"As a celebration, we should have a nice meal," Zane said, looking at Willow. "What would you like to eat?"

Willow thought seriously for a moment. "Hmm..."

She had tried many delicious dishes recently. Unfortunately, she didn't feel like eating anything at the moment. "What do you think, Mommy?"

I knew a few restaurants Willow would enjoy, but I didn't make a decision right away. Instead, I told her about the specialties of those places.

Willow made up her mind. "How about we go to the restaurant near Daddy's office on Saturday?"

Then, she turned to Zane. "Is that okay?"

Zane smiled and agreed without hesitation, "No problem."

...

Zachary silently waited outside the villa, watching them train in the yard. He saw Willow teasing Annalise playfully, and then the whole family headed into the living room together.

At that moment, he suddenly realized that the roles of him and Annalise had unknowingly switched.

When Steven brought Jessica home, he would take her and Cody out to play, leaving Annalise behind. At that time, Annalise would watch them having fun together.

Zachary wondered if she felt the same way he did now-lonely and abandoned. He finally understood Annalise's feelings, but it was too late. She had moved on from her previous marriage. Now that she had a new child, she no longer needed him as her son. "Mommy..." Zachary murmured, his eyes filled with longing. Unfortunately, it was already late. "Mr. Thompson, it's time to go home."

Harry took him to Chloe's house.

Chloe greeted him warmly at the door, already knowing he hadn't eaten without needing to ask. "What would you like to eat? I'll make it for you."

"Anything is fine." Zachary smiled at her, then added, "Where's the tutor? I want to study."

Chloe quickly called over the tutor she had hired at a high price.

Zachary sat quietly and obediently while the tutor, Hannah Ludwig, taught him phonics.

After a while, Hannah told him to take a break. Zachary suddenly had an idea. "Ms. Ludwig, could you have the driver pick you up tomorrow and go to the kindergarten to pick me up?"

Hannah wasn't sure why Zachary asked, but she nodded in agreement. "No problem."

"Thank you," Zachary said.

...

The breeze on the balcony was particularly cool. I tended to sit for long hours in the office, so in the evenings when I wasn't working, I made it a habit to stand.

Zane leaned against the railing. "If we follow your method, it might take less than a year for Willow to recover."

"I agree," I said.

As I reflected on everything that had happened recently, it almost seemed too good to be true. It felt like I was living in a dream.Property © of .

First, I became Willow's mother. Then, as I spent more time with her, I began to understand the extent of her autism. Later, she was bullied in kindergarten for not being able to speak. Now, she was slowly but surely improving. It all felt like a dream.

Zane suddenly had an idea. "What if we made a custom doll of one of her friends?"

I looked at him in surprise and thought carefully about how practical it was.

Excited, Zane continued, "Once the doll is ready, we can use it to help her talk to her friends, just like we did with her grandparents."

I paused, considering the idea. "Her grandparents are family, so it's clear they want Willow to get better, but her friends might not be as willing to cooperate," I said, voicing my concern.