The affair<\/p>\n
Yenni Djahidin<\/p>\n
The phone kept ringing. Sleepily, Melati picked up the receiver.<\/p>\n
She glanced at the clock on the night stand; it was almost one
\nin the morning. She said something and then heard someone
\nspeaking rapidly at the other end.<\/p>\n
"Please, can you talk slowly," she pleaded. She soon realized
\nit was her sister-in-law, Mimi. Mimi said father had been taken
\nto the hospital after falling from a ladder.<\/p>\n
Twenty four hours later, she was in an airplane high above the
\nPacific Ocean bound for Korea. She made a quick decision with
\nher husband and pooled all their resources so she could fly home
\nwith her daughter.<\/p>\n
Melati was exhausted when they reached the customs desk in
\nJakarta. Things got worse when the officer asked her to place
\none of the bags inside an X-ray machine.<\/p>\n
"Random check," the officer said, but he didn't try to help.
\nShe put her daughter down and started to lift one of the bags.<\/p>\n
"Let me help," a man said politely. She looked up and almost
\ndropped the bag on her feet. Standing before her was the man who
\nhad been the love of her life.<\/p>\n
It was an awkward moment, but not for long because the toddler
\npulled her shirt and demanded attention. He helped her with the
\nbag and they passed the customs check without saying a word.<\/p>\n
He finally broke the silence.<\/p>\n
"Can I offer you a ride?" She said no when she saw a young
\nwoman waiving her behind the glass door.<\/p>\n
"How long are you going to stay?" he asked again. She said
\nshe didn't know.<\/p>\n
He asked if he could call. She said, "of course." And then she
\nsaw him walking to a waiting car. He ducked toward the passenger
\nseat and gave a young girl a kiss. Melati looked away, with a
\nslight burning feeling inside her chest.<\/p>\n
Melati's sister-in-law gave a quick recap about their father's
\ncondition. Melati felt relieved. They made a quick stop at the
\nhospital. The old guy's face lit up when he saw them. He looked
\nfrail but was in good spirits.<\/p>\n
Jakarta was hot and humid, but Melati didn't mind. Washington
\ncould be hotter and more humid in July and August. The difference
\nwas the air quality.<\/p>\n
Melati wished she could one day see Jakarta's air clean. She
\nalways dreamed of blue sky over the old city. It seems Jakarta
\nwas always covered with smog.<\/p>\n
Her father made a remarkable recovery. She called her husband
\nand told him she would stay one more week and would be home by
\nThanksgiving Day.<\/p>\n
She was looking through a family photo album when her niece
\ncalled. "Auntie, phone for you!" She handed the receiver to
\nMelati. Her heart almost stopped beating when she heard his
\nvoice.<\/p>\n
They exchanged pleasantries.<\/p>\n
"Can I see you before you go back to the States?," the man
\nasked. Melati almost said no, but she had questions she would
\nlike him to answer. She thought about her husband, but she could
\nexplain it to him later. They agreed to meet at a hotel coffee
\nshop.<\/p>\n
He wore a short sleeved shirt with dark pants, which were
\nnicely pressed. His hair was trimmed neatly but not too short.
\nWell, she thought, at least he didn't dress formally like a
\nlawyer. She thanked him when he said she looked good.<\/p>\n
"Why didn't you tell me?" the words came out of her mouth
\nright after they placed their order.<\/p>\n
"How could you do that to me?" Melati asked before he could
\neven answer the first question.<\/p>\n
"It was a difficult situation. I was madly in love with you,"
\nhe said, staring intensely into her eyes.<\/p>\n
At the time, he was a bright young lawyer who defended some
\nhuman rights cases. She was a young reporter trying to understand
\nas many laws as possible. She found him very helpful in
\nexplaining what was going on during a court proceeding. And
\nsometimes, he offered her a lift home.<\/p>\n
The relationship became serious in just three months. She
\nenjoyed talking with him about subjects that interested her:
\nsocial issues. He adored her openness. Her parents liked him,
\ntoo. And he was planning to take her to Sumatra to meet his
\nparents before things unraveled.<\/p>\n
Then a woman came to Melati's office at the newspaper.<\/p>\n
She was beautiful and clad in stylish clothes. Her make-up
\nwas perfect.<\/p>\n
She was cautious at first, but managed to blurt out a few
\nsentences. "Hi, I am Rina. I came here to tell you that I know
\nyou are having an affair with my husband, Rusdi."<\/p>\n
Melati stood with a surprised look. She tried to cover her
\nmouth with her hand. She tried to absorb the new information.
\nBefore she could say anything, the woman started to cry.<\/p>\n
"I love him very much. I am pregnant. Please leave him alone,"
\nshe said while tears streamed down her face, ruining her polished
\nface.<\/p>\n
Suddenly, Melati was startled when she felt Rusdi's fingers
\ntouching her hand.<\/p>\n
"I still think about you a lot. I didn't know why you left
\nwithout saying goodbye to me."<\/p>\n
"Why didn't you tell me that you were married?" Melati shot
\nback.<\/p>\n
"I wanted to, but you vanished. Your parents didn't give me
\nyour telephone number," Rusdi said, his voice almost a whisper.<\/p>\n
"But Rusdi, you were married and your wife was pregnant. I
\ndidn't want you to divorce her!" Melati tried not to raise her
\nvoice. But his answer almost made her scream and wish she never
\nhad agreed to see him.<\/p>\n
"I never intended to divorce her. I thought you could be my
\nsecond wife," he said.<\/p>\n
And he had a straight face as he said it.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/the-affair-1447899208", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }