Chapter 9

Cein had just dropped Sahla off at the train station. Sahla was going back to Bogor that night. Before leaving, Cein had said goodbye to Orlyn and asked if she wanted anything. Usually when Cein went out, Orlyn would ask him to bring back some snacks, but this time she hardly reacted to anything he said.

After returning from the station, Cein parked his car neatly and entered the house. He raised an eyebrow in confusion; it was unusual for the living room lights to be off at 9 pm. Only the lights in the middle room were on, and Orlyn seemed to be watching her favorite drama.

"It's unusual for the living room lights to be off this early," Cein commented as he sat down next to Orlyn.

Orlyn, who was about to put a snack in her mouth, looked at Cein. 

"You're back? In that case, I'm going to bed," Orlyn said, putting down her snack and getting up to leave.

Cein quickly grabbed Orlyn's hand to stop her. 

"Orlyn," Cein called softly.

Orlyn turned and looked at Cein intently. 

"Can you not use that tone? I can't stay angry with you if you speak so softly."

Unexpectedly, Orlyn protested against Cein's tone and her tears fell uncontrollably. Cein frowned and stood up, gently wiping away Orlyn's tears and embracing her warmly.

"What is it? Why are you so angry with me? If I did something wrong, I'm sorry," Cein said, still not knowing what made Orlyn angry.

"I don't even know why I'm so angry and crying, Cein. I don't understand," Orlyn replied, crying even harder.

Cein took a deep breath and patted Orlyn's back to calm her down.

"Maybe she's just tired. Today was her first day at work and she spent the whole day outside. Or maybe she's periode?" Cein thought and decided not to react to Orlyn's words to avoid further conflict.

***

A few weeks had passed since Orlyn started working, and she was getting busier and busier. Orlyn hardly had time to have dinner with Cein. Today, Orlyn came home a little late because she had just finished a meeting with Kozie, Ben and Ben's secretary, Pelin. As Orlyn was about to enter the house, she saw the familiar peach-colored shoes again.

"The homewrecker is here again," Orlyn grumbled as she entered the house silently. Even if she called out, Cein wouldn't hear if he was with Sahla.

Orlyn was confused because there was no sound coming from the living room. Her confusion grew when no one was in the living room.

"Where are they? Sahla's shoes are by the door," Orlyn muttered, heading straight for her and Cein's bedroom.

Orlyn froze and stopped when she opened the door to find Cein lying on the bed with Sahla pressing his forehead.

"We should go to the doctor. Your fever is getting higher," Sahla suggested.

"No need, I'm just exhausted. I'll wait for Orlyn," Cein refused with closed eyes.

"Why wait for that child? She obviously doesn't care that you're sick," Sahla snapped, sounding annoyed.

"It's not that she doesn't care. Orlyn said she had a meeting, so her phone is probably on silent or even off, so she doesn't know I need her," Cein defended, always trusting his wife.

"Whatever! If Orlyn doesn't show up in 10 minutes, I'll drag you to the hospital," Sahla insisted, still annoyed by Cein's attitude.

***

"You're home early? Cein isn't home?" Orlyn's mother asked as she put a bowl of instant noodles in front of Orlyn.

Orlyn looked at her mother and shook her head slightly. She took the fork and slowly turned the hot chicken broth noodles that were still steaming.

"Cein is home," she replied before blowing on her noodles.

"Then why are you here? Shouldn't you be eating with your husband? Won't Cein be looking for you? Don't be like that, dear! You've been busy at work all day, when you come home you should spend time with your husband," her mother advised, stroking Orlyn's hair gently.

Orlyn didn't react and just started eating her noodles. Although she was hungry, she didn't really feel like eating.

"Has his fever broken yet? Why didn't I go in earlier? It's my room too," Orlyn thought, regretting her actions.

***

Cein slowly put on his jacket and fumbled for his car keys. He had forgotten where he had put them earlier. He ruffled the papers on the desk next to his bed in frustration.

"Where are the car keys?" Cein asked himself.

He finally found his car keys under a book Sahla had been reading. Cein had not been able to reach Orlyn all night. He was worried and decided to look for her. He had even asked Sahla to leave and apologized for not being able to drive her to the station as usual. Instead, he had booked a Grab for her.

Cein left the room, still feverish. He stopped at the door and sighed in relief when he saw Orlyn standing there.

"Orlyn, where have you been? I was worried about you. Is your phone off? Broken or did you turn it off on purpose?" Cein bombarded Orlyn with questions.

Orlyn just stared at Cein in silence.

"Orlyn, answer me! Where have you been? Did your meeting take so long?" Cein asked again.

"I was at my mother's house," Orlyn finally answered.

Cein frowned in confusion.

"Why did you go there without telling me? You never go to your mother's house right after work," Cein said, sensing that something was wrong.

Again, Orlyn didn't answer Cein's questions right away. She took a deep breath and Cein's eyes widened in realization.

"You've been home for a while, haven't you? Did you see me in the room with Sahla? Orlyn, don't be angry. I can explain why Sahla was in our room," Cein said, sensing her feelings.

Feeling his headache getting worse, Cein struggled to walk towards Orlyn. He quickly grabbed her hand and took a deep breath.

"Lyn, you're not angry, are you? Don't misunderstand!" Cein pleaded.

Orlyn remained silent and looked at Cein. Then she looked at Cein's hand holding hers.

"He's still feverish, but he's worried about finding me? How cruel of you, Lyn!" Orlyn thought to herself.

Seeing Orlyn's blank expression, Cein assumed she was angry. He came closer and suddenly collapsed to the ground, letting go of Orlyn's hand and clutching his chest in pain.

"Cein! What's wrong?"

***