"He's way more handsome, Rin," whispered a middle-aged
woman in a floral house dress with neatly rolled hair. There were three rolls
perched on the top of her head. She grinned as she introduced herself to
Fachri.
In her eyes, Fachri was incredibly handsome and fit the ideal
man that women desired. His prominent nose, sharp jawline, and thick eyebrows
framed by black-framed glasses. Not to forget, his thick and curly eyelashes.
His broad chest and slightly muscular arms, along with a flat
and firm abdomen. Fachri was also above-average in height. Even Zidan, who met
the height requirements to apply to an institution, only reached his ears.
Which woman wouldn't be enchanted by his perfection? Except, of
course, Airin. Her blind love had closed her eyes to see any handsome man in
the world other than Zidan.
"Auntie could be right. But, for me, he's still the most
handsome," Airin replied, nudging the arm of the landlady.
"Oh, come on! Are your eyes malfunctioning, Rin? It's clear
this one is handsome. This height, for sure, he's well-equipped down there
too." She stared down at Fachri, who was covered with black trousers.
"You're not allowed to flirt, Auntie," teased Airin,
rolling her eyes, uninterested in the landlady's overly flirtatious behavior.
But, she still strictly enforced the rules in her boarding house.
Fachri blinked. His eyebrows furrowed, and his gaze shifted to
Airin, seeking an explanation for their conversation. Even the landlady pointed
toward the region of the mystical object she possessed.
Airin simply shrugged indifferently. Frankly, she didn't want
Fachri to stay too long in her place. She was afraid that her gossip-loving
friend might suddenly appear and report something to Zidan. Worse, if Zidan
himself came and misunderstood the situation.
"Oh, by the way, who is this? A new boyfriend?" the
landlady asked, finally inquiring about Fachri's identity.
"I'm Airin's lecturer. I came here to pay the overdue rent
for Airin's room," Fachri quickly said, checking his backpack.
The middle-aged woman raised her eyebrows, trying to remember
when Airin's rent was due.
"Oh, yes, it's late, isn't it, Rin? I almost forgot because
Erin paid her rent a few days ago. I find it hard to distinguish between Airin
and Erin. Oh my... having two boarders like twin children makes me dizzy,"
she said quickly, as Airin's slender fingers grazed her slightly overweight
waist. She immediately knew it was a sign to just accept the money Fachri was
offering.
Besides, even without a sign, she would have accepted it anyway.
Any explanations could be discussed later after Fachri left. All she knew was
she could go shopping now since she received the rent before it was due.
"Thank you so much for paying my room rent, Sir. The
semester break is coming soon, and I might be going home to the village,"
Airin said, escorting Fachri to the main gate of the boarding house. After
receiving the payment receipt from the landlady.
"It's okay. After that, you'll still come back here. Don't
think too much about it." He pulled the corners of his lips, bidding
farewell to Airin to head home.
Fachri sighed deeply as he reached his car. Quite disappointed
that he couldn't extract information about Airin's boyfriend. If there wasn't a
tattoo with the initial 'M' on Zidan's neck, he could be sure he wouldn't be so
secretive about the identity of Airin's boyfriend. Fachri was convinced it was
the same person, but accusing without clear evidence might not be the right
move.
***
"Do you want to have an affair with your earlier
lecturer?"
Ajeng, the landlady, approached Airin, following her up the
stairs.
Airin stopped in her tracks, turning to Ajeng with a horrified
look.
"No, Ma'am. It's just that I don't want to be asked about
this and that. I'm uncomfortable with people being nosy about my personal life,
even if it's my lecturer."
"It's just names and addresses, Rin. Professor Fachri was
just making conversation," Ajeng defended Fachri, who had inquired about
Airin's boyfriend.
"Even if it's just names. I don't like it, and I'll never
want to tell."
If only she had known Fachri's nature earlier, she would have
declined the help and the ride home. Unfortunately, she only realized it when
she arrived at her boarding house.
Airin's regret didn't stop there. She still owed Fachri a favor
in return for paying her rent. Her fate seemed to be getting worse.
"If I conclude from your story, Rin, it seems like your
lecturer likes you or something. Especially when he saw the tattoo on your
boyfriend's wrist."
Sonya, Airin's roommate, tried to convey her assessment of what
she heard from Airin. Although she didn't meet Fachri directly, she could draw
conclusions even though, according to Airin, she was just making things up.
"Nah, that's impossible. He's the most admired lecturer by
the girls on campus. Just his breath makes the ladies scream hysterically. Of
course, he has very high standards, Onya. And again, what did you say earlier?
Does he know Zidan? Impossible, Fachri is originally from Samarinda... and
studying in Bandung. He even became the youngest lecturer due to his
achievements. It's highly unlikely that he got lost in Jakarta just to get to
know Zidan. It's nothing more than a lecturer being curious about his student.
I'm sure of it," Airin explained, quickly dispelling Sonya's speculations.
She truly did not want either of those possibilities to apply to Fachri. Simply
put, Airin didn't want to be loved by Fachri or have a sibling like him -
someone rigid and sometimes even gossiped about being interested in the same
gender.
"Let it be if you don't believe. I, for one, consider both
possibilities," Sonya persisted with her argument. She didn't know why she
could be so sure about those two choices.
"Well, it's up to you to think that way. What's certain
is... I don't want to believe," Airin said indifferently. She quickly got
up, reached for her phone, and headed to the balcony to try contacting Zidan,
hoping his number was now reachable.
"Don't you want to make sure of one of those? What if it's
the second one, the one that makes your lecturer attractive," Sonya
followed. She joined Airin on the balcony. The beautiful girl who was currently
struggling with her exams sat beside Airin with her laptop on her lap.
"There's nothing wrong with finding out, Rin. What if Zidan
is already married in Jakarta? Don't you want to avoid being a homewrecker? So,
while your relationship isn't too far yet, it's better to find out about
Zidan," she explained casually to Airin.
However, her words hit Airin hard, leaving her stunned. She
gripped her phone tightly. How could Sonya, who was much younger, think so
sensibly? Thinking with her brain, unlike herself who couldn't distinguish
between right and wrong. Thus, she surrendered her body to a man she had just
met on social media, Zidan.
Airin massaged her temples to ease the headache. Since earlymorning, she hadn't stopped vomiting, even though there was nothing left toexpel. However, the nausea would be quite bothersome if not purged. So, she hadto keep going back and forth to the bathroom, catching Sonya's attention as shewas now getting ready."Rin, aren't you tired of going back and forth like thissince earlier?" Sonya asked, curious about Airin, who seemed tirelessgoing in and out of the bathroom. Surpassing someone who was suffering fromacute diarrhea, making it impossible to stay still."I wish I wasn't like this, Onya. But my stomach hurtsbecause of catching a cold. So, I have diarrhea and keep going back to thebathroom. Do you want me to do it here?" Airin replied weakly. She crafteda sudden lie. It seemed impossible for her to say that the reason for goingback and forth to the bathroom was due to unending nausea."Oh, a cold. You pretend not to eat even when you'rehungry. Just because Zidan hasn
For over five days, Airin has been eagerly awaiting her monthly visitor to arrive, hoping for peace of mind and relief from negative thoughts. She no longer fears having a child out of wedlock because, until now, Zidan remains unreachable.Airin has the urge to search, but she doesn't know where to find this irresponsible man. Zidan's number is still inactive. How will she demand accountability when she has no clues about his address? She hasn't even asked for his mother's name.Airin laughs bitterly, mocking herself for being too naive. She opened herself up to a man with an unclear background. Now, she is prepared with three pregnancy test kits and a small bottle of urine set aside.Holding her breath, Airin dips the test kit. She waits with a pounding heart, fearing that the result might not align with her hopes. However, fate has a different story to tell. Two red lines appear on all three pregnancy test kits. Her body goes limp. Her gaze stares blankly at the pregnancy test resul
"I can't go, Sir.I'm sorry!" Airin asserted. Trying to exit the car, but Fachri had alreadylocked the car door. There was no way for Airin to leave without Fachri'spermission."You have tocome. You need to accompany me to your hometown. So you can cancel the marriagewith the second choice of your parents. You're still young, Rin, your future isahead. You shouldn't get married, and what about your studies?" Fachri insisted.Unhappy with Airin's marriage, though it was just a pretense.Airin shook her head."No, Sir. I can't take you there; it's already the absolute decision of myparents. It's also a mandate that must be fulfilled," Airin explained,adding a new lie to prevent Fachri from asking more questions. Honestly, shedidn't want to lie, especially to Fachri, who had been kind and helpful."But not allmandates can be fulfilled. And not all parents' wishes should be obeyed,"Fachri countered. Staring sharply at Airin, who remained determined to go homeand get married, wit
"Ha-pregnant?" Fachri shook his head, unable tobelieve what the doctor said. Airin was five weeks pregnant and had to behospitalized due to bleeding. Despite the scare, she was fortunate that thefetus in her womb was saved, thanks to Fachri's swift action in taking her tothe hospital.Panicked by seeing Airin pushed by the middle-aged woman shereferred to as "mom," Fachri rushed her to the hospital. Airincomplained of stomach pain after the impact with the hotel floor.Without investigating who the middle-aged woman was, Fachriprioritized taking Airin to the hospital to ensure her safety, especially sinceshe was bleeding in the pelvic area. Fachri put Airin's well-being first, evenbefore satisfying his curiosity.Fortunate enough, Fachri's decision was right. It saved Airinand her baby, even though they had to stay in the hospital. It was only fromthe doctor's explanation that Fachri realized Airin had been pregnant all thistime, and the fetus was quite advanced in age.Fe
"Repeat it again so I can be absolutely sure my ears didn't deceive me. Tell me if you really knew all of this!" Fachri demanded. His hands clenched tightly, his fingertips turning white, holding back the tightness in his chest from Mayang's statement, who continued to openly defend her husband, Zidan."Yes, I've known all of this. I also know that the woman who seduced my husband is a student at one of the universities in Bandung. I know she disturbed and seduced my husband until he was ensnared by her charms," Mayang said, pulling one corner of her lips. "I also know that this woman did it for money because Zidan transferred a lot of money and bought many luxury items for her. In return, she promised to give my husband a child. But, it turns out the woman lied. All this time, she was just using my husband's dream of having a child to drain his money. It turns out she's been using protection all along so she won't get pregnant.""No, no!! That's not true. What Zidan said is a lie. He
Airin bit her lower lip hard, suppressing the guiltweighing heavily on her chest. Currently, she was contacting her father torequest money for her tuition and monthly expenses, all while gently rubbingher bulging belly.Unbeknownst to her, despite the challenging life shewas facing, Airin managed to endure it. Living frugally in an apartment,claiming that her husband was working as an overseas laborer in Malaysia.Consequently, she had to live alone, but her supposed husband regularly senther monthly allowances.However, Airin's deceit extended beyond this. Shewould ask for money to buy books or complete assignments. The most recent andsignificant request was when her father mentioned selling a cow. Airinimmediately pleaded to buy a laptop for her thesis preparation. She claimed tobe tired of going back and forth to her friend's house to work on assignments.As a result, three-quarters of the money from sellingthe cow were transferred to Airin. She planned to use this subst
"As fast as Airin moved to enter again, she was stilloutpaced by Fachri, who followed closely, preventing the door from closingtightly with his formal shoes. 'Rin, please listen to what I have to say.Please don't run anymore, because I won't let you go,' pleaded Fachri, tryingto open the door with one foot caught.Airin shook her head, holding the door with her back to keep itfrom opening. 'Please, sir. Go away! I don't want to meet anyone!' 'No. I won'tleave until you're willing to talk to me,' persuaded Fachri. Despite being ableto forcefully push open the door in front of him, he didn't want to do that.Fachri didn't want a strong push to open the door, potentiallyhurting Airin inside. Even though he felt the pain in his right leg used toprop the door of the apartment building. 'Sir, please. Understand my situation.I don't want to meet anyone. I'm ashamed, sir,' she whispered with a hoarse andtrembling voice.Unable to hide it, Airin was genuinely frightened by Fachri's
"Who are you? Why come here and stir up trouble?Just because my neighbor's husband is in Malaysia, you think you can create acommotion as you please." Wiwit put on an annoyed expression, with raisedeyebrows and hands on her hips, resembling a housing manager demanding rentarrears for months."Husband? Airin's husband in Malaysia?"Fachri asked, making sure what he heard was not a mistake.It's not pleasant, playing a drama without knowingthe actual plot."Yes, her husband is in Malaysia. He said hewould return after she gives birth. So, just because her husband isn't here,you act arbitrarily like this. It's a shame that a handsome man like you has tobe cruel to a pregnant woman like Airin. If there's an issue, let's talk itout. Give her more time, at least until her husband returns," Wiwit firedaway without bothering to find out who the man in front of her was."Um... wait a minute. Give time, time forwhat?" Fachri asked, trying to satisfy his curiosity."Time to pay off de