Lies
The True Old Man

Raya wanted to answer what Karan was asking. Luca was already near them. This speech can't leak into Luca's ear. The boy would be confused to digest Karan's situation if Raya explained that Karan was the child's biological father. Since infancy, only Edgar was seen by Luca. The boy loved Edgar as much as his own father. It took a long process to make Luca understand. He was a child, still four years old. Too young for him to understand his parents' separation. Let Karan and Raya fail as a married couple, but they will not fail as parents to their only son.

“Mommy!” yell Luca again. He came to Raya to give her a warm embrace. That's how Luca greeted his parents who were of course much different from the teachings in the place where Raya was raised. Compared to Raya, it must be admitted that much of Edgar's teaching and his family was attached to Luca. That was why the boy looked more like a westerner now. He was a native of Milan. Had Luca not been fluent in his mother tongue, no one would have thought that Luca was a native Asian. The environment greatly affected the way the boy lived.

“Stop yelling Honey! Later your throat hurts,” said Raya while returning Luca's embrace warmly. “How's your school? Was fun? Any hard lessons?” Raya asked again while gently patting the child's back. Pouring her affection as a mother to her only son.

Hearing her mother speak Indonesian, Luca withdrew from her arms. His forehead shriveled, feeling strange about it. During their stay in New York, the mother used English more often despite several times teaching her some Indonesian words. And so did they when they moved to Milan. The mother used Italian in her daily conversations. They also lived in the foster father's family home several times. His mother only spoke Indonesian with him when they lived alone or when his grandmother came from Jakarta.

So, why is the mother speaking Indonesian now especially near the uncle she just met a few days ago? This is really weird. Luca could not stop thinking about it so he chose to ask his mother. “Why is Mommy speaking Indonesian? Tumben once!”

“Tumben you said? We wear them often when we both. Honey, we are Indonesians. Can Indonesians not speak Indonesian in other countries?”

“Bby Mommy. Who can ban my Mommy from speaking Indonesian?” Luca tiptoed and kissed Raya's cheek as a sign of her great affection for her mother. Not quite there, he also praised the beauty of his mother blatantly. “Mommy is a beautiful woman. No one can forbid beautiful women to do anything,” said the boy who had suddenly made Raya slum.

“Jeez Luca! Where did you learn to praise like this?” tanya Raya while growling. The more days the boy became adept at sweet talk. He wondered who was the teacher who had misled a child as innocent as Luca. Raya can't let her son get stained like this. It doesn't matter if Luca just seduced her. What if Luca met his female friends at school and started seducing them in the way he used to his mother? Luca will get the nickname as a man who likes to play with the heart of girls. It was really a very bad image for Raya as well as Karan.

“Daddy taught me. Said I should praise Mommy often so that Mommy does not get angry at home,” Luca chirped with his song to say the thing that should be a secret between him and Edgar. Fortunately Edgar was not there because if the man heard the boy's words that revealed what he said, there would definitely be a great quarrel between him and Raya. It's gonna affect Luca. The boy will be punished so as not to meet with Edgar in a certain time.

“Basic of the man! Why would you listen to Daddy but you're so hard to keep Mommy up, hm?”

“Because Daddy likes to buy me ice cream and chocolate.”

“Oh my goodness, so your affection for Mommy faded just because Daddy bought her ice cream and chocolate?”

Luca looks a little panicked. He hugged his mother tightly. “No Mommy, how could I not love Mommy? Mommy knows that the person I love the most is Mommy, new Daddy,” he said while persuading again that the mother stopped sulking.

Karan who saw that chuckled softly. Luca is a cute and adorable boy. Since first meeting Luca has given such a deep impression on him. And it turns out that the boy is his real son. How could Karan not notice? Even when looked at more closely, Luca is very similar to him. In addition to the quiet and loner behavior as Raya explained a while ago, there are things that make Karan sure Luca is his son even though they do not do DNA tests to prove it.

Luca's face was very similar to his as a child. Karan's face has not undergone surgery to heal his broken jaw and nose as a result of saving his adoptive father, which makes Karan's facial contours slightly changed. Moreover, the style of appearance and the well-groomed body with expensive materials make Karan much more handsome now than he was young. Even so, Luca's face is now very similar to Karan's face was still small, probably when he was the same age as his son.

It's just that Luca's face is certainly more handsome than his face because of the combination with the beautiful face of Raya. Moreover, the lips and chin of the Kingdom so dominates the shape of Luca's face that makes the child look very handsome even though he is still four years old. Karan believes Luca has received many offers to become a child model. The only reason why Luca still hasn't appeared in magazines or television is definitely because Raya doesn't allow it.

The woman once said as a teenager that she would allow her children later to do whatever they wanted without too much interference from parents. Raya does not want her children to have the same fate as the children in their village, where they can never do whatever they want. All because they were born to unreliable parents or poor families who could not accommodate all their wishes. As a result, they only kept it as a dream that never materialized.

Raya also once told me that she did not want to have a partner and children who are a profession with her. More work in the family is better. So that they can understand each other's work. So that they can appreciate the togetherness that they can not get easily because of their different working time. That is the most compelling reason why Karan chose to become an entrepreneur even though he had to turn down offers from several modeling agencies while he was still a student in New York. Karan wanted to have a different profession to Raya. That is the purpose of Karan's life. Since first falling in love with Raya, Karan decides to grant her every wish.

Luca let go of his embrace again. This time he came to Karan. Without any awkwardness at all he climbed onto Karan's lap. At first he had difficulty, but thanks to the help of the man, he was finally able to sit down quietly. “How can Uncle get here?” tanyanya after hugging Karan for a while as a sign of his brief greeting. Surprisingly, Luca immediately changed his original Indonesian language to Italian when speaking with Karan. It seems like the boy still considers Karan a stranger.

Karan wants Luca to immediately call him the way the boy called Edgar. He was entitled to the call because he was Luca's real father. However, Karan could not stress his will to Luca. The boy had to adapt. So, he will give time while they will try to explain his condition slowly to him. “Uncle here with Mommy,” Karan said.

“Why? Did Uncle ride in Mommy's car like Aunty Maude yesterday?” Luca remembers what the aunt said when she was late to pick up. He said his car tires were flat so he had to hitch a ride to someone else's car. That person was the man who was hugging him at the moment. Luckily his father came quickly to school so they could go to the gallery where his mother worked.

Instead of Karan answering, Raya opened her mouth first. “Luca, why don't you speak Indonesian anymore? Uncle Karan is Indonesian, so use Indonesian only,” fast. He deliberately emphasized the same language so that Luca was closer to Karan. They are already familiar, but it's good if the closeness continues to last for a long time. “Again Darling, not Uncle Karan who hitchhiked, but Mommy who hitchhiked Uncle Karan.”

Luca followed his mother's words to return to his mother's language. The boy is still four years old, but he can already master three languages well, can even replace it quickly in a short time without the need to think long. It looks like Luca got that intelligence from his biological father who once earned the nickname as Little Einstein when he was a teenager. The intelligence of the young man who always boasted a school with his achievements was what declined to Luca so that the boy could absorb anything that was taught quickly, including language.

“What is this Uncle taxi driver? Why does Uncle always take people here and there?” asked Luca innocently.

Karan couldn't help but laugh. “No, Uncle is not a taxi driver, but Uncle just wants to help people that Uncle can help. And also, Uncle wants to meet you. So Uncle drove Mommy here.”

“Oh so.” Luca nodded his head understanding. “Oh yes Uncle, how about Uncle's wife? Has Uncle made up with Uncle's wife?” Luca asked what he could not ask yesterday. Moreover, seeing Karan's sad face before leaving the cafe beside the gallery made Luca a little anxious.

Karan did not answer. He even looked at Raya for a few seconds when the woman was confused by Luca's words. “It looks like already,” reply.

“So, why did Uncle yesterday cry?”

Karan widened his eyes. He looked at Luca's face in shock. Crying out? Did he look so pathetic yesterday that Luca thought he was going to cry? He tried to hide it, but was caught by a child. Moreover, the child is his own biological child. How sad this is.

“No, Uncle doesn't cry. Uncle just felt a little sad yesterday, but now it's good.” Karan spoke honestly. He did not cry and now his condition is better than yesterday.

“Thank God. I don't like to see Uncle sad.”

“Why?” ask Karan curiously.

“Because I love Uncle. I don't want to see the people I love sad.”

Karan. While looking at Raya, he spoke in his heart. Admiring the way Raya raised a child. That woman is so great. He instilled a lot of good in Luca. Something Karan might not be able to do. That made him think even more, could he be a proper parent to Luca? How can he keep up with Raya in taking care of Luca? And the most important question is how does Karan replace Edgar as the father who is so great for the child? Seen from wherever it feels impossible.

Karan can't do it. Raya and Edgar are too great at raising Luca, which Karan cannot learn quickly even though he uses his entire brain capacity. Child care education is not easy. Honestly, Karan was not at all confident in his abilities.