Prison of Love

"God's Cause"

74

“WHAT?” my eyebrows are united, my voice is high, “Gak can not be impromptu dong, Mom! No preparation!”

Mother continued her breakfast leisurely, even her lips were smiling, “Why? Just be a regular seminar moderator. You are an expert.”

“Experts are experts, but the filler is not this person either,” I folded my hands to the front of the chest in annoyance.

“Name as Fatih, Naya. Not that guy.”

“I know, Mom. That's what made me sprain!”

“Cuman ordinary educational seminar event, Naya. The participants were also just staff and the entire teacher council. No outsiders,” explained Mother while chewing the last rice on her plate.

“Cuman?? Fatih's sudden arrival and then became a speaker was not ‘cuman’, Buuu!”

“Take your tone, Naya! You're talking to your mother!” Abah cleared his throat strongly and then looked at me sharply.

I'm down. If it's like this, then there won't be a chance for me to twitch anymore.

“Have it been, than you were busy refuting Mother's words. You better finish your food and get ready. Because you are the moderator, eight o'clock must be in the Hall, yes,”

Mom stood up while sliding to the back of the chair with both back of her legs, she once again smiled at me then poked Abah, “Will come too?”

“What Abah should come?” Abah asked back, their eyes suspicious.

Mom shrugged both of her shoulders, “Terserah Abah anyway. But if Abah wants to squirm prospective daughter-in-law, I suggest Abah come.”

Abah hurriedly stood up, put his dirty plate on mom's plate, “What clothes to wear, Mom?”

Seeing Abah and Mom who were very excited walking into the room while discussing about which clothes to wear made me even more upset.

Didn't they say I was the decision holder of this taaruf process? Then why did they mention Fatih as a potential son-in-law?

Sucks. I think I want to scream out loud.

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Upon entering the hall, everything had been neatly arranged. Large banner reads, ‘SEMINAR EDUCATION, Building Empathetic Communication To Al-Qur-Based Educators’an’ large written along with Fatih photos that are displayed very clearly.

I let out a long sigh, it seems like I was the only one who had just been given the news this morning. Look, the committee is already wearing the same name tag. Some were busy arranging dishes on the table of the speaker and moderator, some were arranging the seminar participant seats, some were also arranging the sound and behind the laptop set some music backsound.

All right, I'm the only one who's still confused about what to say later.

“Naya!” Latifah, the Foundation secretary ran towards me with a big smile.

I looked at him with a smile, waiting for him to speak.

“You know our presenter today? He's from Depok, he said guaanteenggg puoollllll!” Lathifah pulled me down, “and amazingly, she's still single!”

“O-okay...” I put my head back, my forehead shriveled, “Trus why?”

“God..! Why are you using nanya why? Who knows your soul mate looh..”

“Whose mate?”

“I!” Lathifah laughed loudly while hitting my shoulder, “Duh, so maaluuu..”.

I opened my mouth, made a voice pretending to laugh, “You ate wrong this morning?”

“You know, right? Must know laah, right Mother who invited Kak Fatih here,” sahut Lathifah still with a smile, her smile looks suspicious, “There is Kak Fatih's HP number?”

This time I really laughed. Shaking my head immediately stood up, “The first challenge, why don't you ask me directly?”

“Try me to ask ya,” I said with a smile, “Now I want to take words first. Immediately, Fatih Dateng, try to see your lipstick straw!”

“Eh, seriously?” his face suddenly panicked. He immediately ran to reach his bag and opened the compact powder. His eyes glared irritatedly at me when he saw that his lipstick was fine.

I laughed as I lifted the paper. Scroll the watch on my wrist, ten minutes away at eight and Fatih hasn't arrived yet.

When I just focused my attention on the moderator script scribble, Mom approached me while whispering, “Fatih has come. Now again in the living room of the same Foundation Abah. You don't be shy Abah with Mom yaa..”

Mom stands to center stage, pulls the microphone, “Five more minutes we start. The presenter is already in the living room of the Foundation. How is everything, ready?”

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I passed my part well. Whether because this does not involve feelings or indeed God is helping me, all the words that come out of my mouth are very well arranged. I immediately came and said.

As the Speaker session arrived, Fatih came from the direction of the hall door very dramatically. He was wearing a long-sleeved white shirt and grey chinos. White sneaker shoes are in harmony with the color of the shirt.

His smile flashed, leaving anyone who saw him fixated for a moment. Ah, no, not everything, except me. I looked at her with a casual look, because that's how I felt. If this is just a matter of good looks, really Andy or Hengky has made me nauseous about good looks.

Fatih opened the material very well with a few questions that provoked laughter. He started with a word game, making the atmosphere of the seminar sound boisterous by laughter.

If you're curious how when our gaze met, take it easy, he barely even looked at me. While me? there's no way I wouldn't have looked at him if he was a speaker whose words I should summarize and I should have received well.

When the question and answer session arrived, according to the initial agreement, the question was opened to five people. And as per the prediction, Lathifah quickly raised his hand,

“Good, please state the name and mention the question,” said with a smile.

“Assalamaicum. My name is Latifah Ningrum. I would like to ask our Bather Brother today. Previously mentioned empathic communication is a way to position the thoughts and feelings of the teacher according to student perception. This is reflected in the language used and how to treat students,”

“Then what if you face students who always arrive late? And the reason is always because of bad luck. If once or twice, maybe we can understand, if it has been repeatedly, what kind of empathic communication, Brother? Because honestly we are not always in a good heart situation to always understand the mistakes of students,”

“Only that's my question. Thank you in advance, Wassalamualaikum.”

Fatih nodded with a smile. He who just sat looking at me, looking me in the eye for the first time, “Kak moderator, this question we meet first or directly answered?”

“We'd better take it first, brother. To be more runut later answer it,” answered me but while turning the eyes from his face.

“Good, later help me recall the question yes,” He said with a smile.

I nodded briefly then smiled as I returned his smile, there was nothing strange about the sentence. But when I raised my head back, looked at the seminar participants and saw them smiling meaningfully while saying softly, “Ciyee...”.

I know, something's wrong with the look in her eyes.

My reflexes turned to the side, along with her also turning towards me. Our gazes instantly met, creating an awkward atmosphere that was extremely stinging.

While I instantly threw my gaze back towards the audience, Fatih smiled as she whispered, “Masya Allah..”.

Shocked I turned back towards her, along with the gazes of the audience who were staring at her while holding back laughter and smiling seductively.

Fatih's face suddenly pale, he scratched his head that did not itch, “What was that earlier in a ruckus huh?”

Abah who sat at the front laughed loudly, followed by the laughing voice of other audience participants.

“Excellent, the quality of the current microphone exceeds expectations. If I know that whispering is clear, why do I have to make a powerful voice from earlier?” Fatih laughed while shaking her head.he rubbed his face while beristighfar slowly.

What the fuck is he. Oh my....

Fatih took a long breath. After a little quiet, he grabbed the microphone, “Hadist Prophet is never wrong. ‘Any Muslim who sees the beauty of a woman, then he subdues and closes his eyes, then Allah will replace it as a worship,’ hadith Ahmad from Abu Umamah,”

“If the hadith is clearly written and we are still breaking, look at the effect on me, it looks very embarrassing, doesn't it?”