001 The Wedding Day

"The bride won't come you say?" said the middle-aged man when he received a phone call, exactly forty-five minutes before his son's marriage ceremony was due to take place.

Instantly all the families who were gathered in the special room were shocked. He looked at the middle-aged man with a worried expression on his face. The man had a history of heart disease.

Prima Mandala Hutomo, it has been sentenced by a cardiologist that he had a heart disease about seven months ago and had undergone heart surgery. But since then he can no longer manage the company he started twenty-six years ago. Because if the mind is stressed it will cause the disease to relapse.

"What have we do now?" said the middle-aged woman, Sriwedari Handayani, Mrs. Mandala Hutomo, wife of Prima.

"We have to find a replacement for the bride, if we don't want to be embarrassed." The suggestion of a relative named Deni. He had just entered the room.

After confirming that the bride really won't come, by meeting the woman's parents in person at her residence—shortly after the woman's parents found out that her daughter had run away and immediately contacted Deni as the groom's representative. Everyone in the room immediately looked at him, including Prima.

***

Alvin Mandala Hutomo, the name of the groom, seemed to have just come out of the room where his family was gathered, discussing a backup plan for the sacred event.

His hand pressed against his temple. To reduce the pain that suddenly attacked his head. Indeed, his marriage plan with a woman named Laras Pramuditoaji was only an arranged marriage to combine two companies so that they could develop rapidly, be more advanced and at the forefront. Marriage for business.

They only knew each other for three months. Very short introduction. Express exploration. There is no love between them. At least not yet.

They both accepted this arranged marriage exactly three months ago because they both have no relationship with anyone. Alvin Mandala Hutomo is the sole heir to the real estate company Mandala Hutomo Tbk.

After years of traveling to various regions in Indonesia and abroad because of his hobby in photography—which he has been involved in since high school with his first camera, which was only a pocket camera—the result of his hard work was saving from the remainder of his pocket money.

Being born as the son of a rich person did not allow him to easily ask for the things he wanted without effort—that was the result of Prima Mandala Hutomo's upbringing of his son. He returned to his homeland because of the affairs of the successor to his father's company.

Seven months ago, when Alvin was in one of the countries famous for its historical buildings, in Egypt, his mother suddenly called him and told him to return to Indonesia. Just as his father was admitted to the hospital and had to undergo bypass surgery.

After the critical period was successfully passed by Prima, Alvin's father then expressed his desire to his only son, to start running the Mandala Hutomo Tbk company and get married soon, so that later he would give birth to the next Mandala Hutomo successor. He is mature enough to get married and have a life partner, 27 years old.

His brief acquaintance upon his return to Indonesia, with Laras whose father is also one of the real estate entrepreneurs of Laras Land Tbk went smoothly without any problems, even the sign of this unilateral cancellation never came out of Laras' mouth.

The beautiful woman, 175 cm tall, a famous model in Indonesia who is currently shining—also a former Indonesian princess—was 23 years old when their engagement was announced in the media.

Netizens confirmed and gave expressions of congratulations and blessings on the engagement of the sole heir to the real estate entrepreneur and famous model in one of the photos uploaded to Laras' Instagram account.

[Photo of Laras and Alvin showing off their engagement rings]

Caption: Please pray, guys :x

@joysijoy: congratulations on your engagement, may it last.

@sarisari: handsome and beautiful. Very congenial.

@akujomblo: make me jealous.

@anita221: Would you like us to be invited?

@fanslaras: heartbroken. It doesn't bleed :(

And there are many other netizen comments, most of which praise the couple and not a few who feel jealous.

***

Alvin stepped his long legs along the hallway that led to a large room, a ballroom where the sacred ceremony would be held. Silently transfixed at the entrance of the ballroom, in front of the invited guests who were waiting. Worry for a moment.

Canceling the marriage contract or looking for an impromptu replacement bride—as suggested by Deni, his cousin and WO. Until his eyes caught a young woman in a white dress sitting among the invited guests. The other ones were students at his campus where he had taught recently. As a substitute teacher.

Stepping steadily toward the middle-aged man next to the young woman he believed to be her father.

"Uncle Supomo? Can I have a moment of your time?" asked Alvin.

***

"I will marry you to my daughter, Audia Cinta bint Supomo Direja, with a dowry of a pair of diamond earrings weighing 1.5 carats already paid in cash."

"I accept the marriage of Audia Cinta bint Supomo Direja, with a dowry of a pair of diamond earrings weighing 1.5 carats, cash."

"What about the witnesses? Legit?"

"Legitimate."

"Alhamdulillah."

***

A few minutes before....

Audia Cinta, a first year student at one of the leading universities in Indonesia, just celebrated her 19th birthday, exactly four days ago. Accompanying her father, Supomo Direja and her mother, Ning Agustina, to the wedding of one of their old friends from college. Which suddenly turned into her own wedding in no more than twenty minutes.

Wearing a white dress made of elegant silk and studded with Swarovski crystals from the previous bride which turned out to be right on her slender body.

Although it takes a little adjustment because the height is only 160 cm. Her long hair is styled in such a way that it looks impressive, plus a veil to cover her hair.

With MUA's famous skilled hands, her innocent face which when it arrived was only polished by light powder and nude liptint, now completely transformed like the transformation of an ugly swan into a beautiful swan—of course not literally, because Audia was born naturally beautiful.

Until a moment Audia blinked a few times because she barely recognized her own face.

And here she sat awkwardly on the aisle with the man who had officially become her husband, twenty minutes ago.

Audia don't know how Alvin can convince her father, Supomo, to accept his sudden proposal, without any preparation. Moreover, no one would have thought that his second daughter would marry before his eldest son, Romi Direja.

Unmitigated, his son-in-law is the son of one of the richest and most famous people in Indonesia, as well as the future sole heir to his father's company.