Black Swan's

Olivia's Bad Storm (One Hundred Twenty Five)

            The atmosphere on the dining table looked very lively and lively. This time the Sian family made the dining table at the house of Aciel became more crowded than usual with every babble issued by Sian and the children of Aciel who were also eating their dinner with pleasure. Every now and then Louise throws her food at Justice who will be blown away by Louise's funny behavior.

            “Do not throw your food in the direction of Justice, dear.” Eden's memory began ferociously. Once or twice, Eden can still understand it. But if it was many times, he obviously had to take a firm stance to commemorate Louise.

            “Justice loved it mom.” reply Louise indifferently and she almost threw her vegetables again towards Justice. But his little hand was immediately gripped by Eden and held on the table like it had just been nailed so firmly.

            “Mommy...” whining Louise does not accept. But Eden's fierce glare soon silenced Louise's whimper which would soon turn into a cry.

            “No new toy if you make mommy angry.” threatened her mother earnestly and made Louise instantly bow her head in fear.

            “She was exactly Aciel when she was upset.” comments Sian with laughter. While Aciel who felt his name was mentioned only sniffed his shoulders indifferently. He felt understood if Louise inherited her angry nature.

            “See

since then you've just been quiet, are you sick, Liv?” eden asked suddenly which made the entire table occupant give a questioning look towards Olivia. Aware that her residence was arousing suspicion, Olivia with a cheery face made up immediately shook her head while devouring her vigorously.

             “I'm just starving.”

            “Yeah, didn't you feed him all day, Ed?”

            “What?” eden asked while throwing an annoyed look towards Aciel.

            “I gave her anything for her, but Olivia herself refused. You missed your lunch, Liv. It's worth it you're starving like this.” chirped Eden lightly.

            For Olivia, the delicious food in front of her was bland in her mouth as the feelings of anxiety continued to eat away at her mind. Sometimes he also wakes up in the middle of the night with a sweat and a pounding heart that hits his chest cavity hard. I don't know since when it became such an annoying nuisance to Olivia. What is clear is that all of that came after Eden raised questions about pregnancy. For God's sake, he was very afraid of the worst possibility he could get at any time.

            “Do you think we will use Scout Voyage again for the upcoming project?”

            “Kurasa. He has good work. So why not?”

            Olivia suddenly felt her body stiffen. That name, Scout Voyage. He remembered the man's name. The man who's been his nightmare for two months. In Olivia's heart groaned. He should not have remembered the man's name. The man should have no business with his husband. God will punish him. The man will accidentally come back into his life. At least the man will deal with Sian again like he used to. And it will lead him to an unexpected encounter with the man again. Nah! Olivia kept shouting loudly in her heart. He will never see that man again. This nightmare must be ended immediately without arousing suspicion from anyone.

-00-

            Cigarette smoke soared, filling every corner of the room with shades of gray that looks silent. The man with a cigarette in his hand and shorts stared in frustration at the results of his sketches that never found a bright spot because of the pettiness of his mind that did not immediately find the antidote. He thinks women

without a name it will just pass by, just like the women he usually dates every Sunday night. He thought he would be satisfied after having a long pleasant night with the woman. But unfortunately all that did not end easily after he managed to get the woman under his power. All night they fuck by the pool with the unconscious ruling over the nameless woman. And foolishly at that time, he did not have time to ask the name of the woman or get a little clue from the woman who had spent the night with him. Though usually a business card will be tucked behind his pillow after he finished doing hot activities with some women he met at the bar. But this time it was different, the woman was an honorable woman. Evident from his shy-looking attitude, and also the panic that the woman might feel when making love to him. It was clear that morning that he came to a realization with a void that gnawed at his empty heart. He had been left in unconsciousness without identity or without the clue that would lead him to the woman. He did not even realize when the woman left because he was too lulled by the comfort of their hot scars. Now he no longer knew how to find the black-shawed woman. Moreover, as he remembered the woman was not one of the employees of the Ford group whose identity he could easily find.

            “Who are you really?” erang Scout was frustrated as he exhaled the white smoke from his nose fiercely into the cold air as if mocking his frustration tonight.

-00-

            That night Olivia couldn't sleep. The shadow of the curse as he groaned

under the hood a man kept haunting him until he gave up

and decided to immediately rise from his sleep with a breath of breath.

           “Ya Lord..” Erang Olivia frustrated. As much as possible he did not cause a commotion in his quiet room so that he did not disturb Sian. He looked at the face of Sian who was so peaceful. The man is a man who has accepted all his shortcomings, donated one eye to him, and given a life worthy of his life which for many years was only filled with bitterness. How could he betray a man as good as Sian?

            With Sadness Olivia slumped her head on her knees and cried in silence. Sooner or later he needs to tell Sian everything. Even to his entire family. Eden, Aciel, Laila, Nathan, Kriss, Jessica. They are all people who will definitely think badly

about her. Dismissiveness cheats! He knows it. Even he himself felt inexhaustible why at that time he could be tempted just by the seduction made by a man named Scout on him.  Maybe alcohol is to blame for the fact that he cannot drink alcohol. He was weak in the drink. And before this he never drank it. He always refused every time Sian offered him alcohol. He preferred to drink juice while Sian was enjoying his alcohol while they were relaxing together. So obviously everything that happened to him in Florida was because he was drunk! He is not aware of all his actions. But unfortunately he was conscious enough to remember every sigh he let out for the man.

            “Olive..”.

            The hoarse voice surprised Olivia who was living her grief alone. Sian clearly woke up to the sound of his stuffing that had turned louder without him noticing.

            For a while Olivia was still fluttering in place with her head lowered which she had purposely hidden in the arms above her knees. He needed time to think about whatever reason he would lay on Sian who was currently starting to move up from his sleeping position.

            “Hey, what's the matter baby?” ask Sian rau. The man immediately grabbed Olivia's shoulder and pulled the woman into his warm embrace.

            “Nightmare.” replied Olivia as is. Didn't he lie about that? He had a nightmare because of the stranger.

            “What's bad?”

            “Very bad.” replied Olivia again in a hoarse voice. He further tightened his body to Sian who was hugging him tightly. Hugs this man, until whenever he will not be willing to lose it. Even if he had to lie for the sake of their togetherness, Olivia would have done just that.

            “I dreamed about my parents when those criminals came to the house. Their harsh voices are sometimes present in my dreams and make me feel the tension of being reminded again of those events.”

            “Ssshhh.. Now I will protect you. You don't have to be afraid of them anymore.”

            Olivia nodded faintly behind Sian's embrace. He would no longer be afraid of them because the existence of Sian by his side had guaranteed all his sense of fame. But Scout Voyage? He was not sure Sian would protect him from the man.

            “Hug me. Please.”

            Without being asked twice, Sian immediately hugged Olivia tightly and pulled the woman back to sleep. Tomorrow he still has a lot of work to do. His meeting with Scout Voyage was brought forward by Aciel because of the importance of the man to discuss the design of an additional plant to be built near the main office in Vegas. And as a financial manager, his existence should not be absent there because he must make sure all the development is in accordance with the budget they will spend for all parties, including Scout Voyage.

-00-

            Scout received a warm welcome from Sian and some of his staff who had been waiting for him this afternoon in the office lobby. With great hospitality the man drove Scout to the room of Aciel who had been waiting to see the results of his sketches.

            “How was your trip?” sian asked as they waited for the elevator that led them to stop on the floor where Aciel's room was.

            “Sufficiently smoothly. The air is so bright out there. And Vegas is hotter than I thought.” Scout deliberately spread jokes to make the atmosphere between himself and his business partner is warmer. And if he can be honest, today he is not feeling well. Lately he has been short of hours of sleep because he has to complete a sketch design that feels more difficult for him when his mind is disturbed due to the mysterious woman. Every night he just spent his time soiling his study with piles of paper while cursing loudly when the picture felt so bland in his eyes. There is no picture that seems alive from the scratches of his hands every time he forced himself to finish his sketches.

            “Extreme weather is indeed happening here. Daytime in Vegas will feel hot like hell, but at night, the temperature will be completely freezing. This weather anomaly makes us sometimes feel upset.” Sian's story is relaxed. When the elevator had been clanging hard and the door was automatically opened, Sian immediately allowed Scout to walk towards the room Aciel which did look most striking from the other room. The architectural style used for the Aciel room, recognized Scout is very classy and modern. The glass walls that line Aciel's room allow the man to stalk his employees from the inside, but employees from outside or guests never seem to be able to peek at anything that Aciel is doing in his room. A smart choice, Scout thought in awe. It could be said that his meeting with Aciel was a blessing to him. No one would refuse an Aciel Lutherford to cooperate. And he is one of the few lucky ones to have succeeded in stunning Aciel through the images he has made.

            “Ace, Mr Voyage has come.”

            “Oh, welcome Mr Voyage, please log in.”

            Scout was no longer surprised to see such a stark difference between Sian and Aciel. The two people did indeed have a very inversely proportional aura. Sian the rama and Aciel the haughty. No wonder Aciel was stiffer when she greeted him and told him to go into her room.

            “You can get out, I just need Sian and Mr Voyage in my room.” tell Aciel to two staff from the finance department who followed Sian into the room.

            “I really like the design of the building you designed for our branch in Florida. So for this project, I'm handing it over to you, Mr. Voyage.”

            Aciel immediately opened a conversation to shorten the meeting time between them. It just so happened that in an hour he had an appointment to discuss with the trade union, so the meeting with Scout had to be completed immediately to find an agreement.

            “Oh yes, Mr. Markle has told me. It's an honor to be working with you again, Mr. Lutherford.”

            “I will never hesitate to work with someone like you. So can I see the design you've made?” ask Aciel directly. And without being asked twice, Scout immediately unfurled some A3-sized paper on the spacious guest table of Aciel. He felt grateful enough to be able to complete five factory sketches for the Ford group amidst the chaos that had engulfed his heart and mind. But even so, Scout is still plagued with disbelief with the results of his sketches that feel very bland in the

his eye.

            “You draw very well.” comments Aciel while researching the sketches one by one. “This modern factory design is very fitting for the auto parts factory that I will build on an area of one and a half hectares in the east of the main office. But Mr. Voyage..” said Aciel with great gnawing.

            “Yes, Mr Lutherford?”

            Scout's back was tense as he waited for the next words from Aciel. He thought he had made a very bad sketch so this time Aciel was not immediately impressed like his sketches ago.

            “You forgot the chimney components in the roof part of the factory.”

            “Ahh yes.” timpal Scout feel stupid. He had forgotten the details of the building because his mind was in chaos. Again the woman that he must blame for all the chaos that befell him at this time.

            “Then the waste disposal funnel connected to the recycling tanker before the waste is drained out of the factory, you have not made it either.”, said Aciel again.

            Scout's confidence is now shattered in front of Aciel Lutherford. All of his sketches did not satisfy Aciel at all as he always forgot every detail that the new factory of Aciel desperately needed. With the resignation of Scout must admit defeat. He's not a lucky guy this time, like what happened to him yesterday. “I think I lack concentration when drawing it.”

            “Something's bothering you, Mr Voyage?”

            “That's how.” replied Scout resignedly. It's free he tangled in front of Aciel if in fact he was surrounded by anxiety because he thought of the nameless woman.

            “Then you can come back the day after tomorrow. I'll give you a chance to fix your sketches.”

            Scout could not help but smile in relief as Aciel still gave him a chance. In his heart he promised to work on the sketch as best he could. He would not let the woman interfere with his mind to disrupt the valuable dollar project of Aciel Lutherford.

            “I actually really like the design you made, but you need to add some details that I mentioned earlier.”

            “Thanks for the opportunity you gave me, Mr. Lutherford. It's an honor to work with you.”

            “Hmm, I consider your condition a natural thing that needs to be understood. Then you can continue the discussion with Sian because I have a schedule with the labor union.”

            “Sure Mr. Lutherford, don't mind me.” replied Scout lightly and immediately cleared up his sketches while Aciel spoke to Sian. He felt he did not have to interfere in their affairs at all. The whispers that could be heard in his ear were only a matter of budget that they had prepared for the construction of a new auto parts factory owned by Ford Company.

            “So Mr Voyage, do you want to talk further with me?”

            “Kurasa. I'll go back to the hotel and fix my sketches to show you the day after tomorrow.” Refuse the smooth Scout. He had his own plans before finalizing his sketches tonight. So he won't bias his unimportant talk with Sian interfering with his plans.

            “Then I will go to elevator.”

            “Thank you, you're so good.”

            The two of them then walked together to the elevator with small talk about their hobbies and life in general. According to Scout, Sian is an attractive man. It has such a thick nurturing aura. No wonder Aciel looks so familiar with Sian, more than a coworker. They both look like a family that complements each other.

Ting

            The elevator is clanging. Scout quickly shook Sian's hand as a farewell before stepping into the elevator whose door had just opened. But suddenly Scout felt his body freeze. His legs were nailed to the expensive marble floor he was on as his eyes were set against each other with brown eyes belonging to a long-blind woman who had lately messed with his mind.

            “Olivia, I've been waiting for you since, baby.”