Chapter 233: Bathhouse
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
William raised his head with a look of astonishment and widened his eyes in disbelief. He could no longer be bothered by the tears and mucus still flowing down his face. Dumbfounded, he spluttered, “Cheyenne? Are you really Cheyenne? Or am I hallucinating again?”
Unable to contain her emotions any longer, Cheyenne leaped toward William and hugged him tightly, ignoring the stench of his body. She cried, “Dad, it’s me. It’s really me! I… I’m here to take you home.”
William finally reacted and realized that he wasn’t hallucinating at all. His daughter had really appeared!
He couldn’t find her no matter how hard he had tried, and now, the daughter he thought that he would never see again in this life finally returned!
With tears streaming down his face, William held Cheyenne tightly in his arms and bawled loudly. “Cheyenne, I really know my mistakes! I won’t do it again. I won’t lose you again!”
Cheyenne also hugged her father tightly. She felt that he had lost a lot of weight over this period of time, and his originally muscular body was now a little bony. Clearly, William had been through a lot of suffering and hards.h.i.+p. Feeling rather heartbroken, Cheyenne burst into tears.
Charlotte also got out of the car. When she saw her father and sister holding each other and crying, she couldn’t hold back her tears either. She leaped forward and hugged William tightly, weeping together with them.
“Dad, don’t you ever go gambling again! Let’s just live together as a family properly. Without you or Cheyenne, our family will no longer be complete!” Charlotte exclaimed while crying.
“Okay, okay. I won’t go gambling again! Rest a.s.sured. I will never set foot in a casino again!” William rea.s.sured while sobbing.
At this moment, the fact that his lost daughter could return to him was already a G.o.dsend! He would definitely change his ways and never indulge in gambling again!
Lucas stood by the side, looking at the scene in front of him with a sense of relief within him.
It seemed that after those two weeks, William had truly turned over a new leaf. His and Cheyenne’s efforts to put on an act did not go in vain.
For the past two weeks or so, Cheyenne had been extremely uneasy. Although Lucas had sent someone to keep close tabs on William, pay attention to his safety, and report every move to him every day, Cheyenne was still worried sick. On several occasions, she even had an urge to go out and see her father with her own eyes.
If not for fear of sabotaging the plan because of her impulsiveness, Cheyenne definitely wouldn’t have been able to control herself.
After the three of them were done crying and venting their emotions, they wiped their tears and got inside the car.
William had not bathed and changed his clothes for nearly two weeks. Besides, it was now summertime, and the weather was hot and sweltering. He reeked of a pungent odor of sweat, which intensified when they were in the confined s.p.a.ce of the car.
Charlotte crinkled her nose. Although she wouldn’t be disdainful of her father, she really couldn’t stand the smell. Since William had already decided to turn over a new leaf, she thought that he ought to take a shower, get changed, and go home all fresh and clean.
There happened to be a large-scale bathhouse near where they were now. When Charlotte saw it outside the car window, she hurriedly asked Lucas to pull over and said to William, “Dad, go take a bath in there while we buy you a few sets of clothes from the shops nearby. Get your hair fixed and go home handsomely!”
Hearing this, Lucas thoughtfully took out a wad of bills from his pocket and stuffed them into William’s hands. “William, go ahead.”
William felt a little embarra.s.sed because he was aware that he had to smell horrid since he hadn’t showered or changed his clothes for two weeks. Besides, he had no money on him now.
Blus.h.i.+ng a little, he took the money from Lucas’s hand and promised, “I won’t take your money for nothing. Just take this as a loan to me. I’ll return it to you when I make enough money in the future!”
Then he opened the car door and got out without waiting for Lucas to decline.
Cheyenne and Charlotte watched their interaction quietly. After a long while, Charlotte finally sighed. “Dad has really changed drastically.”
Cheyenne nodded and said softly, “Yeah, Lucas, we really have to thank you this time!”
Lucas smiled. “We’re all family. There’s no need to be polite with me.”
…
Meanwhile, William heard someone cursing in a sharp voice as soon as he entered the bathhouse. He hadn’t even had time to get a clear look at the decor inside.
“F*ck, where did this stench come from?! It smells nasty! Hurry up and get lost! This isn’t a place for you, stinky beggar!”
At the front desk, two beautifully dressed receptionists were covering their noses and looking at William with disgust, as if they were looking at a filthy piece of trash.
Knowing that he smelled awful, William hurriedly apologized, “I’m sorry. I… I’m not a beggar. Something just happened to me, so I ended up like this. I’ll pay more for the bath later.”
One of the receptionists obviously didn’t have the patience to hear his explanation. She hollered with extreme disgust, “I don’t care how you got yourself in such a state and whether or not you’re really a beggar! This is an upscale bathhouse, and you made the entire place stink as soon as you entered! How are our customers going to enjoy their baths now? Hurry up and get lost!
“Security! Where’s security? Are they skiving again? Why did they let such a person in here?!”
Soon after the receptionist hollered, several security guards rushed out from the duty room and barked, “Who is it? Are you tired of living? How dare you cause trouble in the Ocean Bathhouse?!”
When they saw the filthy William and smelled the pungent odor coming from his body, they flew into a rage. “d.a.m.n it. Where did this stinky beggar come from?! Is this a place you can be?! Get lost! Hurry up and get lost!”
“I just came to take a bath. I can afford it. I’m not a beggar!” While speaking, William took out the wad of cash he was holding and showed it to the security guards.
“Get lost. Even if you have money, we can’t let you go in, you filthy thing!”
The burly security guard who was the leader started chasing William away without hesitation.
He subconsciously tried to push with his hands. But as soon as he saw William’s dirty appearance, he raised his leg and kicked him ruthlessly.
“Ah!” William wailed in pain and fell to the ground.
But the security guard didn’t stop at that and continued to kick him repeatedly until he rolled out of the bathhouse.
Cheyenne and Charlotte were still in the car and discussing where to buy some clothes for William. Before the engine started, they suddenly caught sight of the dirt-stained William being kicked out of the gla.s.s door of the Ocean Bathhouse like a soccer ball!