On the other hand, Paige, with her high IQ and EQ, couldn't do that.
Her extremely high emotional intelligence made the little girl's thinking very mature.
Having an adult's mindset but lacking the ability to solve problems like an adult, this was probably the root of her distress.
...
At a fast-food restaurant outside the museum, George, who had temporarily gotten rid of the "trouble" that was Sheldon, ordered himself a cream-fried chicken leg.
On the TV in the fast-food restaurant, last year's Super Bowl highlights were playing.
Although he would have to drive Sheldon and Mike back later, George couldn't enjoy his favorite beer.
However, being able to eat a chicken leg covered in cream while watching the football game already made him feel very content.
"George—?" At that moment, a surprised voice came from behind George.
Linda, Paige's mother, looked much more haggard than a few weeks ago.
George, who was happily enjoying his alone time, looked at the woman who suddenly appeared in front of him and said in surprise, "You are... that..."
It was clear that the previous failed family gathering hadn't helped George remember Linda's name.
"I'm Linda, Paige's mother," Linda reminded him with a smile, then naturally sat down opposite George.
"I remember you, Linda." George, whose weekend relaxation time had been interrupted, replied perfunctorily, "Oh, by the way, your husband Bar... Bar..."
"Barry," Linda reminded him again with a smile.
"Right, where's Barry? He's not with you." George asked casually, his eyes already fixed on the game on TV.
At that moment, the football game on TV was at an exciting part.
Although he had watched it once last year, watching the replay still felt very interesting to George.
"Are you talking about Barry?" Linda, whose face had been smiling a moment ago, suddenly darkened when she mentioned her husband, saying, "Who cares!"
After speaking, the smile returned to her face, as if everything that had just happened was an illusion.
On George's side, although most of his attention was on the football game, he still noticed Linda's sudden "change of face" earlier.
"Are you alright?" The gentle-natured George found it hard to ignore Linda's recent change.
"I'm fine, thank you for your concern." Linda maintained a polite smile and said, "Sorry for interrupting your weekend. You don't have to mind me."
"Alright—" George clearly saw the hidden worries beneath her smile.
However, he just wanted to enjoy his weekend simply and didn't want to meddle in other people's family affairs.
Generally, matters like marital conflicts seemed very troublesome just by thinking about them.
George, who had no intention of being a busybody, watched TV and picked up another chicken leg, dipped it fully in cream from the sauce dish, and comfortably put it into his mouth.
However, out of the corner of his eye, he saw Linda across from him, constantly watching his every move.
That look, full of unspoken words, made him uncomfortable.
So, George raised the chicken leg in his hand and asked to divert attention, "Do you want one?"
"No, I need to maintain my figure." Linda also realized that staring at someone was impolite.
Immediately, she said apologetically, "You go ahead, don't mind me."
Then, she looked away and picked up the menu on the table.
It seemed like she was about to order.
However, after holding the menu and looking at it for a while, Linda's face suddenly became dejected, and she said with a choked voice, "Apple pie, they actually have apple pie... Last year, we also came here with Paige, and then we went to Vegas..."
Clearly, Linda was thinking of something unpleasant.
On George's side, although he really didn't want to get involved in her affairs, Linda's current state made it hard for him to ignore her.
Seeing the surrounding customers looking their way, George reluctantly put down his cream chicken leg and formally asked, "Linda, you can tell me anything. I can be a listener for once."
After all, ignoring a crying lady was not what a gentleman would do.
Although Linda's emotions were not caused by him, George still decided to try and comfort her to enjoy the rest of his time comfortably.
"Do you know? Barry and I are getting a divorce." Linda confided, silently shedding tears.
"That's a shame," George echoed, asking, "Why is that?"
"It's because of a huge disagreement we have over Paige's education..." Linda wiped away her tears and explained the conflict between her and her husband.
Finally, she asked for help, "Your family's situation is very similar to ours. How do you and your wife handle your children's matters?"
When asked about this, George had a lot to say.
He shared, "We maintain different opinions and never argue over such things."
"How is that possible?" Linda asked in surprise, "What if you have opposing opinions?"
"That will never happen," George said definitively.
Actually, the Cooper family's situation was very similar to the Swanson's, yet also somewhat different.
In the Cooper family, Mary was strong-willed, while George was gentle-natured.
When faced with conflicting issues, George, as the husband, would often take a step back.
This was also the main reason why the Cooper family could always live in harmony.
However, the Swanson's situation was different; his wife, Linda, was clearly a strong-willed woman.
As for her husband, Barry, although he appeared quiet, he was also a very opinionated person deep down.
Thus, when two equally strong-willed individuals lived together for a long time, conflicts were bound to arise.
If it weren't for their genius daughter, they might have managed to get by.
But Paige's appearance caused the couple's long-suppressed conflicts to erupt collectively.
Linda evidently realized some of this reason.
She looked at George, whose expression was gentle, and said, "You are a good husband."
"Uh-huh." George smiled, not denying it.
"Could you tell me about how you and your wife get along?" Linda wanted to find some solutions to her family's conflicts from the Coopers' interaction model.
"Alright." George clearly understood Linda's intention.
Being kind-hearted, he was about to share more experiences with her.
However, before he could speak, Linda, looking panicked, crouched under the table and said, "Don't tell anyone I was here..."
With that, Linda half-crouched and hastily left through the side door of the fast-food restaurant, leaving George utterly bewildered.
Although he didn't know what was going on with her, George breathed a huge sigh of relief seeing the "trouble" leave, then picked up his cream chicken leg again, about to put it in his mouth.
"Hey, George, what a coincidence." Another familiar voice came from the main entrance behind him.
"It is a coincidence, Barry." Seeing the man sit down opposite him without invitation, George greeted him helplessly.
"Do you have a guest here?" Barry asked, looking at the water glass left on the table in front of him.
"No, not at all." George finally understood why Linda had reacted that way.
It was normal for a couple in conflict not to want to see each other.
"George, you know what? Linda and I are preparing for a divorce." Barry, who had sat down, also looked like he really wanted to confide in someone.
"That's terrible." George, who had already heard about it once, had to pretend to be surprised.
"Actually, the signs of our conflict appeared a long time ago..." Barry rambled on about his troubles.
Since the other person was like this, to show respect, George had no choice but to put down his cream chicken leg again and once more become a listener.