Chương 1: -1-
This morning, the white curtain would be the silent witness. White would no longer be venerated. Everything has changed overnight in the most painful manner. Humming fan blades lamented her suffering. A lamentation that pierced her ears. Even the rays of the rising sun came in to jeer at her.
Dinda was still here. She hugged herself as the endless pain ravaged her. Dinda was still here, sunken deeply into despair. Dinda would never be able to smile again.
She should not have left that night, to her friend's invitation to attend Panji's birthday party. For in the end, that eighteen years would end terribly.
She remembered clearly what her lover said after such a deplorable deed was done. He nonchalantly acted as if it was nothing but a playful banter.
"Everything will easily be over, Jeng."
Dinda stood up from her seat as she heard a loud voice from the outside. That person spoke in a formal manner. She knew that the situation outside was tense.
Dinda was still standing behind the door of her room so that she could catch a glimpse from the corner of her eye. There were a few people that she knew, Panji and his parents. They were passionately defending him.
Dinda remembered clearly how infuriated her father was when he found out about this. In fact, she was threatened to be disavowed from the family and to be treated as persona non grata in her own home. Luckily, her mother showed mercy upon her and tried to defend her. From visiting Panji's home to filing a report to the authorities, everything she has tried was futile. Their poor family could not do much against a wealthy one.
"Your son has ruined my daughter's future. How dare you say such a thing, ma'am! Have you no thought of my daughter's future? I can not even dare to imagine how her future would be after all that he did." Nina - Dinda's mother - yelled.
She beat her own chest violently as she sobbed because she had no idea what to do now.
"Why are you blaming my son, Jeng? Aren't they involved in a relationship for the past two years?" Anggun - Panji's mother - replied.
Even this meeting, initiated by Panji's family, brought no result. They really looked down on Dinda's family just because they were financially weak.
"They were doing that consensually so you can't blame it on my son. It was your daughter's fault for seducing my son. Had she behaved, this would never happen. It was your daughter who was supposed to be blamed! Truly a presumptuous daughter you have!" Anggun mocked.
Dinda saw her mother fall silent. She was certain that her mother had set aside all her pride and shame because of her. It made her feel even more guilty.
"Listen, I don't want to argue anymore. Let me tell you how we should solve this problem. I, Panji's father, will never drop my responsibility. But, we will fulfill our responsibility in my way." Agung - Panji's father - said. "I will transfer Dinda to one of the best high schools in town that is a little farther than her current school. Therefore, we will prevent this problem from getting worse. You don';t need to worry about any kind of expenses as we will personally bear the responsibility until Dinda graduates from high school. Lastly, you have our word that no one, except our family, shall be aware of this matter. As a result, Dinda can carry on with her life, so does our son with his. Any thoughts regarding my suggestion?"
"You think–"
"Agreed!"
Dinda was shocked by the way her father interrupted her mother. Dinda could see clearly how speechless she was.
"Dear, how could you—"
"We had no choice, dear. Forcing your resolution upon them will bring our daughter nowhere. No matter how you look upon it, her mistake was grave. Therefore, their suggestion will undoubtedly solve the problem at hand! I can't take it anymore. I do not want to talk about this or hear your doubts any further!"
Dinda saw her mother run to her room. Meanwhile, her father was busy filling in the paperwork that Panji's parents had brought. Ultimately, they shook hands to seal the deal.
Again, Dinda could do nothing but cry. She was powerless, there was no way she could reject the agreement as she was still under her father's roof. Besides, she was lucky that her father renounced his threat to expel her from this house.
*****
About a week after their visit, Dinda was transferred to one of the most popular high schools in her town. Since the distance between her home and the school is quite far, her father decided to place her in an apartment near the school. It was nothing but an excuse to get rid of her, although she did require less time to commute if she was placed in an apartment. If she wasn't placed there, it would take two hours to reach school from her home.
Dinda drew a deep breath. She complied to her father's order faithfully, unquestioningly. Her mother still tried to defy but to no avail. There was nothing else she could do but cry over her daughter's departure. She was worried, being parted with her daughter for a year really filled her heart with anxiety. A delinquent has messed up her daughter's life while she was under her protection, what would happen if her daughter was placed far away from her.
There was not much she could do. She prayed from the bottom of her wounded heart that the heavens above will cast their providence upon her.
"This is a female-only apartment. Even so, your friends are still allowed to visit you here for a limited period of time. Most people that stayed here are students of Airlangga High School, there are several employees and college students as well. I believe that you have noticed that this is a good place to build an apartment. For that reason, I have built several apartment buildings around here." The landlady explained her apartment rules to Dinda while taking her new tenant to a vacant room.
This apartment building was one of the most prestigious residences. Apparently, Panji's parents thought that they were being generous by providing her with all these facilities as a compensation to her value as a woman. However, she was not against it. Not because she had the same thought as they were but because vengeance and pain had numbed her heart.
Dinda stared at that apartment building. Right after the main gate, there was a security post. After that, there was a huge courtyard with a two story building in the middle of it. On the right side, she saw another huge building that appeared to be a lobby, communal kitchen, and external bathroom. But the landlady said that there was also an internal bathroom in each apartment room.
"This is your room, miss. Here is the key. You also have a roommate here. She is a school student from the same school as yours. I hope you will enjoy your stay here. I'll take my leave." said the landlady while handing the key to Dinda.
The landlady goes by the name Ambar, she was not old enough to be addressed as "ma'am" but Dinda felt more comfortable that way.
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