Meja Setting

Agar anakku, Edy Sudrian bisa masuk sekolah internasional yang terunggul, aku sudah mempersiapkan semua berkas selama setahun. Di hari terakhir pengecekan berkas masuk sekolah, semua berkas sudah disiapkan kecuali akta nikahku bersama suamiku, Eric Sudrian. Namun, begitu tiba di ruang pendaftaran, Eric justru menuduhku karena bertindak sepihak. Saat aku hendak membela diri, staf sekolah berkata dengan wajah aneh, "Nyonya Anida Kusuma, sistem mencatat bahwa pasangan sah Tuan Eric bukan Anda." Dalam seketika, aku langsung terdiam. Darah dalam tubuhku seakan membeku. Sebelum aku sadar kembali, Viona Hakana yang berdiri diam di belakang Eric langsung menyerahkan akta nikahnya. Usai memeriksa, staf sekolah pun mengangguk sambil berbicara, "Pak Eric dan Bu Viona telah menikah di bulan Juni empat tahun lalu, sehingga bisa diproses sekarang." Di bulan Juni empat tahun yang lalu. Hari itu adalah hari pertunanganku bersama Eric. Eric menggenggam tanganku di depan para tamu, kemudian bersumpah bahwa aku adalah satu-satunya cinta sejatinya. Namun, kalimat itu ternyata menipuku selama tujuh tahun.

"Lima belas ribu, Mas? Yang benar saja. Besok kamu tahu kan, kalau ibuku mau datang?" Kedua alis Aira naik ke atas dengan mata melebar.  "Kenapa? Apa ada yang salah? Terus ... kalau orang tuamu datang, kita mau menyambut seperti ratu, menyediakan ikan, daging, udang, cumi, begitu? Kita hidup harus hemat. Nggak peduli siapa yang datang. Bukankah orang kampung juga menyambut tamu dengan hidangan seadanya?"

Lana menemukan bill hotel di saku kemeja sang suami, tetapi ketika ditanya tentang masalah itu, Yoga berkelit. Lana tidak ingin menjadi perempuan bodoh yang bisa dikhianati begitu saja, maka dia diam-diam menyelidiki. Ternyata benar, suaminya tengah menjalin hubungan dengan seorang perempuan muda yang bekerja di kantornya. Lana tidak lagi memberinya ampun karena jalan satu-satunya adalah perpisahan.

Violeta Luvena atau biasa disapa Ve adalah seorang pegawai di Bintang Copy Center (BCC), sebuah jasa fotocopyan yang sudah besar dan memiliki cabang dimana-mana. Ve harus menelan kenyataan pahit karena Danu, kekasih yang mana rekan satu kerjaan berpaling pada karyawan baru. Mirisnya lagi selama ini Danu hanya kasihan dan menganggap Ve sebagai selingan saja. Hubungan mereka berdua yang sudah diketahui banyak orang termasuk para pelanggan setia tentunya membuat Ve malu. Terlebih Danu dengan terang-terangan menunjukkan kemesraan dengan kekasih barunya itu. Revan Healvito yang lebih akrab disapa Vito adalah seorang mahasiswa kedokteran yang sedang menjalani koas. Dia salah satu pelanggan tetap dan sudah kenal dekat dengan para pegawai BCC. Merasa iba dengan nasib Ve, Vito menawarkan sebuah kerjasama yang tentunya akan menguntungkan bagi Ve maupun Vito sendiri. Apakah kerjasama tersebut?

Rayasa telah melakukan kesalahan fatal dalam pekerjaannya sebagai dokter. Akibat masalah itu dia terpaksa terlibat dalam permainan gila seorang Alister Byantara. Perempuan itu rela dijadikan sebagai istri kedua oleh sang konglomerat. Jika Rayasa berhasil memenangkan permainan Alister dan menyelesaikan semua misinya, maka 10 miliar akan masuk ke kantung Rayasa dengan utuh. Awalnya semua berjalan lancar sebagaimana mestinya, namun semua tak lagi sama ketika perasaan sudah berbicara. Mereka terperangkap dalam jebakan cinta dan mulai menyeriuskan pernikahan yang semula hanya settingan belaka.

Bagaimana jika pernikahan yang diimpikan ternyata tak seindah kenyataan? Diandra tak pernah menyangka jika pernikahannya yang ia pikir berjalan mulus ternyata begitu terjal dan berliku. Suami yang ia pikir mau menerima dia apa adanya ternyata malah mengkhianatinya. Reza, suami Diandra diam-diam menjalani hubungan gelap dengan teman dekat Diandra semasa ia bekerja dulu. Tanpa Reza tau jika ternyata bos tempatnya bekerja adalah sosok di masa lalu Diandra yang akan membantu membalaskan sakit hati Diandra. Bagaimanakah kelanjutan rumah tangga Diandra dan Reza nantinya? Apakah kehadiran sosok masa lalu Diandra untuk merebut Diandra kembali atau hanya membantunya seperti dulu? Ikuti terus kisah mereka, jangan sampai terlewatkan!

On the third day of attempting to conquer Blake Stone's heart, he confesses his feelings to me. But the thing is, the affection meter displayed above his head shows the number "0". After we start dating, Blake pampers me to no end. He even proposes to me in a grand fashion on our sixth year anniversary. With tears in my eyes, I'm about to nod when I see a range of comments floating across my vision. [Blake must be exhausted from all the acting, huh? He has to reel in his disgust and keep up the act with Joanna for six years in order to protect Keira from her.] [That idiotic replacement actually got so immersed in this act! I'm laughing my ass off right now!] It's as though my blood had transformed into ice. No wonder the number never changed throughout the years. At the same time, the system's icy voice rings out in my mind. "The final phase is now activated. The countdown to the time left to conquer your target's heart has started. You have ten days left. If you fail, you'll be wiped out from this world." I just smile as I draw back my hand that was about to wear his ring. Then, I wipe my tears away. "I'm sorry, but I'm sick and tired of this stupid strategy game."

My mom was born with a silver spoon in her mouth. Her life is smooth-sailing most of the time. The only mistake she's ever made is falling for my dad. That's why she insists on finding me a husband who's the complete opposite of my dad. My dad is tall and intimidating-looking, so Mom wants someone who's short and perverted-looking. My dad is a knowledgeable and well-read man, so Mom wants a guy who has only graduated from elementary school. My dad prioritizes his moral integrity more than anything else, so Mom prefers a guy who drinks, gambles, and sleeps around. She tells me, "This type of man is easy to manipulate, unlike your father, who just divorced me out of nowhere!" It's true that the man Mom has chosen for me won't divorce me. After all, he leeches from me on top of beating me up. It's not enough to leech my money from me, it seems—he just has to take everything from me. My mom says in a righteous tone, "This is the only way that proves you're valuable to him. He won't divorce you at all." I've fought back and escaped from my husband many times. Every time I do, my mom will trick me into returning to him by hurting herself. As always, I'm greeted with another round of beating whenever I do return to him. Mom will take me to the hospital to get my injuries treated. Then, she'll say, "Hurry up and give birth to a son for him. Once you have a son, you'll be extremely valuable to your husband. He won't beat you up anymore." Today is supposed to be the day Mom takes me to the hospital to check my ovulation timing. She spends a long time calling me on the phone, yet I never pick up. After that, she sends me a few audio messages that last for 60 seconds each just to lecture me. "Beatrice Anderson, what makes you think you can just ignore my calls? The hospital check-up is for your own good! As long as you can get pregnant with a son, your husband will be wrapped around your finger! He won't divorce you after this! Why can't you understand how much I care for you?" I seriously can't understand at all. After all, I've gotten beaten to death yesterday. My corpse is cut into 28 chunks, and they are being frozen in the fridge as I speak.

After Celine Anderson let her newly-promoted assistant take credit for my billion-dollar project for the ninth time, I handed in my resignation letter. I also refused to show up in the same place as her. Whenever she was interviewed by talk shows as a public figure, I would switch off all the screens in the building. I also got the security guard to stop her from entering even if she brought me a cup of coffee in the middle of a tornado. To see me, she purposely rescheduled three virtual meetings with foreign companies. So, I immediately bought air tickets to leave the country. I blocked her everywhere and formatted the hard disk that contained all of our memories from the past decade. When I was twenty, I studied with her in the university library. When I was twenty-five, I ate the cheapest bread with her when she first started her company. When I was thirty, I finally knew how to let go of things that no longer serve me. On the ninth time I was accused of sleeping my way up, I came across a photo of her and her assistant kissing. Meanwhile, I was sitting at our dining table with food that had turned cold. It turned out that our decade-long relationship had been a joke. However, it was fine. It was not too late to come to my senses.

Ini hari pertamaku pindah ke SMA swasta elite. Aku melihat satu meja dan kursi berwarna merah tua di barisan belakang ruang kelas yang tidak diduduki siapa pun. Semua orang di kelas baruku sering bicara dengan meja dan kursi itu. "Selamat pagi." "Sampai ketemu besok." Seolah-olah ada seseorang yang duduk di sana. Seseorang yang terlihat di mata semua orang, kecuali aku.