Chapter 1. Memories of Her

One morning in a large lush green garden with iridescent colors, and the blue of the sky so pleasing to the eyes, a handsome man sat on a long white bench made of iron. He seemed so immersed in the contents of the book being read. 

Suddenly a pair of hands closed the man's eyes. A figure with a book in his hand was surprised, but his lip lines extended a smile. "Clarie!" he said.

The hand's owner chuckled at her own behavior. After removing her hand from the man's face, she sat down next to the man who was her fiance. Casually, she leaned her head on the lover's shoulders. While her hands gently embraced the man's left arm.

"I love you. You know it well, don't you?" he whispered and kissed the top of his lover's forehead.

However, the woman with long straight hair did not answer. She just smiled.

Realizing that no answer was heard, the man changed his position in order to look at the two eyes of his loved ones. Clarie's sweet smile was clearly filled with happiness, but the next phrase was far from what the man had expected.

"I love you too, Baby. But I love my dreams more," she explained.

"What do you mean?" the man asked.

"I have to go after my dreams. Our engagement must be canceled." 

Word by word that the beautiful woman spoke felt as if it strangled the man's neck. Immediately he could hardly breathe and cold sweat began rolling down. His body stretched out randomly looking for a way to get air in for him to breathe.

He begged for his life, and then something knocked his soul back to consciousness. Later, both eyes were wide open. His eyes catch the surrounding flickering colors without the headlight on. His body which had yet tensed, now slowly subtracted. The man's breath slowly returned to normal. Apparently he was only dreaming.

The man who awoke from his sleep was named Adam Harun Saguna. He was one of the beneficiaries of AS Corp, a multinational corporation of the Saguna family. One of the prominent Indonesian families. Although in darkness, Adam's face silhouette was still admired. The composition of the forehead, the tip of the nose, the indentation of the lips, to the chin of a well-trimmed look.

If it had been like this, it would have been hard for Adam to fall back to sleep. Especially after having such nightmares. He no longer laid down, then pulled a thick blanket over his body. Both feet had touched the wooden floor, then walked toward the glass door that separated the chamber from the outside world.

Adam slide the door slowly. The cloth curtain began dancing in the breeze. Head across to the back, observed the numbers on a digital clock glinting in the dark of the room. The night will change in ten minutes. There was still time to rest, but the contents of the man's head, wearing a dark blue pajama suit, would not allow him to fall back to sleep.

'it's useless! Could never sleep again!' Adam groaned within himself.

A big city like Jakarta can not be stopped even in the dark of night. Watching from the twentieth floor where he was standing, the highway in the far distance was still busy on wheels. This time the wind stormed the balcony of his apartment. The tall man's arms embraced the body to keep warm. He stood idly leaning against the side of the door.

He remembered a friend's invitation this afternoon through the phone, "There's a party at my house, Dam. Would you like to come? It's been a long time since you joined us."

"I apologize, I have an important meeting tomorrow morning. If I join your party, I will stay overnight," Adam said.

"Oh, you're no longer playful, Dude," that person muttered.

Adam only giggles as answered.

"As far as I can remember, you started to drift away after Clarissa left you. Don't do this, Dam! You have a long line for a woman who's ready to be your partner. Forget her! Open your heart to new ones!" The sound across was filled with patronizing.

Many times Adam has received similar lectures. No specific answer ever came from him about what he felt. The man simply picked up a smile and drowned himself in work. If it is noticed as run from reality, Adam has no choice.

Clarissa Johnson, an Indonesia-Irish woman whom Adam knew in his master's studies in America. The attraction between them was undeniable. Even without any declaration of love, their relationship blossomed over friendship. Some friends asked if they were dating, and both Clarissa and Adam simply replied, "Yes." Then that bond of love remained until they took a second master's degree in a different major.

When they returned home, the two families met. No one rejected their relationship. So soon the engagement party was held. They were happy, everyone's happy. The wedding date was set. Even though they had to wait two more years, they remained faithful together until they were united forever. But who would have thought an email would come in and made Clarissa turn down all plans.

"Darling, do you remember what my actual dream is?"

"Marry me?" Adam answered lightly without diverting attention from the screen of the flaming laptop.

"Please be serious," Clarissa said. Her hands were now folded across her chest and displayed purging lips.

Adam felt funny looking at his fiancee's antics. Then his attention turned to her beautiful face in the middle of a sulk. With a gentle look on his face, the man turned his smile on and said, "Of course I remember. You admire the work of Marco de Vincenzo. And you dream of someday working with him. Am I right?"

Clarissa turned a wistful expression on her face. Then grabbed Adam's hands and developed a smile more sweeter than ever. "My dream came true, Baby!" Clarissa was showing a vibrant face and approached her beloved one. 

On the contrary, Adam was simply unable to grasp the intentions of the woman who was fiery before him. With a small frame with a nearly bounded dorft in the eyebrow, Adam squinted toward clarissa. "What do you mean?" Adam said.

"Marco loved the portfolio I sent to him," Clarissa answered. "So he offered me a job in Milan. In Milan, Honey. You believe that? Gosh darn I really feel lucky."

As long as Clarissa explained the situation, Adam began to understand. However, there was something in his heart that upset him. "Do you accept the offer?" Adam asked hesitantly.

"Of course, I do," she said curtly.

"You decided that without talking to me first?" The man began to speak with a serious face.

"What?" Clarissa was stunned by Adam's question.

Now the two people were staring at each other. There was an atmosphere of tension in the air and there was silence for some time, no one made a sound.

Clarissa detected Adam's disappointment. Like a thief caught red-handed, the woman smoothed her long hair on the side of her ear. She was nervous and started acting up.

Without a word, Adam stood up and abandoned his fiancee, who had been given no opportunity to explain. He was walking towards the bathroom. The door was shut hard.

The woman got up and walked toward the bathroom door. She stands apprehensive. Whether she wants to knock that thing or not.

"My dear, are you angry by now?" Clarissa asked from behind the door.

Meanwhile, Adam sat silent on the edge of the white tub. He froze. Did not answer Clarissa's questions from out there.

"Honey, open the door," the lover said. "Okay, I was wrong. I'm sorry," she added.

Adam's head was currently full of possibilities after Clarissa's decision to took a job offer from Marco. After a quite calm and feeling capable of a good conversation with the woman behind the door, Adam opened the door.

The two sets of eyes returned to one another. Clarissa grabbed Adam's arm and looked at him in a melancholy. "All right, can we talk now?" she affirmed.