Apparently, my best friend My in-laws

The Immaculate Love 78

“Where have you been, Al? Until last night not home?”

Alarik was silent, between wanting to tell a story or not. But then he chose to answer honestly. “I met yesterday with my son, Kak.”

“Putra? Son from where?” Claudya asked in wonder.

“My son with Kanaya,” says Alarik who still refuses to raise his face.

“You have a child?” The expression of astonishment was still not lost from the look on Claudya's face.

“Kanaya was pregnant at that time. When papa separates us.”

“Iya I remember. But reportedly your son died.”

“Actually no, Brother. He's still alive today. And I also just found out a moment ago.” Alarik sighed softly, unable to hide how sorrow was coloring his face which still looked handsome.

“Then how is the story?” claudya asked with curiosity.

“The story must have been predictable, Brother. He did not like to meet me, he was reluctant to admit me,” restless Alarik with the cloudiness that marched increasingly thick on the look of his face. There was a wisp of rain ready to slide also in his eye patch.

“And you punish yourself for it?” guess Claudya.

“Indeed everything I was wrong, Brother,” regretted Alarik with can no longer be counted how much sadness he weathered.

“Yes, you have admitted everything that happened as your fault. And you've been drowning in that guilt for years, Al. Is all that enough? Does feeling guilty make you feel comfortable? No ‘kan? There you are even more depressed.”

Alarik fell silent, because what Claudya said was true. Uncomfortable, it was the feeling he had been holding all this time. The taste that had soaked his soul in a long, endless bitterness.

“For Kanaya's departure, you have punished yourself, for more than twenty years. And now for your son's unwillingness, to acknowledge you as his father, you will punish yourself how long, Alarik?”

“That's for your son with Kanaya? Then what about your son from Sherin? Is your whole life just going to punish yourself? What by punishing yourself can you reverse the reality that has happened?” fawning Claudya with emotions that had been ignited in the chest.

ALarik. Because there was no word he could say. His soul was indeed shackled in guilt that seemed to find no edge. If the sea alone had its edges, the land would have its ends, but Alaric's guilt was like an endless road, and the sea had no edges. Till when?

“You know, Al, why did I say this?”

ALarik just shook his head. He's like a kid who can't do anything anymore.

“Sherin pregnant. She is pregnant with your child now,” Claudya said.

Then Alarik looked up in shock and stared as if in disbelief.

“Sherin is pregnant, and you are so busy with guilt for your first child that you ignore your other child. Later, after your son and Sherin grew up, you just realized that you've done something wrong to him. At that time, you will punish yourself with guilt. When are you gonna get, Al? Is your whole life just going to fill up by punishing yourself like this?”

Claudya took a deep breath along with the point of the spoken sentence. Because, the feeling of tightness feels squeezing the chest. When emotions surround the soul, when advising the only surviving brother in the world.

“Aware, Al! Because of your guilt towards Kanaya and her son, you did the same to Sherin and her son. Then why did you drown in guilt all this time, if you still repeat it again and again?”

Hearing Claudya's sentence, Alarik was awakened from a dream. For a long time he was still frozen, his gaze focused in one particular direction, but the gaze was blank with no meaning. It indicates that his mind is at work. Work faster than usual.

“I'm actually not a person who deserves to tell you all this. Because I'm a man who wallows with mistakes. There are so many mistakes I have made. But from that mistake I learned not to repeat it to anyone.” Claudya took her breath for a moment and rubbed a single point of her falling tears.

“Alic.” Claudya patted his youngest sister's shoulder. “Now the choice is in your hands, Al. If you really want to dedicate your whole life to endless guilt, go ahead! Continue what you think is right now. Your life is yours. What you want is up to you, too. But remember, Al. There will be a price you have to pay. If that's what you choose, you'll lose Sherin and your current son.”

And Claudya immediately got up leaving Alarik, just giving his sister time to think.

Alarik himself still remained silent, he had just moved to meet Sherin in the room, about twenty minutes later.

“What do you want, Sherin? Say it! Later I bring,” said Quinsha who was preparing to go home first, after the ashar adhan almost before.

“What do you want, mang?” chirped Aura who was sleeping on the sofa.

“Yes times pingin spicy food, wry food, young mango or whatever, it's up to Sherin. I'll bring you later,” sloroh Quinsha.

Sherin smiled at him. “Do not want anything, Sha,” he replied.

“Sherin just want Al,” chirps Aura again. And for a moment the room became adorned with crisp laughter because of the words of the Aura.

“I just want you to be careful, Sha. You drove yourself ‘kan? Don't speed, don't sleep, don't crash, don't get hit!” Sherin mentions a series of would-wanti for Quinsha.

“Together another one, Sha,” added Aura, which made Quinsha again twist her body to look at Damaresh's wife. “We also want you to immediately recognize your candidates with us.”

“Well right!” Sherin held up her thumbs.

“Sorry to disappoint you both. There is no marriage yet. If you are dating, there is,” said Quinsha with an expression of holding back laughter.

“Diiyain aja, Sha!” origin Aura.

“I want to date anyway, Ra,” grumbled Quinsha.

“Gak papa's. So gini, before going out, you guys got married first, so the courtship after halal, that is,” said Aura who again got a nod of approval from Sherin.

“Gak, Ah.” Quinsha. “He is not a priestly criterion of the afterlife for me,”.

“Yes, slow down. A soul mate will come from an unexpected direction. The important thing remains husnudzon and ask God for the best,” said Sherin accompanied by a gentle smile.

“Agree.” Aura gave her thumb. “But who the hell, Sha, are you dating? Fellow teacher at Nada Hikam huh?” he asked with a face full of curiosity.

“Not,” firmly Quinsha while shaking her head.

“What do the artist, Rafardhan Malik,” guess Aura. Quinsha was silent, she did not want to lie to her two friends but also did not want to honestly tell. Because it could be Rafardhan's offer is just careless.

“Near what the hell are you guys?” ask Sherin seriously.

“Nearly, really. It's just that nature always gives me the chance to meet him, ” Quinsha said, recalling his encounter with Rafardhan that always happens, again and again.

“That's a mate, Sha,” as always Aura.

“Gak, Ah. I don't want to be a match with artist.” Quinsha shook her head a few times.

“But wait, wait. Rafardhan's face is like a very familiar yes,” Aura cetus.

“Newly I also want to say, kayak Damaresh, not the hell.” Quinsha looked at Aura who was like she was weighing. Thinking and analyzing.

“More like Mas Alarik if in my opinion,” chirped Sherin.

Aura and Quinsha looked at each other, it seemed like they were the same in one thought. Unfortunately, the conversation could not continue, because Alarik had just arrived.

Sherin's husband took a break before the dhuhur, almost simultaneously with Claudya, who took a break to return to Jakarta. Because that guy since last night, hasn't closed his eyes at all.

After a moment of throwing smiles at Aura and Quinsha, Alarik approached his wife, lowered his head and kissed Sherin's forehead briefly like this. If the focus of Aura's attention is a very short duration romantic scene, but the focus of Quinsha's attention is precisely on Alarik's own face. And he found out the truth of Sherin's words there. Rafardhan's face looks more like Alarik than Damaresh William's.