A New Laptop for Lala
Naila actually wanted to ask Ardi everything that very morning. Several times, the questions rose to the tip of her tongue, but she always stopped herself from saying them. She knew her husband too well. If there was really nothing going on, Ardi would surely think she was overreacting. On the other hand, if he was hiding something, Ardi might not tell her the truth either.
Throughout the trip to the office, her mind remained filled with all sorts of possibilities. She tried to remember when the change had begun.
Ardi hadn't been a romantic man before, but at least he used to listen to her stories after work. They often had dinner while talking about simple things, from the neighbor who had just moved in to the vacation plans that were always postponed because of financial problems.
Lately, everything had changed without her realizing it.
Their conversations had grown fewer. Ardi was more often busy with his phone. Even when they were in the same room, it felt as though there were an invisible distance between them.
Naila had wondered whether the change was because of her. Maybe she was too busy with work. Maybe she was too tired too often. Or perhaps it was because they still hadn't had children after several years of marriage.
But whenever those thoughts arose, she always remembered everything she had done for their household. She worked, helped pay the mortgage, covered her husband's family's needs, and repeatedly sacrificed her own desires to keep their relationship peaceful.
If all of that still wasn't enough, then what else was expected of her?
That night, while Ardi slept soundly beside her, Naila's eyes remained open as she stared at the dark ceiling. The name Rani and the photo sent from an unknown number kept spinning through her mind without end. She repeatedly tried to convince herself that it might all be a misunderstanding, but the more oddities appeared, the harder it became to ignore them.
Finally, just before dawn, exhaustion overcame her tangled thoughts.
Morning came too quickly.
As on previous days, Naila woke first, prepared breakfast, and got ready for work. Though she had barely slept all night, she still tried to go through her routine as usual. She didn't want Ardi to see that anything had changed.
If something had to be revealed, she wanted to find the answer herself first.
Throughout the trip to the office, her thoughts drifted back several times to the photo sent by that mysterious person. But her mountain of work forced her to set aside all her worries for the time being.
The day went fairly smoothly.
Mr. Rudi even informed her that Nexora's first project client seemed pleased with their work and had begun opening up opportunities for further collaboration. The news lifted her spirits a little. Amid the household chaos that was slowly eating away at her peace of mind, at least one part of her life was moving in a better direction.
Toward evening, while Naila was organizing documents before heading home, her phone rang.
Ardi's name appeared on the screen.
Ardi rarely called her during work hours unless something important had happened.
"Hi, honey?"
"Nay, don't take too long getting home, okay?"
"What's going on?"
"We're going to the computer store."
"The computer store?"
"Yeah. To buy Lala a laptop."
The words immediately reminded Naila of their conversation a few days earlier.
Hadn't that issue been left unresolved?
Hadn't she never agreed to the request?
"Ardi, I thought we were still going to discuss it first."
"What else is there to discuss?" Ardi replied casually. "Lala really needs a new laptop."
"The one she has can still be used."
"It can, but it's not very comfortable anymore."
"That's what Lala says."
"Well, she's the one who uses it."
She began to realize that this conversation wasn't actually meant to ask for her opinion. Ardi was merely informing her of a decision that had already been made.
"We'll talk about it at home, Ardi."
"Fine."
That afternoon, for the first time in a long while, Naila felt exhausted from facing the same pattern over and over again. Whenever someone in Ardi's family needed something, her opinion was always treated as unimportant. All they needed was her money.
When she arrived home, Widya was already there.
The woman sat comfortably in the living room, chatting with Ardi and Lala, who had come with her husband.
The moment Lala saw Naila enter, her face lit up.
"Kak Naila, you're finally home."
"Yeah, Lal."
"Come on, let's go to the computer store now. I've already picked out the model I want."
The words brought Naila to a stop.
"You've already picked one?"
"Of course. I chose it yesterday."
"Ardi, I never said I agreed."
The atmosphere in the living room suddenly grew a little awkward.
But before Ardi could answer, Widya spoke up first.
"Naila, it's just a laptop. Why are you making such a big deal out of it?"
"The problem is, Mom, the old laptop is still in good condition."
"It's good enough by your standards. That doesn't mean it's good enough for the person using it," Lala quickly shot back.
Naila tried to keep her voice calm.
"If it were broken, I would understand. But the laptop is still working perfectly well."
Lala immediately pulled an unhappy face.
"All my college friends are already using the latest models."
"So that's the real reason?"
"What, am I supposed to be worse off than them?"
Naila could hardly believe what she was hearing.
While she had to calculate every expense just to make it to the end of the month, Lala was asking for a new laptop simply because she wanted to keep up with her friends' lifestyle.
Seeing that his sister was getting upset, Ardi quickly joined in.
"Nay, you know Lala's situation."
"I know the state of my bank account too, Ardi."
Her words plunged the living room into sudden silence.
For the first time, Naila had said it outright.
"Why have you become so stingy?"
Naila looked at her mother-in-law.
"I'm not being stingy, Mom. I'm just trying to be realistic."
Lala gave a soft snort before speaking in a tone that instantly made Naila's chest burn with anger.
"But Kak Naila has a big paycheck."
The words slipped out just like that, as though all of Naila's hard work had always been meant to fulfill their needs.
Naila stared at her sister-in-law for a long moment. There wasn't the slightest hint of gratitude in her eyes.
All she saw was the certainty that Naila would pay for everything, just as she always did.
And that was when something inside Naila began to change.
She no longer wanted to keep being the person who always gave in.
But before she could say anything, a message arrived on her phone.
The message came from a payment app.
The moment she read it, Naila's face went rigid.
A five-million-rupiah laptop down payment had been successfully processed under the name Naila Pratama.
"Ardi..."