King Tiki looked like Baymax , always wearing a permanent smile . After introducing itself , it started blasting music and breaking into a goory dance King Tiki : [ You are the Dancing Queen , young and sweet , only seventeen . Dancing Queen , feel the beat from the tambourine . Oh yeah ) Joshua was speechless . That secondhand embarrassment hit hard . After the dance , King Tiki scooted into the study and happily got to cleaning . The dance was over , but the music kept going . King Tiki : [ You're just too good to be true . Can't take my eyes off you . You'd be like Heaven to touch . I wanna hold you so much.j Then it started talking again , laughing while it sang . I'm gonna clean up all the dust . Don't believe me , just watch . " The robot had gotten so annoyingly loud , and there was no way it was still the same one . Joshua pressed his lips together , looking vaguely resigned . There was only one person who could've reprogrammed it like this - Shermaine . Joshua thought , ' So what does this mean ? It means Shermaine can code . And before that , she said she knew medicine and even tried to treat my grandpa . That's a lot of skills . ' Just as he was mulling it over , some noises came from downstairs . Shermaine was dicing tomatoes , her hand steady as the knife glided cleanly through each one , creating neat little cubes . The blade tapped rhythmically against the cutting board - sharp , precise , and crisp . On the stove , the pot of water was bubbling with steam curling upward . She dropped the spaghetti straight into the boiling water . Once it was done , she drained the water and tossed the diced tomatoes and fresh green spinach into the pot . Then , the pasta was ready . Shermaine dished up a plate of the pasta when Joshua's voice rang out . " You didn't have dinner ? " Shermaine turned around and saw him standing a short distance away , tall , elegant and composed like he'd stepped out of a painting . She explained , " They had sushi . I'm not into that . " She pulled out a chair and sat down . " There's extra pasta . You want some ? " " I'm good . Not hungry ," Joshua replied . But the pasta smelled pretty good . " Okay ," Shermaine said , then looked down and started eating . Under the lights , her skin looked flawless and radiant , her features sharp and stunning , that mix of innocence and allure impossible to ignore . Joshua asked , " You rewrote the robot's programming ? " Shermaine nodded as she chewed . After swallowing , she said , " It'll perform way better now . " " You're better than I expected , " Joshua said . Shermaine looked up , her expression full of pride . " I told you I'm quite impressive . " Being " good " and being " impressive " were two completely different things . To Joshua , impressive meant dominating a field - like someone who'd been ranked first in math for years . That was impressive . He thought , ' Still just a kid . A laugh slipped out . He changed the subject . " Where did Mrs. Jean take you today ? " " Basterel University , " Shermaine answered . 1/4 Chapter 23 " What for ? " he asked , slightly confused . She said it was to broaden my horizons ' or whatever , " Shermaine said , slurping up a strand of spaghetti , Some of the sauce accidentally bindes cheek . " I might be starting school in a few days . " She reached for a napkin to wipe her face . Joshua thought , ' School ? Makes sense . She's only nineteen . Perfect age to study . He , on the other hand , was already thirty - eleven years older than her . He couldn't imagine what the two families were thinking when they arranged that engagement back then . Still , Joshua had no regrets . It was a mutually beneficial deal . And it wasn't like he had any interest in robbing the cradle . He said, " In that case , let's have the engagement party in December . Once you start college next year , we'll go ahead with the wedding . Does that sound good to you ? " Hearing about the engagement party and the wedding , Shermaine , the bride - to - be , didn't feel the slightest bit of joy . Maybe it was because she knew it was all just for show - there was no way she could actually look forward to it . " You make the call , " she said . " I don't mind either way . " Seeing the bit of sauce still on her soft cheek , Joshua handed her a napkin . " Alright . Did Mrs. Jean give you a hard time today ? " Shermaine took the napkin . " Thanks . She switched tactics . " Joshua's phone suddenly rang . Without even glancing at the caller ID , he knew it was his grandfather . This time , Owen had gone straight for a video call Joshua tapped the answer button , and Owen's voice came through . " Where's my future granddaughter - in - law ? " At that , Joshua turned the camera toward Shermaine . She smiled and greeted Owen , " Hi , I'm here . " Owen hadn't expected the two of them to be together , and he was instantly over the moon , thinking things must be going well between them . " Sheary , settling in alright ? " Shermaine answered honestly , " It's more comfortable than living at the Jean residence ." " That's good to hear . " Owen gave a warm smile . Shermaine asked , " Sir , did you take your medicine today ? " Owen nodded . " I did . Just started . " Before taking it , he had actually asked Darius Newman , a traditional medicine doctor , to check over the prescription . It was Joshua's idea , and Owen couldn't say no to his grandson . After looking it over , Darius said the formula wasn't harmful , but it wasn't going to help much either , so he didn't recommend it . But Owen still took the medicine she prescribed . Today was the first day , and he actually felt like his appetite had improved for the first time since he started taking any medicine . " I even had an extra half bowl of oatmeal . " Shermaine nodded . " If you keep taking it , your health will definitely improve . Living to a hundred shouldn't be a problem . " That actually made Owen laugh . He replied warmly , " Then I'll take that blessing , Sheary ." He didn't really believe he could live to a hundred . After all , the doctors had said he wouldn't make it past two more years . He doubted a few doses of Shermaine's prescription could actually fix all his issues . Shermaine definitely had some skills , but Owen wasn't about to get his hopes up . They chatted for about ten minutes . Joshua had been holding up the phone the entire time without saying a single word to his grandfather . Owen hung up after cheerfully saying goodnight to Shermaine , completely ignoring his own grandson . 2/4 Chapter 23 Joshua let out a quiet sigh . " Goodnight . " Shermaine replied , " Goodnight . " Full and satisfied , she went back to her room and got back to work . It wasn't until midnight that she washed up and went to sleep . The next morning , just as Shermaine got up , Ruth called and said over the phone , " Shermaine , have you made up your mind ? " " Yeah , I wanna go to school , " Shermaine said , her voice still gro with sleep , a little husky with that early - morning rasp . Ruth cut straight to the chase . " Then tomorrow morning , you'll re to Brightwater Academy . " Shermaine replied , " Got it . " Then her phone battery died right after she said it , and the call cut off . Ruth was fuming , thinking , As expected , she's got no manners . I wasn't eve I even done talking , and she just hung up ? So rude . After plugging in her phone and powering it back on , Shermaine saw a message on WhatsApp from Danielle . Danielle : [ Mr. Barker's awake . He said he wants to see you . ] Shermaine thought , ' I already took the money . What's the point of meeting now ? ' She replied : [ Good to hear he's awake . As for a meeting , I'll pass . ] Danielle sent back a laughing emoji and typed : [ I already turned him down . Are you free tonight ? Let's play . ] By " play " , she meant billiards . Shermaine : [ I'm in . ] Danielle : [ 9 p.m. Silverwood Avenue . See you there . ] After replying to her messages , Shermaine followed the same routine as yesterday - she went for breakfast . a run , then took a shower before coming down for Joshua was still seated at the dining table . Breakfast was a full spread , and Shermaine's eyes landed on a mouthwatering veggie scramble . The veggie scramble had carrots in it - Shermaine didn't like them , so she picked them out and set them aside . Joshua frowned slightly . " Picky eating's not good . " Shermaine paused . " You're saying you don't have foods you won't eat ? " She thought , ' Come on , everyone has something they can't stand . ' " I don't ," he said . That just wasn't a problem he had . Shermaine shrugged . " Alright then . " Joshua said , " Eat the carrots . Don't waste them . " Shermaine was at a loss for words . The way he said it felt like he was scolding a kid . She thought , ' Why is he talking to me like I'm a kid ? I don't hate it , though . It just feels oddly nice . ' › Chapter 24