Today should have been the happiest day of Emeera's life. After dating for three years, her lover had finally come to propose. But fate had other plans. Emeera couldn't accept the marriage proposal for one reason or another.
“Why can't you accept my proposal, Emeera?” Evan stared at his lover with deep disappointment. “We've been dating for three years. Tell me the reason. Why can't you accept my proposal?”
Just one week ago, they had even discussed their wedding plans. Evan had come to Emeera's house with everything prepared, imagining that day would mark the beginning of their new life together. But instead, what he heard was a rejection.
His heart shattered.
Tears soaked Emeera's cheeks. The girl could only lower her head, unable to utter a single word. She felt ashamed. Truly ashamed to say it in front of so many people, especially in front of Evan's parents.
“Emeera, don't disgrace your father and mother! Hurry up and tell us why you're turning down dear Evan's proposal!” Emeera's father snapped, his face red with anger.
“Dear, calm down. Let Emeera answer slowly. She looks like she's under pressure,” Emeera's mother said, trying to calm her husband, who was consumed by emotion.
Emeera slowly lifted her face. Tears were still streaming down her cheeks. Her lips trembled before she finally said something that had been unbearably difficult to reveal.
“I'm pregnant... and I don't know who the baby's father is.”
Everyone fell silent.
Emeera drew a deep breath, then continued in a trembling voice.
“There was no way I could accept your proposal when you're not the baby's father.”
Emeera felt utterly ashamed. But she had no other choice. She had been pressured to give them a reason, and it was impossible for her to lie to everyone.
Evan let out a harsh breath. His chest felt tight after hearing his lover's confession.
How was that possible?
During the three years they had been together, Evan had never even touched Emeera. He had always protected her. To him, Emeera was an innocent woman who deserved to be respected and protected until they officially became husband and wife.
He still remembered how shy Emeera had looked when they first met. She always lowered her face whenever their eyes met.
But now...
Had she been deceiving him all this time?
Was Emeera's innocence nothing more than an act to trap men, including him?
“We're truly disappointed in you, Emeera.” Evan's mother's voice was cold. “We thought you were a respectable woman. But it turns out you're no different from the paid women out there.”
The woman then took Evan by the hand.
“Evan, let's go home. Don't ever see a cheap woman like her again.”
Evan said nothing. He only stared at Emeera for a few moments, his eyes filled with pain, before finally following his mother out of the house.
Evan's father, who had remained silent all this time, gave Emeera's family an impassive look. Then he left as well, following his wife and son.
As soon as Evan's family left, Emeera's body seemed to lose all its strength.
“Hic... hic...”
She sobbed uncontrollably before finally prostrating herself in front of her father.
“Dad... forgive me. I've disgraced you.”
“Who is the baby's father?” her father demanded. His hand clutched his chest, which had suddenly begun to hurt. “Answer me, Emeera!”
Emeera cried even harder.
“I don't know, Dad. I didn't see his face.”
Her honesty made the atmosphere even more silent.
Emeera truly didn't know who the father of the baby she was carrying was.
One month ago, she was raped by a man she didn't know on her way home from the office.
“Emeera, aren't you going home?”
Emeera turned when Kasya, her coworker, appeared beside her desk.
“It’s already four in the afternoon. The office is closing soon, too.”
Emeera shook her head.
“I think I’m going to work overtime again.”
Emeera had been working overtime for the past two days because she had a lot of paperwork to finish. All of it had to be submitted to her supervisor tomorrow morning. She couldn't take it easy, especially since the work was related to the company's finances.
Emeera was one of the finance staff at a manufacturing company in Jakarta. She had only been working there for two months. Since she was still a new employee, she had to be very patient whenever her supervisor assigned her various tasks.
Including overtime like tonight.
“Then I’ll head home first.” Kasya gently patted Emeera's shoulder. “Be careful on your way home later.”
Emeera gave her a faint smile.
“Yeah. You be careful too.”
Kasya then walked out of the room.
Emeera watched her friend's back grow more distant until it finally disappeared behind the door.
She let out a long breath, then leaned back in her chair for a moment.
“My life is really something. I've only been working for two months, and I'm already being given such difficult assignments.” She sighed, then smiled faintly at herself. “But it's okay. At least I get overtime pay. Keep going, Emeera!”
She clenched her fist in front of her chest, as if cheering herself on.
After that, she returned to her work.
Time passed without her noticing.
Until finally, the clock showed ten o'clock at night.
Emeera raised both hands above her head, then stretched the muscles in her neck and back, which felt stiff from sitting for so long.
She had finished her work two minutes earlier.
She let out a relieved breath.
It seemed tonight would be her last night working overtime. Tomorrow, she could finally rest and spend time with her father and mother.
Emeera gathered the paperwork scattered across her desk, then placed it in a box filled with documents that had already piled up.
After making sure everything was neat, she stood and slung her bag over her right shoulder.
She walked out of the room.
The office looked deserted. Almost all the lights had been turned off. Only the lights in the finance staff room were still on.
Emeera turned on her phone's flashlight to light her way.
Once outside the office, she decided to walk to the bus stop. She hoped there would still be public transportation running at this hour.
However, after sitting and waiting for thirty minutes, not a single vehicle stopped at the bus stop.
The streets were growing emptier as well.
“It's weird that there aren't any public minibuses passing by at this hour,” she murmured.
Too tired to keep waiting, Emeera finally decided to walk home.
It'll be fine, she thought.
The distance between the office and her house was only about two kilometers. She could still walk it. It would count as exercise, even if her legs might feel sore tomorrow.
Emeera started walking along the sidewalk.
The area around her was completely deserted.
As time passed, the hairs on the back of her neck began to stand up. For some reason, she had a bad feeling.
She hugged the bag she was carrying more tightly.
Every now and then, Emeera glanced behind her.
At first, there was nothing there.
But a little while later, she saw someone walking not far behind her.
A man wearing a black jacket with a hood covering part of his face.
Emeera began to panic.
She quickened her pace.
The man quickened his pace as well.
Emeera's heart began pounding harder.
She started running.
But because she wasn't watching where she was going, her foot caught on something, sending her body tumbling to the ground.
“Ow!”
Emeera tried to get up.
But the man had already caught up with her.
“Let go! Help!”
Emeera screamed at the top of her lungs.
But before her voice could carry any farther, a hand clamped over her mouth.
A handkerchief with a strange smell was pressed over her nose and mouth.
Emeera struggled.
But her body slowly began to lose its strength.
Her vision blurred.
The last thing she saw was the man curling his lips into a crooked smile.
After that, everything went dark.
The next morning, Emeera woke up in a hotel room.
Her body was aching.
She stared blankly around the room before slowly realizing what had happened to her.
Her body was covered in reddish marks. The lower half of her body was in excruciating pain. Meanwhile, the clothes she had been wearing were scattered across the floor.
Emeera's chest felt tight.
Her hands gripped the blanket tightly.
Tears began streaming down her cheeks again.
“Hic...”
She held back the sobs that had been trying to break free.
What was she supposed to tell her parents?
What was she supposed to tell Evan?
She felt completely shattered.
And what hurt most was that she didn't even know who the man who had done all this to her was.
After her sobs had eased a little, Emeera slowly climbed down from the bed.
Her legs felt weak.
She picked up the clothes lying on the floor. Some parts of her clothes had even been torn.
With trembling hands, Emeera put the clothes back on.
Then she left the hotel room.
She staggered down the hallway.
Several people who passed her stared strangely. Her shirt shoulder was torn, her hair was a mess, and she wasn't even wearing any shoes.
Emeera didn't care.
She just wanted to go home.
Why did she have to suffer such a terrible fate?
What had she done wrong?
As soon as she reached home, Emeera went straight into the bathroom.
She doused herself with cold water.
Then her hands scrubbed her body again and again.
The more she scrubbed, the more disgusted she felt with herself.
“I'm dirty...” she whispered.
Tears soaked her cheeks again.
“Come on, get up.”
Emeera's father took hold of his daughter's shoulder and helped her stand.
Guilt gnawed fiercely at his heart.
He had just shouted at his daughter without knowing what had really happened.
“Forgive me,” he said in a trembling voice. “You didn't do anything wrong. You're the victim here.”
Emeera's father then pulled his daughter into his arms.
His hand stroked Emeera's still-trembling back.
His heart ached.
What father's heart wouldn't break upon learning that his daughter had been hurt by someone else?
He had protected Emeera with everything he had.
And yet he had been unable to protect his daughter from a man they didn't even know.
Emeera's mother began crying when she saw the scene.
Their only daughter, whom they had protected all these years, had become the victim of a stranger.
What could they do to make Emeera strong again?
They couldn't arrange a marriage for Emeera just to cover everything up.
The only way was to find the man who had done all this to their daughter.
“Sweetheart...” Emeera's mother approached her. “Did you see that man's face? Or do you have any other evidence? We have to find him. He must take responsibility for everything he did to you and for the baby you're carrying.”
Emeera slowly shook her head.
“I didn't see his face.”
Then she reached into her pocket.
“But I found this.”
Emeera took out a round pendant and handed it to her father.
Emeera's father immediately took the pendant.
He opened it.
Inside was a photograph of a man.
Emeera's father's expression turned serious.
“This must be the man.”
His hand closed tightly around the pendant.
He was certain that the man in the photograph was the one who had destroyed his daughter's life.
And he would find that man.
No matter what it took.