Longing For a Loved One

The day went by as usual for Amanda, every day she had to go to work in the morning and then return home at night. Even so, Amanda does not complain about her life which now feels so heavy.

Unlike her previous job which was dangerous but seemed more relaxed because she had mastered every single thing. Her current job is very busy and draining. Even so, Amanda really enjoys her job now.

She can meet a lot of people and talk to them, although sometimes some of them are rude to her. But Amanda always goes through it with a strong heart.

She does everything for the baby in her womb.

"Whatever happens, mama will do the best for you. You just need to enjoy your life until you finally grow up and can take care of yourself..." Amanda said as she rubbed her stomach which had begun to round in front of the mirror.

Her small belly was still easily covered by her shirt. But surely soon her belly would grow bigger and heavier. Amanda had to be prepared for that.

Especially if she had to work under such circumstances later.

"I hope Jhon doesn't mind hiring a pregnant woman like me," she said somewhat worriedly.

If she gets fired, she doesn't know where else to work. She couldn't possibly look for a job all the way to the city center. There would certainly be plenty of jobs there, but it would be a long and tiring journey.

Looking at the clock that was already 7.45 am, Amanda put on her sweater with a pair of long blue jeans and straightened her hair. It was time for her to go to the cafe today for work.

As she walked out of the house and was about to leave, she greeted each of the neighbors who were sitting enjoying the morning sunshine in their yard.

"Morning, Mr. Johanson!" she greeted.

"Oh... Morning, Miss Sanchess. Are you going to work today?" asked the man who was washing his car in the front yard.

"Yes, I have to go to work. Then excuse me!"

Johanson gave Amanda a small wave and went back to washing his car.

The neighbors were so friendly, if Amanda hadn't greeted them first, they would have.

On the way, Amanda ran into one of the neighbors on the right who she had saved a few days ago. Amanda tried to say hello to the woman, and her response was exactly what she expected.

"Meh," was the woman's brief response and then walked away.

"That means she doesn't realize that I helped her that night. That's good... No one knows about this," Amanda said, continuing on her way.

When she was almost at the café, Amanda paused to stare at the ocean waves that were so calm that morning. The sea breeze was blowing so softly, caressing her brown hair. It hit Amanda's face which felt so cool.

Amanda took a breath, then exhaled slowly. She started her day at Jhon's cafe as usual. She was already in her third month of working for Jhon and she didn't feel pressured by his treatment.

Ting!

The bell sounded as the café door opened.

She entered the café and approached the kitchen where Jhon was cooking cakes to put up in the display case. All the food they sold was Jhon's cooking. Amanda was so impressed, even though Jhon was a man, he was very good at cooking.

The food at Jhon's cafe is dominated by fast food such as burgers, fries and others. But like sweets like donuts, cakes and others, he made them himself in his cafe before Amanda arrived.

"Morning Jhon, what kind of cake did you make today?" Amanda asked.

"I made a matcha cake, some customers always ask for this cake. So I made it today."

On the table was a cake covered with white cream and sprinkled with green matcha powder. The cake looked very pretty and delicious. Amanda often tasted the cakes made by Jhon.

"Have you worked in a cake shop before? It looks like you're very good at making them. Even the decorations are very pretty," Amanda asked again.

"No, I didn't. My wife taught me," replied Jhon who was still busy with his cake.

"Oh really? Then where is she? Why didn't she help you make the cake for the cafe?"

Jhon was silent for a moment, he looked down at his cake with the cream spruit in his hand. "She's not here anymore."

Hearing Jhon's answer, Amanda was shocked. She felt so guilty for asking him that. Plus Jhon's tone, which was usually so firm, when he said that sentence, sounded so painful to him.

"S-sorry, Jhon. I asked something I shouldn't have asked..." Amanda said, bowing her head because she felt so guilty.

"It doesn't matter. It's been a while anyway."

Still feeling guilty about her words, Amanda said that she would start her work now. She left Jhon and picked up the cleaning tools and started working.

That day Amanda did her job as usual. She greeted the customers, served them and tidied up the dirty plates and tables. The incident of what she said this morning was still vividly remembered in her head.

This was the first time she saw Jhon's expression different from usual. He must be missing his wife very much. Then what about their child? Does Jhon have a child?

Given Jhon's age which Amanda estimated to be 40-45 years old. He must have at least one child, right?

Later that evening after the cafe closed, Amanda intended to go home.

"Amanda, take this with you..." said Jhon who placed a bag on the table.

A cake, Amanda could tell because sometimes Jhon would give her one or two slices of cake left over at their cafe.

"Thank you, Jhon. I'm going home then, see you tomorrow."

"Yeah."

The woman went home with a bag of cakes. It just so happened that she was too lazy to cook that night, so she could just make the cake her dinner.

When she was at the end of the road to her house, she passed a dark-skinned woman with her hair always tied up with a ribbon, walking alone while carrying a paper bag of groceries.

"Camille!" called Amanda as she approached the woman.

"Hmn, oh Amanda. Did you just get off work?" asked Camille.

"Yes, I just finished my work. Did you just go shopping? But isn't the store closed already?"

Camille said that she had just come from the convenience store to buy some groceries. Her daughter had asked her to bring her some sweet corn and sausages, but since it was late she didn't have time to buy them at the store, so she went to the convenience store.

"My daughter is quite picky when it comes to food. So I can only follow her requests. You know, elementary school kids? Ahahaha."

"I see... Children are like that, when they grow up they will understand and change their tastes again," Amanda said.

The two of them walked together to their house, since their houses were next door to each other. On the way, Amanda thought about Jhon's story again. She ventured to ask Camille about it.

"Jhon's wife? Ahh... She's a very kind and beautiful woman. Jhon loves his wife very much. Her name is Jane," Camille explained.

"What happened to her?"

Big Mama explained that Jane died five years ago in an accident. Since then, Jhon had become fierce and strict. She also said that the cafe was the one they had started together since the beginning of their marriage.

"Then... What about their child? Do they have a child?"

"Yes, they have a daughter. As I recall she is now 23 years old... But she moved off the island three years ago with her husband. Since then, I don't think he's ever seen his daughter again." Camille explained.

Hearing all that, Amanda felt sorry for Jhon. He had lost his beloved wife, his daughter had left him. But Jhon always looked so strong in front of everyone. Now she understood why he behaved the way he did.

No one ever knows what someone goes through, no matter how difficult their life is, they try to cover up their past.

'He must miss them...' she thought.

Upon arriving home, Amanda sat down to eat the cake that Jhon had given her. It was sweet and very soft. For a moment she thought of her own father. He was struggling, doing everything he could for himself and his family.

Her father always spoke so encouragingly to her when she called them. Now she understood how much her father must have missed her and was happy when she contacted him.

She recalled all the memories with her father who loved her so much.

Amanda's eyes dropped and her chest felt tight.

"Dad."