
For a moment Ainun was silent and slightly misbehaved at the question posed by Ahmad Rafiq to him.
He repeatedly convinced himself that he only loved Aldo and not Ahmad Rafiq.
Moreover, until now he did not feel the vibration when close to Ahmad Rafiq, so where might there be a sense and love for Ahmad Rafiq?
Ainun slightly smiled wryly, his heart trying to reject repeatedly the question posed by Ahmad Rafiq.
Because for him he could not love Ahmad Rafiq even to this very moment.
Ainun decided deliberately not to answer Ahmad Rafiq's question, but he asked Ahmad Rafiq again.
"You yourself are right what I said earlier...? why don't you answer? salsa is everything to you, right? and whatever happened to Salsa is your business, right?" ask Ainun back, please,
For a moment Ahmad Rafiq smiled and was increasingly confused by the question Ainun posed to him.
"Why didn't you answer my question? and reverse the question to me?" ahmad Rafiq is back.
"You answer first, I'll answer later, too" Ainun said.
"All right, I will answer." said Ahmad Rafiq.
"No. I did have a taste with Salsa, but after he got married it didn't feel right that I still had a taste for Salsa and I didn't want to care about her anymore because I didn't think it was my business and I didn't want to hurt my own heart." ahmad Rafiq explained to Ainun.
"Then if you?.. I have answered your question," he said again.
"Honestly, I don't know what to respond to what you're saying because the question you're asking is a little silly." Ainun paused.
"Silly?" ahmad Rafiq was confused.
"It's silly.. because we know marriage is not based on love, so where can there be love? my love to this day is still with Aldo, and your love is still the same Salsa, right?" said Ainun back, which made Ahmad Rafiq speechless.
"I am not jealous, because the feeling of love does not exist and I also realize that I do not want to be loved by you or there is love in our marriage, but I just want us to be equally committed to this marriage, and how honest I am also a woman even though I do not expect to be loved, but never one bit imagined I married without love... because I wanted to marry someone I love, and honestly now I finally have to marry someone I love, especially someone I love, to love and marry my best friend and my own husband who does not love me right now also cares about my best friend, no one cares a bit about me. Do you know how I feel? it hurts, it hurts so much!!," cried Ainun who was no longer able to cover up his heartache.
While Ahmad Rafiq after hearing the expression of Ainun's heart made him a little surprised and speechless, because he was confused what to respond to what.
Ahmad Rafiq could see as if there was a wound that Ainun had been hiding from the words he revealed.
Ahmad Rafiq chose to approach Ainun and embrace him, so that Ainun shed his tears on him, because he himself was confused as to what to respond and how..
Ainun wept in Ahmad Rafiq's arms, though he did not understand why Ahmad Rafiq approached him and embraced him
but because his heart and brain were completely out of sync and thought further, Ainun chose to accept Ahmad Rafiq's embrace and cry in the embrace.
After being quite calm Ainun broke away from Ahmad Rafiq's embrace.
Likewise with Ahmad Rafiq after feeling Ainun quite calm, he also chose to continue his speech, after he tried to adjust his breath several times.
"I'm sorry, I don't know how you feel all this time. Well I've decided, because I did, even though there might still be some race with Salsa even if it's a little, though, but I really don't care about him anymore. And now that I realize no woman wants to be married without love, I shouldn't let you feel this for too long and endure it all.
I should not, as a husband, let my wife feel that wound alone for too long, I want to start today, this second... trying to love you and I want us to try to forget about the memory of our past and we wake up the love between us for the wholeness of our marriage? whaddya think? And I hope after this we do not hurt each other nor do I hurt you any more.Let them with the household ark that they lead, and us with the household ark that we walk... how's it?" ahmad Rafiq asked with a smile.
"I don't know.. But okay, you really should be like that, right, a household? I will try." said Ainun, which made Ahmad Rafiq a little disappointed with the answer Ainun gave him.
"Yes I don't know, because I don't have a taste for you and until this moment my race is still for Aldo. But I will try with that commitment like we wanted at the beginning because that way, yes I hope there is nothing hurting each other between us." Ainun said with a slight smile.
"Alright, I understand. yes Aamiin insya Allah may we not hurt each other," said Ahmad Rafiq.
"I... I want to tell us something, okay?" asked Ainun, after feeling quite calm.
"Yes, what story do you want? god willing I'll listen to our husband and wife, right?" ahmad Rafiq.
"Ah yes because we are trying to love each other, I want us to clear the contract between us, how?" ask Ahmad Rafiq.
"For contract matters, it is up to you, I will accept your commitment so that we try to love each other and not hurt each other, but I did not expect to be loved wholeheartedly by you so for the matter of the marriage contract letter, I leave it entirely to you. Honestly, is not the feeling can not lie? I still love Aldo to this day... And.." said Ainun paused for a moment.
The words that Ainun made Ahmad Rafiq feel disappointed and it felt like he could fight alone to make Ainun fall in love? as for Ainun's love up to this moment for Aldo?
But Ahmad Rafiq realized from the beginning it was his fault that asked Ainun to run a contract marriage and without love, from the beginning he was also unable to love and try to love Ainun until Ainun felt ignored and ignored, until this moment his heart is still filled by Aldo even though Aldo is married.
Ahmad Rafiq promised and tried to love Ainun and try to make Ainun love him, although he knew it was not easy, but he would try, but if for a long time Ainun did not love him, he would not love him, Ahmad Rafiq will also rely on all the possibilities that occur and who will withdraw in the end.
Ahmad Rafiq neutralized his heartbeat and his pain in the heart, before returning to say something to Ainun.
"Okay, and what do you want to tell...?" ahmad Rafiq asked, because he himself was confused about what to answer and say.
"I ...want us to go to Salsa's house? how is...? are you taking me to Salsa's house?" asked Ainun, although he himself hesitated because the last time he met Aldo, the meeting did not end well and did Aldo still want to meet him? while on the other hand he himself has given Aldo his home address so that Aldo and Salsa can visit his home but until this moment he with Salsa has not been here, he said, do they not want to go to his house or Aldo who forbids Salsa to meet because Aldo himself does not like it? Ah, Ainun felt foolish and truly sorry to have revealed this to Aldo.
"You want to go to Salsa's house? Aldo's wife salsa, right? didn't he say you had no contact for long enough, so you said to me, missed them, and how could you know his house? or did you just come back?" asked Ahmad Rafiq who was confused.
Before answering Aldo's question, for a moment Ainun exhaled several times and then looked at Ahmad Rafiq after feeling himself quite calm and preparing to talk again, after he felt able to neutralize his heartbeat.
" I met Aldo in the garden by mistake." Salsa's words stopped when Aldo cut him off.
"So you were with Aldo in the garden?" ahmad Rafiq asked, as if showing disappointment and jealousy.
"Yes but not accidentally met, but accidentally met.. Aldo came to me in the garden, and I asked him about Salsa and asked him for his address, so Aldo answered Salsa and said Salsa missed me too, yes I finally asked for his address and in love. Aldo also asked for my address because of his plan and Salsa will be here, if I still have not had time to go there and he is not busy, maybe busy, so I just want us to go there first, how?" Ainun.
"OK, I think the same, whoever met first, the point is that there was a conversation between you guys, right, in the end? and you hid this from me, your own husband, great!!... When did you meet him? when you were in your Umm house? or..don't when you haven't been there before you went to the park?" ask Ahmad Rafiq.
"I don't agree with you going there, what you're going to be there for, your feelings will grow for Aldo whereas right now those feelings have not been able to disappear, especially after your meeting I'm sure your feelings for Aldo grew again right? therefore the end of this you often daydream and say it is difficult to forget? is that really what I said? and have you guys saved each other's contact, too?" ahmad Rafiq asked as if showing his jealousy and frustration towards Ainun.
"I'm sorry before, but it's different. .. we didn't have a meeting, but we met by accident.
And yes you are right, we met when I was in the park before the boarding school and to the house of Ummi. therefore to calm myself and treat my longing at the house of Ummi, I chose to stay at Ummi's house. And yes after our meeting there was certainly a sense that started to grow and something that I had a hard time forgetting including how I felt with him. But I will try to condition this feeling, because I also want to promise and try to fulfill that commitment, I just want to meet Salsa, my best friend, I miss him and I want to make sure I feel like I'm reunited with Aldo, okay?" said Ainun back, which made Ahmad Rafiq speechless and confused to say what ... allow or refuse Ainun's request..?
To be honest there was fear in his heart, if after the meeting it would make Ainun more difficult to forget Aldo and the feeling grew, more and more, when that happens it will be more difficult to make Ainun fall in love with him and of course it is very tiring to struggle alone.
Moreover, the words Ainun made him feel pain and disappointment in his heart, with a reason that he was difficult to express, as if indicating that Ainun still expects love from Aldo.
But if he refuses Ainun's request, it will certainly make Ainun disappointed in him and will make it difficult for Ainun to love him and also carry out the commitment if Ainun was already disappointed in him.
And he didn't want Ainun to feel that he couldn't trust Ainun.
Honestly, for Ahmad Rafiq he was really in a difficult choice for him to decide.