DREAM OF THE SHADOW

CHAPTER 57

Yuna woke up at 7am and rushed to the breakfast place at the hotel she was staying at. Hunger he had been resistant from last night because he was lazy to eat. He took a warm sweet tea with chicken porridge to warm his stomach. Yuna was sending a message to the driver who would drive her to Gianyar when someone placed a sausage and omelette in front of her.

"I'm sorry I didn't order it." she told someone who put the plate down. And he was even more shocked when he saw who was sitting in front of him.

"Dylan!!! What are you doing here?" His surprised expression was very funny to Dylan.

"I told you to reply if you don't want me to come to you."

"But how???"

"Stop using English with me hahaha..."

"I'm just surprised. But how did you get here? I thought you were in Jakarta."

"Continue eating, you seem to be hungry. I'm not going to Jakarta because my office is here Yuna. I think I told you before." Dylan bit his sausage. Yuna frowned while thinking.

"Maybe I forgot" he said briefly while spooning his porridge.

"So how do you know I'm here?" ask again.

"My driver's been following you since getting off the bus."

"You got people following me?"

"not trailing. Just wanted to make sure you survived the hotel. Who told you not to return my messages all day."

"Sorry.I'm just screwed up." The truth about Shua and her drunkenness keeps Yuna from holding her phone all day. And when he read Dylan's message, Yuna fell asleep.

"Why don't you just call?" yuna asked confusedly.

"I did's. But you didn't answer. And after you got to Bali, I decided to meet you in person. And here I am." explained Dylan.

"Ok, it's good you're here." Yuna's words confused her because she was afraid Yuna would get angry.

"Recycle your food, Dylan. Please take me to Gianyar. The car I ordered couldn't make it in time and I canceled it because you were here."

"Gianyar?" dylan asked puzzledly but he quickly finished his last piece of sausage.

Arriving at Luwih House, Yuna dropped her backpack off Dylan's car and said goodbye to him.

"I have to go in" he said.

"Seven days you'll be here. Then next Tuesday you go home" said Dylan.

"Wednesday." Yuna.

"I'll pick you up."

"No need for Dylan. I'll go back to Jakarta." Dylan was surprised by the news.

"Please..At least give me some time to take you around here in my town. Friday you go back to Jakarta."

"I.can't. Sorry."

"Thursday. Go home Thursday. I beg you." Dylan.

"Ok, okay. I just got home Thursday. Satisfied?" Yuna laughed and Dylan nodded happily.

One week Dylan won't meet Yuna. He should start getting used to it if he does not want to get sick more later.

Yuna will take a meditation class at Luwih House. He needs it to start calming his mind and mental health in order to make the right decisions in his life. For one week he will also let go of everything related to the outside world.

Day after day Yuna passed peacefully there. He began to think clearly. Let go of all her guilt to Shua. He is also confident in the decisions he will make. Yuna will try it even though she does not know the end she will get.But this is not just about Shua. Yuna will also return to her work for the sake of balance in life. His family, friends, and love life should all be balanced. At least that's what he got while meditating in a week.

"Hi's beautiful." Greet Dylan. Yuna saw the man wearing a black suit complete with his tie, very different from Dylan adventuring with him.

"Well.well...Look who's coming. The man in black? Haha..." Yuna laughs. His backpack was instantly taken over by the man he was surrounding.

"Don't laugh like that, I'll fall in love with you. I'm straight out of the office, I can't go home."

"Did I trouble you?" Yuna got into the black sedan.

"Of course not. I was going on leave for you, but there was a meeting I couldn't leave." she replied.

"How's meditation? Am I the answer to your prayer?" Dylan laughing.

"Haha...You haven't changed. Always funny. Whereas I used to think Cathy was a cold widower."

"Huh? A widower? Is that how I am?"

"Yes.we thought you must be married, but we didn't find a picture of you with a single woman."

"Stalking me?"

"Cathy, not me." Yuna dodged.

Dylan takes Yuna on a culinary tour and visits some old temples.

"There's a place you want to go to Yuna?" tanyakanya.

"Unthought. I have never visited the temple before, its history is amazing. Not arrogant, but the average tourist attractions in Bali I have visited."

"of course. Let's go to your house!" Yuna's excited.

After a twenty-minute journey, they arrived at a beautiful mansion. Beautifully manicured gardens and trees filled the house. In fact they had to pass through a path that split a koi fish pond before entering the house.

"Bah...Your house is so beautiful, Dylan." praise Yuna.

"Old house" he answered.

"My parents used to love decorating the yard, my mother said, so we are not surprised when we see heaven. That means maybe heaven is as beautiful as our yard." Dylan opened the door to his house. It is an old house, but it is very big. It seems Dylan hasn't changed the interior much.

"Sit, Yun. I'll change my clothes for a minute." Dylan leaves Yuna while calling someone he calls "Mbok" and asks her to bring Yuna some tea.

Yuna stood up while looking through the photos with the frame of the wood carving model hanging on the wall. No photos of Dylan growing up. All of them were photos of when he was little, probably in SD. Happy photo when he was still with his parents.

"Please drink, Non." Yuna turned her body around and saw a gray old woman.

"Thank you, Mbok."

"Non is so pretty."

"My name is Yuna Mbok, just call Yuna." The old woman smiled kindly at Yuna until she became misbehaved.

"Sorry Mbok. Is there something wrong with me?" ask Yuna.

"No. Nothing, Non. It's just that it's been a long time since Dylan has brought a woman home. Especially as beautiful as Non."

"Ah..It could be." Yuna was sure her face was meeting red right now.

"Mbok, why aren't there any photos of teenage Dylan?" tanyakanya.

"Dylan doesn't like to be photographed since the death of his parents. That's their last photo." The Mbok shows a picture of Dylan's eleventh birthday. Her picture with her parents and a spiderman tart in the middle.

"Oohhhhhh..." Yuna could not comment. He did not expect Dylan to have been orphaned at such a small age.

"What's Yuna's story?" Dylan hugged the shoulder of the woman who was only as high as the man's shoulder. They seem very familiar.

"Just say Non Yuna is beautiful." she replied.

"Yes, so beautiful, Dylan hasn't managed to get it Mbok hahaha..." Yuna hit Dylan in the stomach slowly while glaring at him while the man just laughed.

"Yuk, I'm taking a tour. Behind many fruit trees."

"Mbok Niluh who took care of me since childhood, especially since my parents are not there" he explained as he walked into the backyard. Dylan had already changed his clothes to a white T-shirt with a black tick logo on his top left combined with long jeans and ash sneakers.

"He's the one who's taking care of you?" Yuna followed the path side by side.

"There's Agus. She's only a year older than me. Mbok Niluh's nephew. Agus who keeps this house and garden remains beautiful. There's still Om Theo. He's papa's sister. Om Theo took care of the company and taught me everything. Five years ago he left me, too."

"wwwS...So sorry." Yuna stroked the man's arm.

"It's ok. It's just that my world feels lonely. Work and work. Until I met you, my life became more alive." said Dylan, staring at Yuna until she was mistaken.

"That's a Dylan mango. Wow.that's great." Yuna walked faster towards a mango tree. Dylan just laughed funnyly at the woman.

"You want? I'll call Agus to pick it for you."

"No. I just love seeing it that big hanging on a tree. Waaahh..your house can be used as a place for Dylan's agro-tourism. Mango, starfruit, sapodilla, rambutan, and crazy you have a durian tree."

"The durian bears fruit once every three years. Too long. But it tastes amazingly good. I'll bring you here if it's fruitful. Maybe next year."

"I'll try to come if I can" Yuna said as she looked up at the small durian high above her.

"What time is your ticket tomorrow?"

"Ten in the morning. You wanna drive me?"

"Yes. Sure oes. I'll even have breakfast with you tomorrow." Dylan would certainly make the most of his final hours with Yuna. Although Yuna did not tell him anything, Dylan could see from the twinkle of his eyes that he had already established what his choice was. And the choice wasn't Dylan.

*****

'Adit, tomorrow I'll go to work.'

A message came in from Yuna while Adit was tidying up his briefcase. Adit quickly pressed the call button on top of that message.

"Yunaa!! You were missing for almost a month. Where the hell is that?" The opening sentence when the call was answered.

"It's been a month, too, Dit. I was so lazy to answer your phone."

"You home now?" Adit quickly snatched his suit and rushed out of the office.

"Yes. Don't try to go home. I'm gonna take a break. Bik Sum won't open the door for you." The firm words from Yuna just made Adit lose his spirit.

"See you tomorrow at the office." Yuna closed.

Adit took a deep breath. At least Yuna had returned and made her days calm now. Especially when Joshua called him, Adit seemed to want to rampage at him. If it wasn't for Joshua's appalling condition in his opinion, Adit would've hit him. How could Joshua who always defended Yuna in front of her, say how much he loved Yuna, just take it off.

*****