
Chapter 7.
The next day, Zara attends her sister's birthday invitation in a different house. She came as if nothing had ever happened in front of people to save her reputation as an actress, so as not to be stamped as an ungodly child. This is what he used to do from time to time.
“Be aware, pretending to be okay it is very unpleasant!” Zara.
Her lips tried to smile even though she felt bitter. Entering the house, he also cepika-cepiki. Shaking hands and kissing Mami Miranda is like a normal family. It was a perfect show. This mother figure has never been deformed in front of the media and is known to love her son very much. Even though the bad news of his daughter kept coming. It was as if she was the most forgiving mother in the world.
Zara tried to enjoy this moment, ranging from gathering to blow candles, eating dishes to talking with her other brothers. Incidentally, they greatly appreciate his privacy and do not want to ruin the atmosphere by discussing cheap plastic surgery news about him - which yesterday had spread until now is still quite hot.
Guests are very many consisting of various groups until this large room looks very full. There was nothing strange before, until finally, he suspected the voice of someone when they performed congregational prayers at the musala of this house. For Zara follows behind him to look worthy and worthy in the eyes of another man. Yeah, just that.
“The voice of the priest is similar to Ray's, anyway?” inner Zara wondered. Not wanting to be in a state of curiosity, he asked the woman next to him about who was the religious man he invited to fill the event.
“Mami Miranda invited Ustaz Rayyan,” replied the woman in question.
“Rayyan?” Zara scrunched her forehead. Was it Rayyan he met twice yesterday?
And all that was answered when the tarawih prayer was completed and everyone dispersed leaving the shaf. Be ready to sit down and listen to the study. It left Rayyan sitting cross-legged facing them all with a few books on a small table.
“Yes Lord .. I am very tempted by your one created being. Please leave one like her for me.”
“Assalamualaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh ..” said Rayyan once all have arranged their respective seats. And started his study with the theme of Ramadan.
“Oh, only now do I know, so he's a teacher?” muttered Zara regretted yesterday having called her without pinning a title. Ah, Zara was so embarrassed and unwell to him. “Yeah, how insolent I am, miskah!”
Shame made him immediately move to the soup kitchen. Meet some of the men who are busy pacing clean up the former party from there.
“Kakak!” call Michael, Zara's 12-year-old sister. A very big age difference with him. Because Miranda was pregnant again at the age of 43 years. And that makes Zara hate and envy the happiness of her mother and stepfather. It is as if forgetting the dead because of their cheap work.
Zara turned her head when she heard the call and looked into my sister's eyes.
“Kakak why not join njai?” ask Michael. The boy held onto the Brother's hand and revealed his innocent smile. “Or Brother want to eat cake?”
“Not your business,” replied Zara briefly and made Michael stare disappointed at her disappearance.
“Kakak ..” call Michael who doesn't care at all. Zara returned to the house's private musala after attaching a scarf to her head covered in blonde hair. Actually he pityes Michael, he is just an innocent little boy who just wants to be close to his brother. But if he saw her face, he was like looking at her stepfather's annoying face.
The study did not last long considering that the day had begun at night and closed with a prayer together.
Rayyan himself stood up and had a brief conversation with some people who approached him, before the man finally said goodbye to the owner of the house.
“Usually in addition to the study, Ustaz Rayyan teaches where, Nak?” mami Miranda asked just a pleasant talk after Rayyan resigned.
“Every Thursday and Saturday, I teach at Pesantren near here,” Rayyan points southwards from this house.
“Oh, Darussalam Pesantren?” Miranda.
“Still close home, yes?”
“That's what to look for so as not to waste too much time on the way, Auntie. Here prone to jam.”
Miranda smiled in response.
“I want to go home, too, Mam. It was night,” suddenly Zara replied and without shaking hands, the girl just passed by. Then get into his own parked car carelessly and quite disturbing public order. Yeah, just like him. After all, no one dared to rebuke him!
“I just found out it was your daughter Kak Zara, Aunt Mira ..” Rayyan said as soon as Zara flashed in front of them.
“Zara is indeed my daughter with her first husband, Nak.”
“Oh...” Rayyan rounded her lips without wanting to ask more.
“Please pray for my son, Ustaz. Hopefully he can get a direction soon .”
“Insyaallah, Aunt.”
“What Ustaz Ray can help me to change it. I want Zara to be a better person. But I guess, I can't do it alone.”
Rayyan fell silent. Actually he can't handle it. But on the other hand, he was also not happy to refuse it. Moreover, this is for the good of someone. Then with a little coercion, he also agreed, “How to?”
“Come here every week. Mother would also tell him to come here if he was not busy, so that I would not be impressed to force him. This one mother's child, a little stubborn and not the type of girl who easily according let alone accept.”
“God willing, I try. But if it's time?”
“Redeem maghrib only, Nak.”
Rayyan nodded and finally accepted the woman's request. The man, who was just starting to be known by the wider community, started driving his car towards the road home. But on the road, Rayyan secretly follows Zara's car which is not too far from her to ensure that she is safe. Because again he was alone without anyone accompanying. So he believed that all he did was pity, nothing more.
“It looks like the relationship of the child and the parent is not good,” murmured Rayyan. He turned the car around again after the girl reached her destination.
“Maybe, this is the purpose of God bringing us together. Hopefully only that, no more.”
Zara is not the kind of woman she and her family want to be. Somehow like what, but clearly, the type is a good woman who is able to maintain her self-esteem.
***
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