Chapter 89: Panic

But no matter what Amanda said, Felix wouldn’t lift his head from Samuel’s shoulder.

Samuel frowned and was about to speak, but he saw Amanda wave her hand. "It’s fine. I can take his pulse like this."

This time, he didn’t cause any more trouble. Samuel carried him to a nearby chair, and the boy obediently held out his arm.

Amanda took his pulse, releasing it a moment later. "The other one."

Felix squirmed in Samuel’s arms, shifting to his left and reaching his other arm out from behind his father’s back. Amanda couldn’t help but smile, leaning back to accommodate him. As she placed her fingers on his wrist, she saw the boy sneak a peek over his father’s shoulder. The moment she glanced his way, however, he immediately ducked back out of sight.

Amanda froze for a second. ’Those eyes...’

"How is he, Dr. Vance?" Samuel Ford asked, interrupting her thoughts.

Amanda snapped out of her daze. Looking at the man’s worried expression and furrowed brow, she chided herself. ’I’m overthinking things. This is his son. How could he possibly look like Jean?’

’Jean is at home waiting for me.’

’I just saw him before I left.’

Composing herself, she began, "It’s nothing serious. Going without food for so long has just upset his stomach, so it’s normal that he has no appetite right now. I’d rather not prescribe medication for a child. How about this? I’ll write down a recipe for some food therapy. It’ll be gentle on his stomach and help stimulate his appetite, and it doesn’t taste bad. Have him eat a little of that first, and he should be able to eat a proper meal after a while."

"Alright, thank you."

"You’re welcome." After speaking, Amanda looked at Felix again. She couldn’t see his face, only his small hands were visible. After a moment’s thought, she gently took one and said softly, "Listen, little guy, you have to eat properly from now on, alright? No more hunger strikes, okay? It feels so awful, doesn’t it? From now on, if something’s wrong, you can tell your dad. You need to communicate and talk things out. Got it?"

Just then, she saw the child’s head move, though he didn’t peek out. His little hand waved, paused, then formed a half-fist and bobbed up and down, just like a lucky cat.

Amanda was completely charmed by his cuteness.

She chuckled lightly. ’And here I thought Samuel said he was a handful.’ He seemed perfectly fine to her.

After a moment of thought, she added, "How about this? If you tell your dad something and he won’t listen, you can call me, and I’ll talk to him for you. How does that sound?"

The words had barely left her mouth when both his little hands started bobbing up and down.

Amanda couldn’t help but laugh again. She looked up at Samuel. "President Ford, is that alright with you?"

Her smiling eyes met his gaze. The color in Samuel’s own eyes deepened. After a moment, he nodded. "Mm."

Ignoring his expression, Amanda smiled cheerfully at the boy and gave his hand a little shake. "Your daddy agreed. From now on, Colt needs to eat properly, okay? Is it alright if I call you that?"

’Colt?’

Felix’s ears perked up. ’This is the first time Mom has ever said my name.’

He was overjoyed and nodded vigorously. Amanda couldn’t see his face, but she could see the top of his head bobbing and easily guessed his response. She reached out to ruffle his hair. "Such a good boy."

It was getting late, and her workday was over, so Samuel didn’t want to take up any more of her time. After thanking her again, he watched her drive away before carrying Felix toward his own car.

Only then did Felix finally peek his head out, staring longingly in the direction her car had disappeared.

’I miss Mommy so much.’

’Mommy just said my name!’

Once in the car, the boy took off his mask, his expression fully visible. Seeing him grinning like a fool, Samuel glanced over. "Are you that happy?"

Felix snorted. "Of course! I’m way happier than when I’m with you."

With that, he huffily turned his head away. But then he remembered something and whipped his head back around. "Do you have Mo... Miss Vance’s phone number?"

The word "Mom" was on the tip of his tongue, but he reluctantly swallowed it and used a different name.

"I do."

Hearing this, Felix breathed a sigh of relief. "Then I’m calling her as soon as we get back."

"Not until you’ve eaten."

’Fine.’

Felix puffed out his cheeks. He knew his dad had already indulged him a lot today, so he didn’t push his luck.

On the way home, Samuel sent the recipe to Miss Lynch, so the food was ready by the time they arrived.

Seeing Felix’s listless expression, Samuel had Miss Lynch bring the food to his room. He’d intended to watch him eat, but his assistant called. He had no choice but to tell Miss Lynch, "Could you please look after him for a bit?"

"Of course, sir. Don’t you worry."

Samuel looked at Felix and said coolly, "Eat your food. You can call Dr. Vance only after you’ve finished."

"I know," Felix pouted, blowing on his soup.

"Drink it slowly. Don’t rush. If you throw up, we’ll just have to go back to the hospital. Besides, Dr. Vance has had a long day and deserves to rest."

At this, Felix did indeed slow down, which made Samuel raise an eyebrow. He hadn’t expected that her name alone would be so effective, even when she wasn’t present.

’He likes her that much?’

’Didn’t they just meet?’

’Why does he act like they’ve known each other for ages?’

Samuel gave him a suspicious glance. His assistant was waiting, so he finally headed to his study.

In his room, Felix slowly sipped the soup. His stomach felt soothed, and his appetite was already much better. ’Mom really is an amazing doctor.’

Soon, the bowl was empty. He rubbed his belly, which let out a RUMBLE. He handed the bowl to Miss Lynch and said, "Miss Lynch, I want to eat a real meal now."

"Of course. I’ll go get it for you right away."

"Mm-hmm."

A few moments later, Miss Lynch came up with a tray of food. She had always looked after Felix and knew his tastes perfectly, so the meal consisted of all his favorite dishes.

Felix ate heartily. When he finished, he said, "Miss Lynch, I’m never going on a hunger strike again. The plan you taught me worked, but it felt awful."

Hearing this, a flicker of something passed through Miss Lynch’s eyes. She tapped her own lips lightly. "Blame me. I’m getting old and senile, giving you such foolish ideas."

"It’s okay. You were just trying to help me," Felix said, waving his hand dismissively as he slid off his chair. "I’m going to go find Dad and make my call!"

With that, he took off running toward the study.

Miss Lynch watched his retreating back, the smile on her face vanishing. After a long moment, she turned to clear the dishes from the table.

"Dad!" Felix burst into the study, ran right up to him, and held out his hand. "Phone."

Samuel was in the middle of a meeting. He glanced at the boy, scrolled to Amanda’s number, and handed him the phone.

"Thanks, Dad." For once, Felix gave him a pleasant look. As he left, he even gently closed the door. "You get back to work, Dad. I won’t bother you anymore."

’This kid...’

’When did he learn these little tricks? His mood changes faster than you can flip a page.’

Samuel shook his head. Looking back at his computer screen, he said, "This proposal..."

Back in his room, Felix closed the door and sat on his bed. He was just about to dial when he suddenly remembered something. He put the phone down, rushed outside, and returned a moment later, pulling Seven in with him.

After Amanda got home, she was in the middle of reading a story to Jean when her phone suddenly rang. She glanced at the caller ID, raised an eyebrow, and answered.

"Hello?"

"Miss Vance, it’s Colt." A childish, robotic-sounding voice came from the other end of the line.

Amanda couldn’t help but smile. "Why are you using a voice changer?"

She looked down as she spoke on the phone, completely missing the way Jean’s eyes had instantly widened.

’Colt?’

’It’s Felix Ford!’

The hand at his side clenched into a tight fist. Seeing Amanda’s gentle expression, Jean panicked. ’Why is Mom in contact with Felix Ford?!’