Part 52.


    That afternoon, the weather in Jakarta was scorching. A ck car zoomed through the city streets at a moderate speed.


    Joe sat behind the wheel, while ra and Kimmy sat in the back seats. They had just dropped Kimmy off for a check-up.


    “Uncle, when will my familye?” ra asked, busy texting Nadia.


    “At five in the afternoon,” Joe replied.


    “Um, can I meet Nadia?” ra asked for permission.


    “Of course, as long as it’s not a male friend, I’ll allow it,” Joe replied.


    “Can Ie too?” Kimmy suggested. She was getting closer to ra, especially during ra’sst moments in the house.


    “No, Kimmy, Papa won’t allow you to go out with just ra!” Joe said firmly. He nced at the rearview mirror, looking at his daughter and shaking his head.


    “Kimmy, ra is just going out for a bit!” ra said, patting Kimmy’s cute cheek as she sat beside her.


    “Oma said, ra will go with her family, is that true?” Kimmy asked, looking sad and staring straight into ra’s eyes.


    Silence. ra swallowed hard, not knowing how to answer Papa’s question.


    “Kimmy, ra wille to the house to meet you, don’t worry!” Joe reassured her, driving slower because the road was crowded with vehicles.


    “Isn’t Papa sad because ra is leaving?” Kimmy protested.


    “Yes, Papa is sad, but Papa won’t stop ra from leaving!” Joe exined quickly.


    “Um, so when will rae back to our house?” Kimmy persisted.


    “Maybe in a month or two,” Joe replied casually, while ra remained silent because she really didn’t know.


    “Hooray!” Kimmy cheered, widening her lips. A sweet, sincere smile adorned her face.


    Joe stopped the car in front of the gate.


    “I’m going now, Uncle,” ra said. “Kimmy, ra will be back soon,” she added.


    “Be careful, ra, don’t take too long!” Joe cautioned.


    “Yes, Uncle!” ra replied. She opened the car door and got out.


    “Bye, bye, ra!” Kimmy said, waving her hand out of the window.


    “Bye, bye!” ra replied.


    The four-wheeled vehicle entered the house, while ra waited in front of the gate for the taxi she had ordered.Belonging to N?velDrama.Org.


    While waiting, ra decided to call Nadia. She really missed her friend.


    Before long, the taxi arrived. ra opened the door and sat in the back seat. She continued trying to contact Nadia.


    The call connected.


    “Hello, ra!” Nadia greeted excitedly. “Where are you now?” the voice on the other end asked eagerly, no longer able to wait for ra’s arrival.


    “I’m on my way to your house, Nadia, we’ll meet soon, just a moment!” ra replied with equal enthusiasm. Just like Nadia, ra also missed her friend very much.


    “Sorry, ra, I should havee to Uncle Joe’s ce, not youing here!” Nadia apologized. She had just arrived home earlier that morning after a very long vacation touring Indonesia with her parents.


    “It’s okay, Nad!” ra reassured her.


    “Okay, ra, I’ll prepare some food for you, please turn off your phone now, okay?!” Nadia requested.


    “Alright, see you soon!”


    “See you!”


    The call ended. ra sat back and looked at the driver.


    “Take me to this address, please, sir!” ra requested.


    “Okay, Miss,” the driver replied, focusing on driving.


    Now ra sat quietly again. There was a mixture of happiness and sadness in her heart. Happy because she wanted to meet her family, but also sad because she had to leave the people she loved. Uncle Joe, Kimmy, and Nadia. They were all people who filled ra’s memories with joy.


    ra looked out the window, with no idea what would happen ahead. She just hoped that her family would support all her decisions in life.


    “We’ve arrived, Miss!” the driver said after pulling over the car. He stopped in front of a house.


    ra snapped out of her reverie. “Here’s the money, sir!” She handed him two fifty-thousand bills. “Thank you, sir!” she said.


    “You’re wee!” he replied, taking the money from ra. “Here’s your change, Miss!”


    “No need, keep it for yourself!” ra said, quickly getting out of the four-wheeled vehicle.


    ra walked towards Nadia’s gate. She stepped quickly, then rang the doorbell.


    Tap.


    Tap.


    Tap.


    Footsteps approached.


    The gate opened. Nadia stood there with a not-so-happy expression.


    “ra!” she eximed.


    “Nadia!” ra replied.


    They hugged each other tightly for quite a while, breaking down theyers of longing in their hearts.


    “Let’s go inside!” Nadia invited, leading ra into her house.


    They walked straight to Nadia’s room, which was on the second floor.


    “So, how’s your rtionship with Uncle Joe?” Nadia asked, genuinely curious to hear ra’s story firsthand.


    “Look at this!” ra showed the ne adorning her slender neck. “Uncle Joe made this specially for me, and it’s one of a kind,” ra boasted.


    “Wow, you’re amazing, ra. It seems like you’ve already gained love and attention from Uncle Joe!” Nadia eximed, never expecting Uncle Joe to reciprocate ra’s feelings.


    “This is all thanks to you, Nad!” ra hugged her friend tightly again, tears starting to well up in her eyes.


    Nadia returned the hug tightly, rubbing ra’s back. She felt happy too.


    “Are you crying?” Nadia asked. She could faintly hear ra’s sobs.


    ra didn’t answer. Tears continued to fall.


    Nadia released the embrace, observing ra who was busy wiping away tears with the back of her hand.


    “What’s wrong, ra? Why are you crying?” Nadia inquired.


    “Later in the afternoon, my uncle, my biological grandfather, will pick me up. He wants me to live with him. But I’m afraid, afraid of missing Uncle Joe, afraid of missing you, Nad, and I’m also afraid of missing Kimmy!” ra revealed. During her time with Joe, she never showed her sadness. She always smiled and acted like everything would be okay. But in front of Nadia, ra’s defenses crumbled, and tears continued to flow from her eyes.


    “Rx, ra, we can still meet. It’s just a matter of distance and time. We can schedule to meet whenever we want!” Nadia suggested, trying to calm ra down.


    “You’re right, Nad!” ra replied, slowly stopping her tears. “Thank you, Nad, you’ve been a great friend, my best friend,” she added.


    “Yes, I feel the same way, ra, thank you. We’ll always be friends no matter what!” Nadia said. “Wherever you are, whether at Uncle Joe’s house or at your new family’s house, we can stillmunicate, understand?”


    “Yes, Nad!” ra agreed.


    They looked at each other and then smiled.


    “Before you leave, let’s have a meal together!” Nadia suggested.


    “Sure!” ra replied.


    They both got up from their seats and headed to the dining room on the ground floor.


    ra, Nadia, and Bu Arni ate together. They deliberately postponed lunch to eat with ra.


    “Aunt, thank you for the meal, honestly from the beginning until today, I’ve always liked your sour soup,” ra said, finishing herst bite.


    “Yes, ra,” Bu Arni replied.


    “Nadia, Aunt Arni, I’ll take my leave now,” ra requested, ncing at the watch showing 3:23 PM.


    “Sure, ra, take care!” Nadia replied.


    “Yes, ra, take care!” Bu Arni echoed.


    “Yes.”


    Nadia and Bu Arni escorted ra to the front gate. Bu Arni, who had just found out that ra would soon be picked up by her family, hugged the girl again.


    Joe was sitting in the living room. The clock showed 4:05 PM. ra was supposed to have arrived home by now. However, she hadn’t arrived yet.


    Joe’s phone rang. Freedy Lim’s name appeared on the screen. He slid the green icon on his phone.


    “Hello, Mr. Lim!” Joe greeted.


    “I’m on my way, I’ll be at your house before five!” the man on the other end replied.


    “Yes, Mr. Lim.”


    “Alright, that’s it!” Freedy Lim’s voice sounded cheerful.


    “Yes, Mr. Lim.”


    The phone call ended. Joe swiped his phone screen, searching for ra’s number.


    Joe called ra’s number repeatedly, but there was no answer. None of the messages he sent were read.


    By 4:30 PM, ra’s number still hadn’t answered his calls.


    “What’s wrong?” Mrs. Linn asked, noticing the worried expression on her son’s face.


    “ra isn’t answering my calls, Ma!” Joe replied, still trying to contact ra’s number.


    “Where did she go?” Mrs. Linn asked.


    “To Nadia’s house, her friend’s, Ma!” Joe replied, swiping his phone screen to find Nadia’s number. He remembered that when ra still lived at the dorm, ra once sent a message using Nadia’s number.


    Joe immediately called Nadia’s number. He waited for a moment before the call connected.


    “Hello,” Nadia greeted.


    “Hello Nadia, is ra still at your house?” Joe asked, worry filling his mind.


    “No, Uncle, ra went home around half past three!” Nadia replied. “Hasn’t ra arrived home yet?”


    Joe didn’t answer. He was sure something had happened to ra.


    To be continued.