Forced Mate

First Day

Ayu moved uneasily. He squirms and begins fumbling side-by-side looking for Alex. His eyes immediately opened as soon as he realized that there was no one beside him.

He blinked his eyes and immediately woke up. He searched with eyes that circulated everywhere. He began to roll down, his feet moving to reach the slippers of the house. His steps were slow and somewhat staggering, one hand rubbing his eyes towards the bathroom. There he washed his face with warm water.

With her long curly hair, she curled up before exiting the room and looking for her husband. He leaned back with a smile beside the refrigerator looking at Alex who was ready with his pants shirt, while rubbing jam into the bread.

"Sleep well, honey?" Alex's eyes lifted looking at Ayu, her lips curving beautifully at the woman.

"Why not build?" ayu protests who are now beside Alex. Both hands hold a white table in the form of a bar table connected directly to the chair as a dining table.

Alex put the plate forward. His hands were free from the activity of preparing a circular breakfast at Ayu's waist. He also gave a small kiss of Ayu's temple, then whispered a good morning.

Both of Alex's hands went up on Ayu's shoulders. He led her to the other side of the table. Then pull one seat for Ayu. "I've prepared the same milk breakfast. Eat first, yeah."

She refused to sit down. His eyes were fixed on the tie perched on both of Alex's shoulders. "Want me to install it?"

Not waiting for an answer, Ayu grabbed two sides of a dark blue silk tie with an armi green box motif inside.  Looks match the light sky blue shirt worn by Alex.

Alex's eyes locked onto Ayu's face concentrating on putting on the tie. Every now and then he smiled as Ayu's eyebrows frowned, confused on how to put a tie well. The sound of the woman's gusts rang out until Alex gave a small laugh.

"Let me alone then," said Alex feeling sorry for Ayu who looked frustrated.

Ayu smashed the tie in her hand violently. "Your tie is too slippery, so be it."

"It's okay, honey." Alex kisses Ayu's head. "I'm asking you to stay here not to cook a tie." This time he pinched softly Ayu's cheek.

Ayu takes her place in the chair that Alex has just pulled. In front of him was jam-filled bread and omelets. I don't know, but maybe it's Alex's breakfast. Never once did the man make breakfast other than bread and eggs.

"You eat first, yeah. I want to get ready" said Alex stroking Ayu's head.

Not yet answered by Ayu, Alex has breezed away from the place. Ayu decided to start drinking the juice in front of her. After that it began to devour two layers of bread as well as egg rolls on its plate. He doesn't know why, his appetite increases every time he eats Alex's cooking.

He turned around after hearing the knock on the shoe with the floor. Behind him was Alex who was ready with a dark blue suit matching his pants. The tie that was also installed neatly with a gold pin brace.

"You didn't have breakfast?" ask Ayu.

"I asked to be fed" asked Alex who was now sitting in a chair beside Ayu.

Ayu starts cutting off some of the bread left on the plate and feeds it to Alex.

"You want to drink this milk too?" Ayu offers her pregnant mother's milk to Alex.

"Can."

Laughing, Ayu gave her glass of milk that still had half on Alex.

"Ordinary milk taste. I thought something was different," Alex said.

Ayu laughed again. "Yes obviously the taste of milk, the time yes the taste of coffee. How, anyway." He continued, "not that you said I could come to the office."

Alex grabbed a tissue and wiped his mouth before replying, "yes, I have a meeting first. I'll pick you up when it's done."

Ayu nodded slowly, after all she still wanted to rest a little. Lately he has become more lazy than usual, preferring to stay in the beds.

"You don't have a driver, Lex?" ayu asked after remembering Alex was driving everywhere by himself. In addition, when they want to register the marriage, Alex also asks Jonny who picked up.

"I don't like drivers, Yang. More efficient, more independent too."

Ayu nodded again. Behind the impression of luxury owned by Alex, the man was also good at frugality. Just look at the apartment unit he has, although the furniture is luxurious, but the unit is only a studio unit that is not so spacious. When not busy, the man also beberes himself. Hire a cleaner only a few times a week.

"I go first" said Alex. He gave another kiss on Ayu's forehead. "Before lunch I pick you up, so you can have lunch together."

"Okay," Ayu replied, smiling before waving at Alex who started walking.

"I love you!" alex shouted after opening the door.

Ayu turned around and saw the door was closed. He just smiled a little, his cheeks ran like ripe tomatoes.

After cleaning the cutlery he was using, Ayu went into the room to pick up the car lying on the nightstand. He dropped himself in bed while surfing social media. He smiled with satisfaction, feeling freedom from the workload. No more worrying about sales and transactions. He's a high-paid unemployed now.

While humming, he looked at his Instagram account. He is not active on that one network, so the notification is not active. His eyes widened seeing the notification there piling up.

There are a lot of comments that go into his photos. Though, all this time he could still live quietly because not a single crazy affairs netizen knew his account.  Now, he even has more than a thousand followers after opening his account lockdown.

Ayu began to grumble because again many comments that compare him to one of the actress who is a former Alex. Hard-line fan base who knows. Just see what Ayu will do to avenge them.

***

Alex parked the car, then took the elevator to his apartment unit. He brought the cooking ingredients he would make to Ayu.  She called because she was a little late, asking Ayu to pick a lunch spot. However, the woman said she wanted to eat only Alex's cooking.

Arriving at Alex above, she is greeted with a smile Ayu. The woman grabbed the groceries in Alex's hands and led him to the kitchen. Vegetables and also chicken can be removed Ayu and began to be cleaned one by one.

"Let me cook, honey."

"I'll help, you're tired. Still got to get back to work, right?"

"Yes, you cut the vegetables!"

"What do you want to do?"

"I want to eat chicken salad. You want to stir-fry chickpeas, don't you?"

Ayu simply nodded, then continued her work. They cook together while occasionally throwing jokes. Ayu feels happy moving in with Alex, she is no longer lonely and worried in her heart.

"Lex, this is you!" Ayu showed all the comments that came in on her Instagram photos. "You're using all my tags, anyway" Ayu was upset when they walked to the parking lot.

"Not to think about it, honey. They're nobody either" Alex asked.

"Where can I not think that I believe this." Ayu continued to scroll through every comment that came in. "Now, I said I was fat, ugly, an item."

Alex's laughter airs. He leaned both of Ayu's cheeks and smiled at the woman. "They're Stella's crazy fans, don't take it. You feel fat, ugly, that item, that?"

Ayu. "But I'm a little fat, right?"

"That's the effect of Dede Bayinya, honey," said Alex. He grabbed Ayu's hand and held her.

"Lex, kiss here!" Ayu pointed at her right cheek. Alex takes off the seat belt that has been installed and briefly kisses Ayu's cheek. The camera's voice is heard. "Udah, no," asloh Ayu.

"You really want to lure them?" cetus Alex when he saw Ayu smiling win.

"They dare to start war with me" Ayu muttered with her arms dancing on the screen. "Some of me need some entertainment." Ayu then giggled.

"Yes, it's okay. But, remember, your doctor says you shouldn't have much thought."

Ayu nodded slowly. He showed me the picture he had taken and the short caption below, 'Mine ... My Mine ... Mine'.

***

"Good day!" cleo welcomes Alex and Ayu. Ayu greeted back, but Alex just walked straight into her room.

Ayu's eyes circled in Alex's room. He walked closer to the glass to see the beauty of the bay of Singapore from a height. Alex's office is located on the 50th floor and offers a beautiful panorama of the city. He likes to be in that room.

"If you're tired, you can enter the room. There are also books you can read."

"I'm here first" said Ayu who was at home with the view in front of her.

Ayu was now sitting on the sofa with the lemin tea that Cleo had brought. In sipping tea and occasionally glancing at Alex who was discussing something with Cleo, business matters of course.

Feeling bored, he finally decides to go into Alex's dugout. The room is not so spacious, there is a folding sofa that serves as a place to lie down or just relax. There were shelves filled with books, proving just how crazy Alex was at the bundle of paper and writing.

However, there were some frames attached to the wall that caught Ayu's attention. There are three frames that are clinging to each other; the first contains a picture of a boy and girl who are smiling while holding hands, the second is two teenagers who are so embracing, he said, and the last is an adult figure that sticks each other's cheeks with a face filled with scribbles of cream in front of the chocolate cake.

Three different frames containing the same two people, Alex and Tamara. Three pictures taken at different times, but with the same smile. Ayu becomes increasingly aware of how much Tamara means in Alex's life.

Ayu takes one frame that she guessed was taken while Tamara was in college. If you look at the look of the woman's hair, then it's a picture of Tamara's 20th birthday. He didn't come because there was a family event.

Jemari Satu wiped the picture of the two men. She was glued to the beautiful smile inside. They look very happy. I don't know why there's any worry in him. For no reason he suddenly felt as if he was a barrier to the smiles on both faces.

***