chapter 2 - possessive Abang

Keenan's car stopped right in front of Keyla's school gate, where the atmosphere was already bustling with students arriving. As Keyla was about to get out of the car, she was stopped by Keenan. He looked at his sister with an indecipherable expression, causing Keyla to sigh in frustration at his unclear intentions.

"What now, Abang Keen? The gate is about to close, and then I won't be able to get in."

"Let it be. If you can't get in, I'll take you wherever you want to go," Keenan said without a hint of guilt.

"No way, then Mama will scold us."

"Don't worry, I'm here," Keenan said, patting his chest, seemingly boasting.

"Enough, I need to go in." Keyla tried to open the door again, but Keenan stopped her. He quickly pressed the lock button beside him, preventing Keyla from getting out without his permission. "Open the door, Abang!" she shouted.

"No way!"

"What do you want?"

"I only have one request."

"What?"

"Don't get close to any boys at school or outside school, don't date, don't seek attention from any boys, and don't let any boys approach you, whoever they are," Keenan warned, pointing at Keyla's nose.

Feeling disturbed, Keyla immediately swatted away her brother's finger. She didn't like being treated that way by Keenan. "That's not one request, but four. Besides, Abang, why do you have to make such a request? I don't like being restricted like that!"

"Keyla Putri Surya Wijayanto! I'm doing this as a form of my love for you. I want to protect you from boys who might hurt you someday."

"Then Abang Keen should also stay away from me! Because maybe one day, Abang Keen will disappoint me too."

Hearing Keyla's response left Keenan speechless. Her retort left him stumped. Keenan fell silent; what Keyla said made sense. Who knows if Keenan might disappoint his beloved sister one day?

Keyla glared at Keenan in frustration, then reached over to press the button beside Keenan, opening the car door automatically. Before leaving, Keyla turned to her brother and said, "Oh, and don't be so possessive of my life. I can take care of myself, and you should know that all my friends are good people, so they won't hurt me."

After saying that, Keyla immediately got out of the car. She stood by the door, waving at the car's owner before walking away as the school gate was about to close.

Meanwhile, Keenan, still in his car, sighed heavily, ruffling his hair in frustration. He should have thought things through before speaking. Moreover, Keyla always won when they argued. Her retorts always made him swallow bitter pills.

Not wanting to dwell on his thoughts, Keenan drove off to campus. He had a meeting with his advisor who would help him complete his studies quickly and efficiently.

***

Break time was the most favored period for all students at Garuda Pancasila High School. During this time, everyone would flock to the cafeteria, which could accommodate hundreds of people.

Likewise, Keyla, who had just entered the cafeteria with a friend her age. Ainun Abigail, whom Keyla often called Inun because she found it cute.

"Inun, what do you want to eat?" Keyla asked, standing at the entrance.

"What do you want to eat?"

"Why are you asking me back?"

"Because I can't decide what to eat."

"Let's eat there!" Keyla pointed to a stall in the corner of the room.

"Sounds good, let's go!" Ainun quickly agreed.

They went there without waiting long. The dishes looked appetizing with a buffet concept, allowing them to take any side dishes for only 15,000 per serving.

The stall owner, a middle-aged woman, handed them plates and cutlery. "Go ahead, fifteen thousand only, eat as much as you want," the owner said.

Keyla and Ainun smiled.

"Oh, we already knew that, Bukde," Ainun said, making the stall owner chuckle happily.

"Bukde's cooking is delicious, what's your secret? I love the fried egg with tomato sauce, I want to ask Mama to make it," Keyla added while busy taking food.

"Bukde will give you the recipe later, but don't tell anyone."

"Really, Bukde?" Keyla's eyes lit up.

"Yes, Bukde will write it down first, and after you eat, I'll give it to you," Bukde said.

"Okay, Bukde, we'll eat first."

After filling their plates with rice and side dishes, it was time to fill their stomachs. Keyla and Ainun chose to sit in the corner. To them, the corner was the most comfortable place to eat.

While eating, they talked about the math lesson earlier in class. There were many things Keyla didn't understand about math, especially sine, cosine, and tangent. Keyla's brain felt like it was about to explode.

"I'll come to your house later and teach you about sine, cosine, and tangent," Ainun said.

"Really? It's not a bother? Or how about I come to your house instead?"

"It's no bother, Key. I actually really want to come to your house again."

"Alright, how about today?"

"Today? That works, luckily I'm free today, and my parents aren't home."

"Coincidentally, Abang Keen isn't home either, so no one will bother us."

Suddenly, Ainun's enthusiasm dropped. It was clear on her face that there was a significant change after Keyla said her brother wasn't home. Unfortunately, Keyla didn't notice her friend's facial change.

"What's wrong, Inun? Why are you quiet? Are you not feeling well?" Keyla asked, reaching for her friend's hand.

"I'm fine," she answered with a smile to assure Keyla that she was truly okay.

"Hi, can I join you?" asked a boy holding a similar plate in his right hand and a glass of iced tea in his left.

His perfectly chiseled face made Keyla and Ainun not blink. The boy placed his plate and glass on the table and joined Keyla and Ainun without getting their approval.

"The table is full, there's no other place, can I sit here?" The boy asked for approval again, but the two girls didn't respond, seemingly mesmerized by his handsomeness. "If it's not okay, I can move to another table," he said, lifting his plate and glass again.

"Eh, it's okay, sit here," Keyla requested, seemingly hypnotized by the Greek prince-like handsomeness in front of her.

The boy finally sat back down and began eating heartily.

"Are you new? I've never seen you before," Ainun said, starting a conversation with the boy.

The boy stopped eating and looked at each girl in front of him. "Yes," he answered succinctly.

"What grade?"

"Eleven."

"So, we're classmates?" Keyla asked, confirming.

"Yes, I was supposed to join the first class, but there were still documents to be completed, so I didn't attend the first class," he explained.

"Oh, that's why I didn't see you this morning."

"Where did you transfer from?" Keyla asked, curious.

The boy stopped eating again. He was quite annoyed by the continuous unimportant questions while he was eating.

"You're Keenan's sister, right?"

Keyla's lips spontaneously parted hearing the boy's question. "How do you know?"

The boy smirked, "Eleven, twelve," he answered.