The Villain Mom Awakens — Going Viral by Parenting on a Reality Show-Chapter 50 - 51: The Person I Want to Curse the Most Is Renee Jennings
They had tried countless times but just couldn’t get the hang of it. The guests were so frantic they were running around like headless chickens.
Margaret Jennings glanced at the time. It was already 8:30. ’Why isn’t Naomi Kenway back yet?’
"Why is she so stubborn..."
Ruby Preston stopped what she was doing and looked at Margaret Jennings. "Hasn’t Nicole returned yet?"
"Mom..." Carina Sanders was so sleepy she kept nodding off, but she perked up the moment she heard Naomi Kenway’s name. She seemed to jolt awake, her delicate eyebrows knitting together as she looked up and asked, "Mom, are Aunt Kenway and Annie back yet? I heard there are man-eating tigers in the forest..."
As she spoke, tears welled up in her eyes. "Why haven’t Aunt Kenway and her group come back? Annie..."
Ruby Preston frowned and shot to her feet.
Ruby Preston had been working with Renee Jennings to build the tent. When she suddenly pulled away, the already flimsy wooden frame collapsed instantly.
A vein pulsed on Renee Jennings’s forehead, but mindful of who she was talking to, she softened her tone. "What’s wrong, Ruby?"
"Nicole has been gone for so long. We have to go look for her. I was worried about her leaving alone in the first place..." Ruby Preston’s face was etched with concern.
Renee Jennings stood up as well. "Ruby, don’t worry. The production crew is watching the area. Nina will be fine."
Chelsea Raines chimed in, "Naomi Kenway is loud. If she’d run into any trouble, she’d be screaming her head off by now. It wouldn’t be this quiet."
"But..." The worry on Ruby Preston’s face didn’t fade. "I can’t rest easy with her wandering around out there alone, or sleeping in some mud puddle for all we know."
Margaret Jennings added, "Let’s pause on the tent for now. Finding Nina is more important. She’s very proud, so she probably won’t come back on her own."
’They’ve only been together for one season. How did Naomi Kenway manage to win so many people over?’ A complicated look flashed in Renee Jennings’s eyes.
"I’m worried about Nina too, but... it’s getting very late," Renee Jennings said slowly. "If we all go looking for Naomi Kenway, we’ll probably end up sleeping on the ground. It’s risky out here. I think it’s better if we focus on building the tents first."
Chelsea Raines agreed. "Naomi Kenway is famously cowardly; she’s not the type to get into an accident. She probably quit and had the production team drive her home overnight." She snorted. "After all, she has powerful connections. She probably doesn’t give a damn about a small variety show like this."
The group was divided. In the end, they decided that Ruby Preston and her son would go look for Naomi Kenway and her child, while the remaining guests would stay behind and continue working on the tents.
*
The rainforest path was full of potholes and difficult to walk on. Ruby Preston said, "Son, do you want Mom to hold your hand? This path is pretty rough."
Simon Sawyer shook his head. Though only seven, he had a remarkably calm demeanor. Holding up his flashlight, he said, "I can see fine, Mom. We need to find Aunt Kenway quickly. It’s not safe at night."
Ruby Preston smiled, pleased. "Alright. Should we look over there?"
The mother and son searched a large area but couldn’t find Naomi Kenway. The unease in Ruby Preston’s heart intensified. No matter what kind of person Naomi Kenway was, she didn’t want to see a vibrant young life get into trouble.
Ruby Preston asked the production crew, and they confirmed that nothing had happened to Naomi Kenway.
Ruby Preston relaxed a little.
Just as the two were about to head back empty-handed, Simon Sawyer suddenly pointed to the west. "Mom, look! There’s a tent over there!"
"It’s probably a temporary shelter set up by the crew..." Ruby Preston began, but as she took a closer look, it seemed less and less likely. The tent before them was constructed from wooden stakes and large leaves.
’Who would build such a time-consuming and laborious tent? The production crew wouldn’t do something like this.’
Suddenly, she stopped in her tracks.
’But... isn’t this exactly the competition tent the show asked us to build?’
An almost impossible idea surfaced in her mind.
Ruby Preston led Simon Sawyer forward. As she stood before the tent, their figures illuminated by the glow of a fire, she called out tentatively, "Is anyone there?"
They had been so focused on finding Naomi Kenway and Annie that they never considered someone might be inside the tent.
A rustling sound came from within. The leafy curtain of the tent was pushed aside, and a blinding flashlight beam shone out, followed by a beautiful, radiant face peeking through the opening.
Ruby Preston stared in disbelief. "Nicole?"
*
Meanwhile, Renee Jennings’s group had been working feverishly for half an hour with nothing to show for it.
Margaret Jennings asked tactfully, "Rachel, are you sure you remember correctly? Why don’t you think it over again? We’re not getting anywhere like this..."
Chelsea Raines wiped the sweat from her forehead. The rainforest was hot, and after working on the tent for so long, she was drenched. She wanted to take off her jacket to cool down, but the thought of poisonous insects stopped her.
’If only we had a tent.’
’How much longer would it take them to build one?’
Nathan Lynch stood to one side, struggling to keep his eyes open while clutching a book titled *100 Arithmetic Problems*. Jared Woods wasn’t nearly as well-behaved; he kept tugging on Chelsea Raines’s sleeve.
After he did it a few more times, Chelsea Raines’s patience wore thin. "Jared Woods! What are you doing?"
"I’m tired."
Chelsea Raines wiped more sweat from her forehead. "Tired? How can you be tired from just sitting there? Can’t you see your mother is drenched in sweat?"
"Sitting is tiring too. My butt hurts."
"Just look at you, so useless. Look at Mona—he’s still studying. If I had a child like him, I’d be so happy I’d wake up laughing in my sleep."
Renee Jennings turned her head, pleased by the compliment—after all, she had raised Nathan Lynch herself. "Chelsea, don’t scold Jared. He’s just a child."
Chelsea Raines sighed in frustration. "Rachel, how do you normally get Mona to be so obedient? Scolding doesn’t work on my son, and I can’t bring myself to hit him."
Renee Jennings paused. "I don’t have any special tricks. I just reason with him."
"Reason with him?"
Renee Jennings answered vaguely, "Yeah... let’s just hurry and get this tent built!"
Another ten minutes passed. The children were nearly asleep on their feet, leaning against trees, while the adults’ faces were grim.
Chelsea Raines’s short temper finally flared, and she cursed out the production crew multiple times. What she really wanted was to yell at Renee Jennings, who had claimed to know what she was doing only to lead them all on a wild goose chase, but she managed to hold her tongue.
Margaret Jennings’s voice was heavy with exhaustion. "Rachel, are you sure this is how it’s done? Please, think about it again."
Renee Jennings’s forehead was slick with anxious sweat. She’d never expected this to happen.
The production crew couldn’t stand to watch anymore. A staff member came over to give them a hint: "You could try looking for Ms. Kenway."
Chelsea Raines snapped, "Why would we look for Naomi Kenway? We haven’t even built the tent! Where would we find the time? She’s probably just sleeping under a tree somewhere. She’s not going to die!"
