Part 1

Chelsea let out a soft sigh. Her lips pursed, and she stirred the cold mochaccino in the tall glass. She seemed to be discussing her parents with her friend, Indri.

Taking advantage of their lunch break, Chelsea used the time to seek advice. It was something she always did when her mother was caught having another affair, again!

"Cheating again?" Indri interjected, leaning back in her chair. She seemed weary of Chelsea's recurring issues. She was tired of dealing with the problems Chelsea faced, and tired of trying to prevent her friend's mother from seeking another lover.

Even though Chelsea's father was still alive, albeit in poor health, their family had been struggling since then. Financial difficulties, her father's declining health, and her mother's infidelity had started to affect their household. It began with dwindling finances, Chelsea's father's worsening health, and her mother's affair, driven by her desire to find a wealthy man to satisfy her socialite aspirations.

Accustomed to a lavish lifestyle, Margareth, Chelsea's mother, had started looking for a replacement for her husband, given that her company had gone bankrupt and her health was deteriorating. Now, it was Chelsea who supported them on her meager salary.

Chelsea nodded weakly. "This time it's going to be tough, Indri." She murmured.

"Why? It's usually easy, isn't it?" Indri pressed. The bespectacled girl couldn't wait for Chelsea's answer. So far, they had always succeeded in deterring Margareth from getting too close to other men.

"That man loves Mom, and he's serious. He wants to marry her soon, and this morning he even asked Dad to divorce her," Chelsea whispered, resting her cheek on the table.

Chelsea couldn't fathom how her mother could be so heartless just to marry a wealthy widower. Despite her own income being sufficient only for her father's medications and their daily needs, which often meant eating with the simplest of dishes.

"Alright, that means we'll have to work harder after this. Do you have a picture of the target, right?" Indri said, adjusting her glasses.

Chelsea nodded. Without lifting her head from the table, she handed her phone to Indri.

"Oh, Chelsea! Seriously, you've hit the jackpot!" Indri exclaimed joyfully, seeing the man's photo on Chelsea's phone.

The girl with long black hair raised her head. She blinked twice, puzzled by Indri's reaction.

"What do you mean?"

"Wait!" Indri pulled her phone out of her sling bag. Her thumb danced swiftly across the screen, searching for the chat app that people were using to find romantic partners.

"His name is Carlos Sanders, forty years old," she said, providing the person's details from the app.

Chelsea shook her head. "Where did you get the complete profile of that home-wrecker?"

"Tsk, that's why you're a good sitter. Look, Olive posted a status recommending handsome older men who are looking for love. And our target is one of them. Crazy, right? Is he looking for a partner or a sugar baby? He wants someone under twenty. This is insane, Chelsea," Indri complained, shaking her head.

Chelsea was taken aback. "What? A twenty-year-old sugar baby? This is crazy! So, what's the connection to my mom?"

"Oh my goodness... Seriously, Chelsea! She said she wanted to separate him from your mom. Why are you so surprised now?"

"It's not like that, In. After he proposed to Mom, why would he be looking for a sugar baby? He said he's serious and wants to make Mom his last wife," Chelsea mumbled, resting her cheek on the table.

"So, he's playing both sides. If they're meant to be together, then maybe what people say is true. Destiny is a reflection of oneself," Chelsea continued.

Indri shook her head, looking at Chelsea who seemed to have lost her zest for life due to her parents' issues.

"That's exactly it, you see. You should become this guy's sugar baby, so he forgets about your mom and you can also tell your mom that you're already married," Indri suggested, sipping her juice.

"What?" Chelsea exclaimed, slamming the table hard.

"Cough, cough, damn you!" Indri cursed, barely avoiding spraying juice out of her nose due to Chelsea's outburst.

Chelsea's eyes rolled lazily. "You're the one who's damn, you started it. You just casually suggest that I become a sugar baby." She sighed in frustration.

Indri, who had come up with the crazy idea, looked at her friend. It was impossible for Chelsea to become a sugar baby for her mother's lover. Where would she even put her face? If anyone found out that she was involved with a man nearly the same age as her father, she would surely become the subject of ridicule.

At twenty years old, Chelsea couldn't possibly be in a relationship with a forty-year-old man like Carlos.

"I absolutely won't accept your suggestion."

"Fine, it's up to you if you don't want to, whatever. I'm not forcing you. It won't be me who destroys your mother's marriage. It won't be my father who becomes your father's replacement," Indri was annoyed that Chelsea rejected her idea, even though she thought it was quite brilliant.

"Indri, please, come on, don't be like this. I asked you to come here to help me find ideas to keep my mom away from that jerk. Instead, you're adding more problems. You usually come up with brilliant ideas, but this time you're just making me lose face."

"Chelsea, listen, this is the only way to separate your mom from that man. Think about it, he proposed to your mom and now he's looking for a sugar baby like this. That means he's not a good guy. Just accept what I'm saying, and you can swim while drinking water."

"What's the connection between swimming and drinking water?" Chelsea was curious.

"Here's the thing, you get close to him to break him up with your mom, right? Well... since he's wealthy, you can also use the opportunity to get financial support for your father's medical expenses and your tuition fees. Can you?"

"B-but..."

"No 'buts,' don't be hypocritical. Life requires a lot of money, so don't act like your life will be fine without money. There's no harm in trying. Besides, it's not just you; many of our friends are in professions like this. Look at Riana, she was just fine a while ago. Now?"

Chelsea nodded.

"But what about Rendy?"

"Don't even think about that broke guy, it's pointless." Indri waved her hand dismissively.

"What do you mean broke? He's a professor's son."

"That's right, he's a professor's son. But if he can't earn his own money, that means he's still broke. There's no way he could help with your father's medical bills if he keeps dating him. Forget about him. It's time for you to take a step forward like other friends, like a few other female students you've seen. Take Olive, for example. When she first started college, she only had a regular scooter, but after getting to know that older man, she started coming to school in a Pajero. Imagine how much money that Batubara guy transferred to her, he's bald and scruffy too."

"This is better, he's handsome and doesn't look his age."

"So, what do you think?"

"Don't ask again. Here's his phone number, call him soon. If you're lucky, there might be a vacancy for you."

Chelsea hesitated but still noted down the phone number that Indri showed her. Nervously, she saved Carlos' number on her phone.

"What happens next?"

"In my opinion, the sooner, the better."

"Today?" Chelsea asked hesitantly.

"Of course, why wait? It's time for you to turn a new page with a new job. How much is your salary at this café, anyway?"

"But I'm not ready to spend the night with a man."

"Yeah, I know that, but I'm sure you can start with the initial steps. Olive once told me that being a sugar baby doesn't necessarily mean going straight to a room and servicing the man who hires you. In the beginning, you can accompany him for meals or outings, chat with him, or even go karaoke. Don't jump to the core of the matter right away if you're not ready, but if you're looking for something bigger, you'll naturally have to spend the night."

"So, I..."

"Don't ask me again. I'm sure you know what I mean." Indri grabbed her sling bag. "Well, I'm off now. I still have some things to take care of. If you need help, contact me quickly."

Chelsea nodded. "I'll try to meet him. Maybe after work at the café, I'll contact him and set up a meeting before I go home."

"Great!" Without hesitation, Indri snatched the phone from Chelsea's hand. She greeted Carlos from the phone, inviting him to meet later in the afternoon after her work is done.

"Um, In..."

Chelsea was startled as Indri snatched her phone and casually greeted Carlos, inviting him to a meeting around four o'clock in the afternoon at a cafe by the lakeside.

"Are you crazy? I'm still thinking." Chelsea sighed, irritated because Indri had really invaded her personal space.

"Well... what can I say? You were taking too long. Oh, he replied."

Chelsea snatched her phone back to read Carlos' message. Her body tensed up; he was genuinely inviting her to meet around four in the afternoon at a cafe by the lake.

"Well, just go back to work. Meet him after you go home. Let me know what you talked about." Indri hurriedly got up as her partner's car stopped in front of the café.

Chelsea let out a long sigh, still staring at her phone. She couldn't believe Indri had just made an arrangement with Carlos. That meant if she showed up, everything would have to unfold as it should.