felt troubled. As compared to the first day they returned from the hospital, she had been doing much better, and at least she was willing to talk—though she only spoke simple words, and was mostly at a daze. If she were to isolate herself again, it would be a huge problem.
It was not a groundless worry. In fact, on the day they returned to his hotel room, he refused to stay by Emma’s side when she showered, thus she ended up curling her body on the ground and cried. Therefore, Adrian could only comply with her, but she still did not talk for two days. Apart from following him around everywhere, she also hugged his leg and leaned against him when he sat down.
“Alright, you’ve done everything, so wait on the bed. I’ll be out very soon, so don’t sit outside the bathroom as you did before, okay?” Adrian mentioned gently.
The little girl nodded. Although she looked stiff, she was still very adorable.
At the very least, she did not ask to stay by his side when he used the toilet or showered. Upon seeing her leave, Adrian sighed to himself, then quickly began showering. If he did not finish as fast as he could, that little fellow might knock on the door.
Once Adrian was done, he left the bathroom in his pajamas. Though Emma was already on the bed as she was instructed, she left the bedroom door wide open, and was looking in his direction with her big eyes.
“Okay, little fella, it’s time to sleep.” Adrian entered the bedroom, then took the picture album that was placed on the bedside table. “Today, I’ll talk about… Tom Thumb… This isn’t appropriate, I’ll go with the Three Little Pigs.”
Subsequently, the little girl shut her eyes and curled up in his arms. After adjusting the bedside lamp, Adrian began reading softly. Similar to the previous days, he read for about 10 minutes before the little girl fell asleep. He sighed a breath of relief, then turned off the lamp, but was not completely relaxed. This was because he knew that she would wake up after 10 minutes if he were to get off the bed now, and she would look for him anxiously.
‘I wonder how she noticed? Does she have a sensor in her body?’ Adrian wondered as he stared at the ceiling. ‘Why did I agree to this? Shouldn’t a doctor take care of her if she’s mentally hurt? I have many things to do.’
The moment he thought about this, Claude’s infuriating voice echoed in his head, and he was almost mad at him. Since he had to readjust his plans due to the incident, he naturally had to inform the others in America. Laverne did not react much and assisted Adrian very well according to the instructions given, whereas Claude was surprised and sorry about the accident, but he quickly laughed and mocked him after.
“Eddy, I really can’t believe what I heard! My dearest, dearest, dearest best friend, Mr. Adrian Cowell, actually became a stay-at-home dad in London—alright, considering your pride and that little girl’s age, I’ll call you a male nanny, you’re welcome. This is very interesting information, and it’s enough to keep me happy until Christmas.” When Claude laughed at him through the phone, Adrian was so sure that he would punch him in the face if they were actually talking in person.
After sighing again, Adrian looked at the little girl who was sleeping soundly on his chest. Though he could not see her expression, he could feel her chubby cheeks. ‘Forget it, why should I regret it since I’ve already made my choice? In any case, arrangements are being done for other matters, so I just have to use my time wisely. Besides… Emma? Watson…’
In the beginning, Adrian did not notice this, and he only came to a sudden realization when he was reading the little girl a bedtime story two days ago. He was not entirely sure, and even though the spelling was right, there were many people with the same name, and he could not tell how she would look like in the future as she was still too young. Nevertheless, he made an affirmative judgment. ‘I came to London because of the ‘Harry Potter’ series, and I somehow encountered this, so on what basis can I say that this little girl isn’t her?’
‘Alright, I should rest. Whether she is or not, it has nothing to do with the present. I have plenty of things to do tomorrow.’
The next morning, Adrian brought little Emma to the hospital, where Dr. Shaun did a few simple tests for her, asked about her recent condition, and reminded him to bring her for regular checkups. Later, he checked out from his hotel room, then picked up Madam Marsen who was hired to take care of Emma and headed to the new apartment.
Situated on Mauridi Street, the apartment was a few streets away from the little girl’s original home. This was because the old Watson couple did not want her to recall the incident upon seeing the house. Madam Marsen was roughly 45 years old and she was a kind woman who was good at soothing children. She visited Emma when Adrian still stayed at the hotel, but unfortunately, the little girl neither rejected nor accepted her, and she would hide in his arms when the woman got too close with her.
The two of them had good impressions of each other, and especially when Madam Marsen was told about the whole incident, she respected Adrian even more. “There aren’t many kind people like you who would do charity and help others selflessly, Mr. Adrian. I’m sure that the Watson couple will be able to rest in peace in Heaven.”
“Thank you.” Adrian did not comment on it. However, it was undeniable that it was the act of charity he did that gained the trust of the old Watson couple.
Since his daily life was not too affected, Adrian had to handle his work. He did not want the post-production team to come to London, because it would only be a waste of money and time. Furthermore, it would not do Emma any good if he were to bring her to the studio. Thankfully, there was something called a videophone.