“Ki, you will be my girlfriend, right?” Angga, Kinan’s best friend, held out a bouquet of flowers in the middle of a crowd of students who had just come out of class.
Kinan never expected Angga to do this. Why hadn’t he told her beforehand that he had feelings for her? The girl glanced around. So many people were staring at them, and she could hear their whispers.
Kinan slowly accepted the bouquet Angga offered her. The corners of his lips curled upward, his smile radiating confidence.
Suddenly—
Smack!
A bare fist slammed into Angga’s strong jaw. An uproar erupted.
“Hey, loser. How dare you try to steal my girl? Don’t you know who Bram is?” Bram, the campus mascot, pointed at Angga’s face as he lay sprawled on the ground after being punched.
“Bram, don’t hit him,” Kinan said. She approached Angga to help him, but Bram grabbed her hand.
“Kinan’s my girlfriend now. Don’t you dare come near her again, got it?!” Bram shouted, drawing an even larger crowd. But Kinanti simply stood there, neither looking at Angga nor trying to help him.
Once he was done cursing him out, Bram kicked Angga in the leg. Then he dragged Kinan away, leaving Angga heartbroken and humiliated. From that day on, Kinanti never saw Angga on campus again. None of his social media accounts could be accessed. Every line of contact with Angga had vanished.
Until one afternoon, the office where Kinan worked received a visit from the man she had spent so long searching for and missing. But that man was now completely different. Angga’s smile was no longer as warm as it had once been. His gaze now looked cold, cruel, and terrifying to Kinan.
And now she was trapped with this man—not only at the office, but for a full twenty-four hours a day. Becoming his kept wife!!
Kinan gave a faint shake of her head, her heart fluttering with worry. Could Kinan win Angga’s heart back? Could she make him become the way he used to be again?
During the body treatment, the girl could only brood. She stared blankly at the mirror reflecting her light-brown body. Fear ruled her soul.
“Ki, don’t you want a boyfriend?”
“No, Ngga. What do I need a boyfriend for? I want to get married right away.”
Angga ruffled Kinan’s hair. They gazed at each other, then laughed brightly. Handsome face, charming smile—Angga had only one flaw: for some reason, he was sometimes insecure. Kinan always supported him, encouraging him to be confident and appear in public. On campus, Angga was friends only with Kinanti. Memories of the past flashed through her mind again. She regretted not helping Angga right away back then.
“Miss, I’m finished. You’re absolutely gorgeous.”
“Thank you. Is this Mr. Angga’s house?” Kinan asked the woman who looked about her age.
“Yes, Miss.”
“Is Mr. Angga’s wife here too?”
“I’m not sure, Miss. You can ask Mr. Angga directly later. Excuse me.” The woman who had served Kinan took her leave.
Kinan stared at her reflection in the mirror. She really was beautiful, but what good was it if she was only going to be a kept wife—basically a mistress? It would be even worse if Angga’s legal wife found out.
“Ugh... This could go viral,” Kinan muttered.
Kinan spent the entire day in the bedroom. She treated the situation as a chance to rest, trying to calm her thoroughly chaotic emotions.
The sun had begun to sink in the west. Darkness slowly descended, and Kinan’s heart had been racing for a while now. The ticking of the clock sounded like a symphony ushering her life toward ruin.
Kinan kept her eyes fixed on the door. Footsteps sounded right outside the bedroom. Kinanti’s heart began pounding more erratically, filled with worry. But when the door opened, Angga wasn’t standing there. The girl’s breathing returned to normal.
“Miss, eat first. Sir said not to wait for him. After you eat, go ahead and sleep. If he can come home, he’ll be back tonight, but if his business isn’t finished, he won’t be coming home.” Ningsih, Kinan’s personal servant, explained.
Kinan felt relieved. She prayed that whatever problem Angga was dealing with would never be resolved. Her heart cheered at her own prayer, and a pleased smile curved her lips.
“Ahh... What a relief. Geez... He could’ve told me that this morning. I was already freaking out, and it turns out he’s not coming home.” Kinan rolled around on the bed, which she found incredibly comfortable.
Kinan stared at the bedroom ceiling. “Angga, you’ve changed so much. But why do you still keep chasing me? Still, I’m happy to know you really love me.”
Sometimes Kinan smiled; other times, she stared blankly ahead. Angga watched Kinan through his phone, looking at the woman without moving or showing any expression. His heart still pounded wildly whenever he thought of Kinan, but he also felt disappointed—and he wasn’t sure what this other feeling was.
“How is it?”
Angga closed the phone and slipped it into his suit pocket.
“I’ve found my woman. I’ve married her.”
“Good. She wasn’t paid to be your fake wife, was she?” Anwar asked, scrutinizing his grandson’s face.
“No, Grandpa. She was my college friend.”
“Why didn’t you make it public right away? You only had an unregistered religious marriage? And her guardian was a court-appointed guardian, and you got married without the bride even being present.” Anwar spoke suspiciously. “Did you force that woman?”
Angga looked away from Anwar. The old man always knew everything he did.
“We used to love each other, Grandpa. We happen to work at the same office now. I’ll make it public and take care of the official legal paperwork later,” Angga explained.
“Oh...” Anwar tapped his fingers, his mind turning over the matter as his eyes continued searching for the truth in his grandson’s behavior.
“Daddy...”
“Grandpa...”
The voice of a little girl broke Anwar’s concentration.
“Kayla, you’re not asleep yet?” Angga spread his arms and lifted the little girl onto his lap.
“Where’s Mommy?” Angga asked.
“Mommy work.” Kayla’s lisping voice answered adorably.
“Where did she go, Grandpa?”
Anwar didn’t answer. From the look in his eyes alone, Angga already knew where Kayla’s mother had gone.