CURTAINS OF THE PAST

STILL A SECRET

"For Ma, morning Pa." Toni greeted the two middle-aged parents whom she had already considered her own biological parents, that morning. Bobi and Chellin seemed to have been waiting for their arrival at the dinner table.

Toni came holding his wife's hand in formal attire attached to their bodies.

"By the morning too, dear." Chellin smiled and looked at them.

"Iffah, are you ready to go to the office today?." Ask Bobi with a sparkling face to see the closeness of the newly married husband and wife.

"Thank God, sir." Sahut Iffah while brushing his smile

"Darling, as your husband calls Papa, so too do you call your Father-in-law." Tegur Chellin showed warmth as an old man in the house.

"O, mm well Ma..." Iffah is still nervous and awkward.

"Well, that's how Iffah should be. We've become a family, you don't have to be shy and awkward facing us." Bobi added. "Oh yeah, Ghali how's it going, Iffah? Why didn't he ever come here?" Tanya Bobi remembered about her only sister Iffah.

"He's good, m Pa... Maybe he's a little busy in his office." Iffah tried to answer Bobi's question by calling the middle-aged man with a papa call, as Chellin requested.

It was a little awkward, but like her husband. He will get used to it afterwards.

"How should Ghali be invited to stay here?" Chellin.

"That's good, Ma." Sahut Bobi agreed to his wife's proposal.

Iffah looked at Toni as if asking her husband for advice.

"I'd be happy if my sister-in-law lived here." Toni said as if not to bother about it. "This house is too big for the four of us, yes Ma, Pa." Added again. Bobi and Chellin agree on Toni's true words.

"Thank you Ma, Pa. Iffah was very pleased with your generosity." Iffah said with teary eyes. It was seen that he was very happy, visible from the wide smile that was on his lips.

"Yes, let's have breakfast. Later in the afternoon, after you two get out of the office, you pick up Ghali." Break up Bobi fast.

Iffah nodded happily at it. She was so grateful, even her marriage to Toni did not separate herself from her only sister who had been protecting her for that long.

******

"Why see me that?." Toni who focused on driving her car felt astonished at his wife was not all-out as they began to depart from the house earlier.

"You seen? Didn't you just focus too much on driving?." Iffah was a little surprised when arrested Toni was watching the face of her husband.

"It doesn't mean I can't see it, does it?" Toni turned her head slightly as she gently stroked the back of Iffah's hand.

"Aren't you ashamed?" Toni questions the Iffah.

"A little bit..." Iffah measured it with her pinkie fingers while blinking one eye.

Toni laughs at the behavior of Iffah who has revealed his closeness. He was so happy with the honesty of Iffah to express his feelings from the smallest thing.

"Thank you, Antoni." Iffah said softly while continuing to look at Toni's face.

"Thank you?" Toni scrunched her forehead and turned her handsome face towards Iffah for a moment.

"Hu um, thank you..." Iffah nodded her head.

"But thanks for what?" Toni turned back to Iffah who did not stop looking at her.

"For all-things. You made a place for me to keep coming back to you. I won't even be able to go-away anymore." Iffah lirih.

"I'm happy for that." Toni took back her gaze straight down the road. "There's one more thing I'm gonna do for you, Iffah." Toni looks sad.

"What's that?" Iffah shrugged her shoulders to find Toni's face intact in her eyes.

"It's still a secret, okay?" Toni smiled as she gently stroked the head of Iffah covered in blue black pasmina syar'i.

"But not for long, yeah." Pinta Iffah doesn't mind it.

"okay... God willingly as soon as possible." Toni brushed aside the smile behind her heart's anxiety.

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