Rica knocked on the door of Priska and Indra’s room several times. "May I come in, Sis?"
“Come in, Ca. It’s not locked,” Indra replied from inside.
The corners of Rica’s lips curved into a faint smile when she saw Priska soundly asleep in Indra’s embrace. The sight warmed Rica’s heart, a mix of emotions—tenderness and joy—that were hard to put into words. As Rica stepped into the room, Priska slowly opened her eyes, stirred by the sound of footsteps. But Indra softly whispered, urging his wife to go back to sleep.
“She’s just here to return your phone, Honey. Go back to sleep, okay?” Indra murmured gently.
Priska mumbled something unintelligible before closing her eyes again. Indra kissed his wife’s forehead before turning his gaze back to Rica. Watching that made Rica long for a marriage of her own, though she knew their mother would disapprove of the idea. Rica often felt envious of their affection. It was obvious how deeply Indra loved Priska, evident in the way he treated her sister.
“I’ll just leave it on the table,” Rica said politely.
Indra nodded in understanding. Rica walked away, her head slightly bowed, but she turned back toward the chair in the room. There was something she was curious about—how did Priska and Indra fall in love? After all, there was Bisma, who had always been attentive and there for Priska, from her graduation through her time working abroad.
Rica and Indra exchanged a prolonged look before she hesitantly broke the silence.
“What is it?” Indra asked, raising an eyebrow.
Rica sat down, folded her arms, and pouted. “Do you know Bisma?”
“I don’t know him personally. I just know the name. Why? You’ve been acting strange lately, Ca. Aren’t you seeing Ethan now? Are you two fighting? I told you, didn’t I? Ethan’s just playing around with you.”
“I’m still seeing Ethan,” Rica grumbled, annoyed at the mention of his name. “But that’s not it. I’m just curious—why did Sis choose you over Bisma? They were so close for such a long time.”
She was slightly nervous about asking this question, afraid it might offend Indra. After all, Indra was now Priska’s husband. Rica worried that bringing up the past or previous relationships might upset him.
The smile on Rica’s face faded as she realized she felt sorry for Bisma. At the same time, she was eager to learn about his life back then. If she wanted to win Bisma’s heart, she needed to understand his wounds—so she could love him properly without causing further pain.
Indra’s lips curled into a grin as he glanced at his wife. Rica had recently broken up with a toxic boyfriend, started seeing Ethan out of boredom, and now had to endure the constant affection between the newlyweds. Watching how much Indra adored Priska made Rica wonder if Indra had ever made a huge mistake in the past and was now atoning for it by loving Priska wholeheartedly.
“Because I’m the leading man in your sister’s life, Ca. I liked Priska from the moment I first met her. At first, it was just curiosity, but the more I got to know her, the more I wanted to win her heart. Your sister was the one worth fighting for,” Indra said with a warm smile.
There was honesty and sincerity in Indra’s words, and Rica could feel it. Yet, she couldn’t help but ask for clarity. “So, did you steal my sis from Bisma or not?”
Indra scoffed dismissively, running a hand through his hair. “Steal? Bisma wasn’t her boyfriend. Priska never saw him as more than a friend. I’m the first and only man in your sister’s life,” Indra declared proudly.
His tone was confident. Rica nodded in understanding and excused herself from the room. She went downstairs, deciding to spend the night with their mother instead. There was something she needed to discuss—about her future and her career.
***
The following afternoon, Rica was home alone since their mother and Indra were at work, and Priska was at her best friend Faby’s café. That morning, Rica had only two classes and went home early because she wasn’t feeling well. Her head throbbed, her forehead was warm, and she felt slightly nauseous.
Ding-dong! Ding-dong!
“Who is it? Making my headache worse,” Rica muttered as she fetched a glass of water from the kitchen.
She remembered she hadn’t ordered anything, nor had she checked out her online shopping cart.
“Package!” the delivery man called out.
Rica walked briskly to the living room, then the front door, and opened it. A young man stood there holding a large box wrapped in decorative paper with a beautiful ribbon. Who could it be for? Their mother’s birthday was months away, hers wasn’t anytime soon, and Priska had just celebrated hers during her wedding. Indra? Impossible—he preferred alcohol to sentimental gifts like this. Rica was sure no one in the house had a birthday coming up.
“A package for Frederica Anastasia Putri. Please sign here, Miss,” the courier said.
Rica snapped out of her thoughts. “Yes, that’s me. But who’s it from? Can you check the sender’s name?”
“Sorry, Miss. I don’t have that information. My job is just to deliver,” the courier replied.
Judging by the courier’s uniform, Rica recognized the startup delivery service as a new and less popular one. She decided she’d contact their customer service later. Usually, packages had the sender’s details clearly printed, but this one didn’t. The box was neatly wrapped, leaving Rica no choice but to search for the company’s customer service number online.
After signing for the package, Rica watched the courier leave before stepping back inside, still hesitant to open the mysterious box.
She placed the elegant box on the dining table, resting her chin on her hand as she tried to guess what might be inside and who had sent it.
Upon closer inspection, she found a small sticker with the sender and recipient information. The sender’s name was unfamiliar, someone Rica didn’t recognize. Using a map, she looked up the sender’s address.
“Fancy,” Rica muttered unconsciously.
She glanced back at the box on the table, curiosity gnawing at her. But it was better to wait until everyone else got home before opening it—just in case the contents weren’t as pretty as the packaging suggested.
Ding!
A message popped up, snapping Rica out of her thoughts. It was from Raymond Singgih Agustyawan, her last boyfriend, who had broken up with her because of his possessive nature. Though they’d agreed to part ways for the best, the 21-year-old still hadn’t let go completely.
[ Ca, can we meet tonight? I’ll wait for you at our usual date spot until nine. ]
Rica’s brow furrowed in disgust. Why did he want to meet again? Hadn’t their relationship ended months ago?
“Ugh! Annoying. What does he want now?” Rica groaned, running her hands through her hair in frustration.