Of course, hearing Amber speak about scholarship, both Hayley and Alissa have their brows furrowed.
Wasn't she their benefactor who didn't even bat an eyelid at taking the biggest, which is, the most expensive room?
They also watched how bags and bags of clothes were delivered. She even paid for the whole month of her food and lodging.
Seeing this, Amber smiled and sheepishly said, "I have used up all of my money. And so I can only enter school through a scholarship. Adding to that, to live after this month, there are so many things I have to do."
Hayley and Alissa looked at each other.
"But you have 'that'?" Hayley couldn't help but ask.
They just couldn't wrap their minds around the things Amber was saying all of a sudden.
Amber took a deep breath and sighed.
"Well, I do have 'that'. If we are talking about the same thing..."
Both of them were referring to her Ruby card.
"But my usage of that is only one time. And so I am planning on moving out of the penthouse and occupying one of your servant rooms once the month is up. I am planning on helping out here to have a place to stay. I am also planning on getting a part-time job to feed myself. And a scholarship that also has a stipend, so that would help me as well."
Of course, she did not need all of this. She has the money to let her stay in the penthouse, but just as she had thought through her plan, what she has now is nothing compared to her plan.
So she wishes to save as much as she can because she wants to start her plan as soon as possible.
Hayley and Alissa looked at each other once again. Hayley then excused herself, saying that this should be discussed with her mother. Soon, Elloise arrived with confusion visible on her face and sat down with them.
Upon hearing Amber's words, she fell into deep thought.
"By chance, did you run away from home?" she finally asked after a few moments of thinking.
Amber was underage, and the card was a one-time use. She can't come up with any other reason for the suddenness of Amber's situation.
"Something like that, but it's more like I really can't go home right now. Due to certain circumstances, I could only stay here and gain my own identity."
"Are your parents not worried?"
"Oh, for sure, they are very much worried, leaving their daughter alone in the middle of a very dangerous world. I'm sure they must be worried. It's just they can't do anything about it," she replied solemnly, her eyes glazed over as loneliness enveloped her.
Elloise understood her underlying meaning. Adding her puffy eyes and pale complexion for the past days, she understood that Amber's parents are gone from this world.
But this amazed Elloise even more. Amber is a sixteen-year-old girl. After facing such a tremendous change in her life, she stood back up after just a week. She sure is mature and strong.
Yet Elloise could also see that this girl stood back up, but her heart was still in shambles.
"I won't try to dig any deeper into it. But..." she trailed off.
Their family really couldn't afford another blow.
If Amber's background were to suddenly come and cause chaos...
"Please, I won't put your family at a disadvantage. Right now, I just need to save up a little, then I will leave the hotel. Whatever mess I am in right now. You won't get involved. Those people won't be able to come to me in the near future."
Understanding what Elloise was pointing out, Amber immediately explained.
Amber's smile and understanding look, Elloise felt a tug in her heart.
If this girl were to sit still and not do anything, anyone would mistake her for a real-life doll. But her eyes, no matter how many times she smiles, always look dead.
Her circumstances are obviously not simple.
But Elloise is a natural kind woman.
She really couldn't leave this girl alone.
Adding to the fact that even though she had said that she used up all her money, how she did it still saved their hotel without batting an eyelid.
Then something clicked in Elloise's mind before she smiled in defeat.
She realized that Amber was not planning on taking up the most expensive room.
She was not planning on staying that long in their hotel. She must only be planning to stay for a day or two, then she would search for an apartment to stay in.
But she had helped them instead.
'She must have seen the letters regarding our loan lying on the reception table,' Elloise couldn't help but think as she sighed.
"Very well. But I want you to stay in the penthouse. No one stays there. I need someone to tend to the place. You can help with minor stuff around the hotel. As for the university, why don't you go to the same university that these two are planning to go to? It has great benefits."
"Really, mother? Can she really stay?"
In reality, adding another friend was a great opportunity for Hayley and Alissa.
There are only the two of them after all. Amber came from a different place, and so she hasn't been fed lies by those people who wished nothing but the downfall of their family.
"Yes, she shall be staying. I will be your guardian since you really can't enroll without a guardian. These two will help you out in looking for a part-time job."
Elloise stood up.
"And you don't need to leave. I know you will protect us even if something bad is really chasing you."
She then left, and the other two squeaked that they had gained another friend. While Amber could only stare in bewilderment.
"You accepted me just like that? What if I am a bad person or a selfish one at that?" she asked Elloise.
Having gone through such an ordeal, where your family could only continuously run away.
Being faced with nothing but evil people with evil minds, then suddenly being shown so much kindness coming even from a stranger, Amber just couldn't believe it.
Elloise looked back and smiled at her.
"No, you are a very good person. And I know your parents would be very much proud to have you as their daughter."
Amber was dumbfounded, but she could only shrug it off. At least for now, her place is set, and she can enroll in a school. She has no documents after all, other than her passport and a birth certificate.
If she wants to start up for revenge, she first needs a university diploma. In a university, she would also be able to check some potential and bring them to her side.
At the same time, it would give her a background.
Hayley and Alissa told her that they, too, are planning on applying for scholarships.
Hayley would be applying for the Fashion Designing department, and Alissa would be applying for the Hotel Management Department.
Then they excitedly informed her that the convenience store where they are currently working part-time is hiring.
Without waiting for her reply, they called their manager and introduced her, and just like that, she already has a part-time job.
Amber felt like her head was spinning. All her plans were going too smoothly. And it is scary, but for now, she doesn't have much choice.
She will accept whatever she can. Even if the pay at the convenience store is not much, it would still be an addition. Not just in terms of money but also in her background.
She was also planning on taking up little projects, like web design and helping out with game-making.
With those, she wouldn't need to be concerned about her identity as the Pianist, who was much more known for hacking.
Then, as if remembering something, Hayley asked, "What department would you be taking then?"
Amber also returned to reality upon hearing her question, "Oh, I would be in the Computer Science Department."
She could have chosen others, but she was simply trying to make a background, so it doesn't matter. Plus, this is the closest to what she was best at.
Both girls once again had their eyes widened, for Computer Science is obviously a very difficult course.
...
"Mom, I have a question. How did you know that Amber is a kind girl?"
That night, Hayley couldn't help but ask her mother.
Her mother had been very cautious towards strangers ever since their hotel went down the hill, so it completely baffles her to see her mother act towards someone who was only there for a week.
"That girl saved us, not unintentionally but intentionally instead. I think you understand this with the way she explained her condition," Elloise replied as she computed the hotel finances.
Hayley nods her head as she falls into a deep thought.
"Then... do you think the brilliance of her eyes will return?"
Elloise's movements stopped as she looked up to her daughter. Seeing the shock in her mother's eyes, Hayley pouted.
"I can see it, of course. Her parents just died, so even when she smiles, her eyes are still dead."
"We have no idea what exactly happened to her family, and we barely knew her. Maybe someday, when both sides have enough trust for each other, we will find out the reason, and maybe we will be able to help her out," Elloise replied with warmth.
They are still considered strangers after all.
Allowing Amber to stay and help her enroll was Elloise's payment for her help. You can only repay kindness with kindness. If you are a real human, that is.
...
In her room without its lights on, she turned the flashlight of her new phone on and shone it on the pendant of her necklace.
Just as the light passed through it, an image was projected on the wall opposite her.
There were five people in the picture, each with a smile on their face.
"I will surely return," she muttered, looking at the image.