31. About Choosing

"Sir, it seems your wife is crying" He whispered it to Hendra.

Thud

"Sorry, will you excuse me?" Hendra slided away from the chat with his colleagues.

"Hello honey, what is going on?" He quickly greeted his wife who was waiting on the other end. He was worried.

"I just wanted to hear your voice" Aruna tried to compose her voice level.

"Just tell me the truth. I don't like it you hide things from me. Where are you now? And why are you crying?" the dominance revealed in his voice was so clear to his lady.

"I am not crying"

"You can't lie to me. Where are you, at home or somewhere else?"

"You are right. I am out now"

"share your location now! My man will pick you up" Hendra did not really care what caused Aruna cry. He knew very well he was not good at pleasing anyone in sadness. When his best friend, Surya was in horrible state due to his father's death while he was in USA, he did not dare to ask anything.

He preferred to save a ticket for him to fly back to Indonesia and he even helped Surya packing everything he might need for coming back home. He wpoukd say he was very realistic man. Death was not something to be mourned or kept in heart. Rather, he needed to focus on what needed to be done to heal that sadness and to get over it.

"So sorry love, I don't have much time. Wipe your tears. I will call you tonight, pick it up and I tell me what happened today." A second later bip was heard. Hendra ended the call.

If what happened just now took place months ago, Aruna would have gone mad and considered him heartless. But that emotion was able to change her perception, the perception of a stubborn and cold heart woman. That emotion was able to make her more thoughtful and understanding. She was able to comprehend that the one far from her at that moment could not do anything for her. It was almost impossible to predict precisely the heart of a woman. Even the owner of the heart did not know where it would take her go.

And that woman went to the opposite direction, turned around from the direction she had believed true, about herself who had planned to run away from the man she then missed dearly.

"Hendra…" she sighed.

***

"Are you angry to me?" Damar was relieved that he finally found her in a bus stop not far from the cinema they had visited before. He happened to run everywhere in horror for being unable to find the girl who filled up his heart completely. He would take all the consequences that people might think he just got the 'second' thing.

Longing for her love which had been only a dream was woken up again as knowing she would face separation. The knowing that was enough to make him happy for hoping, even though it was still vacant for everyone

It was not a big deal. Hoping did not always mean to get an acceptance, refusal was not surprising either. The long healing to the lowest and most cruel point had been through as well. If she had been a film director, and she chose her as an usher, he would not mind that.

That worthless cried out a monolog of pain that his love would never been welcomed.

"I'm not sure. . ." Aruna did not know how she felt to him. She could not lie that the emotion was not leading to the man next to him anymore.

" I ever gave you flash kiss. You were shocked but then you were blushing and ashamed to see me back. But today…" his voice was low. He was trying to ask that girl to turn back to the moment they ever made up stories together.

"Everyone can change. Even to you and me"

"So you admitted you have changed?"

"I don't know Damar. What I know is time is quite friendly to wait for us to move forward"

_even friendly to a man who always makes the best of his time with me without sparing any time for me to comprehend thoroughly_

"I really hope you never forgot me, Aruna. I am your best friend, the best friend that turns to be a home for me to shelter. I cannot imagine if you changed all o f sudden. My hope giver turns to be my frustration, a home that does not provide a shelter for me anymore, a back leaner turns to be the source of my misery. Where am I supposed to go?"

If it is true that I used to be the reasons for ypur happiness, you are no supposed to use me the reasons for your falling tears. Being consistent does not mean to be against the changing of feeling. Rather, it should be hoping for my happiness, with or without me, to own me or not. I am not sure myself if I can go back to him. The process of our divorce is coming soon. Even so, I'm still hoping that he is happy with me or without me"

"You choose him"

"This is not about to choose. Not even about who the winner or the loser is. It is more about the hopes that I am still the most beautiful in his heart and in your mind" Aruna stopped a while and glanced at him who listened to her words without missing any.

"I don't care what will happen to me later. I don't regret it a bit that I ever married him. Strange, isn't it? Such thought must have been from the paths of life I have been through that has taught to be a mature woman" Aruna expressed all that burdened her heart.

"You are right, Aruna. It is me that has lost my maturity. I loved you. Then something took you from me. And suddenly you are back again as if you opened a space for me to fill in"

"he... Hehe" She suddenly burst into laugh when glancing at her best friend.

"Why laughing?"

"This path of life makes each of us looks so pathetic. You know..."

"Ahhh you are right... Hehe" Damar joined the laughter,too.

"If we are able to avoid our destiny by running into the aisle of a train, then jumped out of it,I will definitely do it" a silhouette of the past came vividly to the girl used to called the Red Radiance.

"And that is impossiblel"

"You are right. It is impossible"

"Hahahaha" Both laughed together.

"Do you want to go home with me?"

"With your antique Vespa I had good memory with?"

"Of course!"

"Alright. I don't mind that"

"Aren't you afraid to fall in love with me again with the irresistible love of the Best Fort?"

"Nope! That man ever took me with his Ducati XDiavel" Aruna replied jokingly while they were walking along the pavement to the parking lot.

"Uff….I cannot compete with him. That is for sure"

"That is not the reason you are lost"

"Then what?" they were in the motorcycle parking space.

"I guess it is because he is a bit insane"

"Huh! I am crazy about you, too. You forgot that?

"He is crazier" Aruna put on a helmet that young man gave to her. He even helped her to put it on her head properly.

"Such as?"

"Are you sure you want to know that?"

" Yes! .At least when I have to compete with another man over a girl, I will be the winner"

"He cannot stay by my side unless he is touching my pulse"

"That is weird" Damar smiled wryly. He rode on his vespa and made sure Aruna sat safely behind him before they rode along the street to start their trip.

"That is only one weird thing of him. There are many more.. and I am trapped in that weirdness"

"He is number one for his weirdness"

"You can say that again.."

"Woman's heart is a curse!"

"haha.. watch your words! Are you upset?" That red radiance punched his shoulder and laughed freely.

"Entertain me.. you just broke my heart!"

"How?"

"Hug me! I am devastated right now!"

"so sorry.." she hugged him from the back. Damar smiled and he whistled the tune of Red Radiance. Aruna sang along with him from his back

***

"Sir, Miss Aruna is not on the location anymore"

"Find her and trace her mobile signal!"

.

"Are you sure you want to know what your wife is doing at the moment?"

"What do you mean?"

"I think it is better you don't know it, Sir"

"Don't make me angry Hery. Send the pick to me! It is an order!"

.

.

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The background of this novel is in one of the countries in South East Asia where customs, norms, and values in those areas very much inspire every character depicted in this story.

The boundaries of relationship between males and females and the habits portrayed there can be very much different from your own life styles. I hope you can visit and see the places described in this novel and you can witness it yourself their uniqueness and beauty.