Love Redux: Fated to the Handsome Doctor

“Hi, everyone!” Olivia intentionally shouted, trying to catch the attention of the party guests.

“Uh? Olivia?”

“Yeah, that’s Olivia, class of 2008!”

“Wow… she’s really glowing!”

“Who’s that next to her?”

Whispers immediately filled the hall. Olivia got the attention she was hoping for. “Hey!” Olivia waved again to her friends in the corner of the room. The gossip group! The same group that had tarnished Lara’s reputation.

“Aww… is that her boyfriend?” Sherly asked, intrigued, looking at Seno.

“Ah… Haha… you know it!” Olivia didn’t deny it. Meanwhile, Seno just swallowed hard. He had to cooperate with Olivia to keep her from spreading his secret.

“I feel like I’ve seen him somewhere before,” Sherly tried to recall, but Olivia quickly explained the origin of her secret lover. “He’s Seno Adhijaya, don’t you know him?”

“Oh! Wow! Yeah, I’ve seen him in a magazine!”

“Right! That’s Mr. Seno, isn’t it? Nice to meet you!”

“Oh, yes, nice to meet you,” Seno quickly accepted handshakes from Olivia’s friends. He felt awkward and uncomfortable. Seno tried to find his wife among the guests, but… she wasn’t there. Where had Lara gone?

Everyone immediately swarmed Seno to introduce themselves and look for opportunities for collaboration. Someone with such success seemed like an easy target at a reunion party for establishing profitable business relationships.

Meanwhile, Lara could only cry silently as she watched Olivia and Seno holding hands affectionately. She was confused about what to do. Her reputation would be ruined if she screamed like a madwoman.

With a heavy heart, Lara chose to leave the reunion. She couldn’t contain her sadness.

“Lara! Watch out!”

Unaware, Lara almost fell down the stairs. Her vision blurred, unable to see clearly.

“A-Andre?” Lara was surprised when someone grabbed her waist as she almost fell down the stairs. Lara had deliberately chosen to take the stairs instead of the elevator to avoid causing a scene. She cried and felt ashamed, but… Lara didn’t pay attention to her surroundings.

“You have to be careful, Lara! You almost got hurt,” Andre exclaimed, then let go of her waist. His heart was racing uncontrollably. The scent of Lara’s body stirred something within him.

“I’m s-sorry,” Lara replied awkwardly, wiping away the tears that ruined her makeup. Andre seemed to understand why Lara was crying. He had accidentally seen Seno and looked at Lara. Andre immediately chased after Lara, who seemed to be hurt. Sure enough, she was almost in danger.

“What happened? Can you tell me?” Andre asked gently, handing her his handkerchief.

Lara took the handkerchief and shook her head weakly. Her household affairs made her look pathetic in Andre’s eyes.

“I saw your husband earlier. He was with… someone. Who is she?”

Lara’s eyes widened. Apparently, Andre already knew about Seno and Olivia being together.

“Olivia…,” Lara replied.

“Ah, I think I’ve met her before,” Andre recalled Olivia. The crazy woman who wanted to get to know him. Turns out, she really was unstable and liked to snatch someone who wasn’t hers.

“How long are you going to put up with this bad marriage, Lara? Haven’t you heard about… divorce?” Andre asked, annoyed. He was tired of seeing Lara’s tears shed in vain because of her husband’s behavior. Lara should be able to respect herself.

Andre really couldn’t understand Lara’s attitude.

“That’s enough, Andre. You’ve crossed the line,” Lara refused to answer Andre’s question. She didn’t feel like she had to explain her life choices to anyone. Yes, her life choices might be wrong in the eyes of some people. But for her, Lara was only thinking about her child’s future.

“Lara, please,,, think about yourself. I… I can’t bear to see you suffer like this,” Andre looked straight at Lara. She only avoided Andre’s gaze as much as she could.

“Thank you for your concern, but… I know better what’s best for me,” Lara said coldly, smiling at Andre. She walked away towards the elevator, after fixing her makeup in a small mirror in her bag.

“Lara…,” Andre called out again, but Lara hurried her steps. Andre could only swallow the fact that everything about Lara seemed to be beyond his control.

***

“Where were you?” Riko asked, Andre’s friend who invited him to this reunion. Riko’s girlfriend couldn’t make it, so he brought Andre instead. Riko really didn’t like going to events alone. Andre was forced to accompany him.

“Oh, I had a friend. I went to say hello for a bit,” Andre replied casually. He immediately grabbed a soda from the nearby table and gulped it down in one go.

“Hey! That’s Seno, my buddy from before. You should get to know him,” Riko said to Andre, but Andre just shook his head. “No need, already know him.”

“Really?” Riko seemed incredulous. How could Andre know an important person like Seno and not tell him?

“Don’t get too close to him, if you don’t want to regret it!” Andre warned seriously.

Riko blinked. He seemed puzzled by Andre’s cold attitude.

As they chatted, suddenly, Mahya appeared. She was so happy to meet again with the person who had inspired her life as a single woman.

“Doctor! We meet again here,” Mahya exclaimed happily. Andre smiled and shook Mahya’s hand. “How are you, Mahya?”

“Good! How about you?”

“I’m good too,” Andre replied with his charming smile.

Once again, Riko felt amazed. Andre was really skilled at socializing and making friends with famous people. “Ndre! Introduce her!” Riko whispered to Andre, nudging him.

“Mahya, meet Riko… my friend,” Andre said lazily, glancing at Riko.

“Hi! Mahya! Your speech earlier was really cool!” Riko praised Mahya wholeheartedly.Belonging to NôvelDrama.Org.

“Thank you, Riko. I’m glad to share my experiences at this event. There are still many other successful alumni, I feel honored,” Mahya said modestly. Riko admired her even more.

“Turns out, you’re not only beautiful but also humble! Can I have your phone number?” Riko tried to flirt with Mahya. She laughed. But just before she gave him her number, someone intercepted Riko’s phone and handed him a business card.

“Just contact Mahya at her office. I’m James, from Channel Insight. Here’s my business card,” James, the arrogant boss, said coldly. Mahya and Riko were both surprised. Andre just held back his laughter. He knew there was a tinge of jealousy brewing there.

“Hey! What was that?” Mahya asked angrily.

James just shrugged. “Isn’t it the same? Calling her cellphone or her office phone?”

“James! Stop meddling in my affairs!” Mahya snapped. James fell silent. He also didn’t understand why he suddenly felt angry when another man was flirting with Mahya.

Amid their heated argument, suddenly, Seno approached and greeted them. “Buddy!” he exclaimed. James smiled broadly at his friend. “Hey! How are you?”

Only Mahya felt unhappy about their meeting, because… the woman Seno was with wasn’t Lara.

“Crazy bastard!” Mahya muttered angrily.