Chapter 3

When Amber gets to Seth's room she gently knocks on the door. Seth replies with an agitated tone, "Look, if you're here to ask more questions you might as well just leave." Although sensing the unwanted feeling in the air, Amber decides to continue anyway and barges into the room. "I said leave," says Seth but as he turns to face Amber he stops what he's doing and stares at her, speechless. After a few never-ending seconds he finally says, "Oh you're not the dude from before."

"Thanks…I guess. Wouldn't want to be confused with Alfie," says Amber. "That would just be awkward."

"You," says Seth as he continues to stare, "Are much prettier than any guy named Alfie."

"Ok now that was awkward," replies Amber, wondering if she should be flattered or not.

"Yeah I'm sorry. That was kind of corny," agrees Seth. "What I meant to say is you're the first good thing I've seen since I've been here."

Not knowing how to respond to that, Amber says, "Well then you haven't seen Vera's chocolate cake. It's pretty amazing."

"I don't need cake as long as I have you," says Seth with a dreamy, yet slightly creepy, look in his eyes. "I know, that was corny too but it's true."

After that, Amber doesn't want to hear anymore and she turns around and walks back up to her room. Once there she says to the other Sibunas, who were all still sitting there, "Alfie was right. That Seth guy is really weird."

"Did he yell at you too?" asks Alfie. "What did he say? If he hurt you, I'll hurt him worse."

"Calm down Alfie," says Amber. "He didn't hurt me. He didn't yell at me either."

"Well what did he do?"

"I think he's in love with me."

"What makes you think that?" asks Patricia.

"Well he told me I'm the best thing at this school and he said I'm better than Vera's cake," answers Amber.

Alfie butts in and says, "Whoa, better than cake? That's impossible." Then noticing the annoyed look on Amber's face he says, "But if anything could be better than cake it would definitely be you."

"That's not the point Alfie," complains Amber. "The point is that a creeper is in love with me."

"Well when you put it that way…" says Alfie.

Then they heard a knock at the door. "Hide me," whispers Amber. "If it's him don't let him know I'm here." With that she climbs into the wardrobe and pulls the doors closed.

Once Amber's hidden, Nina answers the door and sure enough Seth's standing out in the hall. "Is Amber here?" he asks. "I have to give her something."

"You brought me something?" says Amber as she jumps out of the wardrobe. She soon notices the very confused looks on everyone's faces and says, "What? I like presents."

"Why were you in there?" asks Seth.

"Um Amber was just looking for her new shoes. Right Amber?" explains Nina.

"Oh uh yeah. I thought I lost them but they were in there. Yay!" says Amber very unconvincingly.

"Um anyway, I made you this," he says as he puts something in the palm of Amber's hand. "I just wanted to let you know I'm yours." He hesitates for a moment, then turns and walks out the door.

"Wow," says Fabian, "You really weren't kidding when you said he was in love with you."

"So what did he give you?" asks Patricia. "It looks like a keychain or something."

"It is," replies Amber. "It says 'I heart Seth Collen Foctoro'. Such a dorky name on such a dorky keychain."

"Um can I see that Amber?" asks Alfie. She hands it to him and right away he 'accidentally' drops it.

"Look what you did Alfie! All the beads fell off!" exclaims Amber.

They all bend over to help clean up the mess. As he's picking up beads, Fabian notices something. "Stop guys. Look. It spells 'collect'," he says. He then continues to unscramble the letters in Seth's name.

"Oh my gosh!" exclaims Nina once Fabian has finished."It spells 'Son of the Collector'. Do you think that's who Seth really is?"

"I highly doubt it's a coincidence," says Fabian.