That weekend, Nara and Arka sat at their favorite little café, a laptop open between two cups of coffee—an Americano for Arka and hot chocolate for Nara, who had been quietly avoiding caffeine for the past few weeks.
“Take a look at this,” Arka said excitedly, turning the laptop around. The photo gallery showed a wedding venue with an open-air garden and beautiful hanging lights.
“A coworker of mine said this place is really popular for outdoor wedding ceremonies. What do you think?”
Nara studied the photos, her eyes lighting up. “It’s gorgeous, honey. But it must be hard to book. Places like this are usually booked a year in advance.”
“I already asked. We can still get a slot next month, but we have to pay the down payment this week.” Arka looked at Nara hopefully.
“So? Want to go check it out next week?”
There was a fraction of a second’s pause before Nara nodded, beaming. “I’d love to. I’m actually really excited.”
They talked about the little details—the color theme, the guest list, the clothes they might wear. Nara laughed freely at Arka’s decorating ideas, which she thought were far too ambitious for their budget.
But in the middle of their conversation, the world suddenly seemed to spin around Nara. Her head began to throb, her vision blurred, and she instinctively grabbed the edge of the table.
“Na?” Arka stopped talking immediately, watching Nara’s face turn pale.
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing,” Nara answered quickly, closing her eyes for a moment until the dizziness eased a little.
“Maybe I’ve been sitting too long and haven’t had enough water.”
Arka immediately handed her a glass of water, his expression turning serious.
“You’re sure you’re okay? You looked really pale just now.”
“I’m really fine, Arka.” Nara drank the water slowly, trying to steady her breathing.
“Maybe my blood sugar dropped. I didn’t eat breakfast this morning.”
That was a lie. Nara had already eaten breakfast. But the small lie slipped out on its own, easier to say than the truth that could suddenly bring all the beautiful plans ahead of them crashing down.
Arka still watched her anxiously, but finally nodded slowly. “All right. Let’s have lunch first, okay? We’ll skip checking out the venue if you’re not feeling well.”
“I really am feeling better,” Nara assured him, forcing the most normal smile she could manage. “Come on, let’s keep going. I can’t wait to see the venue in person.”
They continued their conversation, though this time Arka glanced at Nara now and then, his eyes more watchful than usual.
On the way home, Nara sat in the passenger seat, staring out the window while secretly pressing the area around her lower back, where the pain had returned. Her phone vibrated—a reminder for her hospital follow-up appointment next week, falling on exactly the same day they had planned to inspect the wedding venue.
She stared at her phone screen for a long time. The two conflicting appointments seemed like a metaphor for her life now—a world full of hope on one side, and the reality she kept hiding on the other.
Nara slid the button, rescheduling her follow-up appointment to another day without anyone knowing—for the third time this month.
From the driver’s seat, Arka glanced over and saw Nara seemingly busy with her phone. “Who are you texting?”
“No one,” Nara replied quickly, locking her phone. “Just a promotion from an online store.”
Arka nodded and returned his focus to the road, unaware that the small distance that had just opened up between them was far greater than it appeared—and would continue to grow in silence until Nara was ready to open up about it.
To be continued in Chapter 5