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"No need to answer; I already know what's in your heart. You thought Vano was the only one who could save you, but you forgot that my son is already married. Or maybe you remembered but didn't care about Alexa's existence because you thought that one encounter wouldn't result in anything in your womb. But it's not impossible for what you thought was trivial to end up just as I imagined. If that night Vano had done it, and you got pregnant, would you ask my son to take responsibility? Don't say that you wouldn't want to demand responsibility, because a child must have a clear identity in this country, to take care of all their needs, both health and education, and ensure their future. Don't assume that we are foolish and willing to be deceived by your innocence."
"Sir, you're wrong. I never thought that way."
"Don't try to deceive me because everything you did is not new in this world. You also disappointed me for what happened that night. There's nothing wrong with you considering yourself just an ordinary friend or one of your students, certainly not him whom you asked for help. While you know the risks that could occur when he came to see you."
Amber swallowed hard. A hearing like this was certainly never in her thoughts because she thought the issue had been resolved.
"So, what do you want now, sir? I admit my mistake in choosing Vano."
"Thank you for admitting your mistake, and I hope you can learn from all of this. I don't like it when someone disturbs my family's life, especially Vano and my wife, Chelsea. So, as usual, with great reluctance, I have to remove you from my son's personal life. I want you to be willing to leave this city and go far away from all of us. Although Frans means nothing to me, he has a child and a wife, and because of this discomfort, it might make Vano keep thinking that you still need him. Still feeling guilty about what happened that day, even though it wasn't his fault, but your carelessness."
"I understand, Sir. I'm ready to accept any consequences. Whatever you give to me."
"Good, in that case, I will arrange your relocation and find a new place for you, just like the other disruptors in my family's life. And before that, you have to meet Vano and Alexa at the same time, apologize to them, and reassure them not to worry about your condition anymore. I also hope that if, by any chance, you get pregnant, you keep it to yourself because when you contacted my son, you obviously knew the risks involved."
Carlos took out a piece of paper from his desk drawer, the same thing he would do with Amber to ensure that there would be no more disruptors in his family, especially disturbing a marriage that had been going smoothly.
Amber read the agreement for a moment. Her eyes welled up as she saw the many points that would pierce her if she dared to violate Carlos's rules. However, she couldn't refuse because she knew who the man in front of her was.
Rather than ruining her career, she decided to obey. After all, this was all her fault, her carelessness and lack of awareness that she didn't know there was a big trap prepared by Celine for her. With trembling hands, Amber signed the agreement. She stood up from her seat, saluted Carlos for the last time, and left the room.
Amber would use the remaining time to resolve the existing issues and bid farewell to all of her students because, starting today, she would no longer teach there.
Once one issue was resolved, Carlos also left and met Chelsea, who had been busy trying to contact him, urging him to quickly resolve his meeting with Amber. His wife even muttered incomprehensibly and asked him to speed up all the work he was doing.
She didn't want to be contradicted at all. That was Chelsea's attitude lately. She often threw tantrums for no apparent reason and didn't want to sleep with him. She claimed that her mood was completely ruined and didn't want to be approached at all. Like now, Carlos was 15 minutes late picking up Chelsea who had been waiting for him at home.
She said she would accompany him to work at the office. But what actually happened? The slightly congested traffic made Carlos struggle to arrive on time, and Amber was also late, so the resolution of the matter went a bit slower than expected.
"Daddy, where have you been? You promised to meet two hours ago, and now this? I've been waiting for you alone at home for almost 4 hours," Chelsea complained, immediately hitting Carlos's arm as he entered the room.
"Darling, I didn't expect the traffic to be so bad, and Amber was also late."
"What, she was late, but you still waited for her to come, right? So, is she more important than me now? Is that how it is now? Vano is forbidden from taking responsibility for Amber, and now Daddy is planning to...," Chelsea couldn't continue her scolding of Carlos because he had already embraced her.
Silenced with a kiss that was so soft and so intoxicating. Of course, Chelsea was very carried away by the touch her husband gave her. He just followed what Carlos was going to do to him. Chelsea also let it go when her husband took off the pajamas he was wearing.
"He said he asked Daddy to hurry up and come to the office, but why are you still wearing pajamas like this?" Carlos protested, finally being able to say what he wanted to say.
Just imagine, Chelsea was urging him to come quickly, but in fact the woman was only wearing pajamas.
"I already packed earlier." Chelsea sat on the edge of the bed, slightly pushing Carlos away from her. Just now she was lost in the man's touch, but now she was talking about the pajamas she was wearing.
Chelsea pointed to the chair near the dressing table. “That's the dress I wore to go to the office. In fact, Daddy was late. Yes, I've changed my clothes again. I'd rather sleep all day at home than be given false hope. Daddy would rather be with Amber than me."
"Honey, how could Daddy care more about Amber than you? Wasn't Daddy's purpose in meeting him to solve the problem? If it doesn't end, Daddy will get rid of him alive. "Unfortunately, all these problems can pass without any violence or cruelty, so you don't need to worry that all the problems have been resolved and we can live about now," said Carlos.
Gibran continued, "As for our divorce, I've already agreed to it. We'll proceed with the legal process, and you'll be free to start a new chapter in your life. I hope you find the happiness you deserve."The conversation between Viska and Gibran marked the beginning of the end of their tumultuous marriage. While their emotions were still raw, they had come to a mutual understanding that it was time to move on and seek happiness elsewhere.Gibran's frustration and pent-up emotions poured out as he defended his actions. He felt betrayed by Viska, who had consistently pushed him away and made unfavorable comparisons with Nicholas. Their relationship had become a battleground of insecurities, and Gibran had sought solace with Shabila.Viska's accusations stung, but Gibran was determined to make her understand the context of his actions. He continued, "Viska, I don't want to justify what I did, but it was a result of our broken marriage. We both contributed to its downfall. I needed someth
190"Also," Bryan paused, kissing Silvi's lips briefly."Don't forget that the night we were together, I can assure you, it's my child."Silvi shook her head. "It's not Devin's child. Do you think after that night, I didn't do anything with other men? Did you really think that night was the only time someone touched me? No, there have been many other nights with so many men because I felt like I wasn't pure anymore. So I was free to do it with anyone since my life was already a mess.""S-so... instead of slightly more ruining myself, and the last time it was done to me was by Devin. That's why he's willing to take responsibility. He's also convinced that this is his child."Bryan let out a bitter laugh, releasing Silvi from his embrace. "Is that so?" He loosened his tie, which had felt suffocating after hearing Silvi's explanation. "Let's prove that what you said is true." He took off the suit jacket that clung to his body.“W-what are you doing?” Silvi stepped back. Hugging her own b
189"No way! I won't leave until I meet Gibran. He has to take responsibility for this child," Shabila insisted, refusing to budge. She held onto Viska and stood her ground."Leave, I said! Go!"Viska couldn't bear Shabila's stubbornness and forcefully pulled her arm, nearly causing Shabila to stumble."What's wrong with you!" Shabila pushed away Viska's hand and fixed her disheveled hair. "Are you afraid your husband's actions will be known to your parents? Or is it that you refuse to accept the truth?" Shabila began to rant."I don't understand what you're saying. Now leave!" Viska demanded."Wait, Viska! Mom wants to ask this woman something." Viska's mother restrained her daughter and turned to Shabila. "Why did you let my granddaughter get pregnant? Don't you know he's already married? What do you want from us? Money?"Shabila seethed with anger. Her dignity felt insulted when the middle-aged woman mentioned money."Do you think I'm a lowly woman who just surrenders her body to a
188Shabila spent the whole day in frustration, angry that she couldn't meet Gibran at his cafe. She paced back and forth in her room, thinking of ways to meet him."Do you think you can avoid me forever? You won't be able to, Gibran. I have to make you take responsibility for the child I'm carrying. You won't be able to escape. Just wait and see."Shabila clenched her fists, planning a thousand ways to meet Gibran. "If I can't find you at the cafe, I'll come to your house. Let's see if you can still avoid me," she muttered to herself.Gibran decided to visit the club where he had met Shabila some time ago. He had a bad feeling about Shabila's visit to his cafe and wanted to find out what had really happened between them that night. Honestly, Gibran didn't remember much because he had been heavily intoxicated that night.Upon arriving at the club, Gibran called one of the waitresses and conveyed his request to meet with the club's owner."I'd like to discuss something important with y
187"What brand would you like, Miss?" The employee asked while displaying several different brands of pregnancy tests.Shabila looked puzzled, which only fueled the employee's suspicions. "Is this your first time buying a pregnancy test?" she guessed with a condescending glance."Y-yes," Shabila replied hesitantly. Seeing the employee looking down on her, Shabila's heart began to boil. "I am already married, just so you know. Here's my ID," she said abruptly, opening her wallet and showing her ID card, which still stated her marital status as MARRIED. Her divorce from Arya was only religious; it wasn't legally recognized yet.Seeing the ID placed on the counter, the pharmacy employee became flustered. She was torn between embarrassment and guilt. "I'm s-sorry, Miss, I didn't mean to—""It's fine, I understand!" Shabila retorted sharply, then pointed towards the pregnancy tests. "So, which one is the best?" she asked.She deliberately didn't want to prolong the issue since she wanted
186Several days had passed, and today was the ceremonial bath event for Silvi. Everything was well-prepared, and the guests were moved by the event, which was expertly guided by the paid organizers, arranged by Silvi's parents. Silvi's large family wore matching light green kebaya, while Devin's family, who were present, wore light blue kebaya. The event was conducted with great solemnity, and Silvi looked beautiful despite wearing makeup that wasn't too flashy.This ceremony included many symbols and motifs that served as lessons or guidelines for the couple, influencing their married life. These symbols or motifs mainly conveyed advice and useful insights for the newlyweds' life together. That's why Mama Silvi insisted on holding the ceremonial bath event, even though Silvi and Devin had been married before.In addition to the food ordered for the guests and relatives, the organizers had prepared specific dishes usually served during this ceremonial bath event. These included tumpe
185Meanwhile, Silvi and Devin listened to the doctor's explanations during the examination. Silvi's pregnancy was already at three weeks. The doctor prescribed vitamins and anti-nausea medication since Silvi mentioned she often felt dizzy and nauseous. Devin didn't ask any questions because it was his first time in a obstetrician's office. He was confused about how to react. Silvi was the one who asked all the questions.Silvi got her next appointment scheduled, and then they left. Devin and Silvi went to the hospital's pharmacy to pick up the prescribed medicines first. Then, Devin asked Silvi where she wanted to go."I don't know. I just feel like lying down in my room.""Why's that? Don't you want to go out together?" Devin asked softly. They were now in the car. "How about having ice cream and buying some new sleepwear for you?""What's the point of buying sleepwear?""Because you're pregnant, and I want you to sleep comfortably. How about it?""I don't want to," Silvi said, maki
184As a father, whose heart wouldn't break upon learning that his daughter is pregnant with no official partner by her side? He felt like a terrible father, willing to do anything as long as the man who impregnated his daughter, Silvi, would take responsibility.Pregnancy is never an easy journey for a woman, especially without a husband by her side. The man Silvi referred to as the father finally decided to find Devin, the man who should be held accountable for what happened to Silvi. He took a taxi to Devin's whereabouts, hoping that he would indeed be there. Impatiently sitting in the taxi, the weary-looking man, no longer in his youth, stared at his phone screen. The journey from the city to the village was quite long, which was why he opted for a taxi. Besides, he didn't want any unpleasant conversations about Silvi if he had brought his driver along.Fortunately, he found out about Silvi's pregnancy before it was too late, or who knows what might have happened. He sighed wearil
183Nicholas didn't want anything to happen to their unborn child. So, he tried his best to grant her wishes. Besides, Alesya's request was relatively easy to fulfill, and it had been quite some time since they had visited her hometown."Are you happy?" Nicholas asked.Alesya turned and nodded. "I've really missed my hometown. As nice as it is to live in the city, the hometown is the number one place to visit," Alesya replied. "Besides, all my childhood memories are buried there."Hearing Alesya's response, Nicholas could only smile. He, who had lived in the city since childhood, never experienced life in the village. So, he didn't fully understand what Alesya meant. In his mind, Alesya might just miss the peaceful atmosphere of the village because the city was quite noisy."Get some rest; I'll wake you up when we arrive," Nicholas said after a moment of silence."Okay."Alesya adjusted her seating position to make herself more comfortable. She also slightly reclined her seat to make