That night, thick storm clouds blanketed the sky above the residential neighborhood. Claire sat at her desk, trying to pour all her attention into a sheet of math exercises. But her thoughts kept drifting back to Aru’s wounded expression beneath the angsana tree that afternoon.
Every time Claire closed her eyes, the warmth of Aru’s hand clasping hers came burning back into her memory. She felt guilty for leaving Aru just like that, but common sense kept whispering that running away was the only way to keep herself from falling apart even more.
Suddenly, the roar of a motorcycle engine stopping abruptly outside shattered the silence of the night. It was followed by a shrill, unmistakably familiar voice.
Claire jumped. She stood and hurried toward her bedroom window, pushing the curtain aside just a little.
In front of Aru’s gate, two people stood facing each other. The streetlamp clearly illuminated Aru and Claudia in the middle of a heated argument.
“What is your problem, Aru?” Claudia’s voice rang out, laced with impatience. “I just went out for a little while with some friends from Garuda High School. Why do you have to be so possessive?”
Aru stood with both hands clenched at his sides. “I’m not being possessive, Claud! You canceled plans we made a week ago just to go out with them! You didn’t even tell me until I asked you first!”
“So what?” Claudia folded her arms across her chest, looking utterly indifferent. “Do you think my whole world revolves around you? Besides, I’m bored, Aru. Every time I’m with you, we either talk about basketball practice or Student Council business. Don’t you get it? I’m bored.”
Claudia’s words drifted freely through the cold night air. From behind her bedroom window, Claire froze. She could see Aru’s shoulders begin to tremble faintly as he absorbed the sharp blows of the girl he loved.
“If you’re bored with me... why did you ask me out in the first place, Claud?” Aru’s voice suddenly softened, heavy with deep pain.
Claudia let out a long sigh and rolled her eyes lazily. “Because I thought you were different! I thought the captain of Nusantara High School’s basketball team would be fun and exciting. But it turns out you’re boring. You’re too innocent, too obedient, and honestly... you’re way too dependent on Claire!”
The name that suddenly came up made Claire hold her breath behind the window. Her heart began pounding erratically.
“Why are you bringing Claire into this?” Aru asked, his voice rising as he shielded his friend. “Claire has nothing to do with our problems!”
“Nothing to do with it, you say?” Claudia gave a scornful laugh and stepped closer to Aru. “Every time we have a problem, who do you run to? Claire! Every time you have to choose something, who do you ask? Claire! You’re dating me, Aru, but half your mind and attention are still stuck on that homebody girl!”
“Claire’s been my friend since we were kids, Claudia!” Aru finally exploded. “She’s always been there for me when you don’t even care about my feelings!”
“There! You’re comparing me to her again!” Claudia accused, pointing a finger at Aru’s chest. “If you really think she’s so perfect and she’s always there for you, why didn’t you just date her from the start? Why did you pursue me?”
Aru fell silent. His throat suddenly felt tight. Claudia’s question struck him like lightning in the middle of the night, leaving a strange, empty echo in his chest.
“Why are you quiet? I’m right, aren’t I?” Claudia smiled in satisfaction, a bitter smile of victory. “I’m tired, Aru. I don’t want to be in a relationship where I have to compete with my boyfriend’s own childhood friend.”
Claudia turned and hurried toward the red sedan parked at the end of the street—the car belonging to one of her friends, who had driven her there.
“Claud, wait!” Aru tried to chase after her for a few steps, but stopped in the middle of the road.
The red car’s door slammed shut, and it sped away, trailing a thin veil of exhaust as the roar of its engine gradually faded around the neighborhood’s bend.
Aru stood alone in the middle of the deserted night street. His back was hunched, and both arms hung limp at his sides. The drizzle that had been hiding behind the clouds finally began to fall, one drop at a time, soaking the boy’s shirt and hair.
From behind the window, Claire could no longer bear to remain a spectator. Aru’s pain spread into her own chest. Without thinking twice, Claire turned, grabbed the black umbrella behind her bedroom door, and ran down the stairs.
“Claire? Where are you going this late?” her Mom called from the kitchen.
“Just a second, Mom! Aru’s outside!” Claire called back hurriedly as she opened the front door.
Claire ran through the raindrops, which were beginning to grow heavier, and crossed the wet neighborhood street. There, beneath the cold downpour, Aru still stood frozen, his head bowed deeply.
“Aru!” Claire called.
Claire opened her black umbrella over Aru’s head, shielding the boy from the rain. Water dripped from the umbrella’s edges, creating a thin wall that separated the two of them from the outside world.
Aru slowly looked up. His face was wet—from the rain, or perhaps from tears mingling on his cheeks. His red-rimmed eyes looked at Claire with an expression of utter devastation and loss.
“Claire...” Aru whispered, his voice hoarse and broken.
“Are you crazy, standing out here in the rain?” Claire scolded him, trying to hide the worry surging in her chest. “Come inside your house, Aru. You’ll get sick.”
Aru didn’t move. Instead, he stared deeply at Claire, ignoring the cold stabbing into his skin. Claudia’s words still echoed violently in his head and heart.
*Why didn’t you just date her from the start?*
“Claire...” Aru called again, this time taking one step closer. “Why... why are you always here?”
Claire was startled. “What do you mean?”
“Every time I fall, every time I’m broken... you’re always the first person to run to me,” Aru said, his voice trembling violently beneath the roar of the rain. “Why do you do all this for me, Claire?”
Claire tightened her grip on the umbrella handle. Aru’s question, his wounded gaze, and the silence of the night closing in around them caused the wall of defense Claire had built over the past several months to collapse completely.
“Because I care about you, Aru!” Claire cried. The tears she had been holding back finally spilled down her cheeks, merging with the damp night air. “Because I’m your friend!”
“Just a friend?” Aru cut in quickly, staring into Claire’s eyes with an intensity he had never shown before. “Be honest with me, Claire... is that really all I am to you?”
A tense silence suddenly spread beneath the shelter of the black umbrella. The patter of rain striking the fabric sounded deafening. Claire stood trembling, realizing that the turning point she had feared most in her life had truly arrived.
To be continued...