Me After Meeting You

“This patient’s emotions have currently stabilized. As long as she isn’t stimulated any further, she’ll likely recover very quickly. As for how I dealt with it, the first step was to lecture the husband.

It’s a frightening thing that there aren’t any qualifications to become a parent. Similarly, it’s very frightening when men don’t act as proper husbands after getting married.”

At this point, a male student spoke up. “Professor, you’ve been targeting us guys a lot today. This isn’t fair! What about our female classmates? Don’t you have any recommendations for them?”

“Of course I do.” As Amber said this, her gaze swept over the young students. She was somewhat surprised, because she once again saw Daren in the crowd. There was a period of time when he had stopped coming to her classes, so she didn’t expect him to come again, especially not now, at the start of the new year.

Diverting her gaze away, Amber continued, saying, “The suggestion I have for you girls out there is that, if you’re not prepared for it, then don’t rush things. Getting married and giving birth is a huge event in one’s life, and you should only do so after careful consideration.

And once you’ve prepared yourself, then you should remember to love yourself while also loving others. The world is so large, and society so free, that there will be numerous opportunities for everyone. Thus, there’s really no reason to fixate on any particular person. Remember this, you’re most charming as an independent person.”

By the end of the lesson, Amber had wandered severely off-topic, going from depression to independence. At the very least, it was an interesting and meaningful conversation, and no one seemed to care all that much.

The class seemed to fly by. When the discussion concluded and Amber saw Daren pack up and prepare to leave, she quickly called him back.

When Daren heard her call out to him, he stood dazed, his face flaming red out of embarrassment, almost as if steam were about to come out of his head.

Amber paused, unsure of what to do. He was so shy that she was really worried that he might faint.

She packed up her teaching materials and walked over with her kindest and most genial expression. However, Daren remained paralyzed behind his desk. As he looked at her, his body started shaking, and his eyes almost teared up.

Amber was still speechless.

She couldn’t help but inspect herself, and she touched her face as she asked, “Do I look scary?”

He shook his head.

“Then that’s good.” Amber smiled and took a sweet out of her pocket. “Would you like this?”

She placed it next to his hands. His fingers twitched, but he didn’t take it, though Amber didn’t mind.

She smiled again as she asked, “There was a very long period of time where I didn’t see you. Are you free in the afternoon? Can I treat you to lunch?”

She actually wanted to chat with Daren, as she wanted to see if she could understand Ian more through him.

She had always felt that Ian’s illness stemmed from some earlier event in his life, and since she was now mentally ok with being in a relationship with him, she naturally wanted to speed up his treatment.

Actually, she could have asked Ian’s grandparents about his past as well, but the two of them looked at their grandson with rose-tinted glasses.

For them, besides the fact that he hadn’t married yet, everything else he did was fine and free from problems. Thus, Amber had turned to Daren instead.

But she had underestimated Daren’s shyness. Right after she spoke, he shuddered and glanced at her as if in fear before running away, crying!

He was actually crying, and Amber could tell because there were a few teardrops on his desk.

Of course, the proffered sweet was gone, as he hadn’t forgotten to grab it before he ran away.

Amber stared open-mouthed as she stared at Daren’s back, which was moving farther and farther away by the second. She slowly shook her head as she retracted the still-extended hand.

***

Later, when Amber was going home, she called Ruby and asked him, “How much do you know about Ian’s brother?”

She had just tossed this question out casually because she felt that Daren was seriously too shy and a bit strange. But unexpectedly, her brother anxiously responded, “Why are you asking about him all of a sudden?”

Well attuned to her brother’s moods, Amber quickly noticed that something was amiss and instead of replying, she asked, “Why are you so nervous?”

She frowned before suspiciously asking, “You didn’t do anything to him, did you?”

Ruby’s side was silent. “….”

A long silence.

Amber had to repeat “Hello?” a few times before Ruby eventually said, “Huh? I was busy just now. What did you say just now?”

The siblings knew each other too well after spending so many years together, and his reaction was so natural that even though Amber was suspicious, it gave her no hint as to what had happened between him and Daren. Thus, she just asked the question again.Nôvel/Dr(a)ma.Org - Content owner.

“I didn’t discover anything. That fellow’s even harder to get close to than his brother. He’s too shy, and it’s nearly impossible to get anything out of him.”

Amber was a bit surprised. “You actually managed to get some information about him? Then what about Ian? Do you know anything about him?”

Ruby chuckled wryly. “You’re investigating your own boyfriend? Don’t worry. He doesn’t care for alcohol, women, or wealth. In fact, the only thing he does is play cards on the side.

Even then, he always plays with the same group of people, and he usually doesn’t play with strangers. From the standards you women look at men with, he’s fine. But in my opinion, he’s a bit too boring, though he does fit your personality.”

Amber ignored the last derogatory remark, and was actually very impressed that her brother had found out so much. She was about to say something when her phone suddenly rang. It was a call from Trysta, so Amber said, “Alright, I’ll talk to you more later.”

And then she hung up and answered Trysta’s call.

Trysta had recently moved back in with Frank and Amber had visited her there twice. Besides her intense reaction to her pregnancy, her other problems seemed to be gradually improving, and Trysta herself seemed to have calmed down greatly. Thus, Amber had slowly lowered her guard.

Because the two had been conversing quite regularly recently, Amber didn’t think much of the call. When it connected, Trysta’s voice was as calm as ever. She insipidly asked, “Amber, can you do me a small favor?”

“What is it?”

“Frank arranged a meeting with Sarah at Axton Hotel, and I want to know which room they’re in. Can you ask Ian to help?”

“….”