The Lives of Five Hundred Thousand
Raihan's Story ( POV Raihan )

When I recalled the incident three years ago in which Nuri married without my knowledge, the pain re-emerged. I who had never been in love before and never been hurt, in the end experienced these two things in my life.

At that time with confidence, I believed that no man approached mba Nuri other than me. But in the end, unbeknownst to me it turns out there is another man who has been eyeing and moving faster than me.

What after that I hate mba Nuri? blaming himself? or am I disappointed in him? no, I don't hate Nuri and I don't blame her. Our relationship is just a friend, how could I hate him because his marriage is not a betrayal of me. I also can not blame mba Nuri because he was not wrong it was me who was wrong, for two weeks did not contact him and tell him not even to see him. However, I was disappointed in her because she did not want to tell me at the last time we met and ate together if there was someone who would marry her.

So, am I sorry? very, very sorry why did I not first express my feelings to her before someone else asked her? I cursed this stupid self. However, everything has become porridge and will not return to rice. I can no longer have Mba Nuri because now she already belongs to someone else.

I live my day empty and unguided. Like a ship that sails and loses direction and then drifts in the ocean. Every day I just shut myself up in the room contemplating and daydreaming. My spirit is fading, and I don't want to go on with my life anymore because my goal is to marry my angel. However, my angel has become someone else's.

Thinking of ending life. However, when I had not had time to scratch a knife in my hand to cut my veins, my mother first snatched the knife in my grasp. I screamed, I cried hysterically, I was depressed just because my angel had been taken by someone else.

Mother held me tightly, she cried. Maybe he did not expect his strong-looking son turned out to be fragile just because he was in a marriage residence by a woman he loved so much.

She advised me patiently and wisely. I listened and digested the sentence after sentence that was thrown from his mouth until at last my heart was broken. I no longer scream, no longer cry hysterically let alone scratch my veins with a knife.

From time to time I learned to accept the reality. I began to busy my day with all the activities I do in full and I hope this way I can remove mba Nuri from my mind. I started busy college, busy running my business that had been down. In addition, I regularly exercise in the fitness center.

A year later. My father fell ill and was hospitalized. And my father breathed his last right on my nineteenth birthday. I went back down and for the second time I lost a meaningful figure in my life. But this time, I'm not as silly as before, I'm more mature.

After three months of the father's departure, Mother shared the inheritance with her three children. Mother said the division of her inheritance now only because I was afraid that I had not had time to read the will father had been called by the creator first. I was shocked at my mother's words as if she was going to catch up with me. I told her you can't leave before you see my son's maternal granddaughter getting married. What I told my mother made her and my two brothers laugh at me.

After that, the will of inheritance was read by the mother. I was astonished, not expecting that I would get a bigger share than my two sisters and my two sisters did not mind the decision that my father had decided. I also did not expect that my parents had so many treasures. Mother told me that before I was in the world, my father was a successful businessman in Surabaya. Even I knew him as a businessman, not as a government official. It is fitting that I have the soul of a businessman who inherited it from my own father.

But over time, the efforts of the father suffered a setback and inevitably the father closed the company. Actually dad could have run his business back by using the money he had invested in some plantations. However, the father does not want to do it because he is afraid if he does that then his business is bankrupt then what about the future of his children if his property runs out all? dad was more concerned with our fate than his ego.

I want to be like a great father. Earn as much money and then invest for the future of his children. So when it is no longer in this world, will not worry children live abandoned.

One year I have undergone a car showroom business and my business went smoothly and grew rapidly because I hooked up a leasing and credit company to work with my car showroom.

No one knows who I am? a multi-entrepreneur who always hides behind his simple personality attitude. Because I myself do not like to show off treasures and this attitude of mine also inherited the attitude of my parents who do not like to show off treasures anyway. If my parents wanted to, they could have built a big, luxurious house in Kenanga village and lined up cars in it given their huge money. But no, my parents didn't want to. Evidently, our house was built simple two-story and two cars only. It was also one car as the father's facility from his office as well as one car owned by us personally.

No one on my college friends knows who I am? They consider me to be just like them, an ordinary student who still relies on his needs on his parents. Not even a few of them thought I was studying while working part-time. The same thing with people in my village who consider me just an ordinary young man and still in college and work.

One morning when I was off for college, I, I accidentally saw behind the glass window of my house a woman wearing shabby clothes and holding a toddler was offering fried merchandise to my mother on the front porch of my house. When she turned to look at the window, I felt familiar with her face but I brushed her aside because it felt impossible for her. The sight became a special attraction for me where a mother looking for money without having to leave her child and I believe it as a form of affection. Honestly, I was amazed at the woman who was selling fried food.

Soon enough, the woman left my house and would probably sell her wares elsewhere. As I watched the back of the tall woman walking outside the gate, my mother entered the house and found me standing behind the window. Mom says hello and asks what am I doing behind the window? I answered him with reason and mom believed him. Mother entered the house not with her bare hands but with her left hand holding a fried plate and her right hand holding a large plastic bag containing clothes.

I walked up to my mother and grabbed a fry on the plate she was holding. While feeding the fried food into my mouth, I asked what was in the plastic bag? mother replied that in the plastic bag it is my dirty clothes that have been washed by mba Nuri. Mother immediately told me how my clothes could be washed by him and mother also told me that it had been two days mba Nuri selling traveling fried food. I felt that the fried food I was eating felt stuck in my throat and could not be swallowed after hearing my mother's story. It feels unbelievable if Nuri's life changed drastically to be difficult. Hasn't her husband met her needs and made her happy? then why can mba Nuri sell fried food? for the past three years, I never wanted to know about how Nuri's life was because it would only make me unable to move on. I always assumed that Nuri's life was happy with her husband.

I immediately took over the plastic bag in mom's hand. Then bring her into my room. After that, I took out of the plastic, sure enough some pants and clothes have folded neatly and fragrant as if exhausted in loundry. Instantly my chest gurgled to the clothes I had washed and ironed by the hands of the mba Nuri I used to love. And subconsciously I clutched my clothes and smelled the fragrance. I feel very long for the figure of Mba Nuri who has been avoiding for three years. Why has that feeling not gone from my heart? Did I fail to move on?

The next day I was surprised by the figure of a toddler playing alone in my house. Then I approached the boy and squatted to align my height with him. The toddler looked at me with eyes that I could hardly describe. I looked at his face, O Allah, very much like the face of Nuri! I muttered in my heart. Instantly I remembered last night my mother told me that today there would be Nuri coming home to help cook because today is the second day of my father's death.

I grabbed his handsome face, I wiped his cheeks, the toddler did not cry but close himself to my body as if I wanted to hug. I smiled at her and hugged her and kissed her face. I spilled the longing on Mba Nuri through this toddler. After that, I told him to play again.

I walked towards the kitchen and I noticed from a distance the figure of the body that I longed for was busy cooking in the kitchen. I wanted to say hello but was confused to start. Instantly I got the idea of pura taking drinking water in the dispenser. When he was about to walk towards the dispenser, Mba Nuri first walked towards him. I didn't want to waste any time either, I walked up to him and stood right behind him. I wanted to feel like I was embracing the body that was standing in front of me but I realized that she was now the wife of someone. Not long after, he turned around and hit the chest of my field. He looked up at my face and immediately his expression showed shock. I gave her my sweetest smile. Still in a state of surprise he asked as if I was Raihan who used to be close to him is not it? I replied firmly that I was Raihan.

It was only natural that he felt surprised and slightly did not recognize me because of my physical changes. Although my facial lines did not change but my other physique turned more macho. My body is now taller and straighter and formed six box stomach because I often exercise in the gym. I used to have the same height as Mba Nuri but now I am much higher than her so she has to look up higher in order to see my face as it is today.

After the meeting at my house, it felt like I no longer wanted to stay away from Mba Nuri. Especially after knowing that his life has been difficult. The one thing I wanted to do with her was protect her and help her even though I couldn't have her.