Rain had been falling since the afternoon when Selena stood at the edge of the sidewalk on Sudirman Street, watching vehicles crawl beneath the city lights. Rainwater dampened the ends of her hair sticking out from beneath her small black umbrella. There was nothing particularly special about that day—just another exhausting workday, as usual. Yet, for some reason, a strange feeling made Selena want to pause for a moment and enjoy the sound of rainfall amid the bustle of Jakarta.
Selena was a twenty-six-year-old woman who worked as an editor at a small publishing company in the downtown area. Every day, she traveled along Sudirman Street, watching people run after the clock, workers absorbed in their phones, and drivers growing impatient in the traffic jam. To her, Jakarta was a place full of noise, but it often felt incredibly lonely.
"Selena, you haven't gone home yet?" a woman's voice called from behind her.
Selena turned and saw her best friend, Naya, standing there with a work bag and a yellow umbrella.
"You haven't gone home either?" Selena asked with a small smile.
"I was going to leave right away, but seeing the rain like this made me lose the motivation. What about you? Why are you still standing here? Don't tell me you're enjoying your rain drama again."
Selena laughed softly.
"It's not drama. I just like the atmosphere."
Naya raised an eyebrow as she studied Selena's face.
"You've been daydreaming a lot lately. Is there something on your mind?"
Selena was silent for a moment. The question was simple enough, but it was enough to bring her thoughts back to all the things she'd kept to herself for so long.
"I just feel like life is moving too fast, Nay. Sometimes I want to stop for a while."
Naya gazed at her friend gently.
"You think about everything by yourself way too often."
Selena didn't answer. She only watched the rainwater flowing along the street. There were so many things she'd never told anyone: about the past that still left scars, about someone who had once made her believe and then left without an explanation, and about her fear of opening her heart again.
After saying goodbye to Naya, Selena walked toward the bus stop, gripping her umbrella tightly. Her steps slowed slightly when she saw a man standing beneath the awning of a building, trying to shield several sheets of paper from the rain. He looked panicked as the wind nearly sent some of his papers flying.
Without thinking, Selena approached him.
"Excuse me, your papers are about to fall."
The man startled and quickly grabbed several sheets that had nearly landed in a puddle.
"Oh, right. Thank you. I didn't realize the wind was this strong."
Selena helped pick up a sheet that had fallen near his feet. As she handed it to him, she saw the handwriting at the top.
"A note for someone?" Selena asked without meaning to.
The man smiled faintly.
"You could say that. But maybe they don't want to read it anymore."
Selena fell silent for a moment at his answer.
"Then why keep writing it?"
The man looked at the rain falling in front of him.
"Sometimes people write things without intending to send them. Sometimes it's just so their hearts feel a little lighter."
His answer made Selena think of herself. She often wrote down all kinds of things in her personal notebook too, but she'd never dared show them to anyone.
"I'm Selena," she said, extending her hand.
The man looked at her hand for a moment, then shook it.
"Arga."
The meeting was brief. There was no long conversation, no extraordinary story—just two strangers meeting because of the rain. Afterward, they walked in opposite directions, leaving behind a street still filled with the sounds of vehicles and falling water.
Yet that night, Selena kept thinking about their brief conversation.
When she arrived at her apartment, Selena set her bag on a chair and made herself a cup of warm tea. The small room where she lived felt as lonely as usual. She took out the brown notebook she always kept in her desk drawer.
The notebook contained many stories she'd never shared. There were stories about happiness, sadness, anger, and someone who had once been an important part of her life.
She opened to a blank page and began to write.
"Today I met someone in the rain. Weird, huh? I don't even know who he is, but his words made me think."
Selena stopped writing and stared at the sentence.
"Am I too quick to remember strangers?" she murmured.
Her phone chimed. A message from Naya came in.
"Are you home yet? Don't forget to eat. Don't just drink tea and go to sleep."
Selena smiled when she saw the message.
"I'm home. Yes, Mother Naya," she replied.
A moment later, Naya sent back a quick response.
"Good. Oh, and don't forget the morning meeting tomorrow. Don't be late again."
Selena shook her head with a quiet laugh.
"Yes, boss."
The night grew late. The rain outside began to stop, leaving behind wet streets and beautiful reflections of the city lights. Selena stood by her apartment window, gazing at the high-rises that were still lit up.
She didn't know that the brief meeting on Sudirman Street would become the beginning of many changes in her life. She didn't yet know who Arga really was, why he was writing a letter that would never be sent, or why fate had brought them together on a day so full of rain for them both.
To Selena, it had been an ordinary day.
An ordinary rainfall.
An ordinary meeting.
At least, that's what she thought.