روايات بقلم ashlair

[Maria]I needed several seconds just to sit there in stunned silence, carefully processing Damian's words. It took at least ten more before I could respond in disbelief."What kind of joke is this?"I let out a scoff. Calling it a joke wasn't even accurate. There was nothing funny about it."I'm serious. Whatever you heard about me at those clubs, Ed was behind it."I raised an eyebrow, dismissing his explanation. "Let's say that's true and Mr. Ed really was behind it. I still can't think of any reason why he'd do something like that. Besides, I literally saw someone crying because her boyfriend dumped her after being tempted by Damian Lee.""I've never tempted anyone!" Damian threw up his hands in exasperation. "You can see for yourself. Do I even have the ability to do something like that?""You might not realize it, but you do tempt people without meaning to." Not just women, either. Everyone, really. I'd seen it myself at parties. People naturally gravitated toward him, eager to

[Maria]I could feel the pain just by hearing Damian's words. Sentence after sentence, he made me realize the mistakes I’d made. In his story, I was a cruel wife. Maybe I really was.I straightened my posture and sat on the edge of the bed. I was far too restless to lean back or rest."It's not that I don't want to tell you," I swallowed hard, "but what's the point? You already know everything. You know what I've done. I really wasn't a good wife. I wasn't even a good woman.""I was hoping you wouldn't say that, Maria."Damian took a deep breath."I was hoping you'd explain why you tried to push another woman toward me. I was hoping you'd tell me you never really meant it. I was hoping you'd simply misunderstood something and did it because of a mistake I'd made without even realizing it.""I'm not going to defend myself. I was wrong. I'm sorry. There was no misunderstanding. I really wanted you to cheat on me with her.""What?""She was someone you loved. Someone better than me.""Wh

[Maria]It was hard for me to step into the house.Anger, resignation, and guilt all blended together, none of them outweighing the others. Even so, there was something involving Damian that I had to settle. I forced my feet forward, as fast as my pounding heart.I entered the master bedroom. Damian wasn't there. I immediately slid open the door to the walk-in closet. Inside the island drawer, I kept the mini safe where I had stored my contract with Hannah. Hidden beneath a pile of clothes I rarely wore.I took out the portable safe. I tapped its side, and the keypad appeared for me to enter the password. As soon as I keyed it in, the safe unlocked.The contract was still safely inside. Had Damian not read it yet? If Hannah had already told him, shouldn't he have looked for this? He could use this contract as evidence against her.I had to get rid of it as quickly as possible."Maria, you're back?"Damn it. Damian appeared in front of me. I slipped the contract back into the drawer."

[Hannah]Hannah lifted her head and walked away, leaving Emma who was at a loss for words. She bit her lip hard, holding back the pain spreading through her chest. Strange. She was the one who slapped Emma, yet why was Hannah the one feeling the pain.Her steps felt heavy, as she tried to quicken her pace. It felt like dragging herself away from something that had chained her down for so long.Kevin simply followed behind her in silence. Letting her process all these emotions on her own.They really weren't friends anymore. Hannah and Emma.When she came here, a part of her had hoped Emma would sincerely admit everything and apologize from the bottom of her heart. She had truly hoped that, at the very least, Emma had once considered her a friend. That everything Emma had done hadn't come from malice.How foolish Hannah had been to keep believing until the very last second, only to be betrayed.Her chest ached. A painful tightness gripped her. For some reason, the hand she had used to

[Hannah]Emma froze at the question. She looked startled, glanced at Kevin Liu, then looked back at Hannah."W-What do you mean?"Hannah repeated herself. "Do you feel guilty toward me?""I don't understand why I should feel guilty toward you." Emma forced herself to laugh. Maybe she meant to ease the tension, but the laugh that came out sounded anything but pleasant."So you don't feel guilty?""Have I done something wrong to you?"Hannah clenched her fist. But Kevin quickly reached over and took her hand. The moment he held it, Hannah's anger melted away. Unfortunately, so did her concentration. Her mind was suddenly filled with awkwardness, and her heart pounded wildly.At this rate, she wouldn't be able to confront Emma properly."Kevin, don't interfere," she whispered softly as she carefully slipped her hand free from his. "It's okay. I won't lose control.""But your face is really red."It wasn't because she was angry. It was because Kevin had held her hand."It's okay. I got th

[Hannah]"I didn't expect you to actually call Mr. Lee and confess."Kevin looked at her with a hint of respect on his face as Hannah ended the call. The way he looked at her made Hannah feel a little self-conscious."You're the one who told me to, remember? This is for my own peace of mind. I'd feel guilty working at his company while secretly hiding the fact that my younger brother is the criminal who attacked them," Hannah said, feeling oddly cool. "Even though what Ethan did has nothing to do with me, as his older sister, I still feel some responsibility. Maybe I failed to raise him properly.""Raising your younger brother wasn't your responsibility. That should've been your parents'.""Well, we're orphans, so..." Hannah shrugged. "Now I'm wondering if all those times I beat him up whenever he caused trouble as a kid somehow knocked his brain out of place."Kevin shuddered."What a weird family.""You don't have a younger brother. You wouldn't understand. They're half monsters." H

[Hannah]“Lucy?” Hannah menyebut namanya secara refleks.“Siapa itu?”“Sekretaris di tim asisten eksekutif sepertiku.” Hannah mengulum bibir cemas. “Aku berharap bukan dia tapi sepertinya memang iya.”“Dengar, aku sudah bilang kan kalau aku tidak tahu itu siapa. Kau harus berpikir objektif.”“Kau tidak tahu, Kevin. Dari sejak aku digosipkan di kantin, aku melihat Lucy membicarakanku di grupnya.”Hannah menggigit bibir. Sebenarnya Hannah tidak tahu siapa yang dibicarakan di grup Lucy tapi memangnya siapa lagi yang dicemooh dan ditertawakan ramai-ramai waktu itu? Dan sikap Lucy yang defensif membuatnya semakin curiga.“Kalau dipikir secara adil, banyak orang yang membicarakanmu. Kau jadi topik yang sedang ramai di forum itu. Karyawan yang aktif di sana pasti tahu lebih awal. Dan mereka mungkin menggosipkannya dengan karyawan lain yang ada di sekitar mereka di kantor.”“Kau yang bilang sendiri kan kalau subnet apa pun itu dari lantai 10?”“Ya, dan karyawan yang bekerja di lantai 10 itu b

[Hannah]Hannah baru sadar bahwa ia ketiduran di sofa Kevin Liu lagi. Ia tidak ingat mengambil selimut tadi malam, tapi entah mengapa sebagian tubuhnya tertutup selimut. Mungkin Hannah mengambilnya saat mengigau karena tidak mungkin Kevin yang melakukannya.Entah kenapa, sofa Kevin selalu membuatnya ketiduran meskipun Hannah biasa kesulitan tidur saat sedang banyak pikiran. Kalau ia tidur sendiri di rumahnya, sudah pasti tidak akan sepulas ini.Hannah menjulurkan tangannya, meraba-raba meja di samping sofa untuk mengambil ponselnya. Sudah pukul 6 pagi. Kevin mungkin masih tidur di kamarnya. Ia bangkit dari sofa, kemudian menghampiri pintu kamar Kevin yang sedikit terbuka.Hannah mengetuknya dua kali sebelum mendorongnya sedikit.“Kevin?”Di kamarnya, Kevin masih terlihat duduk di depan komputernya.“Kau tidak begadang semalaman, kan?” tanya Hannah dengan mata yang masih memicing karena mengantuk sambil menghampiri lelaki itu.Dua kaleng kopi yang sudah habis di mejanya mungkin sudah c

[Hannah]“Aku mencoba menelusuri linimasa kapan pertama kali gosip itu muncul. Ada beberapa akun yang membicarakan gosip itu pada waktu yang sama.”“Beberapa? Berapa banyak?”“Lebih dari lima. Mungkin sepuluh? Aku tidak menghitungnya. Dan akun-akun itulah yang mengarahkan opini dengan membuat begitu banyak unggahan tentangmu, totalnya ratusan, mungkin ribuan. Mirip akun bayaran.”Jantung Hannah serasa diremas.“Yang membenciku sebanyak itu?”Hannah bahkan tidak mengenal sampai sepuluh orang di kantor. Ia masih bisa memahami jika ada orang yang tidak menyukainya. Ia memang bukan orang yang sempurna. Tapi membencinya sampai sesengaja itu?Sebenarnya apa salah Hannah?“Dengar, banyak akun belum tentu berarti banyak pemilik. Bisa saja semuanya dimiliki satu orang. Tidak ada proses verifikasi di forum itu. Siapa pun bisa mendaftar sebanyak

[Hannah]Pencarian dengan kata kunci “Hannah” menghasilkan lebih dari 1.000 unggahan. Tapi bukan itu saja. Mereka juga membicarakannya dengan menggunakan kata kunci “HB”, “Perusak Rumah Tangga”, atau berbagai hinaan lainnya.Hannah nyaris tidak berkedip melihat begitu banyak tulisan itu. Sebagian besar tidak berdasar dan ditulis dengan nada yang sangat merendahkan. Padahal, kemungkinan besar mereka yang menulisnya bahkan tidak mengenalnya.Bola matanya bergerak cepat membaca satu demi satu unggahan itu.[Hannah Barker ada di kantor bos lagi. Pasti sedang membahas 'sesuatu' sampai tiga jam.][Aku lihat Hannah Barker baru turun dari lantai 10. Dia lembur lagi. 'Rajin' sekali, yaaa.][Aku juga lihat Hannah Barker keluar kantor sepuluh menit setelah bosnya. Kebetulan yang sangat kebetulan.][Lucu juga, perjalanan dinas kok harus mengajak sekretaris baru yang tidak

[Maria]“Bagaimana menurutmu?”Damian memaksaku untuk memberi jawaban meskipun aku tidak ingin mengiyakan ataupun menolak. Membuatku terpaksa mengangguk menyetujui idenya.“Itu ide yang bagus,” kataku sambil menyuap mousse cokelat itu tanpa menatap matanya.Aku menunduk menatap makananku, tidak mencoba membaca ekspresinya. Apakah dia bahagia? Atau biasa saja?“Maria.”Ia memanggilku, membuatku sedikit tersentak.“Apa kau bahagia?”“Ya, tentu saja. Liburan ini cukup menyenangkan,” jawabku tanpa berpikir panjang.Aku tidak berbohong kali ini. Aku memang cukup puas dengan apa yang kudapatkan selama liburan. Hotel yang bagus, udara yang segar, makanan yang enak. Bahkan hal yang kupikirkan sebelum berangkat, soal pakaian dalam itu, ternyata tidak seburuk yang kubayangkan.“Bukan itu maksudku.” Damian menarik

[Maria]“Maafkan aku. Seharusnya kita punya agenda lain sore ini, tapi jadi batal,” ujarnya sambil mengenakan pakaiannya kembali.“Tidak apa-apa.”Salahku juga yang tiba-tiba mengenakan pakaian itu. Pakaian seperti itu memang diperuntukkan untuk menggoda. Damian pasti menafsirkannya seperti itu.“Kau tadi...” Ia berusaha keras ingin mengatakan sesuatu, tapi tidak bisa.“Tidak apa-apa,” ulangku.Ia tidak perlu mengatakan apa-apa atau berkomentar apa-apa. Aku bahkan tidak mau membahas soal ini.“Kau tadi sangat... menggoda. Dan...” Ia memalingkan wajahnya. “Aku tidak bisa menahan diri.”Aku menundukkan kepala, menyembunyikan lengkungan senyum yang muncul di wajah.Aku mengulum bibir, menenangkan diri. Itu bukan sebuah pujian dan seharusnya aku tidak merasa senang. Itu hanya efek dari mengenakan pakaian itu. Artinya, jika Hannah Barker menggunakannya, pakaian itu akan sangat efektif u