"Bi?" Iqlima followed the quick steps of the man who was her partner in the engagement party invitation out of the room. "Where are you going?"After watching the dance of the couple hosting the event, Darren felt restless and needed more space than just accompanying the conversation of the colleagues present. Most of them were talking about expanding the distribution market to several developed countries and profits that were not affected by issues.Grandpa seems to have succeeded in building investor confidence until the latest client through the engagement party of the step-cousin, so Darren thought. No wonder he had to come with Iqlima even though the old man knew they were in the process of divorcing.Not only were there many eyes, but there was also still media coverage, albeit in small numbers and private, to witness the denial of the incident in front of Angga's shop earlier.How great! Darren wanted to applaud his grandfather's instant scenario for his grandchildren's lives.
"This is better." Maureen rolled on top of Angga, combing through the man's hair that had been trimmed before the task.Accepting Maureen's deliberate embrace, Angga repositioned himself to lean against the headboard. Angga's thick eyebrows formed a surprised frown, then his fingers also pinched the strands of hair that fell down his forehead. "Really? No wonder they're watching?"At first Angga's frown could bring out laughter between them, then Maureen's expression suddenly turned serious. "Who are they?" she wondered.Angga looked up as if thinking, then glanced at Maureen's whining which seemed contrived. "Yeah ..., colleagues at the hospital," Angga replied while nodding slowly, deliberately teasing his lover who then moved to the side."Do it again!" Feigning ignorance, Maureen grabbed her cell phone from the charger on the nightstand and began scrolling through the screen randomly. After the statement she made a few weeks ago, hearing that Angga could be close to the opposite s
"Yes, Grandpa gave me a first class ticket. It's really cool, isn't it?" After going through the check-in section, Maureen dragged her suitcase through the corridor directed by the attendant to be placed on the flight baggage entry rail while continuing her phone call to a friend on the other side. "Never really. I've only ever been on private jets."It wasn't just a different island, but also a different continent. Her friend Serena had already left for another country."I and Angga just let it flow. We don't have to get married quickly." Maureen's steps quickened as she looked at the white gold band-like watch around her left wrist. Her departure time was just around the corner. She needed time to relax her waist for a moment."Are you sure he can stay with you so far away?" Serena's question had been a long consideration for Maureen to maintain a relationship with Angga until it needed to be discussed.Angga's time-consuming profession sometimes made Maureen doubt if the man was on
"We need to talk, Uncle." Maureen almost pushed the blanket off her legs when Darren nodded.In his opinion, they needed to settle their dangling relationship outside of the judgment of those around them. They had the freedom to decide their future regardless of the stigma attached to Maureen snatching Darren."Yeah, we have to," Darren smiled instantly even though the airline's departure announcement seemed to delay them, "but later. See ya."The man signaled his departure by pointing outside. Of course Maureen clearly knew she had to wait for Darren to meet her. However, the flight--which she had read about via the internet--lasting for over eight hours until arriving at the transit airport further strengthened her curiosity."Shit!"There wasn't the slightest hint of enjoyment in any of the amenities that could divert his curiosity. The airline's signature main course reminded her of eating with Angga even though it was served in small portions. The expensive wine offered by the ca
"Angga is a jerk!" The woman at the edge of the bar counter continued to sip the contents of the glass that had been emptied of ice. She connected to another glass that the barista thrust in front of her in between swearing harshly every time she looked at the extinguished phone screen. "Damn it!"Her name was Maureen Jovita Abraham, a college student who made the most of her empty nights by following the habits of her new friends in a foreign land. And the cell phone's low power added to her frustration with her boyfriend, who had not been forthcoming."Where are you going, motherfucker?!" Her palms pounded on the table, fuming at the loneliness. The drinking partner who had invited her had disappeared into the crowd of music lovers."Rin?" The call came from a voice she hadn't heard in a long time, who else could say her name with the distinctive accent of her home country."You are here?" Maureen tried to lift her head, which was getting heavier from the effects of the drink, to lo
"When are you coming out, anyway?" asked the woman on top of me, who was still riding like a horse controller around the stables at high speed. Her hoarse voice sounded tired, but there was no sign that the rider was about to collapse.I just enjoyed the sensual view from the surface of the bed that I thought was too narrow for the two of us to occupy. While removing the hair from her damp face, while touching the softness of her sweat-soaked skin, I... felt deja vu.Eight years ago, when she did the same thing, when I was completely unaware of her existence. My first moment with her could not be replaced by any other woman."Uncle ...." She moans, lowering the speed of her hip shaking as she bends over. Ah, those warm lips teasing the dark circles on my chest. The slight bite there became very stinging in my head.I recognized her amazing stamina despite being under the influence of alcohol. Maureen repeatedly achieved release, felt from how hers clamped down on me, oozing warmth tha
"Uncle, here ...." Maureen's voice was still echoing in my head, even the scene from last night was briefly repeated in the short dream just now."Shit ...." I cursed the front of my pants, which turned out to be damp and sticky. It was only a fleeting dream on the way, but it was enough to make me take another shower.The distance between Boston and NYC should have taken less than three hours, but I needed time to clean up after half the trip. It could have been longer if I'd taken public transportation. Luckily I still had my cell phone to contact the driver, as well as the cell phone of the young man Maureen was dating.Stupidly, I even replayed the video that recorded the vulgar scene between us. When Maureen inserted mine into her very erotically, I woke up too."Is this really like being a widower?" I lamented my reflection in the mirror of the dressing table that was the facility of the motel room at the highway stop.Moving to the dressing table and resting the cell phone ther
I was surprised when Angga-my fiancé-arrived when my date had just left. Our 17-hour-plus-flight relationship did not limit our interactions with the opposite sex, including sex.The agreement from the start of our relationship was openness. There was no way I could prevent Angga from fulfilling his needs when we started out as a one-night stand. Sex. It's a match. I got engaged because there were no other candidates, while my scandal with Uncle Darren needed to be diverted so that Grandpa's company wouldn't collapse due to the drop in stock prices."You didn't tell me when you were leaving!" I protested after our recent struggle. "I was worried, you know?"Even if he sends me thousands of fake roses, I won't easily give in to his apology for surprising me without any news. Yes, fake roses because real flowers make me sneeze.The previous two days I was like a crazy person who kept drinking alcohol because I had no outlet. Usually Angga would invite me to have phone sex in the midnigh
An impromptu visit that I didn't expect, it turns out Angga told me our wedding date so Matthew and Ben came, of course with their spouses. Maybe they're on vacation?Then the arrival of Darren who followed alone with a line of food service workers was enough to confirm that they intended to hold a small party without the host's permission.I only saw him after changing into a looser floral overalls that allowed me to breathe. The dress was too tight although it still didn't cover my pregnancy at all."You weren't invited, but you came." The satire I said wasn't funny at all, but they still laughed when I returned to the center of the conversation with a bottle of champagne ready to open."Ow! How cruel, Sister." Matthew snatched the fun out of my hands and quipped back, "Alcohol is not for pregnant women.""Damn it!" I cursed in annoyance, only to be met with an instantly infectious laugh.Angga had just followed me to where I was standing. He handed me a glass of avocado juice and a
"Maureen!" I faintly heard Angga calling my name, then it was replaced by the echo of air bubbles in my ears.I thought I could die here or wake up somewhere else. In fact, when I gave up, a stream of water replaced the blast of air on my face.I was still very much conscious, just afraid to open my eyes and face reality. The chill of the early spring air washed over my already wet skin along with the pressure behind my shoulders and behind my knees. It was warm on the right side, but instinct demanded that I find a grip.Angga, who I first saw, was also wet. His slender neck becomes the target of my trembling grip. This time, I'm afraid of being dropped.From this vantage point, his parted lips along with the angular movement of his firm jaw create a charisma of their own. Could Angga possibly hide the cruelest side of a warrior like him?Fool. I should have remembered that everyone has a dark side, a poison from their own life experiences. They only need to choose; oppress or be opp
Maureen demanded an explanation, before we had even had a chance to change?She and I had just arrived in our room, barely stripped to the surface of the fabric that covered the entire bed. Dusty, full of sawdust and mustiness. We should have taken down all the protective covering before attempting to use the room.Yes, almost.Just being alone with her could heat up the temperature around us. It felt like breaking free from all the coverings and letting instinct take over.Then, Maureen's question threw everything off. "So..., did you make a deal with Grandpa?"I was still in front of her, on top of her body while supporting myself using the elbows perched on either side of Maureen, avoiding the pressure on her stomach. Our lower waists were already attached as our legs slipped over each other.Argh! She messed up the appetizer.The look of rejection forced me to roll over to Maureen's left side, following her to gaze at the room's ceiling covered with sheets of bright albasia wood. T
Deciding to get married was not on my life list at all, especially under the age of thirty. What's happening now?Just a few months ago I turned twenty-five and within minutes had signed the marriage certificate. Everything I've been through has been beyond expectations, pregnant and married?Still in my simple wedding dress-just a white lace-covered overalls that didn't hide the size of my belly at all, I noticed Angga's figure when dressed officially like now. A clean-cut face and freshly cut hair refresh Angga's look with a black suit overlaying the white suit inside.Even though it was only a few days ago that I saw his face full of bruises, the main reason I made the choice and said yes, so that he wouldn't have to do such menial work anymore.What was I thinking at the time?"Not like this again!" I shifted the conversation from Angga's request to the cause of the bruises on his face, again he said about marriage.Des he really want to tie me up in a commitment? So what, I can't
I was almost desperate as I repeatedly checked my phone screen, waiting to hear from Maureen's friends about her whereabouts in the last two days. Maureen was unreachable, her phone dead.I don't know how many cans of beer I've consumed since returning home from last night's brutal game. I could have killed someone out of disappointment with myself. I felt like a failure.The phone screen lit up, but it wasn't someone I wanted to call. Maureen's sugardaddy was listed there. I deliberately gave him a name like that, so he'd think twice when he needed help. I still couldn't make peace with the past between them.Just glancing at the message display outside, without opening the messaging app, it was clear that each word indicated the address. No pleasantries or greetings.That's funny. He asked me to come there?A few minutes after putting the empty cans into the trash bag, an incoming call echoing the voice of a prominent rapper distracted me. Darren seemed genuinely intent on asking me
"Aren't you in college or doing something?" Uncle Darren was already babbling this early. Even the sky outside the window when he drew the curtains wasn't fully lit yet even though the alarm clock on the nightstand read seven o'clock. "Really, Rin, I'm confused to see you just lying in your room these days."A few days? I've only had a mattress this soft for two days. The sheets were soft and didn't rub against my skin. This time I can somewhat agree with Angga's previous insinuation about our ... well, lifestyle.The only choice is for me to give in and try to lower my standards, or for him to raise his income. Fix, yeah, I don't want to get married yet.In the last month of living together, I can't keep giving in to the future that Angga offers even though everything can be distracted with sex or Netflix and ignore everything.But, how to talk about it? Our fights would only continue to end with unification. I hated that."Why did you wake me up, Uncle?" I squirmed and kicked off th
"Uncle ...." I moan, feeling the ludicrous touch that traverses the skin. It descends from the arrangement of bones that make up my shoulders, collarbone, and then cupping the wedge of the neck divider of the body-wrapping overalls.From where he stood, Uncle Darren must have clearly seen the puffs that were getting denser as a result of his actions. I reflexively tilted my head to the right side, letting his warm breath caress the recesses of my neck without being covered by hair."You're always delicious, Rin." Uncle Darren's whisper sounds lulling behind my earlobe. The mint-scented exhale and woody-herb traces were replaced by the wetness of a taste bud that was beginning to venture out.Some seconds were fun to savor, but the next, what I was doing was more like an escape to get recognized. It felt like being a traitor.The corners of my lips twitched, realizing Uncle Darren wasn't doing anything more than that. Even though I liked the way he treated me, I still couldn't deny tha
"Move on, Is." Angga was seen patting the woman's cheek. What is her name? Isma? I could hear Angga talking casually through the barrier like that. "Anyway, stop following me."I was close enough to hear their conversation. It was just a stack of boxes at the turn of the foyer facing the exit of the supermarket.At first I thought Angga was still asleep because all my voice messages and calls had gone unanswered. Well, I should have sent a short message about going shopping before going home and asked Angga to ignore my request.Turns out he was in this place and met a 'flower snake' like that Isma. She really used to be a campus slut, right?Angga just told me about his habit of fighting in the arena just to buy time with Isma in the past. No wonder Angga didn't complain about getting a woman like her to support him.Well, I guess any man in Indonesia would always think of ways to get a virgin, but he chose the hardest way by capitalizing on feelings. Including me.Are there still peo
"Raka!" Isma waved from where she was pushing the shopping trolley towards me.Even though this monthly shopping business is usually the part of Maureen who understands best, but this morning when I woke up, there was already a note stuck to the refrigerator door. Correction, noon. I even got home early in the morning after last night's battle."Please, you do the shopping," accompanied by a heartfelt emot, a very long shopping list with special notes, and her black card. Including an incoming message on my phone explaining why Maureen was in such a hurry. Company research."Shopping too?" asked Isma after aligning the trolley she was pushing with mine. She even took the note I was holding and nodded, as if she understood.Why did we have to meet here, anyway? I'm even more uncomfortable with Isma around."Feeling better?" She still asked after returning the shopping list along with a few things taken from the shelves in the left row to my cart."When was the fight?" I arranged each i