"Don't die, old man." She whispered. "Not yet. Give me a few more years with you..."
Amber took his hand in hers and looked at his face. Although it was more wrinkled than when she met him, it was the same old kind man who had saved her from that hell. The very man she had come to care for. She wouldn't be able to take it if he left her alone in this lonely world all by herself so soon...
The hospital room door opened and a young man stepped in with a small paper bag in hand.
With a good height of well over 180cms and a good build, he towered over most people. Resting on his square-shaped face, the man had soft brown hair that was swept lightly to the side. His green eyes with nested flecks of grey looked towards the old man on the bed and then towards the young girl sitting beside. He had a small smile playing on his thin lips.
'He looks to be at most in his early twenties, but I'm sure he's about 30 years old, this guy. It pisses me off every time I look at his face.' Amber thought, annoyed.
The man walked towards Amber and said, "I just finished talking to the doctor. She said that he'll be fine. He fell off a ladder while pruning the trees surrounding your house. He'll heal up in a few days."
"Mm." Amber hummed listlessly.
The man bent his knees to be at the same height as Amber who was seated. "Amber, honey. Look at me." He waited until she did so before continuing, "He just hurt his back. I'm sure you know that he's not the type of person to stay dead when killed. He'll come back to life just as you place him in the coffin."
Amber grunted at his words.
"You know, don't you? You know that he won't leave you no matter what. That old bastard even beat me to pulp a few years ago, you remember? Heck, he's gonna wake up in a bit and hit me for 'sweet-talking' you! He's very strong and death won't come for him just yet. It's okay. He's fine." He smiled gently and raised his hand to softly pat Amber's head. "He's fine. He'll be up and about in a day. Come on, cheer up darling. I'm already risking my life by patting your head in his presence."
Amber finally cracked a smile.
He looked at her smile with a very gentle expression. He slightly dropped his hand to tuck a lock of her hair behind her ear when he heard a slightly raspy voice say, "Brat!"
The man lifted his head in surprise and immediately dropped his hand from Amber's face. He turned towards the old man on the bed.
"You're awake!" He exclaimed.
"I'm awake. As if a fall could kill me!" The old man continued to speak, his voice slowly losing its raspiness. "More importantly, you dare lay a hand on my child, you brat?!" He loudly shouted.
"What the heck old man?! I only patted her head! What do you mean by 'lay a hand'?!" The young man shouted in return.
Amber simply smiled and covered her ears as this was a daily occurrence.
"I told you that you can't touch her, didn't I?! Don't you lay a finger on my dear child!"
"You old bastard! I've asked for her hand for years and yet you don't even allow me to touch a strand of her hair! Do you want me to die unmarried?! Are you cursing me to end up like you, old man?!"
The argument went on. The noise was so loud that a nurse entered the room to scold them but the two men still continued. The nurse then looked at Amber pleadingly.
"Gramps," Amber said. "You're loud."
Immediately, the two men fell silent. "Yes, dear." The old man lowered his head.
"Are you feeling better?" Amber asked.
"Better than ever." He replied.
"I'd assume so with the strength of your voice just now. " Amber said.
"Um... I'm sorry, dear."
"Please apologize to the nurse that you ignored."
The old man did so. "You too." She turned to the young man.
"I'm sorry for the disturbance." He said.
The nurse left after warning them another time about being loud.
"Ah, these are the medicines he's supposed to take." The young man hands the small paper bag in his hand to Amber. "Well then, I've still got work so I'll have to go. Bye, hun." He starts to walk away when Amber calls out to him. "Hey."
"Hm?" He turns around in time to catch a soft smile on Amber's face.
"Thank you, Wilson."