Just as the Cooper family dinner was nearing its end, Brenda, carrying several prepared chickens, knocked on the door.
The recent strong winds had severely damaged Brenda's house, and her chicken coop in the yard had also not escaped misfortune, being completely destroyed by the gale.
Brenda came to their door with chicken meat this time, partly to mend her relationship with the Cooper family, and partly because there was too much chicken meat that needed to be processed promptly.
"What are you doing here?" Mary did not give her a pleasant look after seeing who it was.
"Uh, I have a bit too much chicken at home, so I thought I'd bring some over for you all to try." Although nothing had happened between her and George, Brenda still felt a bit guilty seeing Mary.
"Thank you, you can go now." At the doorway, Mary took the "gift" from Brenda's hand but showed no intention of letting her in.
Brenda, feeling in the wrong, originally wanted to apologize to Mary, but seeing her expression, she didn't know how to start.
So, after hesitating for a while, unable to find an opportunity to apologize, she could only turn and walk back.
On the other side, Mary returned to the dining room triumphantly, like she had won a battle, carrying her "spoils."
"Who sent the chicken? It looks very good," Connie commented, looking at the prepared chicken.
"It was Brenda. She said she had too much chicken at home to finish, so she sent us some to try." As Mary spoke, her gaze unconsciously drifted towards George.
"Oh, it's Brenda. Her chicken coop is probably gone now, how pitiful…" Connie sighed.
Being next-door neighbors, Connie and the Cooper family could all see the situation at Brenda's house.
Brenda's salary at the bowling alley wasn't high to begin with, and with a half-grown boy to support, life was quite difficult for her.
The eggs produced daily by her chicken coop in the yard could somewhat supplement their household expenses.
Now, after the strong winds, the chicken coop was gone.
It was foreseeable that the lives of that orphaned mother and son would only become more difficult.
"How about we go help Brenda's family repair their house?" Georgie suggested.
The damage to Brenda's house was similar to what the Cooper family's had been.
And because there was only one woman in her family who could do work, even after more than half a month, her house was still in a damaged state.
Georgie was also being kind, intending to return a favor.
But as soon as he finished speaking, he felt the atmosphere in the house become strange, especially with Mary's face turning dark.
George, on the side, was also like having a fit, constantly winking.
"What's wrong with you all? Did I say something wrong?" Georgie, not understanding, showed the usual "bewildered" expression of Sheldon.
Just as the tension was gradually building, Mary suddenly spoke: "Georgie is right. As neighbors, we and Brenda should help each other. How about this, tomorrow we will organize people to help her repair her house."
Mary, a believer in God, finally softened her heart.
But as a warning, as she spoke, she once again glared fiercely at her husband.
George, on his side, could only force a smile.
…
After the strong winds, the weather in Medford gradually cleared up.
And in the following half a month, the residents of Medford also successively completed their home reconstruction.
This included Brenda's house; with the Cooper family and Mike and others helping, her house was quickly repaired.
Then another month passed, and as the weather entered summer, the trend pushed by environmentalists and animal lovers gradually subsided.
It was under these circumstances that Mike welcomed his high school graduation ceremony.
"Mike, stand in the middle. Sheldon, Paige, you two stand on either side of Mike…"
"Yes, just like that, keep smiling—"
With the "click" of the camera, Mike's class finished taking their graduation commemorative photo.
Afterward, Mike, Paige, and Sheldon, these three outstanding students, were left behind to take photos with the school leaders.
It is worth mentioning that Tom, who had newly taken over as principal, finally confessed his feelings to Ms. Sharon, the Math Olympiad team teacher, over the past half year.
The two have now officially become a couple.
"Mike, your university recommendation letters are ready at the school." After the group photo, Principal Tom, accompanied by Ms. Sharon, specifically found the three of them and said, "No matter which university you choose later, on behalf of Medford High, I wish you a bright future—"
As the most outstanding students in the history of Medford High, the three of them are very likely to become the pride of the school in the future.
Therefore, they deserved the principal's attention.
After greeting various subject teachers, Mike and the other two, having completed the graduation process, finally relaxed.
By the playground, Connie and Mary, among others, witnessed the graduation ceremony.
Mary, seeing her youngest son successfully graduate, was especially moved to tears.
"Hi, Mike. Congratulations on graduating high school!" To everyone's surprise, Jack from the TV station also came to the scene.
Because of his several successful bets on Mike, he was now thriving at the local TV station.
"You look even more handsome today, more handsome than on the posters." After transitioning to television media, Jack's compliments came easily.
However, his words were not wrong, because Mike, who had specially dressed up for the graduation ceremony, wore a stiff white T-shirt on top, black casual pants on the bottom, and his hair was specially styled.
Coupled with his tall stature of one meter eighty-seven and his exquisite features like an ethereal elf, he indeed possessed more charm than usual.
"By the way, have you decided which university you're going to?" After some small talk, Jack got to the point.
"Oh, are you going to recommend a university to me?" Mike asked with a smile.
In the past few days, he had indeed received invitations from many famous universities, but he had not yet decided which university to attend.
Being too academically excellent and having too many choices was also a kind of distress.
Sheldon and Paige were in the same situation; they both had also received sincere invitations from many universities.
"Not really." Jack shook his head and talked about his own situation: "Because of work, I recently got an internship opportunity at the New York TV station. If I perform well, there's a possibility of staying there. So I wanted to ask if there's a chance for us to continue on the same path."
Clustering for warmth is human nature.
From the looks of it, Jack had already come to regard Mike as his lucky star.
"Congratulations on your career advancement." Seeing Jack's bright future, Mike was also very happy for him. Then, he stated: "As for which university I will go to, I haven't decided yet. But the prosperous New York is a good choice. I will consider it."
New York, being an economic and cultural center, was indeed very competitive.
"Alright then, take your time to consider. If you decide to go to New York, remember to contact me." After Jack stated his purpose, he did not take up any more of Mike's time.
On the other side, Princess Mia, accompanied by her little maid, was already waiting for Mike.
For Princess Mia, graduation season meant separation.
The girl had decided to return to Genovia in a few days. Therefore, she cherished every moment she spent with Mike in the coming days.
Beside her, the little maid, who had been enlightened, looked at Mike with a strong sense of reluctance.