LOGINAt the National High School Football All-Star Game, my boyfriend Evan had just been named MVP. Sophia, the cheer captain, immediately posted on Instagram. Caption: "Guess who got a little something from the champion himself~" The photo turned out to be a pair of Evan's worn underwear! Scrawled across them in lipstick were the words: "For my dearest Sophia." She held them up with her long acrylic nails, pouting for the selfie. The internet exploded. "Why does she have his underwear?" "Isn't it obvious? They're totally together." "Sitting here waiting for the official couple photo." Within seconds, a close-up of the two of them cheek-to-cheek surfaced in the comments. Congratulations and teasing flooded the feed. I gripped my phone, a chill spreading through my entire body. Evan had promised to go public about us ages ago but kept putting it off, saying he needed to prove himself first. He'd been stalling ever since. Now here I was, his actual girlfriend, and I didn't even get an invite to his victory party. I took a deep breath and called him. "Explain." On the other end, Evan's voice was lazy, almost amused. "The fans grabbed everything off me. Jersey, pads, all of it. Sophia insisted on keeping something as a souvenir, so I gave her the underwear. No big deal." "The Instagram post is just riding the hype. Don't be so uptight about it." Then Sophia's voice chimed in. "Yeah, honey, Evan and I are like brothers! I've seen everything on him already. It's just a pair of boxers, so don't be so petty." I listened to their increasingly flirtatious banter through the speaker, then slowly pulled off my engagement ring and tossed it aside. "Fine," I said to Evan. "I'll be the bigger person. Why don't you skip the 'girl bro' thing and just make her your girlfriend? I'm tired of watching this act."
View More“Heh! Apa yang kamu lakukan di sini?! Kamu mengintipku, hah?!”
Adit, yang tengah mengepel lantai ruang ganti pelanggan, nyaris menjatuhkan pelnya saat mendengar suara bentakan itu.
Di hadapannya, seorang wanita cantik dengan tubuh menggoda dan hanya mengenakan pakaian dalam berenda, berdiri dengan napas memburu.
Itu Bu Celina, manajer tempatnya bekerja!
Tangan wanita itu menutupi dadanya yang montok, tapi pahanya yang mulus justru terabaikan.
Glek.
Adit menelan ludah. Otaknya berteriak untuk tidak melihat, tapi matanya berkhianat.
Takut? Jelas. Adit hanya trainee rendahan. Terpergok dalam situasi seperti ini bisa membuatnya dipecat seketika.
Namun, senang?
Bagaimana tidak? Bu Celina adalah fantasi hidup para terapis pria di panti pijat ini!
Dengan tubuh berlekuk sempurna, kulit sehalus sutra, dan tatapan tajam menggoda, siapa yang tidak pernah membayangkan wanita itu dalam pelukan mereka?
Dan sekarang… tubuh yang biasanya hanya ada dalam bayangan, terpampang jelas di depannya!
Tapi… ada yang aneh.
Kenapa Bu Celina masih di sini? Bukankah semua orang sudah pulang?
Dan yang lebih aneh lagi… kenapa tangannya basah?
“Apa yang kamu lihat, dasar mesum! Mau saya pecat?!”
Deg!
Adit buru-buru menggeleng. “A—ampun, Bu Celina! Saya enggak tahu kalau Ibu masih di sini…”
Sebagai trainee, posisi Adit di panti pijat ini sangat lemah. Dia adalah sasaran empuk senior-senior yang haus kuasa. Tidak heran sebelum dirinya, banyak trainee yang tidak bertahan lama, entah karena mundur atau dikeluarkan dengan alasan sepele.
Itulah alasannya malam ini dia bisa ada di sini. Karena salah satu seniornya melemparkan tanggung jawab kepadanya.
Namun, siapa yang menyangka hal tersebut membawanya ke situasi seperti ini…
Adit melihat Celina takut-takut. Ekspresi manajernya itu dingin, tapi tatapannya panik. Ditambah wajah cantiknya yang memerah, Adit merasa Bu Celina seperti takut ada rahasia besar yang terbongkar.
“Sudah! Aku enggak mau tahu. Pergi dari sini atau…”
Bu Celina mengomel selagi buru-buru mengenakan celananya.
Namun, karena terlalu panik, kakinya tersangkut di celana dan tubuhnya terhuyung ke depan!
Bruk!
Refleks, Adit segera menangkap tengkuk Bu Celina sebelum kepala wanita itu terbentur lantai.
Deg!
Dan saat itu juga, sesuatu terjadi.
Wajah Bu Celina merah padam hingga ke telinga. Napasnya memburu, matanya bergetar, dan…
"Ah…"
Desahan lirih itu lolos begitu saja.
Adit membeku.
Apa-apaan ini?!
Sadar dengan suara yang baru saja keluar dari mulutnya, Bu Celina langsung bangkit dengan wajah panik!
“Kau, kau apakan aku barusan!?”
Adit ikut berdiri, wajahnya bingung. "Sa-saya nggak ngapa-ngapain, Bu! Saya cuma menangkap Ibu biar nggak jatuh—"
“Tapi---”
Celina ingin mengatakan sesuatu.
Ada sensasi aneh yang menyelinap ke dalam tubuhnya.
Hangat.
Menyusup ke saraf-sarafnya.
Tiba-tiba area yang disentuh Adit tadi terasa lebih peka. Seakan… terbakar dari dalam.
Namun, dia menggeleng cepat, menepis perasaan aneh itu.
Mana mungkin dia mengaku sentuhan tangan Adit di lehernya … membuat sesuatu dalam tubuhnya berdenyut?!
“Ah, sudah! Lupakan saja!”
Bu Celina bergegas mengenakan pakaiannya, lalu sebelum keluar ruangan, dia menoleh tajam.
"Ingat ya, urusan kita belum selesai!"
Adit hanya bisa menatap kepergiannya sambil menelan ludah.
Habis sudah…
Sudah menyinggung bosnya, Adit pasti akan kehilangan pekerjaannya ini dalam waktu dekat.
“Haaah … ya sudahlah, itu urusan nanti …” pikirnya sebelum memutuskan membereskan alat-alat bersihnya dan keluar dari ruangan.
Tanpa dia sadari…
Cincin yang melingkar di jarinya berpendar…
Lalu menghilang…
Dan membentuk lingkaran hitam di jarinya.
**
Keesokan paginya.
“Anak baru nggak berguna! Baru berapa hari jadi trainee sudah berani datang terlambat?!"
Makian itu terlontar dari mulut Rudi, senior Adit yang paling berengsek. Pria yang sama dengan yang melemparkan pekerjaan bersih-bersih kepadanya tadi malam.
"Maaf, Pak Rudi! Saya tidak bermaksud untuk datang terlambat…"
Tadi pagi, Adit sebenarnya ingin berangkat kerja seperti biasa. Namun, di tengah Bersiap-siap, Adit menyadari bahwa cincin peninggalan kakeknya tiba-tiba hilang.
Sebagai satu-satunya kenangan yang Adit punya terhadap sang kakek yang baru meninggal beberapa waktu lalu, benda itu sangat berharga.
Dia pun mencarinya dengan panik, sampai akhirnya lupa waktu dan berakhir datang terlambat ke kantor.
Alhasil, di sinilah dia sekarang, menerima ocehan dan menjadi bahan pelampiasan kemarahan seniornya.
BUK!
Satu pukulan dengan gulungan kertas koran diterima di kepala oleh Adit.
“Nggak bermaksud terlambat? Kamu kira aku peduli kamu bermaksud atau nggak?! Di sini ada aturan, dan kamu sudah melanggarnya!”
BUK!
Pukulan kedua.
“Baru trainee aja udah belagu.”
BUK!
Pukulan ketiga.
“Kalau kamu merasa udah jago, kamu sebaiknya---”
BRAK!
Pintu pegawai terbuka keras!
“RUDI!”
Bu Celina muncul dengan wajah marah, membuat Rudi menoleh kaget. “B-Bu Celina?”
Adit langsung mengangkat kepala. Saat melihat sosok Celina, dia langsung menunduk lagi, jantungnya berdegup kencang.
Dia pikir… Bu Celina akan memecatnya.
Namun, yang terjadi selanjutnya sangat di luar dugaan.
“Kenapa pelanggan ruang 25 belum ada yang melayani?!”
Rudi membeku, panik. "A-anu, Bu… saya—"
Mata Bu Celina menatap ke arah Adit.
Dan saat mereka saling bertatapan…
Celina langsung mengenalinya.
"Kamu…"
Adit menahan napas, takut kejadian tadi malam akan diungkit.
Tapi Celina membuang wajah, berdeham, lalu berkata dengan suara tegas.
“Kamu! Siapa nama kamu!” tanya Celina.
“A—Adit bu…”
“Adit! Sekarang kamu pergi ke ruang 25. Pijat pelanggan yang ada di sana itu!”
Wajah Rudi seketika mengeras, “Ta—tapi Bu… Adit kan masih Trainee, seharusnya saya yang—"
"Kalau mau pelanggan, seharusnya kamu peka sejak tadi! Bukan sibuk menindas bawahan!" Kemudian, Celina menatap Adit. “Selain itu, mulai saat ini dia jadi pegawai tetap! Cepat ke sana!”
“Ba—baik bu!”
Adit yang melihat ini sebagai kesempatannya, segera saja berlari ke ruangan itu, diikuti tatapan kesal dari Rudi yang merasa dipermalukan.
Namun, berbeda dengan Bu Celina. Ia melihatnya dengan tatapan berbeda…
‘Adit … ya?’
Evan showed up at the apartment building where Ryan and I lived.It had only been a few weeks, but he looked worse than ever. The red in his eyes had deepened, and there was a desperation about him, something cornered and unhinged.When he saw Ryan and me come out together, his pupils contracted."Married? Lillian, you'd go this far just to get back at me?" His voice cracked. He lunged to grab my wrist. "You married a man you barely know? Have you lost your mind?"Ryan stepped forward, placing himself between us.He wasn't built like Evan, not as broad, not as imposing, but he stood straight as a pine, and the quiet authority in his stance stopped Evan cold."Mr. Cole, that's enough. Lillian is my wife now. Her decisions about her own marriage are hers to make.""Wife?" The word seemed to physically burn him. He stared past Ryan at me. "A few months? That's all it took for you to fall for someone else? Lillian, eight years. What did those eight years even mean to you?"Ryan didn't let
After that day, things between Ryan and me began to shift.We spent time together like friends, sharing stories from work, venting about bad days, grabbing the occasional meal, going for walks.Then, one night, my phone erupted.Text after text from unknown numbers, each carrying blurry, oddly-angled photos of me at the hospital, me heading home. Clearly taken without my knowledge.The last message was unsigned: a long, rambling rant laced with venom and the sloppy syntax of someone who'd been drinking, cursing me for being heartless, then abruptly begging me to come back, peppered with crying emojis.A cold wave of revulsion crawled up my spine.I knew exactly who it was.He'd switched tactics, going for something worse, more pathetic, and more relentless.This time, I didn't hesitate.I screenshotted every text and photo, packaged them together, and sent a measured, professional email to Evan's agent."Mr. Hunter, this is a follow-up reminder. Evan Cole's continued harassment, stalki
I looked up at him.Strangely, my heart was perfectly still. Even the old needle-prick of pain I used to feel whenever I saw him was gone."I'm not throwing a tantrum, Evan." My voice was quiet. "We're over. We were over three months ago, the moment you stole the surgery money and hung up on me.""That was a misunderstanding." His voice shot up, a vein pulsing at his temple. "I wasn't thinking straight. Sophia was crying so hard, I thought you were— I tried to find you after. I tried to explain. You wouldn't pick up.""Explain?" I repeated the word, almost amused. "To explain how you let her stain our sheets? How you gave her the bracelet you'd made for me, and watched her smash it?""Or to explain how, when I was begging you to save my foot, you hung up on me the second she started crying?"With every question, another shade of color drained from his face."That's not ... none of that is what you think." He floundered, eyes darting. "Sophia and I, it was all for publicity. Work. The s
Autumn in Valley Creek. The sky was a clear, endless blue.The private hospital sat on the edge of town, wrapped in maples burning half-gold, half-red."Lillian, the patient in bed three says his wound feels tight. Wants you to take another look.""Lillian, here's the imaging you requested on last week's complex fracture.""Lillian, there's an old lady who asked for you specifically. Brought homemade apple pie. It's at the nurses' station."A weekday morning. Voices streamed in from the hallway and the intercom one after another.I responded to each, eyes focused on the chart in front of me.Then a steaming cup of herbal tea appeared on my desk.I looked up, surprised. It was Ryan Carter, the young director of Valley Creek Hospital.He couldn't have been thirty yet. Wire-rimmed glasses, a calm, attentive gaze."Lillian, the way you've handled those complex trauma cases in orthopedics this past month has been remarkable." His tone was genuine. "Having you here is Valley Creek's good for
The paramedics arrived and wheeled me into the exam room.The doctor examined my right ankle, pressing his cool fingers against different points. Every touch sent a jolt of sharp pain through me."Does this hurt?""How about here?""Can you feel me moving your toes?"I clenched my jaw, nodding, shak
That bracelet was the only thing I had left from eight years together.The only proof that someone had once loved me.It couldn't be taken away. If it was, then those eight years really were nothing but a joke."Give it back."My voice came out dry and cracked.Sophia blinked, then put on an exagger
The suitcase sat open in the living room. I packed slowly.At the bottom, my fingers brushed a cream-colored envelope.A job offer from Valley Creek Private Hospital, received two months ago. A position as a surgeon, with generous pay.Back then, Evan had been stressed about the championship. I hadn
The other end went dead silent, and then Evan's voice shot up."Lillian, are you threatening me?""This is publicity. A marketing strategy. Do you even understand that? We're a friendship duo. Sophia's helping me build buzz. This is the most critical time in my career, and you're pulling this crap?"












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