Part 8

"He's way more handsome, Rin," whispered a middle-aged

woman in a floral house dress with neatly rolled hair. There were three rolls

perched on the top of her head. She grinned as she introduced herself to

Fachri.

In her eyes, Fachri was incredibly handsome and fit the ideal

man that women desired. His prominent nose, sharp jawline, and thick eyebrows

framed by black-framed glasses. Not to forget, his thick and curly eyelashes.

His broad chest and slightly muscular arms, along with a flat

and firm abdomen. Fachri was also above-average in height. Even Zidan, who met

the height requirements to apply to an institution, only reached his ears.

Which woman wouldn't be enchanted by his perfection? Except, of

course, Airin. Her blind love had closed her eyes to see any handsome man in

the world other than Zidan.

"Auntie could be right. But, for me, he's still the most

handsome," Airin replied, nudging the arm of the landlady.

"Oh, come on! Are your eyes malfunctioning, Rin? It's clear

this one is handsome. This height, for sure, he's well-equipped down there

too." She stared down at Fachri, who was covered with black trousers.

"You're not allowed to flirt, Auntie," teased Airin,

rolling her eyes, uninterested in the landlady's overly flirtatious behavior.

But, she still strictly enforced the rules in her boarding house.

Fachri blinked. His eyebrows furrowed, and his gaze shifted to

Airin, seeking an explanation for their conversation. Even the landlady pointed

toward the region of the mystical object she possessed.

Airin simply shrugged indifferently. Frankly, she didn't want

Fachri to stay too long in her place. She was afraid that her gossip-loving

friend might suddenly appear and report something to Zidan. Worse, if Zidan

himself came and misunderstood the situation.

"Oh, by the way, who is this? A new boyfriend?" the

landlady asked, finally inquiring about Fachri's identity.

"I'm Airin's lecturer. I came here to pay the overdue rent

for Airin's room," Fachri quickly said, checking his backpack.

The middle-aged woman raised her eyebrows, trying to remember

when Airin's rent was due.

"Oh, yes, it's late, isn't it, Rin? I almost forgot because

Erin paid her rent a few days ago. I find it hard to distinguish between Airin

and Erin. Oh my... having two boarders like twin children makes me dizzy,"

she said quickly, as Airin's slender fingers grazed her slightly overweight

waist. She immediately knew it was a sign to just accept the money Fachri was

offering.

Besides, even without a sign, she would have accepted it anyway.

Any explanations could be discussed later after Fachri left. All she knew was

she could go shopping now since she received the rent before it was due.

"Thank you so much for paying my room rent, Sir. The

semester break is coming soon, and I might be going home to the village,"

Airin said, escorting Fachri to the main gate of the boarding house. After

receiving the payment receipt from the landlady.

"It's okay. After that, you'll still come back here. Don't

think too much about it." He pulled the corners of his lips, bidding

farewell to Airin to head home.

Fachri sighed deeply as he reached his car. Quite disappointed

that he couldn't extract information about Airin's boyfriend. If there wasn't a

tattoo with the initial 'M' on Zidan's neck, he could be sure he wouldn't be so

secretive about the identity of Airin's boyfriend. Fachri was convinced it was

the same person, but accusing without clear evidence might not be the right

move.

***

"Do you want to have an affair with your earlier

lecturer?" 

Ajeng, the landlady, approached Airin, following her up the

stairs.

Airin stopped in her tracks, turning to Ajeng with a horrified

look.

"No, Ma'am. It's just that I don't want to be asked about

this and that. I'm uncomfortable with people being nosy about my personal life,

even if it's my lecturer."

"It's just names and addresses, Rin. Professor Fachri was

just making conversation," Ajeng defended Fachri, who had inquired about

Airin's boyfriend.

"Even if it's just names. I don't like it, and I'll never

want to tell."

If only she had known Fachri's nature earlier, she would have

declined the help and the ride home. Unfortunately, she only realized it when

she arrived at her boarding house.

Airin's regret didn't stop there. She still owed Fachri a favor

in return for paying her rent. Her fate seemed to be getting worse.

"If I conclude from your story, Rin, it seems like your

lecturer likes you or something. Especially when he saw the tattoo on your

boyfriend's wrist."

Sonya, Airin's roommate, tried to convey her assessment of what

she heard from Airin. Although she didn't meet Fachri directly, she could draw

conclusions even though, according to Airin, she was just making things up.

"Nah, that's impossible. He's the most admired lecturer by

the girls on campus. Just his breath makes the ladies scream hysterically. Of

course, he has very high standards, Onya. And again, what did you say earlier?

Does he know Zidan? Impossible, Fachri is originally from Samarinda... and

studying in Bandung. He even became the youngest lecturer due to his

achievements. It's highly unlikely that he got lost in Jakarta just to get to

know Zidan. It's nothing more than a lecturer being curious about his student.

I'm sure of it," Airin explained, quickly dispelling Sonya's speculations.

She truly did not want either of those possibilities to apply to Fachri. Simply

put, Airin didn't want to be loved by Fachri or have a sibling like him -

someone rigid and sometimes even gossiped about being interested in the same

gender.

"Let it be if you don't believe. I, for one, consider both

possibilities," Sonya persisted with her argument. She didn't know why she

could be so sure about those two choices.

"Well, it's up to you to think that way. What's certain

is... I don't want to believe," Airin said indifferently. She quickly got

up, reached for her phone, and headed to the balcony to try contacting Zidan,

hoping his number was now reachable.

"Don't you want to make sure of one of those? What if it's

the second one, the one that makes your lecturer attractive," Sonya

followed. She joined Airin on the balcony. The beautiful girl who was currently

struggling with her exams sat beside Airin with her laptop on her lap.

"There's nothing wrong with finding out, Rin. What if Zidan

is already married in Jakarta? Don't you want to avoid being a homewrecker? So,

while your relationship isn't too far yet, it's better to find out about

Zidan," she explained casually to Airin.

However, her words hit Airin hard, leaving her stunned. She

gripped her phone tightly. How could Sonya, who was much younger, think so

sensibly? Thinking with her brain, unlike herself who couldn't distinguish

between right and wrong. Thus, she surrendered her body to a man she had just

met on social media, Zidan.