MEETING, STARTING POINT

"What is that about?" After Jess leaves, Hana takes Hisao to the pantry and asks what happened between him and Jess.

 "Wh… what? She is a client?" Hisao was confused by the question and answered her shortly

 "YOU LIED!! YOU KNOW HER! You asking her about her manager like you already met her before she came here as a client!" Hana shouted to Hisao. She said everything loudly until all their colleagues came to peek at them in the pantry to know what happened to them both.

 "Sshh… What's wrong with you? Don't say it out loud, people are staring at us." Hisao tried to make Hana shut her out and calm her down as his hand closed Hana's mouth.

 "Wh… what happened? Ar… Are you jealous?" Hisao is suddenly curious about Hana's reaction. Hana was shocked and embarrassed when Hisao suddenly questioned her feelings towards him.

 "Hhmm… Look, I think we can come to a consensus on this. I thought we agreed that we don't put feelings in our relationship. We are just officemates and housemates who can meet each other's needs." Hisao explains to Hana what he feels about their relationship status.

 "Is that what you think about? Is that why you never answer me when I ask or tell you about my feelings towards you? Is that why?? That I just a whore to you??" Hana felt that she had been betrayed by someone she loved.

 "Wh… what? What are you… I'm not…" He tries to explain to Hana that he does not mean what she just thought about.

 "You jerk!! Stay out of my face." Hana slapped Hisao's face, shouted and screamed at him, and left him in the pantry alone. She felt embarrassed with all her colleagues. Hisao was startled by the sudden slap on his face. The situation became awkward as their colleagues stared at them and talked behind their backs. Hana went home early that day and didn't wait for Hisao as usual. Later, when Hisao went to Hana's house, he noticed that all his belongings were outside with a note.

 "Get out of my house." He received a note from Hana, he wasn't surprised by it. He knew that he was responsible for playing with the emotions of others. Hisao didn't know what to say to Hana about the situation, so he gathered his belongings and returned home. Fortunately, he can buy a house with the money he earned from working hard at his former job. While on his way home, he stops by the convenience store to buy a lot of beer to relieve stress. He sat on a long chair across from the store and began drinking. Suddenly, one of the tins of beer he was holding fell to the ground. As he reached out to pick up his tin of beer, he felt another hand touch his own as they both went for the same tin. Looking up, he saw a woman wearing a dark chocolate hijab, a black baggy t-shirt, and long black pants. She was trying to help him pick up the tin, and they made eye contact.

 "Oh, sorry. I only want to help you. You seem to look messed up now." The lady smiled at him while she was wondering about Hisao's state.

 "Yo… you! It is you!" Hisao felt startled when he saw the lady.

 "Wa… wait. Am I already drunk? Or am I dreaming?" Hisao suddenly felt suspicious about what he saw and his condition as he touched his face to ensure he was not dreaming. While he is still confused he suddenly feels something grab his suit.

 "Do you can feel it?" Alisha asked him if he could feel her holding his suit as she sat beside him in the lounge chair. He nodded, wondering why she did that.

 "That means you are not dreaming, and you are not drunk because you still can focus while looking at my face." He blushed as he realized he was staring directly into Alisha's eyes. She just smiled sweetly back at him.

 "You seem to be upset. Is everything okay today? Don't worry, sometimes talking to strangers can help relieve stress. Plus, they don't know you, so they can't judge you." Alisha tried to start conversations with Hisao while he opened her favorite drink, Matcha Latte.

 "It's nothing. I think I'm just a jerk. Maybe I don't deserve the happiness." Hisao feels bad about himself.

 "Why do you say so?" Alisha looked at Hisao from the corner of her eyes and wondered about Hisao's thoughts as she sipped her drink.

 "I don't know. Today I met someone related to someone I've been looking for a while now. I've been so excited and glad about it. Thus, the woman or should I say my sex partner, and as my colleague told me she has feelings towards me and has been jealous when I give my attention to other women. B… But believe me… I never have feelings for her. She is just my sex partner. I… I thought we were… We are just a sex partner. But… She didn't feel that way. That's why she dumped me and kicked me out of her house." When he tries to explain what happened and what he feels about Hana, he suddenly stops talking when he realizes Alisah didn't give any response.

 "You must think I'm a jerk too. Playing people's hearts to fulfill my lust." Hisao feels bad when he realizes Alisha remains silent as she tries to open her plastic chocolate.

 "Yaa… I think you are a jerk." Hisao gasped when he heard what Alisha thought about him. He thought he just wanted to cry at that time.

 "You are a jerk, but so am I, and everyone in this world can be a jerk sometimes. People often say we may be the bad guys in someone else's journey. We all make mistakes and commit sins. No one in this world is perfect, and everyone can make mistakes and sins because we are all human. Being human means being a sinner." Alisha continued to share her thoughts while she savored her favorite dark chocolate. He was so startled by her words, that he looked at her directly and wondered what she wanted to say next.

 "But… The difference between us and them is that we realize our mistakes and try to fix them. We even apologize multiple times to become a better person. However, it's worse when we don't acknowledge our mistakes and blame others for our actions. We fail to realize that it was our choice to make that mistake and we chose to be on that path due to our ego and selfishness. We keep blaming others until we form hatred toward them and hurt the people around us, including those who love us deeply. Eventually, we end up alone in the darkness despite being surrounded by many people and appearing happy on the outside. Our hearts remain empty and filled with darkness." Alisha looked so sad when she suddenly remembered her past.

 "Arr… I'm sorry! I don't mean to make you feel bad." Hisao felt bad when he saw Alisha's sad face.

 "No, there's no need to apologize. As I mentioned, everyone makes mistakes, and I also have a dark past. Whenever I think about it, It makes me feel regret for what I've done. While I can't change the past, what I can do now is seek forgiveness and strive to be a better person in the future." Alisha asked Hisao why she suddenly felt sad but then she smiled again at Hisao.

 *"ALLAH 'AKBAR (الله أكبر)

 ALLAH 'AKBAR (الله أكبر)"

An Azan prayer in Alisha's phone suddenly rang.

 "Oppss… I need to keep going now. A little monster must be mad if I have been late." When she heard the Azan, she stood up from her chair and gave an excuse to leave.

 "So… I hope your journey will make you a better person one day. I hope you'll find the truth of life one day." Before leaving, she encourages him not to give up on his journey.

 "Always searching for the truth of your life…" Hisao suddenly recalls the message that Alisha had told him in his dream.

 "Wa…wait!! What's your name? Can… can I have your number?" When Alisha started to leave, Hisao suddenly stopped her and asked for her name and phone number.

 "My name and number?" Alisha wondered why the stranger wanted to know her name and number.

 "How about we make a deal? If we meet again. I'll tell you about me and my journey. We can say it is a destiny for us if we meet again. Is it the deal?" She didn't refuse him but suggested that if they meet again, it might be destiny and she'll share her journey with him. However, she never thought that they might meet again in the future. For her, it is the first and last time she met him. Instead of saying anything, he nodded as agreed, confident they would meet again like today.

 "So… see you soon in the future." Alisha waved and smiled before she left.

"Lady Ms.!!!" Jess waved and shouted to Alisha.

 "Where have you been? It's almost dark, now. It's *maghrib time now!!" Jess continued to nag Alisha because she worried about her.

 "I know… I know… I bumped into someone weird just now." Alisha to give an excuse for why he had been late and felt annoyed with Jess nagging.

 "Some… someone weird? Are you okay Lady Ms.?" Jess became more worried about Alisha.

 "I'm fine. He just got messed up with his life. I feel sorry for him." Alisha tries to calm her down with her worries and tells her that she feels sorry for Hisao. The next day after, Hana didn't show up at the office, and days turned into weeks without any sign of her. Meanwhile, rumors began to circulate regarding what happened between Hana and Hisao.

 Chiyoda, Tokyo – At Hiroshi Associates.

 "Hisao! Come to my room, immediately!" After a few weeks had passed, in the morning when Hisao had just arrived at the office, Mr. Hiroshi finally called Hisao to come to his room out of sudden. Without saying a word, he follows Mr. Hiroshi to his room a few seconds later.

 "What happened between you and Hana? A few months ago, I saw her start to be so close to you and today I do not even see her face at this office. Hisao, she is my assistant, not yours. So, where she is now? I've been trying to text and call her a thousand times now, but she didn't reply and pick up my call. Plus, today, I suddenly got a text message from her this morning that she wants to resign within 24 hours. What happens now, Hisao?" Mr. Hiroshi was very upset with the current situation and didn't what he was supposed to do.

 "I… I don't know. It's just a misunderstanding between us." Hisao tries to explain to Mr. Hiroshi what happened between them.

 "Look, Hisao. I don't want to know about your private life now. What I want, is you need to go to her house and convince her to come back to work. I need her!" Mr. Hiroshi didn't want to hear Hisao's excuse at that moment, he just wanted Hana to come back to work by hook or by crook. After receiving instructions from Mr. Hiroshi, Hisao left the office to go to Hana House.

 Chuo, Tokyo – At Hana's house

 "Ting… Tong…"

 Ting… Tong…"

 Hisao rings the bell of Hana's house several times, but no one answers.

 "Knock"

 "Knock"

 "Knock"

 "Hana! Oi, Hana! Open the door! Please, we need to talk. Look, I'm sorry. I'm sorry because I took advantage of you. I'm sorry but please let me talk to you. Hana! Open the door, please!" Hisao asks for forgiveness to persuade Hana to open the door.

 "What do you want? Don't make a noise, you disturb my neighbor." A few minutes later, after hearing all the confessions and apologies from Hisao, Hana finally opened the door.

 "Errr… Can I come in?" Hisao asked Hana for permission to enter the house, and she granted it.

 "Wh… what happen to you? This place looks like a mess. Are you okay?" After he got into the house and went to the living room, Hisao was suddenly shocked when he saw the place, he used to live to look like a mess, he wondered what had happened to the house and Hana.

 "What do you want? Did Mr. Hiroshi ask you to come, or do you want to get back to me?" Hana doesn't answer Hisao when he asks her a question. Instead, she questions Hisao about why he came to her house after their recent fight. His sudden appearance makes Hana more suspicious because Hisao never calls or texts after their fights, nor does he respond to her texts or pick up her calls. Therefore, she finds it odd that he appeared in front of her house out of the blue today.

 "Errr… Hana. Look, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to play with your heart. I never knew it would be like this and I even didn't mean to hurt you, Hana. I'm sorry because I took advantage of your feelings and kindness. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry, Hana." Hisao is standing across from Hana and suddenly gets on his knees to beg her forgiveness as he condescends to ask her forgiveness. Hana sat on the couch and took a cigarette to smoke while observing Hisao's actions.

 "So… Is this mean you're not coming here for me? Is this because of work?" Hana questioned again why he suddenly came while she lit her cigarette.

 "Look, Hana. I'm worried about you, and I don't want to hurt you anymore. I know I'm wrong but please come back to the office. Mr. Hiroshi asked for you, he needs you badly." Hisao tries to persuade Hana to come to work again.

 "So, you did not come here because of your own will? You came here to meet me today because people asked you to?" While she smoked, Hana felt triggered by what Hisao said to her.

 "No! Even if wasn't because of him, I would come to clear up all the misunderstandings between us. Please, Hana, listen to me." Hisao tries to convince Hana that he will come to meet once he is ready.

 "Hana, I want our relationship to be as before when we were colleagues. We helped each other with our work, made jokes about clients, and told stories about Mr. Hiroshi's secrets. I miss those times and I want us to go back to that. I… I don't want to become awkward around you. I want to talk to you at work as before. No, I don't want only to be your colleague, I… I want to be your friend. So, you don't need to resign, Hana. I promise you I'll be your friend who always listens to your problems. Please, be my friend." Hisao stood up from his kneeling position and sat next to Hana. He attempted to persuade her to return to work as normal.

 "Huhh… Is not that simple, Hisao" When she saw Hisao sitting beside her, she felt uncomfortable and wanted to get up from the couch.

 "Wha…what do you mean?" Hisao reached for Hana's hand when she stood up from the couch.

 "Don't touch me!" Hana pushed Hisao away and shouted when he tried to touch her, feeling triggered.

 "It might be easy for you to say that, but it is not easy for me. It is easy for you to let go but not me. Even right now, I can't look at your face, even hear your voice I can't bear it. It hurts me. My heart hurt, Hisao. Every time I go into this house it reminds me of you. In every corner of this house, I saw you. How do I want to live like this, Hisao? I can't… I can't Hisao. I can't live like this. I… I really can't. If I stay here and continue living as I used to, I won't be able to move on from you. Working with you again is not easy for me, especially when I see you with another woman while I still have feelings for you. It hurts me." As Hana put her hand on her chest, she slowly calmed down and explained why she couldn't work with Hisao anymore. Suddenly, she burst into tears, showing how much her heart was hurt.

 "Ha… Hana" He was taken aback and left speechless when he saw Hana burst into tears while still standing in front of him.

 "I… I love you, Hisao. I like you. Even before we ruin our relationship as officemate, I already have a feeling for you. I do like you, Hisao. You are always passionate about your work. I admire you so much. I'm sorry. I… I'm truly sorry to you, Hisao. It's all my fault. I'm… I'm the one who seduced you at that time. I'm the one who kissed you. I'm sorry. I'm the one who ruined our relationship." Hana suddenly confessed her feelings toward Hisao, while she still cried regretfully.

 "Ha… Hana. It's not only your fault but it is also mine. If I had not received your kiss and stopped you or even taken you and our colleagues to that bar, all this thing might never have happened. Hana, please don't cry." When Hisao sees Hana not stop crying, he tries to get close to Hana to persuade her to stop crying and convinces her that this is not only her fault.

 "So, can you let me go, Hisao? I want to go far from this place. I need to move on from you. If I want to see your face again, I need to move on from you and this feeling towards you. That's why I want to go from here until I'm ready to face you again. "Hisao, you are a kind and gentlemanly person. I know you are not a bad guy, it's why you made the effort to come here today. I understand that you want to assure me that I am doing fine and that I did not make any foolish decisions after you broke up with me. You have asked for my forgiveness countless times, but to truly forgive you from the bottom of my heart, you must understand that I must move on. You must let me go." Hana takes Hisao's hand when she tells how she wants to feel free from her hatred towards Hisao. Then, slowly she let go of Hisao's hand and walked away from him.

 "You need to go?" Hisao tries to get more answers from Hana.

 "Yes, I've been thinking about this for a few days. If you ask did, I do something foolish after you dumped me? I would say yes. Yesterday, I almost killed myself. I… I thought I couldn't live without you anymore. Do you see that rope? I almost hung myself but the time I hung myself onto it suddenly my neighbor knocked on my door and gave me something that made me cry regretfully out loud and ask myself why I wanted to lose and give up on myself. I've been crying and sleeping because of tiredness and suddenly I woke up today and decided to resign. I decided I wanted to go somewhere where I could start a new life. A life that I can see you as a friend like you see me as a friend. Hisao. I know… I know you never look at me like I look at you now. The moment I saw you on my first day at work, I started to have feelings for you. You always helped me out with my work, even if you already finished your work that day, you were willing to stay out late to make sure nothing happened to me, and I got home safely. It always makes my feelings deeper. I like you, Hisao. I do like you. No, I love you, Hisao." Hana turned her body to Hisao when tears were still on her face. He can't say anything when he hears all the confessions from Hana.

 "But… I'm sorry, Hisao. I know you never meant to hurt me. I'm the one who hurt my feelings. I'm the one who seduces you in the very first place. I'm the one who kissed you first. I'm the one who brought you to my house. I'm the one who clings to you. I'm the one… I'm the one who forced you into this complicated relationship and never wanted to let you go. I… I… I'm the…" Hana blamed herself for everything that happened as she put her hand on her face. He tries to make her calm, Hisao once again comes close to Hana and holds her hand.

 "It's not only your fault, Hana. It's mine either and I'm sorry too, Hana. I'm sorry because I can't accept your feelings towards me. I think this is our goodbye, Hana. I hope I can meet you again, we can be friends again. I hope you will find whatever you are searching for outside there and be happy with it. Don't worry about Mr. Hiroshi. I'll explain everything to him. Once again, Hana, I'm sorry. I'm truly sorry because I hurt you." Hisao confronted Hana and once again asked for her forgiveness. He also wishes for her happiness.

 "Thank you. Thank you, Hisao." After hearing what Hisao said, Hana continued to cry and hug him for the last time.