Love Because Love
CHASING DREAMS
Laurel looked at her own face in the beautiful looking glass in her beautiful white wedding dress. Her wedding dress was filled with crystal knickknacks from top to end. Laurel believes her future husband spent enough money to buy this dress.
Freya who had accompanied him had given so many compliments about Laurel's beauty in the beautiful dress.
Laurel and her family left her papa estate a month ago after it was bought by a young businessman who is now getting married to her. Laurel looked at her new room, much smaller and simpler compared to her room in the old house.
For Laurel, it is not really a big deal if she has to move from her comfortable home to this simple house, but her stepmom's approval to sell the house and marry her to a man she does not know, it really made him desperate and disappointed.
The plan after Laurel married she will re-occupy her papa heritage house with her husband, while mama Denia and Freya will live in this simple house. Although the house had been purchased by Laurel's future husband, after they married her future husband wanted Laurel to have the house back as their wedding gift, in addition to the car gift, the couple said, a villa in the peak area, a pile of clothes, a box of jewelry, a dozen shoes and not to mention other gifts that had been prepared for her.
He seems to be quite a generous man, but if it is true that he is a good man why should his kindness be conditional? Laurel said inwardly with a cynical smile.
“Freya, sister will go to the bathroom first,” Freya who got the task of accompanying Laurel just nodded without putting any suspicion, arriving in the bathroom Laurel immediately made her makeup turn pale, making her face turn pale, the laxatives he had prepared from morning.
# # # # # # #
“Mama, Brother Laurel is sick!” Denia who is still busy preparing for their departure to the meeting hall to hold Laurel's wedding immediately runs towards Laurel's room, followed by Lina.
“Why are you kiddo?” Denia asked with a worried face, Laurel scrunched her forehead, while holding her stomach, her lips let out a hissing sound as it endured the pain.
“My stomach hurts a lot, it feels like fainting,” Lina, aunt Laurel who just walked in squinted one eye at Laurel.
“I will take Laurel to the hospital,” Lina approached the bed where Laurel sat holding her stomach, Denia who looked agitated immediately grabbed her phone.
“Wait a minute, I will ask the groom's side first,” Lina just nodded at the words of her sister-in-law, she immediately approached Laurel and sat down beside her.
I don't know what Denia was talking about to the groom's family, but a few moments later Denia looked out of the room for a while and after she held something back in her hands.
“Kak, we take Laurel to the hospital after she signed this,” Denia thrust something that immediately made Laurel and Lina's eyes widened, something Laurel had to sign on it was written “KARAH” LETTER.
“Ma, what does this mean?” Denia took a deep breath.
“The family there has been waiting for you for a long time, hearing you are sick they sent this, you just need to sign it, after that you can rest without having to follow the reception, you can take a break,since they have already announced that you are sick and heading to the hospital at this time,” Laurel glanced at her aunt, Lina immediately gave a gesture to comply with her mother's request. With half a heart Laurel signed the marriage certificate, without reading a word written there.
“Ah, then, let's go to the hospital,” Aunt Lina tried to help the pale and limp-looking Laurel to get up on her feet.
“Freya accompany sister huh ma?” With her innocent face Freya approached her mother for permission to accompany Laurel.
“Don't, you and your mama should be present at the reception otherwise this problem will be the talk of many people,” Denia looked at Lina because of her speech just now with a confused face, and, but what Lina said had a point.
“Alright, please take Laurel to the hospital, if there is anything please notify me, I will go to the building to give info about Laurel's condition,” Lina immediately nodded her assent.
“I'll help you change your clothes Laurel, there's no way you're going to the hospital wearing a wedding dress like that,” Aunt Lina pulled Laurel's body helped by another brother to walk, help her change her clothes, after which they both ask Laurel to walk to the front of the house and get into the car, continuing the journey to the hospital.
In the car Laurel immediately took the drug to stop the work of laxatives in his body.
“Come, we have to go to the airport immediately, the suitcases that you have prepared last week have asked the driver to take him to the airport as well, we will meet there to pick him up, we will meet there,” Laurel holds her chest that is pounding with tension.
“What according to aunt we will succeed?” Lina who was driving turned her head towards Laurel.
“How about the marriage certificate that I signed aunty?” Lina took a deep breath again.
“Already let it go, if you did not want to sign it they will not allow us to go to the hospital. According to the info, your future husband is a young businessman who is quite rich. Such a man, at most two years away will file a divorce suit against you and he will remarry, take it easy,” Laurel held her breath, she said, really hoping that like what his aunt said, right would be that easy.
“Let's rest easy, so far all smoothly, I hope we can make it in time to arrive at the airport. Don't worry, when you get there, your aunt's niece will pick you up. Say hello to your aunt to the family there yes,” Laurel nodded.
Laurel recalled the incident some time ago when Aunt Lina gave a desperate idea to escape to America.
That afternoon Laurel came to her aunt's house to visit and gave her information about a notification letter that she was accepted at one of the famous medical universities in America. Hearing the news that Lina's aunt who initially disagreed with Laurel getting married immediately proposed that Laurel go there to escape from her marriage. Although not a very rich family, Aunt Lina is classified as capable, she and her husband have agreed to help the needs of Laurel's expenses while in America.
Aunt Lina's husband has a younger brother who has long settled in America, has even been appointed a permanent resident, become an American citizen, he said, and he was willing to help Laurel by making himself as Laurel's guarantor to settle in America while continuing his studies.
# # # # # # #
After enough rest because of his long journey for almost 24 hours, Laurel opened her eyes, woke up from her sleep, grabbed a cellphone on a small table where she placed her tote bag that had not been tidied up.
Arriving at the airport Aunt Lina's niece named Johan was waiting for him. Laurel immediately recognized him from the color of the shirt he was wearing (according to the agreement written in the message on Laurel's hanpdhone two days ago, he said, Johan will wear a bright yellow t shirt and blue jeans) and paper with Laural-INA on it. Johan immediately drove her to one of the homestays. Homestay is the best accommodation option because for Laurel in addition to the cost is not as expensive as the contract or rent of the apartment Laurel wants to get to know the customs and culture of the local residents.
The university has a list of families who accept international students for homestays in their homes. Homestay hosts will usually provide food. For a homestay, Laurel must comply with the family's rules, including curfews and other regulations.
When opening the phone screen, Laurel's eyes saw there were 20 misscalls on her phone, 18 of them from unknown numbers, 1 from her mother, 1 from her aunt and 2 unread messages. Laurel took a deep breath, opened a message on her phone, from aunt lina asking how she was in America, from her mother just written the word: sorry, mama can not be a good mama for you.
Reading the message from her mother it felt like Laurel's eyes were heating up again, between day, irritated, angry, disappointed, pity being one. In addition to the forced marriage problem, her stepmom was actually a good stepmom, treating her like her real mama.
Her stepmother always looked after her and loved her, never discriminating her treatment between Laurel and Freya, because of the marriage problems that made Laurel disappointed with her mother, even though she knew her mother was very forced to do that to her, there was already no other way she could think of to save her little family.
Laurel wiped away the tears that had shown at the ends of her eyes, taking a deep breath through her slightly watery nose as it held back her tears.
Not to mention Laurel replying to a message from either her aunt or mother, a call from an unknown number was seen on her phone screen, for a moment Laurel was silent, think about whether he should raise the call or not. Finally, Laurel hesitates to raise the call.
"Hallo," For a while Laurel did not hear the voice from across the street, Laurel almost hung up on her, but suddenly a voice that was heard quietly greeted her.
"How are you doing there? When are you coming home?" Laurel gasped in shock, the voice there was clearly the voice of a man she did not know, it felt like all this time he had never heard a voice like the voice of a man who was currently talking to him on the phone.
"I'm sorry, who am I talking to now?" Laurel heard the person across the street take a deep breath before answering Laurel's question.
"It's me. Your husband," Hearing that answer Laurel was really jolted in shock, her chest pounding violently, her hand holding the phone shaking. Laurel's shock was like being struck by lightning in broad daylight in the summer.
