LOVE YOU, UNCLE

Randy and Ghea were warmly welcomed when they arrived at the dinner event venue. Proudly, Randy took his wife around and introduced Ghea to all the colleagues and business associates they encountered.

“Yes, Mr. Kharis. This is Ghea Donovan, my wife. She is the youngest daughter of Maxwell Donovan.”

“So beautiful,” praised Kharisma, one of the leaders of the largest startup company in Indonesia. “You both look very harmonious and suitable together with Mr. Randy.”

“Thank you for your compliment,” Ghea tried to respond.

Although she felt a bit awkward and somewhat shy, Ghea seemed to thoroughly enjoy how Randy took her to meet and chat with his business associates. Until the moment when Stella approached. Casual greetings and an invitation for Randy to meet someone followed.

“Hi, Ghea. Glad to see you here,” Stella greeted casually. Although her face seemed friendly, for some reason, Ghea felt that it was all just pretense.

“Hello. I’m also glad to see you here.”

Stella then turned to Randy, who stood faithfully beside Ghea. She engaged in a conversation with him before eventually leaving together.

“Earlier, Mr. Prasodjo and Mr. Isran were looking for you, Ran. It seems they want to introduce you to other important guests.”

“Oh, really?”

Stella nodded.

“Yeah, it seems like they invited investors from outside to attend and join the event tonight. It’s a good idea for us to meet them now. Who knows, there might be important business discussions later on.”

This time, Randy agreed with a nod. Before leaving, he approached Ghea, who was sitting, enjoying her cake and drink.

“Do you want to come with me or stay here?”

“Better stay here,” Stella interjected before Ghea could answer. “I’m afraid Ghea will get bored following you discussing business, which will surely take a while.”

Ghea chuckled. Stella is really the room freshener. It seemed like she intentionally provoked Randy not to bring her along to meet important guests and business associates. But, when thought about it, Ghea was tired. It might be better for her to sit and wait than to join Randy in a lengthy business discussion.

“Yeah, I’ll wait here. Is that okay?”

“Okay,” Stella agreed. “Just stay here. If you need anything, just call me, and I’ll come as soon as possible.”

“Sure, dear,” Ghea replied on purpose, making Randy smile immediately. Meanwhile, Stella looked sour hearing it.

As Randy left, Ghea chose to pass the time by enjoying various cakes she had taken and playing with her phone. The first thirty minutes seemed to go smoothly. Until a few minutes later, Ghea’s focus was diverted. From behind, she clearly heard a man calling her name very loudly.

“Ghea Amelia.”

At that moment, Ghea turned to the source of the voice. Then, after that, she froze for a moment. There was a figure of a man whom she knew well and wanted to avoid suddenly standing in front of her.

“Rio?”

Ghea was stunned. Wondering, how could her ex-boyfriend be in the same place as her? Then, shortly after, Ghea remembered something. She almost forgot that Rio was the son of a famous businessman. He could have come with his parents or even replaced his parents’ position to attend.

“Yes,” nodded the man with a characteristic smile that Ghea would never forget for the rest of her life. A smile that had once driven Ghea crazy. “I thought you had forgotten about me.”

Ghea smiled sarcastically. What did he say? Forgotten? After being cheated on and lied to several times? There was no way Ghea could forget. She even fell into despair and experienced trauma, making it difficult for her to enter a new relationship due to Rio’s wrongdoings.

“I can’t forget you, Rio,” Ghea replied, trying to be casual. However, she felt very uncomfortable having to meet her ex-boyfriend like this.

Rio smiled broadly. Feeling superior, he responded to Ghea’s words with confidence.

“I’m sure you can’t forget me, Ghe. I also believe that until this moment, you still love me, right?”

Ghea immediately gave him an incredulous look. Why does this guy not have any shame? Instead of regretting being cheated on, Ghea even felt grateful back then because she eventually discovered all the evil things Rio did to her.

In hindsight, Ghea should have listened to Mario and Denisa’s advice about Rio’s notorious bad habits. Instead of obeying, at that time, Ghea was lulled and closed her eyes.

“Don’t be too confident, Rio.”

“I’m not too confident, Ghe,” the man replied. “I’m just stating the fact that you still love me a lot. Can I guess? Until this moment, you probably still can’t move on and remain faithful to yourself, right?”

Rio took a step forward, approaching. He slightly bowed his body, then spoke softly right into Ghea’s ear.

“If you want, we can go back to the way we were. I promise this time I’ll be faithful only to you, Ghe. As long as you let me sleep with others, like before.”

Ghea widened her eyes. If she didn’t remember that she was in a public place, she would have slapped or punched Rio right then and there.

“Don’t be rude, Rio!” scolded Ghea angrily. How could she not be angry after being clearly belittled by her former reckless boyfriend?

“I’m not rude. Among many women, you are the only one I’ve had difficulty conquering from the beginning, Ghe. You should be grateful to meet me again and invite us to reconcile. I’m sure, until this moment, you have difficulty erasing me from your heart, right? Besides, it’s a stroke of luck for you to have a relationship with me who —-”

“Honey …” from another direction, Randy, who had finished meeting his business associates, approached Ghea again. Seeing his wife looking uncomfortable chatting with another man, Randy quickly approached and addressed her.

“Who are you talking to?”

At that moment, Ghea stood up. Shortly after, she went over to Randy and stood behind her husband.

“He’s Rio. The ex-boyfriend I told you about,” Ghea said, getting a nod from her husband.

Then Randy turned to Rio. Extending his hand, he invited the thin man in front of him to shake hands.

“Hi, I’m Randy, Ghea’s husband.”

“Husband?” Rio asked, looking surprised as he examined Randy from head to toe.

“Yes. I’m Ghea’s husband. You must be Rio, Ghea’s ex-boyfriend who’s of mixed race, right?”

In the midst of his confusion, Rio just nodded. He briefly felt proud because Ghea had told him about his ancestry from a mixed bloodline.

“Yeah, as you can see, I am indeed mixed race.”

“Half Indonesian? The other half a scoundrel?” Randy added, causing Rio to choke. “According to Ghea, you’re her ex who was the most reckless and scoundrel. But, I want to thank you very much. Thanks to your reckless and scoundrel attitude, I was able to marry Ghea. So, thank you!”

Rio was dumbfounded. He didn’t know how to respond to Randy’s blunt words just now. Meanwhile, Ghea was also at a loss for words. When Randy invited her to go home, she simply agreed.

Throughout the journey home, Ghea chose to remain silent. Randy, aware of this, immediately addressed her.

“What’s wrong, Ghe? Why have you been silent all this time?”

Instead of answering, Ghea unexpectedly threw herself into Randy’s arms, burying her head, and tears were heard.Text property © Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org.

For a moment, Randy chose to let it be. He gently stroked Ghea’s hair and shoulders alternately. Trying patiently to wait until Ghea felt more comfortable, he finally asked again.

“Why? Did I do something wrong?”

Ghea lifted her face, looked deep into Randy’s eyes, and then shook her head.

“It hurt so much to meet Rio earlier. I don’t know how I would have reacted if Uncle hadn’t arrived in time. Just imagine, he belittled me by suggesting sleeping together.”

“Oh no,” Randy exclaimed. His hands clenched, unable to accept what Ghea had just revealed.

“He’s the one who traumatized me and made me not trust men anymore. The wound Rio carved in my heart is so deep.”

Randy sighed deeply. Only now did he realize why Ghea was in such denial and tried so hard to reject him. There was a significant trauma in her that prevented her from trusting any man.

“Not all men are like Rio, Ghe. I can assure you I’m not like your ex. You can see it for yourself later.”

Ghea remained silent. Tightening the hug, she tried to push away the negative thoughts haunting her. She silently prayed in her heart that Randy was different from what she had imagined all this time.