TYBA 2

House, 02:30 PM.

After returning from school, Mom was engrossed in watching television. Mom's office was organizing an event, so she had to come home earlier than usual. I was dropped off by my regular online motorcycle taxi driver. According to Mom, after working late into the night yesterday, she wanted to take a short break.

"Poor Mom, she must be exhausted," I murmured.

"CONGRATULATIONS TO ESCAPRA GOLD COMPANY"

The sentence on the TV screen that Mom was watching. It was a news broadcast, an interview session about the achievements of a company based in Singapore. According to a business expert, the company that was originally started from scratch in Jakarta had now successfully expanded to Singapore, and its global presence was growing.

Thanks to the opening of a gold mine in Africa, the company controlled by the Escapra family had transformed into a world-class global company with the largest valuation, ranking number one in its class. It was estimated that this company had become a billion-dollar enterprise.

Escapra's stock price had reached its all-time high at $150 per share. Despite the global stock market's decline, Escapra remained at the top.

I overheard some news about Devan's father's company on television. Coincidentally, as I walked towards the kitchen to get a drink from the refrigerator.

"Devano will definitely become the CEO and Chairman of Escapra Gold Company one day. Oh, what am I thinking? Does Devano even want me? Does his family approve of me being with Devano? I'm just a girl from a simple family. Moreover, my father's whereabouts are unknown," I muttered to myself.

"Ah, what am I even thinking?" I said to myself.

"Din, change your clothes first before having a drink," Mom said, sitting there.

"Wait a moment, Mom, it won't take long. I've already had a drink," I replied.

"Shall we have a meal together, Mom?" she asked.

"Yes, Mom, let me change first."

I walked towards my room, but suddenly my phone beeped. I glanced at it briefly, and it turned out to be a message from Devano. I had no idea how this guy got my phone number, but I was both happy and confused. I didn't know what I truly felt.

"Din, I want to come to your house," Devano's message appeared on the phone screen.

"Why? What for?" I replied.

"Well, we had a group assignment earlier. Me, Ghandi, and Icha are coming, and we're also returning your tie," he replied in the message, with an annoyed emoticon.

Ah, I was too confident when he wanted to come over. I had thought it was just to work on the group assignment, nothing more. How long would I keep hoping for a guy like Devano? He was handsome, wealthy, and popular, while I was just an ordinary girl, simple and not popular.

It's like rain. I loved him, but I also felt scared when I was with him. His face was comforting. His name seemed to have its own lightning spark in the deepest recesses of my soul. My thoughts fell silent for a moment. Even with these feelings, they melted into the falling raindrops. Just like in the first sentence.

Home, 03:33 PM.

"Knock...knock...knock..." The sound of someone knocking on the door from outside the house echoed in the living room. I pretended to ignore it. Suddenly, embarrassment engulfed me. It was always like this when Devano came over.

"That's not Din, someone's knocking at the door," Mom ordered from the small room in the house, known as the kitchen.

"Just go, Mom. I'm going to my room to get a book," I casually replied.

I was confused and embarrassed since receiving a message from Devano. The confusion had come so suddenly, all because the handsome guy was now at the front door. Even though he was with Ghandi and Icha. I decided to retreat to my room for a moment and left the living room. I didn't know why I acted this way; in school, I was not like this.

"Hey, everyone, Adina's friend is here. It turns out Devano is here too," Mom said.

"Yes, Mom."

Devano responded while his eyes scanned every detail of the house. He tried to find me, but I was not visible to his eyes yet. His thick, black eyebrows slightly rose, a sign that he was focused on finding something.

"Is Adina here, Mom?" Icha asked Mom.

"She's in her room. Come in, sit here," Mom invited them.

While pointing to the living room, which was also the family room in this house. Devano, Ghandi, and Icha immediately sat in the chairs there.

"Mom, can you make some drinks and snacks?"

"I'll help, Mom," Icha said, heading to the kitchen.

"Sure, dear."

Mom looked happy because Icha often helped her when they visited. Unlike me, who had to help Mom with cooking because she forced me to.

Despite its small appearance, it still made her feel lonely due to the departure of her beloved husband, my father, whose whereabouts were unclear. Now, when my friends came, this house felt lively for her.

A middle-aged woman, beautiful and naturally fair-skinned, never wanted to be called "aunt" by my friends. Moreover, they were already familiar and often visited this house, except for Devano, who could be counted on one hand. It had only happened a few times.

"Come here, Din, help your mother," she called as she saw me walking from the front of the room.

"Yes, Mom."

It's as if I wanted to appear as a sweet girl in front of Mom when Devano was around. I don't know, but my inner thoughts felt turbulent when I saw him, even when I heard his name mentioned.

I loved him so much, every detail about him. His handsome face, fair skin, pointed nose, and tall stature. But out of all that, I loved the way he looked at me. I felt captivated by every movement he made.

A few moments after the three of us cooked, or rather, Mom and Icha cooked while I just helped, sweet fried bananas made from the king bananas that Mom often bought at the Malang market. I always liked Mom's cooking, especially when paired with my favorite drink, hot chocolate.

"Everyone, have some fried bananas. There's chocolate for your drink. If you need more, there's still some in the kitchen," Mom said, addressing us all. Mom was indeed the best chef in our house.

"Hey, Din, what was I supposed to do yesterday?" Icha seemed confused about our group assignment.

"Do you all understand the task?"

I asked Devano and Ghandi, although my eyes had been focused on Devano all along.

"No, we don't," they shook their heads unanimously.

"Here's the thing, didn't you all listen when Mrs. Asih explained it? We're supposed to create a story to be acted out in class, like a theater performance. The theme is about love in life."

"That's your favorite, Din," Devano interjected.

I fell silent. Instantly, Ghandi and Icha also gazed at the handsome guy who had blurted it out. Apparently, he remembered my almost daily routine of watching extracurricular theater rehearsals. I wanted to join that extracurricular, but I hadn't passed the auditions several times. Well, it was an elite extracurricular at Ziduyya.

"Yes, I like that," I said.

"Let's join the extracurricular tomorrow, Din," Icha invited me; it seemed she was also interested in theater.

"Okay, Cha, let's register tomorrow," I said.

"I want to join too." Suddenly, Devan also wanted to participate.

"Well, count me in," Ghandi exclaimed, not wanting to be left out.

I knew that Ghandi secretly liked Icha, and Icha secretly liked him too. But for some reason, they still hadn't become a couple.

"Okay, what play should we create?" Ghandi asked all of us.

"Romeo and Juliet," Devano blurted out.

***