LOGINLayla Chen was the most beautiful girl in her school. In addition, she was intelligent and the vice-president of the school. She could have any guy as her boyfriend if she wanted to; only if she wanted to. Whereas he was a transferred student who came with his friends. He was handsome and intelligent. It didn't take him long to be the center of attraction. But there was someone who was a little different than any other girl he ever met. In no time, she gained his attention with the curiosity sprouting inside him. Then, what he did? How did he get close to her? The girl who doesn't desire a school romance. And most importantly, how did they actually fall in love with each other?
View More"Nyonya Naomi Vargas, istri yang dicintai oleh suaminya, Mayor Raiden Vargas, kini telah berpulang.”
Naomi hampir tertawa. Refleks, Naomi menutup mulutnya sendiri dengan tangan bersarung hitam. Suara kecil itu nyaris lolos sebelum dia berhasil menelannya kembali. Dicintai? Sejak kapan? Angin siang berembus pelan, membawa aroma tanah basah dan bunga kamboja yang berjatuhan di sekitar kompleks pemakaman militer. Pemimpin upacara mengucapkan kata itu dengan begitu yakin. Seolah dia memang hadir di setiap sudut pernikahan Naomi dan menyaksikan sendiri betapa agungnya cinta seorang Mayor Raiden Vargas kepada sang istri. Naomi tahu lebih baik dari itu. Orang memang baru akan disanjung ketika sudah tidak bisa lagi membantah. Ketika sudah tidak bisa lagi menceritakan sisi lain dari kisah yang selama ini hanya mengalir satu arah. Namun ketika Naomi hidup, mereka sibuk mencari kesalahan, menghina, dan memojokkannya. "Nona, tolong pelankan suara Anda," tegur pria jangkung di sebelahnya. Naomi sedikit memiringkan kepala, menatapnya dari balik kacamata hitam. "Mereka tidak akan mendengarku," balas Naomi sambil mengernyitkan dahi, tidak terima ditegur. "Jarak kita dengan area upacara sangat jauh. Lagipula, kenapa aku tidak boleh sedikit saja bersuara di pemakamanku sendiri?" Pria itu melirik sekilas, berdeham, lalu kembali menatap ke depan. Ke arah para prajurit berseragam hijau tua yang bersiap membawa peti mati. Naomi memandang peti itu dari kejauhan. "Aku ingin melihat lebih dekat," tukas Naomi. "Tunggu, Nona." Pria itu sigap menghadang sambil menyodorkan masker. "Tolong pakai ini dulu." Naomi mengambilnya tanpa banyak bicara. Jas panjang hitam. Sepatu boots hitam. Topi lebar yang menutupi separuh wajah. Masker dan kacamata yang menyembunyikan wajahnya. Pria itu membantu merapikan kerah jas. Sementara Naomi menyelipkan rambut hitam panjang kesukaan Raiden ke dalam lipatan kain jas. Sempurna. Naomi siap berbaur dengan lautan manusia yang sedang berlomba-lomba membuktikan bahwa mereka memiliki empati. Naomi membelah kerumunan dengan tenang. Di sekitarnya, suara isak tangis bercampur dengan bisik-bisik mulai terdengar. "Naomi mati dalam keadaan hamil delapan bulan," ucap seorang wanita tepat di depannya. "Kasihan sekali. Padahal sebentar lagi anaknya lahir," sahut wanita di sebelahnya. "Mayor Raiden sudah menunggu anak itu selama tiga tahun." Naomi tersenyum di balik masker. Menunggu? Tangan Naomi terangkat tanpa sadar, mengusap perutnya yang kini rata. Benar. Tiga tahun Raiden menunggu keturunan yang tidak kunjung hadir. Dan Naomi tahu persis bagaimana rasanya menanggung beban penantian itu. Beban yang tidak pernah terasa adil dan selalu berakhir dengan jari-jari telunjuk yang hanya mengarah ke satu arah saja, pihak perempuan. Naomi ingat siapa kedua wanita ini. Istri perwira yang juga merupakan tetangga di kompleks perumahan dinas, tempat di mana dulu Naomi dan Raiden tinggal bersama. Saat rumor bahwa kandungan Naomi bukanlah anak Raiden mulai beredar, mereka berdua ada di barisan terdepan. Mereka menyebutnya istri licik. Wanita yang memanfaatkan seragam suaminya untuk menutupi aib. Sekarang mereka berdiri di sini dengan mata berkaca-kaca. Naomi mengepalkan tangan di dalam saku jas. "Suamiku sempat melihat jasad Naomi," bisik suara lain. Naomi menoleh. Istri Letnan Kolonel. Wanita dengan jabatan sosial tertinggi di antara mereka, dan karena itu pula merasa paling berhak atas setiap informasi yang beredar. "Bagaimana jasadnya?" tanya Naomi, memaksakan diri masuk ke dalam percakapan itu. Ketiganya menoleh hampir bersamaan. "Maaf, Anda siapa?" Istri Letnan Kolonel menelusuri Naomi dari atas ke bawah, penuh penilaian. Naomi sadar penampilannya mencolok. Di antara lautan seragam hijau tua dan abu-abu formal, hanya dia yang hadir dengan serba hitam. "Keluarga jauh Naomi," jawabnya singkat. Mereka mengangguk. Naomi mengira percakapan akan berhenti di sana. Namun rupanya standar moral mereka memang tidak pernah setinggi yang Naomi bayangkan. "Bengkak, tidak berbentuk, dan hampir mustahil dikenali," kata istri Letnan Kolonel penuh penekanan. "Bahkan DNA dalam jasad sudah tidak bisa dicek karena sudah membusuk. Suamiku sampai muntah-muntah saat melihatnya." Kedua temannya bergidik. Salah satunya menutup mulut dengan tangan. "Lalu bagaimana Mayor Raiden bisa mengenali jasad itu sebagai istrinya?" tanya Naomi tanpa menunjukkan ekspresi apa pun. "Kehamilannya yang sudah besar, tentu saja." Istri Letnan Kolonel mengangkat bahu. "Naomi cukup beruntung karena mati dalam keadaan hamil besar, jadi jasadnya masih bisa dikenali." Naomi terpaku. Kata itu menghantam Naomi lebih keras dari semua cibiran semasa hidup. Perut rata Naomi mendadak terasa kram hingga wajahnya memucat. Naomi tidak sanggup bergerak. Dia tidak sanggup mengikuti obrolan ketiga wanita yang berdiri di depannya dengan wajah tanpa rasa bersalah. Wanita-wanita yang bisa menyebut kematian seorang ibu hamil sebagai sebuah keberuntungan. "Mayor Raiden kehilangan istri dan anak sekaligus. Aku tidak bisa membayangkan betapa hancurnya dia," ucap salah satu dari mereka sambil menggeleng pelan dan menghela napas dramatis. “Ya, Mayor Raiden adalah sosok suami yang setia dan pandai menutup aib istrinya,” sahut yang lain. Kepalan tangan Naomi semakin erat di dalam saku. Kuku-kukunya menggores telapak tangannya sendiri. Apakah Raiden benar-benar hancur? Naomi tersenyum pahit sambil menahan kram di perutnya. Apakah mereka pernah melihat wajah Raiden ketika dia menatap Naomi penuh kecurigaan? Apakah mereka pernah mendengar bagaimana Raiden bertanya siapa ayah dari bayi yang Naomi kandung? Tentu tidak. "Mayor Raiden! Mayor Raiden tiba!" Teriakan itu memecah kerumunan seperti kilat. Semua kepala menoleh ke arah gerbang. Napas Naomi tercekat. Seluruh tubuh Naomi menegang. Jantungnya berdegup tidak karuan. Bukan karena takut atau pun rindu, tetapi karena sesuatu yang sudah lama Naomi pendam tiba-tiba berdesak-desakan mencari jalan keluar dan tidak menemukan satu pun celah yang cukup besar. Perlahan, Naomi menoleh. Di sudut pemakaman itu, di bawah cahaya siang yang tidak kenal belas kasihan, Raiden berdiri. Raiden berdiri tegap sambil mengangkat dagunya. Dan wajah yang pernah dihapal Naomi hingga ke setiap lekuk terkecilnya itu, memakai ekspresi yang sudah sangat dia kenal. Ekspresi Mayor Raiden Vargas saat menjalankan tugas. Bukan seorang suami yang sedang mengantar kepergian istri tercinta untuk selamanya. Di belakang Raiden, peti mati Naomi perlahan diletakkan di atas tanah. Angin bertiup. Bunga-bunga karangan layu bergerak pelan. Dan Naomi berdiri di sana, memandang pria yang dulu dia sebut suami dengan pertanyaan yang tidak akan pernah bisa dijawab oleh upacara pemakaman semewah apa pun. “Apakah kamu pernah benar-benar melihatku, Raiden?Atau kamu baru bisa melihatku sekarang, ketika aku sudah tidak ada?”‘What a beautiful girl.’ Jealousy surged inside them. Seeing such a breathtaking face they wanted nothing more than to ruin it. But they couldn’t let their emotion run wild, not in front of Zou Haoran, their ultimate target. Maintaining their smiles, they shifted their attention from Zou Haoran to Layla. “Hi, my name is Ava.” “Hi, I’m Mia.” “Layla.” A curt reply came out of her mouth making them feel that she was putting on airs. But, the truth was Layla wasn’t willing to be a part of their act. Thus there was no reason for her to play accordingly. ‘Too too arrogant,’ they complained inwardly. Hearing Layla’s cold tone that was devoid of any emotion turned their mood somewhat sour but they could not give up so easily especially when they had seen from the far how friendly Zou Haoran was with this rude girl. Therefore, left with no option they had to please her as this guy blatantly refused to corporate with them. “Nice to meet you, Layla.” They replied with enthusiasm as if they
Reaching near the door Opal noticed something unusual. "Hmm, why it's dark?" She questioned herself as she slowly pushed the door.“Happy Birthday!!” Both the girls shouted in unison as one of them also pressed the switch. They had a big grin on their faces as they took note of every expression Opal made in seconds. They could guess that Opal was very much pleased by the surprise they had prepared for her and it could be considered the first step to success.Opal’s eyes widened in surprise. She checked the time and it was already 12:01 am. ‘It’s my birthday.’ She reminded herself as her eyes sparkled with joy and a pure smile bloomed on her face.At first, her family also used to wish her at midnight but gradually things changed as her sister started to get busy with work and her parents started to go to bed early with aging. Though her family would always make her day awesome enough that could make others jealous but she missed this feeling. She missed those midnight birthday wishes.
“It’s been many days honestly I was waiting for some reaction or an ambush, given how much I angered him.” stirring the fork in noodles Layla exposed the doubt in her heart, “Do you think it was normal that he didn’t come to find me?” She really thought that he would come to find her and seek trouble. She clearly read it on his face. That is why Layla was so confused. “You should watch fewer dramas,” Ryan commented in a monotonous tone as he maintained his deadpanned face. Although he said so but he was also worried about Layla crossing paths with him accidentally or intentionally. For the past few days, he was paying special attention to this matter. He even went as far as hacking some cameras of nearby public places but he didn’t find anything. And he didn’t know whether it was a good thing or bad. Layla rolled her eyes and continued eating while maintaining silence. She would never be able to guess that that man was sent to the police that very evening by Opal’s people. He was a r
“Ah!!” “Oww” “Sorry” Layla apologized timidly to the second ‘ghost’ she accidentally punched after entering the building. “It-it was a reflex action.” She added hoping to lessen the ghost’s resentment. No one knew whether her action was really an accident or a deliberate act. Ryan snorted at the scene unfolding in front of him. His actions made others recall the words he uttered before entering the building. Now they realized how foolish they were to think that he was scared. “You will have to walk in the middle. And that's final.” He added before she could utter any word of protest. He did not want to give more workers a chance to gossip about a certain crazy customer they got. “You seem to know vice-prez very well, pre
Layla opened the door loudly and dashed inside. Zou Haoran was behind her.Her eyes landed on Lani. "Your club is sure, something." She spoke sharply.Lani was bewildered by t
Reaching her room, Layla saw a lock hanging on the door. She took out the keys and inserted one of them into the hole of the lock. After twisting the key and removing the unlocked lock, she entered. As soon as she opened the door, the pink zone in her room greeted
Layla was impatiently waiting for Lani to get ready so that they can leave for school."My singing goddess, you should cut off your long hair." Layla couldn't help but complain seeing her taking time to do her hair. As m
Layla was standing in front of a shop. Her head was up, looking at the name written on the top of it. The shop’s name was Aroma where the 'O' was replaced with the beautiful top view of a cup of coffee.When she en


















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