Nadine threw herself onto the bed, gazing up at the bright blue ceiling, in stark contrast to her heart, which was clouded and drizzling. If she could run away from this situation, she would run as fast and far as possible. But she couldn't do that. Brian was Ricky's biological father, and Ricky deserved to know that. Nadine felt torn and trapped, caught between forgetting Brian or opening her heart to Dave. The man who had been by her side for two years, filling the role of a father for Ricky.Nadine took several deep breaths, exhaling forcefully each time. She felt a heavy weight pressing on her chest, causing pain that made it difficult to breathe."Who was Ricky calling 'Papa'?" Henry's question echoed in Nadine's ears repeatedly from this afternoon."Dave was there earlier, Henry," Athalia answered, trying to shield Nadine from Henry's question. Athalia could read from Nadine's eyes that she wasn't ready to explain to her parents yet. Even though from a distance, Athalia had seen
At 6:45 AM, Nadine walked into the Samudra Company building with a heavy heart. The morning sun was so bright that she raised her hand to shield her eyes, which felt sore and uncomfortable. Her eyes had remained open throughout the night, unable to shut due to thoughts of Brian. Squinting, Nadine felt a flash of light hit her retinas again, this time from a luxurious silver Range Rover Sport parked right in front of the Samudra Company building. Of course, the owner of the car was the CEO of the company where Nadine worked. Seeing Brian step out of the car, Nadine hurriedly walked into the building, momentarily avoiding any interaction with him.Ding... The elevator doors opened, and with a slightly racing breath from her brief jog, Nadine stepped inside. As she caught her breath, she greeted the three coworkers who were already in the elevator's confined space. However, just before the doors closed, a man's hand grabbed the door, and they immediately reopened. A man with a composed a
"Is Mr. Brian okay?" Danisa asked, surprised because her boss had been smiling more than usual throughout the day. Even during the meeting with the potential new investor, Brian had confidently and charismatically presented the benefits and advantages the investor would gain by joining Samudra Company. The investor had readily agreed. Danisa admitted that Brian always had a way of winning over the hearts of investors. However, today his usually cold and distant demeanor had been absent. If Danisa observed correctly, it almost seemed like Brian was infected with the love bug."What's wrong with me?" Brian retorted, squinting his eyes at Danisa coldly. Instantly, Danisa gulped nervously, not wanting to awaken a sleeping lion. She couldn't risk putting her position in the company in jeopardy."It's nothing, sir," Danisa quickly shook her head, then followed Brian into the special elevator reserved for top executives. When with their higher-ups, the secretaries always followed them into t
In this moment, Brian stood outside the gates of Henry and Athalia's house, watching Ricky playing in the yard. Occasionally, Brian smiled as he saw Ricky's joyful laughter while running around. Ricky was playing in the yard under the watchful eye of his grandmother, Athalia. Unbeknownst to her, Brian had been observing them for almost an hour.Brian loosened his tie, which suddenly felt constricting. His mind wandered back to his recent encounter with Dave at the office three days ago. If he could turn back time, Brian would choose to have a healthy relationship with Nadine. Not like now, burdened with the consequences of their forbidden relationship. Regret constantly disturbed his peace of mind. He leaned his head against the car seat, massaging his temples. For some reason, his head always throbbed painfully whenever he imagined Nadine and Ricky being together with Dave. He should be the one in that position, not someone else.If Nadine hadn't left back then. If Brian had known ab
With a heavy heart, Brian finally recounted the entire story of his love affair with Nadine. David took a deep breath, surprised by the situation of both his friends. "Okay, I get it, Gas. But in my opinion, you should approach Nadine in a more subtle way. Win her heart back in a good manner. That's my advice, whether you want to listen or not is up to you," David replied, looking at Brian with a serious expression. Brian simply shrugged. He didn't expect his friend to provide such sound advice, considering that David lived a carefree life and had no intention of committing to any woman."I'm impressed – you managed to have a kid without getting married," David said with a wide grin, earning a punch in the arm from Brian."Thanks, David. I swear, soon enough you'll turn into a 'bucin' just like me," Brian teased with a smile. It was the first genuine smile he had shown since his visit to David's club."Impossible," David replied curtly, shaking his head and raising his index finger si
In his almost twilight age, Cakra's charm and charisma did not fade. With hair starting to turn white and a strong jaw adorned with fine hairs of an impending beard, it only added to Cakra's enduring handsomeness. His athletic body was still clearly evident as he stood dressed in a black suit and matching tie, making him appear younger than his age."Here are the documents you requested yesterday, Sir." Marco bowed respectfully and placed the brown envelope that Cakra had asked for the previous night. Despite Cakra's cold demeanor, he held the envelope with a firm grip while maintaining his gaze on Marco. Marco kept his head down, not daring to speak. He knew his boss's mood was not good, especially considering the matter of the woman whom Cakra had removed from Brian's life five years ago."Alright, thank you, Marco. You may leave. And... make sure no one else knows about this, besides us," Cakra said firmly. Marco briefly raised his head before bowing and leaving Cakra's office.Cak
"Get back to work! If we get caught gossiping, we're done for!" Rio said, shooing Nadine and Jeni back to their cubicles. With a pout, Jeni returned to her workspace and playfully flicked her long hair onto Rio's face, prompting him to unleash a string of curses. Nadine chuckled at their antics. She wondered why Danisa couldn't get along with Rio and Jeni when she found them to be enjoyable coworkers.Creak... The door to Cakra's office opened suddenly, making all three of them pretend to be engrossed in their work."Nadine, come with me for a moment! And you, Rio and Jeni, you can leave early," Cakra said flatly and expressionlessly. Rio and Jeni exchanged puzzled glances, then stood and bowed in respect. Jeni glanced at her wristwatch to confirm her vision, as the office wall clock showed only 2 in the afternoon."Very well, Sir!" Nadine replied politely, then packed up her bag and turned off her computer. She didn't think much about it, as it wasn't the first time Cakra had taken h
"Yes, my grandson," Cakra affirmed, reassuring the two surprised women in front of him."Mama!" Ricky called out, running towards Nadine and then reaching for both Nadine's and Cakra's hands in turn, planting kisses on them."Smart boy, Grandpa brought lots of toys. Ricky will surely love them," Cakra scooped up Ricky, cradling him in his arms. He kissed Ricky's forehead while showing him the toys. Ricky immediately showed excitement, struggling to get down and approach the many toys with his eyes gleaming."Thank you, Grandpa," Ricky said, holding onto a box of transformer toys. Cakra gently stroked Ricky's hair, his eyes slightly watery. In his heart, he promised to unite the toddler's parents."What's going on here? Why so many bags? Who did all this shopping?" Henry asked, walking out of the house due to the commotion."You consider me a friend, right? How could you not tell me you have a grandchild? Your grandchild is mine too!" Cakra exclaimed as he hugged Henry."Well, what can
After the birth of the twins, the life of Aryan and Laura's small family became even more colorful. There was no happiness that could replace it, but behind all that, Aryan became the subject of jokes among relatives and family members due to the fainting incident while accompanying Laura during her recent surgery."Seriously, you're so funny for fainting next to your wife during her surgery. Luckily, Laura didn't go into shock; it could have been fatal," Andre said with laughter as they had just returned home from the hospital."Let it go, Dad, there's no need to talk about it again," Aryan replied with irritation as he guided Laura into the bedroom, while the twins remained calm in the arms of Liana and Della.Laura rested for a while, trying to ease the pain from the incision in her abdomen following the cesarean section surgery, which still greatly affected her movements. Aryan wiped the sweat from Laura's forehead with a tissue and gently kissed her.
Seven months later…Laura and Aryan were now in the final trimester of her pregnancy. It wouldn't be long before she would give birth to their twin babies, a boy and a girl, according to the ultrasound results. Laura's pregnancy had been progressing smoothly, even though she had experienced morning sickness for two months.She managed to meet all of Dr. Rahma's recommended nutritional requirements. Despite occasional morning sickness and vomiting in the morning, Laura's appetite had increased with her advancing pregnancy. It wasn't surprising that her weight had increased by 30 kg. Dr. Rahma estimated that each baby weighed around 3 kg, so Laura was advised to follow a diet while waiting for the delivery.For the past two months, Laura and Aryan had moved to a ground-floor room, using the living room as their bedroom because Laura wasn't allowed to go up and down the stairs. When Aryan was at the office, Liana, his mother, would be on standby, and Bi Ana an
Aryan's overprotective attitude made Laura both happy and annoyed. She was ecstatic because she felt deeply loved, but at the same time, she was frustrated by Aryan's constant restrictions. Like tonight, Aryan didn't allow her to do anything except go to the bathroom. He prepared a glass of water for her medication along with the prenatal milk they had bought at the mini-market. And, of course, he always accompanied her to the bathroom every time."Thank you, Honey, for all the happiness you've given me. I promise to be the best husband and father for you and our children," Aryan whispered while hugging Laura from behind. He nuzzled his face into the curve of Laura's neck, his right hand gently caressing her still-flat stomach."You're welcome, and thank you for all your love," Laura replied while stroking the back of Aryan's hand, which was wrapped around her belly. Laura couldn't believe that after all the pain she had endured, God had given her a perfect husband and
Slowly, Laura's eyelids opened for the second time, and now it was the peaceful face of Aryan that greeted her. Laura gazed at the handsome man's face in front of her for quite some time. He was the source of her love and greatest strength up to this point. Not satisfied with admiring her husband's handsome face, a sudden sense of curiosity began to disturb her. She glanced at the wall clock, which had stopped at exactly 4 in the early morning. Without much thought, she pulled open the drawer next to her bed, carefully retrieved a pregnancy test from inside it, and entered the bathroom without making a sound that could wake Aryan.Laura's heart pounded loudly as she looked at the pregnancy test that she had dipped into a small container containing her urine. She lifted the test stick slowly with trembling hands, and there it was... two red lines she had been waiting for appeared. It was crystal clear. For a moment, her body felt boneless, and she sat down on the bathroom floo
Laura's proposal seminar went smoothly with an A grade, which made her more enthusiastic as she entered the final semester of her college. She only needed to complete the data from her research that she had already conducted. Anton, as her thesis advisor, was now more flexible with all of his supervised students, even though he had a busy schedule as a professor and head of the university's research center. Everything was scheduled, from the day, time, and location of the advisory sessions. If he had any sudden commitments, he would reschedule them at another time, ensuring that all his students for the year progressed smoothly, including leading up to their thesis defense in two weeks."Look at that belly, just like a balloon, Ara," Laura pointed out as she walked with Arabella towards the faculty cafeteria after their last thesis advisory session before the upcoming defense in two weeks."Yeah, it's like a balloon. It can expand and deflate," Arabella replied, pantin
Laura completed her makeup exams without any issues. Everything went according to the schedule set by their respective course instructors. And semester 6 ended with a GPA (Grade Point Average) of 3.6, alongside Arabella, her close friend and now her sister-in-law.Laura spent her semester break learning to cook with her mother-in-law, Liana. They experimented with various recipes from both Indonesia and other countries. Aryan no longer worked late into the night at the office, and if there were urgent tasks, he entrusted them to his personal assistant, Jefri. On Sundays, he spent quality time with his family at home or went out with Laura. Trying out new recipes was something Aryan looked forward to every day because his wife's cooking experiments never disappointed.Finally, the plan to cook together with Laura's friends could be realized. Arabella, along with Andra and Baby Azka, arrived early, followed by Aurora and Laura's younger siblings, who joined in to make th
One week after the surgery, Laura had already started to resume her usual activities. During that week, Aryan had been constantly by Laura's side, handling all his office matters while Andra and Jefri took care of them. Even if there were documents requiring his signature, Jefri would bring them home, allowing Aryan to stay close to Laura and attend to her. Aryan could still manage to check on Jefri's work and reply to emails from his colleagues at home.He did all of this solely for Laura's recovery. Laura often urged him to go to the office, but Aryan refused to budge. He wanted to focus on taking care of Laura until she was completely healed. Arabella and Aurora, as their best friends, always provided their support. Additionally, Nancy and Ricard came to the house to deliver Laura's favorite dishes, prepared by her mother, Della. Many of their classmates also visited Laura at home."Look, Honey, two weeks at home, and my body is getting all soft. How can I resist yo
The long-awaited day finally arrived, the day when Laura was to undergo surgery to remove the cyst in her abdomen. All the preparations for the surgery were in place, and there were only 30 minutes left before Laura would be taken into the operating room. Feelings of relief and worry dominated everyone's thoughts, but they all had to hide those emotions behind smiles to show support for Laura."Aryan, where's Mom?" Laura asked anxiously, looking at the clock on the white-walled room. In five minutes, she would be moved to the operating table, but Aryan had not been seen since he left briefly to go to the bathroom.Liana was nervous, but before she could answer Laura's question, two male and female nurses entered to take Laura to the operating room. Everyone held back their tears as Laura smiled at them, trying to show that she was strong and brave. As the nurses pushed the wheelchair carrying Laura toward the door, Aryan suddenly appeared with a smile. Laura returned h
Aryan could only gently pat Laura's trembling shoulder. He was confused about how to calm his wife. Since returning from the hospital the previous night, Laura had been silent in her room. Aryan had been shocked by the results of Dr. Rahma's explanation that Laura had been diagnosed with an ovarian cyst. This was the reason for Laura's recent abdominal and hip pain, as well as her occasional fever and nighttime vomiting. What pained Aryan even more was that he had been unaware of Laura's illness. Regret. That was the feeling weighing heavily on Aryan's chest now. He felt like he wanted to pound his own chest in frustration. His heart shattered as he looked at Laura's sad state, a promise to never make her cry that he had now broken."I'll get you breakfast first," Aryan said softly as he kissed the top of Laura's head before leaving the room.Aryan walked to the dining room with a heavy heart. Instead of finding his parents there, he saw Ana, their maid, covering the d