Chapter 88
Chapter 88
He wanted to ascertain if his assumption that Amelia was avoiding him was correct.
“Amelia, where are you?” Casper tone was visibly concerned.
“At the Eastside Library,” she replied.
“I’m at the library now but can’t seem to find you. Besides, there’s no such public awareness activity here,” Casper answered resolutely after scanning his eyes around one more time.
“Erm…” Amelia’s hesitation was obvious.
She replied, “Oh, the event finished earlier than expected. All of us have gone back.”
“In that case, tell me where you are. I’ll come and see you at once.” This content © Nôv/elDr(a)m/a.Org.
Casper was in no mood to enjoy the air conditioning in the library as he headed straight for the exit. When he returned to the bike, he prepared to ride toward wherever Amelia was.
“You want to see me? Err… ah…”
Panicking, Amelia began to stumble on her words. “In that case, I… my phone battery is dying soon…”
Before she finished, Amelia ended the call.
When he heard the call-end tone, Casper felt lost. It was obvious that Amelia had ended the call on purpose.
“Huh…”
Heaving a long sigh, he could tell that Amelia was avoiding him.
Has she found out about my identity? Obviously, there’s no volunteer activity going on. She was using it as an excuse not to meet me for lunch. But, why is she doing this? Battery running low? Is she avoiding me? Or, is she afraid that our relationship might develop further?
Casper had never felt so confused before. Even dealing with Giselle isn’t this difficult.
Am I no longer able to befriends this kind-hearted girl?
Just when Casper had the urge to throw the lunch away, he quickly shook his head. It isn’t like Amelia to behave this way. I need to hear her explanation no matter what.
Suddenly, Casper felt heartbroken. How did things end up like this?
Just yesterday, everything was alright. We met under the trees as usual for lunch. So why did she miss our date today? Furthermore, there was no indication that she had any issues during lunch yesterday. She even used a napkin to carefully wipe the stain off my lips.
Also, we have never argued before. So why is she avoiding me all of a sudden?
Casper didn’t understand how things turned out that way.
“It definitely isn’t like that.”
Casper shook his head vehemently to cast aside his nonsensical thoughts. “Amelia definitely owes me an explanation!”
With that, he tried calling her again, but her phone had been turned off.
“There’s no way you can hide from me.”
Although it never crossed his mind for them to be a couple, Casper still didn’t want to lose a good friend.
Hence, he put the lunch boxes back in the basket and biked around campus, searching for Amelia.
However, Business University was the top university in the nation and consequently had a sprawling campus. There were around thirty to forty thousand students alone. There were about a hundred thousand people including the staff on campus. Therefore, looking for a single person was like finding a needle in a haystack.
Nevertheless, Casper had resolved to find her and wouldn’t rest until he succeeded.
With that, Casper braved the afternoon heat to comb the entire campus in search of Amelia. Sweating profusely on his forehead, he looked as if he was a thief, checking every nook and corner of wherever he went.
“Where could she have gone?”
Casper furrowed his eyebrows as he looked all over. His body, along with the bike’s handlebars, were all drenched in sweat. “I’ll check the inside.”
This was the sixth athletics field that he was going to check through. Parking his bike at the entrance, he entered with the lunch boxes in hand. Inside, he continued his search by scanning the surroundings.
Within the huge expanse of the field, not a soul could be found. However, Casper searched every corner despite the scorching sun.
When she saw the thin and sweaty silhouette, Amelia was caught by surprise. After all, she was very familiar with how it looked as it belonged to the person who saved her from the freezing lake.
Despite opening her mouth to say something, she decided against it as she didn’t want him to see her in that state.
However, at the exact same moment, Casper walked over. From the corner of his eye, he spotted a familiar figure hiding behind the grandstand. He could easily recognize her hair and silhouette from afar.
That person was indeed Amelia. She was hiding there like an injured kitten, who was licking her wounds all by herself.
When they made eye contact, she was shocked. She didn’t expect to be discovered at all.
“I…”
Despite all the things she wanted to say, nothing came out the moment she opened her mouth.
Hurrying over, Casper stared at her, just like a beast eyeing his prey.
“You… why are you avoiding me? Do you not want to see me again?”
Unable to bear it any longer, Casper started rattling off like a machine gun. “Amelia, do you know how long have I been looking for you? I looked everywhere starting from the east side of the campus to the west side of it. I have been drenched in sweat and didn’t even manage to get a drink. Tell me, why are you doing this? If you no longer want to be my friend, you can tell me…”
“No…”
Jolted for a second, tears began rolling down her cheeks. Hanging her head, she let her jet-black hair cover her face.
“… and I will not bother you going forward.”
Taking a deep breath, Casper gritted his teeth and demanded, “Amelia, say something. Raise your head and look at me. Have you even lost the courage to face me? You…”
When he saw Amelia sobbing but refusing to look up nor say anything, Casper was infuriated.
What’s going on with her? Why is she behaving like that?
Placing the lunch box on the parapet, Casper approached her. He then grabbed her by the shoulders to straighten her posture.
At that moment, he was utterly stunned.
Looking at her in disbelief, the annoyance he felt earlier was replaced by rage. One that caused him to have the urge to beat someone to death.