Bittersweet Arrangements : A Sugar Dady Affair

“Goodness, my head feels like it’s producing smoke,” complained Citra while massaging her throbbing head after completing 50 Indonesian language questions full of long texts.

“Come on, you never complain when reading hundreds of pages of novels. How can you make a fuss about 50 questions like it’s a sermon!” teased Melodi.

“Well, obviously, it’s different, Mel Mel! Reading novels is fun and doesn’t give me a headache, unlike the exam questions I just tackled, filled with nonsense,” defended Citra. But what she said was true. The plot in the novels she usually read often made her laugh, get angry, excited, or even cry like a crazy person. It was different from the exam questions she had just answered. Almost all the questions were presented with confusing answer choices, often deceiving students with the available options.

Since it was still 10 in the morning, the three of them headed to the school canteen. They intentionally didn’t go home right away because they wanted to enjoy some time together first to refresh their minds. Citra quickly ordered cold drinks for the three of them and they sat at one of the benches. Since the canteen was relatively quiet, their orders arrived quickly. At this time, students were seen coming and going, taking turns participating in the National Examination (UN). The UN was divided into two sessions: the morning session from 07:30 to 09:30 WIB and the second session from 10:00 to 12:00 WIB. Fortunately, the three of them had the first session. Although they weren’t in the same room, they had made a promise to gather after each exam.

To accompany their conversation, they picked various foods available in the canteen.

“By the way, why do I feel sad because soon we’ll graduate? It means we won’t be able to be together like this soon,” Citra said sadly.

“Oh, don’t be cheesy. We will still be able to meet. Besides, we’ll be in the same campus,” replied Elena while munching on cheese-flavored wafer.

“Hello, dear, we’ll be in the same campus but different faculties! The Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences (MIPA) and the Faculty of Humanities are so far apart!” explained Melodi, correcting Citra’s statement. “El, why don’t you switch to our faculty!” Melodi pleaded with a pitiful expression.

Citra and Melodi were enrolled in the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences (Fakultas MIPA), specifically majoring in Mathematics, while Elena chose a different path. Elena intentionally stepped out of her comfort zone. Moreover, since childhood, Elena had a preference for arts over other subjects, even though her grades in exact sciences were excellent. Elena was disappointed when she had to enroll in the Science Program (Jurusan IPA) instead of the Language Program (Jurusan Bahasa) as she wished. However, the program assignment was based on the results of their 10th-grade studies, so Elena had to accept it.

“It’s easy; we can figure everything out later,” Elena responded casually.

They talked about many things regarding their wishes and aspirations after graduation, and before they knew it, they had spent two hours chatting in the canteen.

The school appeared quiet and serene because the second session of the National Examination (UN) was currently taking place. Around 11:30 AM, the three of them left the canteen after paying for their drinks and snacks. With jokes interspersed, they walked towards the school parking lot. Elena bid farewell first, while Citra and Melodi wanted to go somewhere.

Unbeknownst to her two friends, Elena intended to meet Devan. Elena missed the man after not seeing him for three days. Actually, Elena wanted to meet Devan every day, but she was also embarrassed to go there repeatedly. Elena was worried that Devan’s employees might report to her uncle, Ardan. If Ardan found out, then automatically Devan’s parents would also know. Elena didn’t want that to happen, especially since she had just started getting to know Devan. Maybe later, when she had won Devan’s heart, she would confess her feelings and be honest with her parents.

Following the lyrics of Ariana Grande’s song “positions,” Elena drove her car towards Devan’s workshop. Suddenly, Elena took the initiative to buy food. Elena started looking for a restaurant that she thought was delicious. Actually, if Elena wanted, she didn’t need to bother looking for a restaurant. She could simply call the employees at her Daddy’s cafe to deliver delicious food according to her request. But of course, Elena didn’t want to do that because she didn’t want her plan to approach Devan to fail. The biggest risk she would face later.

Confused, Elena immediately stopped her car in the courtyard of a Padang restaurant that she had visited several times with her two friends. After releasing her seat belt, Elena got out while carrying her wallet and phone. Elena entered and immediately ordered 10 portions along with their drinks. While waiting for her order, Elena checked her phone. Dirga’s name appeared at the top of her WhatsApp contact list. Dirga’s message had just arrived three minutes ago. Instead of reading or replying to Dirga’s message, she preferred to open dozens of messages in The Angels group. The noisiest and most lively group that always managed to entertain her.

True to form, Elena’s laughter instantly echoed, attracting the attention of the restaurant’s patrons. Elena remained indifferent to the gaze of others. The girl remained focused on the flat screen in her hands. Then, she joined the conversation there.

Elena

“Bang Eki said he wants to come this weekend.”

Kia

“Seriously, El?”

Elena

“Yes, seriously. Yesterday, I called him, and he said Eki missed Lala.”

Nafla was typing…

With a smile, Elena waited for Nafla’s response with curiosity. Imagining Nafla’s annoyed expression every time Rizky, her foster brother, was discussed. Elena couldn’t wait for Rizky’s arrival, who always pampered her. It had been more than three months since he last visited.

Nafla

“Tell him he doesn’t need to come to Jogja. I don’t want to see him.”

Elena’s guess was 100% correct. Nafla responded exactly as she guessed. The relationship between Nafla and Rizky had never improved since they were kids. Elena was puzzled. Why did Nafla and Rizky always quarrel every time they met?

Mother

“Lala shouldn’t say things like that. You might end up together, you know.”

Aisya’s statement, her aunt, successfully widened Elena’s smile. Her aunt always spoke softly but also always hit the mark.

Mommy was typing…

Seeing her Mommy typing, Elena became even more impatient to join the conversation.

Mommy

” Mommy also misses her future son-in-law. El, tell Eki not to forget to bring Mommy ‘s favorite crackers, as usual.”

Elena

“Got it, Mommy. But tell Kak Lala not to be mean to Eki all the time.”

NaflaUpstodatee from Novel(D)ra/m/a.O(r)g

“Sorry, I have to leave the group!”

Elena chuckled again, this time covering her mouth with the palm of her hand to avoid being heard by the restaurant’s visitors. Simultaneously, the restaurant employee approached, delivering her ordered food and drinks along with the bill. Elena quickly got up, walked to the cashier to pay, and then left.

Elena placed the food on the back passenger seat and returned to the driver’s seat. Slowly, Elena’s car moved out of the restaurant courtyard. Due to the proximity, Elena arrived at Devan’s workshop 15 minutes later. Elena hurriedly got out of the car with a heart full of joy. She no longer cared about her heart working abnormally. It was overshadowed by the longing that had accumulated. Only three days, but Elena was almost going crazy thinking about the mature man.

“Looking for Mr. Devan, Miss?” Lucky greeted when he saw Elena enter.

“Yes, is Mr. Devan here?” Elena replied to confirm if Devan was around.

“Mr. Devan just left, but he said he’ll be back in a moment. Miss Elena, please wait in his office,” Lucky replied politely.

“Alright, thank you. I’ll wait inside. Oh, and this is for you, Mas Lucky, and the others,” Elena said, suddenly feeling less enthusiastic. She felt disappointed because she had to suppress her longing for an unpredictable amount of time.

“Thank you, Miss,” replied Lucky, escorting Elena to the front of Devan’s office door.

With laziness, Elena dropped her body on the sofa after taking a cold drink from the fridge. After a few sips, she placed it on the table. While waiting for Devan, Elena laid down. With the soft sofa cushion, Elena rested her head. She started opening the Google search and typed a few words.

‘How to Flirt with a Guy’

In the search results, Elena found many article options related to what she was looking for. Then, Elena’s fingers clicked on one of the articles. Elena began to read sentence by sentence.

1. **Be confident**

Approaching a guy can be one of the most ‘terrifying’ things we try. The thought will surely haunt us when starting this approach. Instead of thinking about our fears and doing nothing, it’s better to act quickly before we lose the chance.

2. **Initiate a chat/talk first**

Before getting closer to him, we need to know what he likes. Initiate a conversation about small things related to what he likes. If we feel comfortable with him after these small talks, we can definitely move on to the next stage. If you’re not confident in doing it in person, initiate a chat first. After that, we can invite him to talk when we meet.

3. **Keep it casual**

Don’t rush during the flirting process. Ask him to do small things together, like grabbing a snack at the cafeteria, borrowing lecture notes, or watching a school sports match together. If you get closer to him, he’ll eventually invite you to go out first.

4. **Give specific hints**

Say ‘hints’ that are specific if we want to meet him again.

5. **Most importantly: don’t worry about the outcome!**

If we focus on thinking about the result of the flirting efforts we make, we’ll always be afraid to start something.

Elena absorbed the advice, hoping it would help her in her quest to get closer to Devan.

“shit!” Elena cursed when she read tip number 5. Maybe she was serious about reading the article from Google and wanted to put it into practice. If it ultimately fails, why is Elena looking for additional tips? The tips from Images and Melodies seem to be more effective than the tips he got from Google.

Feelings of boredom began to fill Elena’s loneliness. The girl was tired of waiting. He looked at the watch around his wrist. It’s almost one in the afternoon. But the figure of the man he was waiting for never came. Moreover, he also hasn’t prayed midday prayers. Elena’s gaze was fixed on the bathroom door in the corner of the room. Of course it is impossible to pray here. It would be impossible for Devan to keep his mukena in his office. The man did not have a wife or daughter which could be a reason to provide women with prayer equipment.

Outside, Devan, who had just arrived, was surprised to see his employees eating lunch together with the same menu, while he had not had time to buy anything. Earlier Devan immediately left when Dinda called. Dinda’s car tire went flat on the road far from the repair shop. As a friend, of course Devan couldn’t bear to let a woman change her own tire. So without thinking, Devan just left on his motorbike to get to his destination faster. Devan even forgot to tell Lucky where he had gone.

Seeing Devan’s surprised face, Lucky then explained that Elena had brought the food they were currently devouring.

Knowing that Elena was in his office, Devan quickly stepped forward. Opened the office door and entered. Elena’s body suddenly jolted because of Devan’s sudden arrival. Without knocking on the door or greeting.

“Have you been here long?” Devan said as he took the hat off his head and placed it on the table.

Elena nodded without saying a word.

“Oh, uncle, I want to pray midday prayers first, have you prayed yet?” Devan asked again. Elena remained silent while shaking her head in response.

“Yes, let’s pray together!” Devan replied while looking at Elena flatly.

Then Devan stepped towards the bathroom door. But just as he pressed the doorknob, Elena spoke.

“El didn’t bring a mukena, Uncle.”

Devan turned his head, looked at Elena with a smile and then answered, “Uncle, I’ve prepared a mukena at the office!” After saying that, Devan’s body disappeared behind the bathroom door.

“Oh my future priest is so sweet…”