Calvino chuckled as he kissed the top of her head gently.
"I'm leaving, okay?"
"Hmm, be careful."
--
Jakarta, Indonesia
After arriving in Jakarta, Calvino went straight to Bandung to meet his beloved woman and explained the misunderstanding between them. He didn't want to lose a lover like Lenata, a modern woman with old good principles.
His hopes were dashed because whom he was looking for couldn't be found at Lenata's parents' residence. The housekeeper said that Lenata hadn't returned to Bandung and was still in London.
'Len, where are you, honey?' Calvino thought anxiously.
He then called Lenata's phone but never got an answer. He immediately gave orders to his trusted person to find out the woman's current position.
"Good afternoon, Mr Calvino." Calvino's subordinate greeted him.
"Hm, what news do you bring?!"
"Mr Lenata's position has been found."
"Tell me quickly! Where is she now?"
"In London."
Calvino gasped.
"Lenata is in London?"
"Yes, sir."
"Send her location in detail, now!"
"Ms Lenata is in Camden Town."
"Who did she go to Camden Town with? "
"I need more time to find out. I'll tell you soon."
"No need."
'So you're avoiding me on purpose, Len? Well, if that's what you want. But, who did you go to Camden Town with? Man or woman?' Calvino thought. Just thinking about it made his chest rumble.
Not wasting time, Calvino drove his car back to Jakarta. On the way, his phone rang, showing Bramantara's name.
"Hello, dad."
"Hello, Vin. Are you still in Surabaya?"
"No, dad. I have just arrived in Jakarta. What's wrong, dad?"
"I want you to immediately arrange your departure to Dubai. I need your help to handle our company over there, Vin."
"Aren't you in Dubai right now?"
"I'm in Spain. Your mom insists on meeting grandma Clause."
"Is she okay, dad?"
"She is,"
"Please convey my regards to grandma, dad."
"Of course, Vin. Oh yes, arrange a schedule to take your sister to Spain. Grandma wants to meet her."
"I will arrange it later, dad. Please tell mom that I miss her."
"No need to say that. Tell her directly." Bramantara then handed the phone to Dreena.
Dreena immediately bombarded Calvino with questions about Calista.
"Calista has come home from the hospital, mom. Didn't she tell you already?"
"No, where is she? I want to talk to your sister."
"I just arrived in Jakarta. Call her phone, mom." Calvino then disconnected the call.
Dreena wondered why Calista's phone was always busy.
'Who is she calling? Why was her last call busy?' Dreena thought.
It wasn't that Calista didn't know that her mother was calling her, of course, she knew that. But she purposely ignored it because she was having an important conversation with Leonard.
"Your phone keeps ringing. Who's calling?" Leonard asked.
"Mom."
"Then why did you ignore that, baby? Pick up the call from your mom first." Leonard suggested.
"But we're discussing work issues. This can't be postponed." Calista replied.
"We can discuss that later."
After that, Leonard immediately hung up the phone because he didn't want to make the mother of the woman he loved wait too long.
'I'm proud of you, honey. You're very concerned with my mom.' Calista whispered in her heart.
Calista then called Dreena. The voice on the other side made her lips carve a fracturing smile.
"Hello, Calis."
"Hello, mom."
"Why was your phone so hard to reach?"
"Sorry, mom, I was still talking with my office co-worker to discuss work matters."
"You are still recovering dear, you should get a lot of rest instead of being busy with office matters," Dreena suggested.
"This is my responsibility, mom. I can't just ignore it."
"You'd better resign."
"But mom, I can't if I don't work. I don't want to just stay at home without doing activities."
"You can write, honey. That's all I think is enough. I don't want to hear that you're sick again."
"That's not enough, mom."
'I need solid activity to forget my past. Even though Leo is here now, I haven't been able to forget the terrible incident that time. Leo also doesn't know about my status, so I don't know what this relationship will be like in the future.' Calista continued in her heart.
Hearing a heavy breath, Dreena immediately asked questions. However, Calista reassured her that everything was fine.
"Don't cover up anything from me."
"I know, mom. I have nothing to hide from you."
"Oh yes, how about you join your dad's company, sweetie? You can choose which country you want to live in. Later, let your dad take care of everything."
"I have already discussed this with dad, and I've made up my mind. It's still the same, mom."
"What is your decision, dear?"
"I... still want to stay here, mom. I don't want to leave this office yet. I feel comfortable working here." Calista explained.
"Listen to me, Calista, you are Kafeel's daughter. You shouldn't be working in someone else's office. Please respect your dad's reputation."
"Mom, please. I want to be independent."
"Do you realize Calista? By acting like this, you have hurt my feelings."
"I'm sorry, mom. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings."
No matter how hard Dreena insisted, Calista still giggled with her stance. Her daughter, who was as hard as a rock, wasn't that easy to understand except for one thing, showing the harsh reality in front of her eyes. Therefore, she would realise that what her parents were doing was for her own good.
"Can you still hear my voice, Calista?"
"Yes, mom. It's clear."
"Think about my request."
Calista breathed heavily.
"Yes, mom," Calista replied.
Calista immediately changed the subject, not wanting to be caught up in the conversation that continued to corner her. After talking with her mother for a long time, she immediately hung up the phone.
--
Calista decided to go to the park in her apartment, and sit in a lounge. She pampered her eyes with colourful flowers that were starting to bloom. She breathed fresh air while closing her eyes.
While enjoying the solitude, the apartment bell kept ringing.
'Who is coming? Annoying!' Calista was annoyed.
Before opening the door, she peered through the intercom. It turned out that Beni and his wife came. She then Immediately opened the door and rushed into Beni's arms.
"How are you, dear?" Beni asked
"I'm good, uncle. What brings you to my apartment?"
"You're really stubborn, aren't you?" Beni replied while squeezing Calista's nose and making her groan in pain.
"Why didn't you tell me that you were hospitalised yesterday? If your mom didn't call me, we surely wouldn't know either." Beni was annoyed.
"Sorry, Uncle. I don't want to bother Auntie Mira and you."
"Don't be like this next time. You are already like our own child, Calista."
"Promise me that next time you will tell me but... if you remember."
"You naughty." Beni pinched Calista's nose again.
Mira reminded Beni not to do that again. She was sorry for her nephew who was groaning in pain.
"Where's Calvin? He's here, right?" Mira asked.
"Calvin just returned to Jakarta. Please sit down, Auntie."
"Where are you going, Calis? Just sit here."
"Wait a minute, auntie," Calista replied, leaving Beni and Mira in the living room.
After a few minutes, she returned with two glasses of their favourite coffee latte.
--
Leonard, who had just arrived in Surabaya, immediately asked the office driver to take him over. He went to Calista's apartment first.
After arriving, he asked the driver to return to the office.
"Em, wait, sir!"
"Yes, Mr Leo."
"If someone asks where I am, just say I will continue the meeting."
"Okay, Mr Leo. I'm leaving."
Leonard spread his steps towards the elevator that took him to the top floor. His lips continued to smile happily because he was about to let go of his longing for the woman he admired. He impatiently pressed the apartment bell.
Calista, who was just about to clean up the glasses used by Beni and Mira, immediately snorted in annoyance after hearing the bell rang. She roughly opened the door.
"Yes, uncle..." Her sentence hung with her mouth gaping, seeing the man he missed the most now standing in front of her.
Without waiting long, she immediately rushed into his arms.
"I miss you so much."
However, Leonard didn't react to her hug. Calista then let go of the hug. She wondered why Leonard looked at her coldly.
"Don't you miss me?" Calista asked.
"Uncle, who is he?" Leonard's voice sounded cold, tickling Calista's ears.
The grey eyes silhouette narrowed perfectly as if asking, 'what do you mean, honey?'
"Who is that uncle who just visited your apartment, huh?"
Leonard's words tickled Calista's hearing. Of course, it hurt Calista's ego. Her loyalty has been in doubt by the man she loved the most.
"So what if there is an uncle who visits my apartment?" Calista's voice started to rise.
"You're disloyal!" Leonard growled.
"So you accuse me of being unfaithful?"
"Then what is the proper name for a woman who intentionally puts uncle into the apartment, huh?"
Leonard's gaze locked on the grey eyes silhouette. His footsteps were getting closer and closer, pressing Calista's body between the walls. His soft lips curled into a wry smile.
Calista didn't think that the man she loved the most could think this small, accusing her of being an immoral woman.
Seeing the tears running down her smooth cheeks made Leonard even sicker. One thing that was etched in his mind was all women were the same. They always issued a mainstay stance, namely crocodile tears.
"You can't solve all problems with tears!" Leonard approached with a glint in his eyes.
"Your tears don't apply to me at all, UNDERSTAND?" Leonard snapped in a voice that rose to the point where it was deafening.
🍁🍁🍁
Next chapter ...