Bab 107: Chapter 100: A mate's concern

It has been nearly two days since Amber last saw Erick. The last time he had texted her was to inform her that there had been an incident in his place so he was probably going to be busy all night long. He then texted again to inform her that his close relatives had passed away and that they will be busy with the funeral.

At first, Amber was fine and all but the next day, she was surprised that there were no text messages from him, even later in the afternoon. She texted him many times and there were no replies. Then she tried calling him but again, the ringing continued on until it was informed that the call wasn't picked up.

It was at that time, she cursed herself for not knowing Hamish's number. She met up with him that morning in school but he only gave her a vague answer, saying that Erick was sick. And this made her more worried. She wanted to discreetly follow him home one day but he always managed to erase his traces. She doesn't dare go off alone.

As she scrolled down her contacts, she realized the lack of phone numbers that she has. She narrowed her eyes when she saw Jeayan's number.

Thinking that she should try her luck, she decided to call Jeayan as well. Unfortunately, her luck wasn't with her at that time. Jeayan, too, did not pick up her call.

Amber sighed, worried and wondering where Erick could be.

Although it was already evening, she decided to bake some chocolate chip cookies. Apparently, whenever she was worried or stressed out, other than stress-eating, she would also release her stress by baking or cooking. Both activities made her relax and calm her mind.

Her mother had peeked in the kitchen from time to time, asking whether she was alright. Amber gave her a small smile, reassuring that she was alright. Even Remi had gone down the stairs and into the kitchen, asking about her well-being. Again, Amber had told him the same thing she had told her mother and persuaded him to go back to his room.

She wasn't sure how long she had been baking but it was fortunate that there were still many ingredients left. Though, she probably would need to go to the grocery to buy more.

She was already on her third tray of cookies when her father walked in from work. Noticing that the lights were still on in the kitchen, he took a peek and was surprised to see Amber still baking up the storm. Looking at the couple of trays in the kitchen sink, he smiled ruefully. It seems like there was something that worries his beloved daughter.

Without making a sound, he continued to watch her silently as she continued baking more cookies, scooping the cookie dough onto the baking tray.

Probably sensing that someone was watching her, she looked up and was surprised to see her father smiling at her. "Daddy? Why are you being quiet over there?" she asked as she stopped what she was doing and walked over to her father's side.

Eren put his arm around his daughter's shoulder and gave her a quick peck on her temple. "Nothing. What about you? What's with the cookies? Something on your mind?" he asked, looking concerned.

Amber looked down at her entwined hands and shook her head. "It's nothing. I just… want to do something," she said softly.

"Did something happen to Erick?" he asked again.

Amber's head shot up as she looked at her father in surprise. "How did you know that this is about Erick?" she asked, sounding surprised.

Eren let out a light chuckle. "It has been a while I've seen my carefree daughter looking so sad and concerned. And who else, other than Erick has caught my hard-to-get daughter's eyes?" he said teasingly, tapping her nose lovingly.

Amber just kept quiet as she returned to scooping more cookie dough onto the baking tray. Then realizing that her father probably hadn't had his dinner yet, she quickly grabbed the plate that her mother had left for her father and reheated it.

Her father went and sat down on the dining table. He opened his light jacket and placed it on the back of his chair while his briefcase was on the other chair.

After her father's dinner had finished reheating, she quickly served him his dinner and continued baking where she placed her baking tray in the oven. While waiting for her cookies to finish baking, the ones that she had baked earlier had cooled down. She grabbed a huge container and poured the cookies inside.

"So, what really happened?" Eren asked as he ate his dinner.

Surprised at his sudden question, thinking that her father had already dropped the topic, Amber let out a sigh. She went over and sat down across her father. "I don't know…" she said slowly. "He usually calls or texts me everyday but I haven't received any since the night he had dinner here. He didn't even pick up my calls so I'm just a bit worried."

Eren laughed lightly. "Should I be concerned that there's some boy talking to my daughter everyday?" he asked teasingly.

"Daddddd…!" Amber whined. She really wasn't in the mood for his teasing.

Her father's face turned serious as he looked at her in the eyes. "Amber, you're a very caring person. You're a bit like your mother who tends to worry a lot and have a heart big enough for lots of people that you care about. It concerns me when you're being like this and I understand your worries. Your mother used to fret over me every night whenever I returned back late from work. But there were times when waiting for your loved one is a wonderful feeling to do," he said as a gentle smile bloomed on his face.

"What do you mean?" Amber asked, looking confused.

Eren sighed. "As I've said before. Your mother used to worry every night whenever I came home late that she would wait in the kitchen, waiting for my footsteps. I appreciate the time she sacrificed her lost sleep, just to wait for me and then the next morning, she would wake up earlier before me to make me breakfast. Your mother is a wonderful woman. But I always tell her that as much as I appreciate the things she has done for me, the things that matter to me are her health and her wellbeing."

He then reached out his hand from across the table and took his daughter's hand. His thumb caressed the back of her hand and he continued, "So if your Erick is like me, I'm sure he wouldn't want to make you worry, sleeping late every night like this. Don't worry about the negatives and focus on the positives. Would you want Erick to see you this pale and sleep-deprived?"

Amber shook her head as she contemplated the words her father gave her in her mind.

Eren let go of her hand and laughed softly as he continued eating his dinner. "Good," he said.

Just then the oven beeped, indicating that the cookies were done baking. Amber quickly stood up and went to grab the tray out of the oven. She placed the tray on a cooling mat, waiting for it to cool. After she was done, she returned back to join her father at the dining table.

The two have a nice conversation while she accompanies her father to eat. Eren also took the opportunity to ask her about school and more specifically, about Erick.

Few minutes later, Amber told her father that she will wash the dirty dishes. At first, her father protested but knowing he was tired, she gently pushed him upstairs. She then persuades him by saying that she too has a lot of other dirty dishes to wash from baking.

After her father finally went up, she went back to where her cookies were cooling and poured them into the container that was already filled with the other cookies.

It was then she heard her phone rings. She frowned as she glanced at the wall clock near the fridge. 'Who could be calling at this hour?' she thought as she walked over to where she had placed her mobile phone.

"Erick?!"