A man stepped into his son's bedroom. He snorted when he saw Arrayyan still curled up under the blanket. Slowly, he climbed onto the bed and reached out to stroke his son's hair. For a moment, Arsyan felt sorry for his son, who had never experienced a mother's love.
When Arrayyan was two years old, Arsyan's ex-wife, Alyana, filed for divorce. The woman didn't want to live in poverty. At the time, the Arkatama family's company was on the verge of bankruptcy. Fortunately, after six years of struggle, Arsyan managed to restore the company to its former glory.
"Sweetheart, come on, wake up. You said you wanted Mama to take you to school," Arsyan said, making his son open his eyes wide.
Arrayyan had agreed to Alisya becoming his stepmother. At their first meeting, he had already fallen in love with the maternal nature of his papa's future wife.
In about two weeks, Arsyan and Alisya would be getting married. Arrayyan's future mother sincerely loved both Arsyan and his son. Even so, she sometimes received snide remarks from people claiming she was only after the Arkatama family's wealth. In reality, that wasn't true at all.
Eight-year-old Arrayyan couldn't wait to see the woman he already called Mama. At least through Alisya, he could experience a mother's love. Not like his biological mother, who had left him and his papa behind.
"Array's going to take a shower first, Pa. Tell Mama to hurry and get ready so Array won't be late," Arrayyan said before running toward the bathroom.
They planned to pick up Alisya and then take Arrayyan to school.
While they were dating, Arsyan had only dared to kiss and hug his girlfriend. He hadn't dared to do anything beyond those two things, even though Alisya herself didn't mind.
Arsyan was incredibly impatient for their wedding day to arrive. That would be when he could have Alisya completely to himself.
While waiting for Arrayyan to get ready, Arsyan went to see his mother in the dining room. He glanced at Anatasya, who was spreading his son's favorite chocolate spread on a slice of bread.
A quiet chuckle from her eldest son made Anatasya pout. Especially when Arsyan grinned after receiving sweet words from his girlfriend. Alisya really knew how to win this widower's heart.
Future Mrs. Arkatama
|Go take a shower already |Array's taking one too
Arsyan shook his head. His girlfriend's bad habit of constantly putting off her showers was very difficult to break. Alisya had to be told to take a shower first; only then would the young woman hurry to clean herself up, whether it was a day off or she had a late start at work. As it happened, they weren't going straight to the office today. Instead, they were going to a friend of Anatasya's boutique that specialized in wedding gowns.
"Grandma!! Array's socks are gone!!"
Arrayyan's shrill yell sent his papa hurrying to the boy's room. Arsyan sighed when he saw his son rummaging through the closet that their housekeeper had already organized.
"Look properly, Ar. Jumi put all your clothes in the closet yesterday," Arsyan said, stopping his son as the boy pouted. "Now just sit down. Papa will look for them."
Obeying his papa's command, Arrayyan sat on the edge of the bed and waited for his black-and-white socks to be found. While other people could call their mothers to look for an item that had suddenly disappeared, Arrayyan only had his papa and his grandma.
Arrayyan furrowed his brow when a pair of socks was finally found. He had already looked, but still hadn't seen them. The annoyance building in his heart boiled over when Arsyan put the socks and shoes on his feet. After that, he carried Arrayyan's bag as well. They walked side by side toward the dining room for breakfast.
"Good morning, Grandma," Arrayyan greeted her with a bright smile.
"Good morning, Grandma's grandson. Eat breakfast first, okay, sweetheart? You don't want to feel weak at school later." Arrayyan nodded and immediately ate the chocolate-spread toast his grandma had given him.
After breakfast, they said their goodbyes. Arsyan held his son's hand as they left the house. He told the house security guard to open the gate. However, his eyes caught sight of a girl whose behavior made her look crazy. How could he not? She was repeatedly hitting herself on the head.
"Papa, let's go! Array can't wait to see Mama Alisya," Arrayyan said, pulling his papa from his reverie.
A smirk appeared on Arsyan's face. Deliberately, he honked the car horn. He almost burst out laughing when his target jumped in surprise.
For a moment, Arsyan studied the girl's clothes. They looked familiar. He guessed she was the modest Muslim clothing model from yesterday.
The girl standing with her back to the gate clutched her pounding chest, making Arsyan smile victoriously. Just as she was about to turn around, he honked the horn again. The widower felt satisfied when Anatasya's handpicked model jumped in surprise for the second time.
"Papa, why do you keep honking?" Arrayyan complained, feeling annoyed. Arsyan's only son hadn't noticed Aishla because he was busy playing a game on his papa's phone.
"It's nothing," Arsyan replied as he began driving away from the house.
It didn't take long for them to reach Alisya's apartment. Neither of them got out because the young woman they had come to pick up appeared first and opened the front passenger door. Alisya gave her future son a warm kiss on the forehead. Feeling jealous, Arsyan clicked his tongue and glanced toward the back seat.
"Array, move to the back seat," he ordered, making Alisya giggle.
"It's okay, Honey. I can hold Array in my lap," Alisya replied, making Arrayyan squeal with delight.
The boy stuck his tongue out at his papa, feeling victorious because his future stepmother always took his side. Arsyan, meanwhile, had to give in yet again. Every time the two of them met, Alisya focused her attention on Arrayyan, making Arsyan feel as though he was competing with his own son.
For a moment, Arsyan felt certain he hadn't made the wrong choice in choosing Alisya as his future wife and Arrayyan's mother. The young woman often told stories, just as she was doing now, and Arrayyan always listened enthusiastically.
Their relationship had grown closer since Arsyan proposed to Alisya. It wasn't unusual for Arrayyan to ask Alisya to take him to school or pick him up whenever his papa or grandma had something to take care of.
"Mama, will you pick Array up later?" Arrayyan asked the woman who had now lowered herself to his height.
They had just arrived at the elementary school. Arrayyan was in second grade. The boy smiled proudly at the people looking in their direction, as if showing them that he had a complete family too. Today was the first day his papa and future stepmother had taken him to school.
"You got it, sweetheart," Alisya replied, then kissed both of Arrayyan's cheeks and his forehead. "Study hard, okay?"
Arrayyan nodded quickly and planted a kiss on Alisya's right cheek before running toward the school gate. Arsyan, who witnessed his son's actions, was left gaping, but the next second he immediately put on a blank expression.
One of Arsyan's eyebrows rose when Alisya planted her hands on her hips. The young woman gave him a demanding look, as if Arsyan had done something wrong.
"Honey, are you seriously incapable of smiling?" Alisya asked, sometimes feeling exasperated. Arsyan never smiled when he was in public. Only she received the smile that could make any woman swoon.
"My smile is only for you," Arsyan replied as he opened the car door for his girlfriend. Alisya pouted and reluctantly got into the car.
"Arsyan Ayandra Arkatama!" Alisya called, raising her voice to show that she was on the verge of losing her temper.
Arsyan sighed. He stared deeply into his girlfriend's eyes. The corners of his lips were forcibly pulled upward until they formed a wide smile, which spread to Alisya as well.
"Yes, sweetheart."
"There you go, smile!" Alisya cheered as she rested her head on her boyfriend's shoulder. "You know, seeing your expressionless face this early in the morning is enough to make my eyes hurt," she continued to grumble, earning only a hum from Arsyan.
The man often received protests and complaints from her. However, he never got angry. Instead, he found her adorable. He felt like biting Alisya's chubby cheeks.
"Honey, Aunt Giska texted that she can't make it this morning. Her husband was admitted to the hospital. How about late afternoon or tonight?" Alisya relayed the message from her future mother-in-law's friend. She studied her boyfriend's profile, waiting for his response.
"Let's do it another day."
Alisya nodded in agreement and sent a reply. The young woman's attention shifted when the four-wheeled vehicle came to a stop. Before they knew it, they had arrived at the office. Arsyan asked his girlfriend to go inside first because he had something to take care of.
After Alisya left, Arsyan's gaze sharpened. He clenched both hands when he saw the person who had long disappeared from his life. She was wearing a skimpy black outfit that stood out sharply against her bright red luxury car.
It was Alyana, Arsyan's ex-wife, who had returned. Arsyan's instincts told him that the woman had no good intentions, considering the betrayal she had committed in the past.
Alyana had initially been leaning against her car, but she immediately straightened when the person she had been waiting for appeared. She took off her sunglasses and looked Arsyan up and down. His physical condition hadn't changed; if anything, her former husband looked even more muscular.
"What business do you have here?!" Arsyan snapped, enraged to see the source of his past wounds standing before him. "Remember, the two of us have nothing to do with each other anymore!!"
"Ah, looks like you've forgotten. I'm the mother of our child. I'm Arrayyan's biological mother," Alyana explained as she clung coquettishly to her ex-husband's arm, only for Arsyan to roughly brush her off.
The man's chest heaved as he held back his emotions. Alyana often teased him. Lately, the woman had been trying to force her way back into Arsyan's life now that his wedding day with Alisya had been set.
"Leave!! Before I call security to throw you out!!!" Arsyan ordered, walking away from the unwelcome guest.
Alyana watched her former husband's back as he moved farther and farther away. Both her hands clenched tightly. No matter how long it took, she would keep trying to get Arsyan back. "Just watch. You'll see what I'll do to get you back, Arsyan!"