On their own

Susan had been informed that both Jason and Jenny had missed a class. She wasn't angry or upset at this news, but worried instead. Though skipping class was something that Jason had done many times before, but Jenny had never missed a class before. So her skipping class as well was reason for concern. Combined with what she had heard had happened in the hallway just before that class, made her believe that something bad had happened between the two of them. Despite having seen incidences like this with Jason before, they hadn't happened for quite some time. Though the reason for the fight between Jason and the other student wasn't very clear, she did gather that it had something to with Stephen and what he had done to the company of that students father. He was apparently one of the students in Jenny's class and the person she was class representatives with.

She immediately called Stephen to ask him if what was being said was indeed true and how Jason was involved in his attacking a company. He said that Jason had sent him some information regarding illegal trading by a company they were affiliated with. He did not know how he got the information or how he was involved with that company and he told Susan that when he asked Jason about it, he did not answer his questions. So, he did not dig any further and instead took proper action. "Why?" Susan sighed and rubbed her forehead. "It's nothing much, but that company belongs to the father of one of our students and Jason fought with that student today. After that both Jenny and Jason skipped class. So, I am a bit worried that this is a warning sign for a big mess at home." Stephen's eyes turned cold and his jaw tightened. He was annoyed that his actions had caused his wife to worry and had now possibly even caused trouble for his son instead of helping him.

"Don't worry Suzy, our boy is all grown up now. If he is going to learn to be a man, he has to fall sometimes and pick himself back up again. And if their relationship is going to last, they have to get through this on their own." With a chuckle he added, "As I recall we too have had these fights in our days. Now it is simply their turn. They too will get through this, I promise. So, stop worrying about them and have faith in our son and daughter-in-law." After that he hung up and they both went on with their busy schedules. After talking to Stephen her worries had been settled a bit. Jason indeed resembled his father quite a lot, especially in terms of jealousy and Jenny's stubborn side greatly resembled herself. So, maybe she did need to let them work this out on their own, but as a parent is it difficult to just sit and watch. She was happy that they had appeared to have gone back to normal after her father-in-law's birthday party, but now the next problem had already arrived. Susan sighed as she thought to herself that putting Jenny in a different class was definitely a mistake. She decided then and there. 'No more appointing class representatives from now on. Either they were chosen voluntarily or by a draw.' She sighed once more and she did what Stephen had told her to do, she tried to have faith.

Though he had said what was necessary to easy Susan's worries, Stephen on his end started thinking over Jason's actions. 'Why had he researched this classmate's father? Why did he go after the boy's parents instead of the boy himself? And why did he have me take action, instead of doing it himself?' He knew that Jason had a company to his name somewhere and considering how close they were to the deadline of his eighteenth birthday, the company must be meeting the family's requirements. So, he should have the power to attack or report a company like this himself. His actions meant that he couldn't get himself directly involved. Meaning that boy and Jenny were in some way involved with each other, and Jason himself taking action would mean trouble. This boy had probably been connected to their previous fight and the one before that, where he had given him advice. It appeared he had not been able to let the matter go and now trouble had come knocking at his door. Whether it had been due to the actions of the boy or due to Jason's own feelings, the result remained the same. Stephen hoped that Jason had thought of what to say or the patience to wait it out.

When Susan came home, her worries partially came back. She heard from Garry that Jason had locked himself in his and Jenny's room the moment he came back from school and hadn't eaten anything since then. Though there was no way that missing a single meal could affect his health, as a mother it pained her to see her son so upset that he didn't even want to eat. She contemplated whether she should go and check up on him, but decided against it when she recalled Stephen's words. So, with a heavy heart she went to her own room to get changed and came back for dinner. When she saw the empty, long stretched table, she felt that the food had lost all flavour. If she wanted to enjoy this meal at least a little, she couldn't eat it here. In this room that was filled with images of them eating as a family. So, instead of forcing her meal down, she asked the staff to pack some food up and she went to Stephen and have dinner together with him at the office. This way he would get a pleasant surprise and the children could settle their matters in private.