Stela swung her leg lazily. She slipped both hands into the hoodie she was wearing. Her gaze stayed lowered, avoiding R's eyes, which hadn't left her face this whole time.
The girl was startled when it was R's hand that stopped her. She didn't want to think negatively about his presence, so she shielded herself with the idea that it was just a coincidence. Yeah, maybe they were meant for each other, like those old sayings.
R simply guided Stela to sit on one of the benches in the indomart rest area. The boy set down two instant coffees and several snacks to keep them company. But so far, only the wind had been blowing. Neither Stela nor R wanted to start a conversation.
Stela felt something strange in herself. It was unusual for her aura to be this fierce yet obedient. Maybe it was the effect of waiting for Sanas, who still hadn't arrived, or maybe it was something else. Stela didn't want to admit it.
R got up from his seat and went back into the indomart. Seeing that, Stela immediately took out her phone and contacted Sanas again. She'd die of awkwardness if she stayed with that guy much longer. She also didn't want to go home empty-handed.
A plume of smoke appeared in front of Stela. Apparently, R had bought cigarettes and confidently lit one right in front of her. Even though the girl was used to cigarettes, for some reason she didn't like it this time.
"If you want to smoke, don't do it here," Stela scolded him.
"Then where? Besides, there's no 'No Smoking' sign here. So it's allowed, right?"
"You're fine. I'm the one who's not."
"Aren't you used to being around cigarettes? There have to be plenty of people doing this at the bar, right?"
Stela felt offended. She immediately stood up, intending to leave. R quickly grabbed her hand.
"Where are you going?"
"None of your business."
"You can't just do that."
"Why not? I thought you were used to leaving girls behind, just like what I'm doing now."
R made Stela sit down right beside him. He stubbed out his cigarette in the ashtray and stared intently at the girl. His hand was still gripping Stela's tightly. Strangely, the girl didn't pull away.
"Sorry if I offended you. I just want to talk to you, Stel."
Stela saw an unfamiliar expression on R's face. His intimidating look seemed to crumble through his constantly blinking, sparkling eyes. The girl quickly shook her head, trying to come to her senses.
"Your approach isn't exactly classy," Stela said.
"What do you mean?"
"Was bringing up the past really the only thing you could talk about?"
R fell silent. He really wasn't good at things like this. Deep down, all he wanted was to sit, talk, and spend as much time as possible with Stela. Honestly, R didn't know much about the girl. No wonder he was floundering now that Stela had called him out.
"I want to get closer to you. Can I?" R asked.
Stela didn't answer. She only grinned and shook her head again. R knew that meant rejection. But why was the girl smiling? It made him start thinking all over again—a thing R really hated.
Stela forcibly pulled her hand free from R's grasp. She immediately got up and walked toward Sanas. The woman had just gotten out of her car. Before Sanas could greet her, Stela grabbed the woman's hand and led her back to the car, leaving R still rooted to the spot.
"Let's talk inside."
"Thanks, Stel. I'm glad you're willing to cooperate with us."
Sanas was overjoyed. It showed in her bright expression. Stela nodded, though she wasn't entirely happy with her decision. Still, she was grateful for this outcome, because the best decisions were the ones you didn't regret.
"I hope things go the way we want after this, Sis."
"You don't have to worry," Sanas assured her.
The woman quickly hugged Stela. She thanked her once again for lightening her burden. As soon as they got Stela's statement, Sanas's colleagues in the police department began moving and sent an arrest warrant for Ramon.
Sanas slowly explained each step they would go through. She also made sure Stela knew that witnesses would be protected by law. She emphasized that Stela would be fine.
But Stela's face said otherwise. Though she was smiling, her expression looked anxious and strained. Sanas noticed and immediately lifted Stela's bowed head.
"What's wrong?" she asked.
Stela shook her head. "It's nothing, Sis."
"When a woman says it's nothing, it means the opposite."
Stela smiled. She couldn't lie to the older woman.
"I'm okay, Sis, as long as everything turns out all right."
Sanas simply nodded. Her gaze shifted to the boy, who was focused on staring at her car. The woman had even forgotten to ask why their conversation had moved to the car when they'd originally agreed to meet at the indomart.
"That's R, right? The Co-Founder of Immersion's son?"
"You know him?"
Sanas nodded. "His father was a police officer who once worked at my office. But after getting divorced, he moved to another city. R used to come to the office with his father, so quite a few of us knew him. What business do you have with him?"
Stela remained silent. She herself was confused about what business she had with R. The boy seemed to love coming up to her. But Stela didn't want to get too full of herself.
"I don't know, Sis. Ever since we met at the basketball court, he keeps coming over to me like this. Whether he does it on purpose or not, I have no idea."
"So you're telling me an important man's son has a crush on you now?"
Stela reflexively smacked Sanas's arm. The comment made her squirm. But the girl's expression changed immediately when she realized there was one troubling word in it. A crush. Maybe R really did like her. No one knew.
"I don't want to jump to conclusions, Sis."
"Why not?" Sanas asked, puzzled.
"I know my place, Sis. What would a conglomerate heir want with a poor girl like me? If this were a TV melodrama, it'd be impossible."
"Who says you're poor? You can already support yourself. You live in a big city on your own dime. How much richer do you need to be, Stel? If your definition of being rich is having a lot of money, then you'll never feel worthy of R—or any other man, for that matter."
"But, Sis—"
"But what?" Sanas cut her off. "Everyone is rich as long as they feel like they have enough. No matter how wealthy someone is, if they never feel satisfied and are always asking for more, they'll feel poor forever."
Stela didn't dare interrupt. She turned her gaze toward R, who was busy fiddling with his phone. The girl was startled when her own phone vibrated. It turned out the boy had sent her a message.
I'm waiting here. Don't take too long.
Sanas saw the message clearly. She watched Stela's face as the girl remained transfixed by the phone screen. As an older woman, she could sense the attraction between the two of them.
"Looks like I'm interrupting your date, huh?" Sanas teased.
"No, Sis. We just happened to run into each other."
Sanas chuckled softly. She gently stroked Stela's cheek. Then the woman leaned closer and took Stela's hand.
"Remember this, Stel. Every relationship begins with a similarity the two people discover in each other. Then that similarity melts into identical habits that quietly take root. But by nature, a couple will always be different, because if they were the same, they'd be called identical. Like a bottle and its cap—they have different shapes, but together they make one whole."
Sanas paused. She held both of Stela's cheeks and turned her toward R. The girl didn't resist at all.
"Don't bow your head just because of a difference. God made you two this way on purpose, so you could learn, fall, get back up, and then fall again. Everything has meaning."
Not a single one of Maria's calls was answered by R. The woman was exhausted from pacing back and forth, worrying about where her son was. Instead of resting, the boy had gone wandering off somewhere without telling anyone.
Maria had also contacted R's two best friends, but to no avail. Her son wasn't with them. Neither Dean nor Loen even knew about the relapse he'd had today. Maria grew increasingly suspicious of R's behavior lately.
"Pras!" Maria called to one of her secretaries.
"Yes, ma'am?"
"Call Alif and Yanuar. Tell them to start following R again."
"But, ma'am. Mas R said—"
"We'll worry about whether he gets angry later."