Life After Prison

“Go ahead! Buy whatever you want!” Severin said with a smile.

“Dad! Mom! Hurry up!” Selene was in a buoyant mood as she walked, and it was clear that her happiness was different than usual.

“I’ve never seen her so happy in a long time!” A smile appeared on Diane’s face as she looked at Selene. The only reason she could persevere up until then was because of her daughter.

Severin grinned. “That’s because she saw her parents being all lovey-dovey with each other!”

“Quit it. When did I get lovey dovey with you?” Diane rolled her eyes at Severin and quickened her pace. Severin soon led the two of them into the shopping mall.

“Don’t go to the second floor!” Diane stopped him in a panic when she saw him planning to go up to the second floor.

“What’s wrong?” Severin frowned. “Doesn’t the sign above say that the second floor is for women’s clothing?”

That was when Diane explained. “The stores on the first floor are cheaper. The most expensive ones are several hundred dollars. The second floor is where all the luxury brands are, and they can cost up to tens of thousands!” Contentt bel0ngs to N0ve/lDrâ/ma.O(r)g!

Severin, however, held the bag in one hand and carried Selene up with his other hand before walking toward the elevator. “How am I going to spend an arm and a leg if you don’t buy something more expensive? Besides, my wife is such a beautiful woman, and it’s only right that she wears beautiful clothes too!”

“I can’t believe this man…”

Diane was both exasperated and amused as she looked at Severin from behind. She felt that Severin was wasting money, but in the same vein, she could see that he was genuine in his efforts to treat her and Selene well.

“Sure thing, then. What he said makes sense. Can’t blame me for being born with good looks!” Diane had a rare vain smirk on her face as she followed the up.

Once they reached the second floor, Severin put Selene down and led her into the first shop they

saw.

“Hey, honey! The clothes here look pretty good!”

Severin’s eyes lit up immediately when he saw what they had on offer and he went in with Selene.” Why don’t we go in and have a look?”

Diane followed closely, but she had a slight frown on her face. The store was a well-known international brand that Diane used to patronize very often. Needless to say, she had not been there for nearly five years.

“Good afternoon, sir…” A female shop assistant greeted Severin when she saw him enter their premises. However, as soon as she saw Severin’s clothes and the white-and-red woven bag that looked like those used by farmers, her expression turned weird all of a sudden.

Brief though that expression was, Severin still caught sight of it and asked in an unhappy tone,” What’s wrong? Am I not welcome here?”

The woman smiled awkwardly. “No, no, no, of course you’re welcome! We hold all our customers in very high esteem!”

Despite saying so, she looked down on him tremendously deep down. A country bumpkin like him - might not know that their store was a luxury brand, and she figured that he would leave without

saying a word after looking at the price tag and being scared out of his wits.