STRANGE COINCIDENCE

"Tch ..." Rendra squeaked annoyed. That woman had really driven him mad. Aleeta, the woman who had been occupying his mind for the past few days.

"Am I not attractive enough?" Rendra's question managed to make the woman who was clinging spoiled beside him looked up at him.

"Why do you ask such a question, Mr. Rendra? Of course you are very attractive. Even we are Willing to voluntarily surrender our bodies to You." The woman chuckled.

Rendra stared at the woman for a moment. Come to think of it, what the woman beside him said was true. All this time it was the women who chased him. Or maybe that woman is not normal?

Rendra immediately dismissed the ridiculous thought that crossed his mind. That night he spent sipping the drink that was served on the table in front of him. Tonight he wanted to stop thinking about Aleeta.

***

The sun was shining brightly this morning, its warm light pierced the blue clouds, giving encouragement to the rupiah fighters in the capital. The city that is said to be crueler than the stepmother has in fact never died. The streets are always full of motorists and pedestrians starting their morning activities.

The car carrying Aleeta drove to break up the hustle and bustle of the city streets. Every now and then the sound of horns from car drivers waiting for the green lights is enough to break the ears. Quite strange indeed the inhabitants of this country. Why do they honk the horn if in the end they still have to wait for the light to turn green.

Aleeta tried to enjoy the morning journey which was full of traffic jams. His mind was still haunted by a text message from someone a few days ago. Of the many messages that came in, for some reason only that message managed to disturb his mind.

Aleeta didn't enjoy her weekend. In fact, the whole day his mind was not focused. He wanted to reply to the message, but couldn't because of his high sense of prestige.

Today Aleeta's schedule is quite busy, even the woman has missed lunch. During office hours, Aleeta decided to stop by a shopping center. He had to fill the refrigerator in his apartment, which was almost empty. Enough of an empty heart, the contents of the refrigerator and stomach should not be.

The sound of heavy metal colliding caught her attention. The trolley containing the groceries that Aleeta was pushing was apparently hit by someone.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to," said a woman as she collected the items that had slipped from her hands.

Spontaneously Aleeta crouched down to help. "Why didn't you bring a basket?"

The woman looked at the things lying on the floor. "Good grief! Why am I being this stupid?" the woman then laughed. "It must be because I'm too emotional," he continued.

Ice cream with two different flavors has been served on the table. Two people who had just met were sitting opposite each other. The women are Aleeta and Malika. Yes, Malika is Rendra's cousin. What a strange coincidence.

"People say eating ice cream can relieve stress and emotions." Malika continued to feed the ice cream into her mouth. Every now and then he took a breath.

Aleeta just stared at the woman in front of her. Actually, he was quite surprised by Malika who was so easy to familiarize herself with people she just met.

After helping Malika get the shopping trolley earlier, the woman apparently continued to follow Aleeta. In fact, after leaving the supermarket at the shopping center earlier, Malika immediately grabbed Aleeta's arm and took her to the food court.

"As a thank you," Malika explained when Aleeta looked surprised at his behavior.

Aleeta hadn't finished her ice cream yet, but Malika had finished the second bowl.

"I'm really annoyed with my cousin, he always ruins my date plans with my fiancé." Malika ate the last scoop of her ice cream. "I pray that he gets a girl who will make him mad to death," continued Malika while cleaning her tiny lips with a tissue.

Aleeta, who had been listening to the chatter of the woman in front of her, only frowned.

Why is this woman so easy to express feelings in front of her? Is he always like that with people he just met? Aleeta thought at that time.

"I'm sorry. I've been chattering ever since, even though we've only just met. I don't know why I just feel comfortable with Big Brother." Malika smiled at Aleeta.

"If we meet again, I hope we will spend time together shopping." Malika chuckled at her own words. "Sorry, yes, if you are not comfortable with me."

I don't know how many times Malika has said sorry since she met Aleeta. Their meeting seemed to be dominated by sorry.

The cheerful woman waved with a wide smile on her face as she parted from Aleeta. He quickly walked out of the food court area. It made Aleeta look at him in surprise, but didn't want to think about the reason any further.

"Malika's face looks familiar. Either she looks like someone I know or I've seen her somewhere, huh?" Aleeta muttered to her self.

She held his stomach which felt cold after eating the ice cream on an empty stomach. Finally Aleeta decided to fill her stomach first before going home.

Meanwhile, Rendra and his assistant were in the same mall. Looking for Malika who said he was eating at the food court as he mentioned in the text message earlier.

"How? Has Malika answered the phone?" asked Rendra to the loyal assistant standing beside him.

Ryan shook his head weakly. "Not yet, Boss," she whispered sadly.

"Hey, cheer up. I know who Malika is. She's not a woman who will get angry just because you're late to pick her up for work. If she's angry, just blame it on me. Tell her I'm the one pushing it." Rendra patted Ryan's shoulder intending to encourage him.

"It's your fault, isn't it, Boss, for forcing me," Ryan muttered with a frown on his face.

"What did you say?" asked Rendra. Bringing his face closer trying to hear more carefully what was said by his assistant. The noise of the visitors made it difficult for Ryan to hear what he said.

"No, no, boss." Ryan wistfully scratched the back of his neck that didn't itch.

The two men were still busy looking for Malika's shadow. However, a second later Rendra's brown eyes found a figure that made him lose focus for several days. Even though the woman had her back to him, he was very sure that it was Aleeta.

Rendra hurriedly walked to Aleeta's table. Leaving Ryan who is still busy struggling with his cellphone. Let his assistant find his idol. Meanwhile he will approach his heart's desire who is sitting alone.

"Excuse me, can I sit here?" asked Rendra after sitting on the chair right in front of Aleeta. The woman seemed to stop eating and looked at the man.

"Why ask when you're already seated." Aleeta replied in a cold tone. Even though he was actually trying to hold back the joy of meeting Rendra.

"Ah, I'm sorry. I'm too tired looking for my cousin and this chair is the only empty seat left."

Aleeta immediately looked around when she heard Rendra's words. It turned out that what the man said was true.

"If you're uncomfortable, I'll leave. Sorry for interrupting your meal." Ryan added intending to leave.

"Never mind. Just sit down. After all, it's a public chair, anyone can sit on it, including you. I don't have the right to stop you, you."

Meanwhile Ryan, who was focusing on his cellphone, still didn't realize that Rendra was no longer beside him.

"What if Malika is really mad, Boss?" The question came out with Ryan's gaze still focused on his cellphone. "Boss?" Ryan asked again because he didn't get a response from his boss.