Bittersweet Arrangements : A Sugar Dady Affair

Elena quickly waved her hand towards Rizky, who was waiting on his motorcycle. Rizky wasn’t alone; around him were four girls inviting the oriental-looking guy to chat. Elena could clearly see the admiring glances at her brother. Given Rizky’s friendly and polite nature towards everyone he met, it was natural for him to be surrounded by girls.

“Typical playboy!” Elena muttered as she approached, where the mischievous girls were actively teasing her brother.

While holding the strap of her shoulder bag, Elena stood amidst the playful girls. “Come on, hurry up and get on!” Rizky urged, eager to escape the attention of the teenage girls.

For the past 10 minutes, these girls had been bothering him. They didn’t feel shy or embarrassed at all because they knew he was the brother of one of their friends.

“Get away from my brother!” Elogra’s hands pushed aside two female students who were blocking her.

“Don’t be arrogant, El. Having a handsome brother is up to you!” protested from one of them.

Elena turned her head, looked at the female student then gave her a sharp gaze while replying, “Don’t shut up, I’ll give you a fist!” Elena showed her fist as a threat.

“Come on, come on up!” Rizky grabbed Elena’s hand and immediately got up and sat behind her. Then Rizky gave Elena a helmet to wear immediately. Don’t let there be a commotion just because he’s here.

Truth be told, Rizky often found himself in a predicament due to his oriental looks inherited from his dad. It was tough when encountering fangirls of boy bands and Korean dramas (K-dramas). He was often said to resemble a celebrity named Kim Soo-hyun, although Rizky himself had no idea how this person looked. His mom, whom Rizky called Mami, once showed him a photo of the celebrity. However, he glanced at it briefly, not liking to be compared to anyone.

After making sure Elena was comfortably seated and holding onto him, Rizky revved the engine and rode away from Elena’s school. Instead of heading straight home, Rizky intended to take Elena to meet Nafla at her campus. Elena agreed, but on the condition that Rizky would escort her to The Doctor’s Car to inquire about her missing favorite watch.

Rizky couldn’t refuse the request of the headstrong daughter of the Seivaz family. He had already tried to persuade Elena that if the watch was lost, he would order a new one according to her preferences. It was exactly the same as the one Elena had lost.

Rizky directed his motorcycle towards the workshop Elena mentioned. While enjoying the serene atmosphere of Yogyakarta, which happened to be very bright, Rizky whistled. The image of Nafla’s stern face lingered in his mind. The WhatsApp message he sent to her this morning hadn’t turned blue yet. Rizky was sure Nafla deliberately ignored his messages, as usual. Not to mention meeting in person, even through chat, she always managed to frustrate him. Rizky felt like kidnapping and forcing her into marriage if their parents weren’t friends.

“We’re here. Hurry up and get your watch!” Rizky said as he stopped his motorcycle in front of Devan’s workshop.Nôvel(D)rama.Org's content.

“Yeah, hold on. Besides, don’t you want to say hi to Uncle Devan first?” Elena retorted irritably as she got off the motorcycle. Elena quickly took off her helmet and handed it to Rizky.

“Sure, but just a moment!” Rizky replied casually.

Elena’s wide steps instantly slowed when she saw Dinda waiting for Devan, who was inspecting her mom’s car. Elena felt an itch in her hand; she really wanted to grab Dinda’s hair and drag her out. Chase her away from here. If possible, Elena would send that girl to Mars so she wouldn’t get close to Devan anymore.

Rizky, who was behind Elena, felt puzzled for a moment. He then walked over, stood by Elena’s side, and followed the direction of her gaze.

“What’s wrong, El?” Rizky asked curiously.

Elena was startled for a moment. She looked at Rizky with a smile and replied, “It’s nothing.”

Hearing Elena’s answer, Rizky continued walking, leaving Elena without a hint of suspicion. Fuming in her heart, Elena followed Rizky’s steps, all the while cursing Dinda.

“Rizky!” Devan exclaimed when he saw Rizky coming with surprise. “I thought you were only coming back on the weekend?” Devan said, immediately stopping his work.

Because his hands were dirty, Devan went to clean them. Only after that did Devan shake hands with Rizky and give him a warm hug. Then, Devan invited Rizky to enter his office for a more comfortable conversation. However, Rizky fell silent, his gaze fixed on the beautiful woman who had been with them all this time. Devan then introduced Dinda to Rizky. Rizky smiled broadly as his mind concluded that the woman was Devan’s girlfriend. He extended his hand and introduced himself warmly. Elena, who had been holding back her jealousy, chose to leave, waiting in Devan’s office and searching for her missing watch.

“Hey, El, where did you go?” Rizky exclaimed, just realizing that his sister was not beside him. His gaze wandered across the entire workshop that his vision could reach.

“She went into Uncle’s office. She’s probably looking for a cool place,” Devan replied casually. Earlier, Devan saw Elena heading straight to the office without greeting him or Dinda.

Now, Elena was in Devan’s office. The girl was searching for her watch between the sofa and the table. Not finding it there, Elena crouched down, peeking under the sofa and table. Her valuable item might have fallen there yesterday. However, the result was nil. Elena couldn’t find it. She paused for a moment, then headed to the bathroom and proceeded to the prayer room.

“Where on earth is my watch?” Elena exclaimed in frustration.

Elena grabbed a cold drink from the fridge. She gulped down the cold beverage quickly while standing, contemplating something. Unable to achieve her goal, Elena left the office with a frowned face. Without wanting to bother greeting anyone, Elena passed by Devan, Dinda, and Rizky, who were still engrossed in conversation.

“Uncle, sorry, I’ll take El home first, and we can continue our chat later,” Rizky apologized with concern. “Let’s go, Aunt Dinda, Eki is leaving now, okay?” Rizky also bid farewell to Dinda.

Rizky hurriedly caught up with Elena, who was standing next to his motorcycle, putting on her helmet. Seeing his sister’s gloomy face, Rizky felt worried. Just because she lost her watch, Elena could be so sad. Without saying much, Rizky quickly put on his helmet and mounted his motorcycle.

Intentionally wanting to prolong the time, Rizky drove the motorcycle slowly. Exactly when stopping at the red light, Rizky glanced at Elena’s forlorn face through the rearview mirror.

“I promise I’ll change my watch later,” said Rizky, trying to comfort his younger brother.

“I don’t want to. Anyway, El wants the watch back!” Elena stressed as she returned Rizky’s gaze from the reflection in the rearview mirror.

“Well, if it’s lost, what can I do, Elena darling, I promise you I’ll order the exact same one.” Rizky seduces Elena again, even though in his heart Rizky is doubtful about keeping his promise. Because the watch is a limited edition. But later Rizky will try browsing, who knows, he might be able to find that model of watch elsewhere. Or if he gets stuck, he will try to offer Elena the latest watch.

A shake of the head was proof that the girl was indeed stubborn. So worried about Elena, Rizky forgot that their second destination was not home but Nafla’s campus. Rizky forgot, and the motorcycle he was riding was heading towards their house.

***

Thirty minutes later, Dinda left, and Devan wanted to take a short break in his office. Since last night, Devan felt his body was not in top condition. He felt tired and caught a cold. Vanessa’s car, which had just been serviced, only needed to be cleaned. For that part, Devan entrusted it to his employee. There was still about an hour for Devan to rest before Dhuhr prayer. But before fulfilling his wish, Devan first instructed Lucky to order lunch from their favorite restaurant.

In a hurry, Devan laid his body on the sofa. Instantly, the comfortable feeling hugged him tightly. It didn’t take long for Devan to fall asleep. The cool air produced by the air conditioner was powerful enough to make him doze off.

In the green expanse, Devan now stood alone. His eyes scanned the entire area he called the hill. The green expanse felt so warm, embraced directly by the sun. Strangely, the heat that should have burned his skin instead provided coolness and tranquility for Devan. Devan’s two feet began to step, looking for someone there. Silence. That was all Devan found. But Devan didn’t give up. He stepped in the direction where his heart led him. As before, the result was the same, empty and quiet.

This time, Devan fell silent in place. What he stepped on now remained the same. Devan even thought he had been walking in place since earlier. Whether it was real or just his feelings, considering everything looked the same as far as he could see. Just a green expanse without trees or other living beings. Then Devan closed his eyes. Calming himself on the verge of doubt, Devan tried to unite his heart and mind with nature.

Devan stepped forward again, following his heart’s desire. Devan’s feet walked for quite a long time until finally, the sound of someone talking was heard. Still with his eyes closed, Devan walked toward the source of the sound. Instantly, Devan’s footsteps stopped when he recognized the voice. The voice of someone who had taken his entire heart away.

“Gita!” Devan murmured and continued walking. The voice sounded clearer. Devan was sure the owner of that voice was not far from him.

Slowly, Devan opened his eyes, and his gaze was instantly drawn to two beautiful women of different ages who were chatting on the edge of a lake with its clear blue water.

“Mom, why aren’t Papa and Brother here with us?” said the little girl around 10 years old.

“Papa and Brother still have a lot of work to do, darling,” replied the beautiful woman who Devan loved so much. In Devan’s eyes the woman looked younger than him. Her face also looks very beautiful and radiant.

Devan’s tears suddenly rolled down. His lips trembled as he looked at two women with very similar faces who were not far from him. The only difference is their hair. The adult woman had long, straight hair that reached her back, while the little girl next to her had curly, shoulder-length hair.

“Is she my daughter?” Devan muttered as tears started to flow.

Devan’s two feet stepped closer again. He really wanted to hug the two women. The closer distance made the girl aware of his presence.

“Daddy’s coming, Mama!” the girl shrieked happily.

Calmly and with a wide smile, the woman turned around. Looking at Devan. Highlight it. A look full of love that Devan misses so much.

“Gita? Are you really Gita?” said Devan with his body shaking violently. The tears on his cheeks never stopped flowing. “Is she our daughter? She’s so beautiful like you,” said Devan, wiping his tears so they wouldn’t obscure his vision.

Gita smiled then spoke, “Yes, she is Naysila our daughter.”

“Is she really our daughter? She is?” said Devan with tears flowing again.

The little girl smiled at Devan. The twinkle of happiness radiated clearly in his irises.

“Devan, we are both happy here. We hope Mas and Erick are happy too,” said Gita with a smile. “Believe me, one day we will definitely meet again. Turn over a new leaf with Erick!”

Devan’s steps succeeded in eroding the distance between them. Then, without being able to say another word, Devan grabbed Gita’s body. Hug him tightly. Even Naysila, who he also embraced. But suddenly a bright light came crashing into Devan’s retina, blinding his vision. Faint and disappear instantly.

“Gita!!!” Devan screamed, suddenly waking up from his dream.