It was six in the afternoon. Today, Lisa came home earlier than usual. Oscar told the woman to go home immediately to take care of her health and the child she was carrying. Lisa could still feel the remnants of her love a few hours ago. Pain began to be felt between Lisa’s legs. Maybe making love during pregnancy was not a wise thing to do. However, Lisa could not contain her desire to join Oscar. No matter how much Lisa restrained herself from letting go, in the end she still fell in the man’s arms.

That afternoon, Oscar was still busy with his work. He didn’t mind letting Lisa come home early. His secretary’s health was his top priority besides meetings and correspondence. The man waved to Lisa who was leaving his room.

The corridor of the Petersson Communication building that afternoon was oddly quiet. Only a few employees were still sitting seriously staring at the monitor screen. Lisa walked down the corridor to the elevator.

Arriving at the elevator’s door, Lisa pressed the down button, waiting for the elevator door to open. A moment after the elevator opened, she saw Andien again.

“Hey Lisa! I was about to wait for you in front of the president’s room. Let’s hang out for a bit at Sunbucks!”

“Let’s go then!” Lisa replied cheerfully. It had been a long time since she and her best friend had hung out at the coffee shop. Back when they were in the same department, every time they came home from work, if they didn’t want to party at the Sky Lounge, Sunbucks was always their favorite place to spend time exchanging stories while waiting for the never-lonely streets of the capital to die down.

Andien took out her car keys from behind the tote bag which she had crushed. The car’s door then opened and the two friends entered and dashed out of the parking area. The trip from the Petersson Communication office building to the nearest Sunbucks took only fifteen minutes at the fastest and twenty minutes at the latest. The road was quite busy that night, so the car Andien was driving got stuck in a traffic jam.

Lisa leaned on the backseat as she felt her back ache a little. Every now and then she took a deep breath and put her hands under her head in a relaxed manner.

“Anyway, is it true that if you can’t have sex during pregnancy?” said Lisa.

“Are you having sex with the President Director!?” Andien exclaimed in shock. She quickly shifted her gaze to Lisa and looked back front again.

“Yes, originally I was holding back but he also wanted to. I’m not strong Ndien, his aura is too strong to resist.” Lisa muttered.

“It doesn’t really matter, you are still young, after all. Why does it have to be in the office and during working hours anyway!?”

“So that’s the problem, this Oscar is hard to refuse! Like, from within myself I really want it but my common sense says no. But yes, I ended up doing that too!”

“Ugh, that’s not good, Lis! Then how is the baby in your stomach? Is it safe?”

“Yes, about that I feel safe… just safe.”

Half an hour later, they arrived at the Sunbucks coffee shop. Coffee shop that was said to be coffee lovers’ most favorite shop. The reason was, Lisa and Andien were not really coffee enthusiasts. They preferred to drink coffee in a secluded and unknown coffee shop. Andien and Lisa were just coffee connoisseurs— drinking coffee without caffeine with a very high sugar content. For them, coffee should not be bitter and sad.

The queue at the famous coffee shop was so long, the two of them were almost standing outside the shop entrance. Luckily, the sky that afternoon was clear and there was no forecast about an upcoming rain. Andien asked Lisa to find a seat and not to join the queue. Andien did not want Lisa to be too tired due to long queues, it’d bother the baby on her womb.

After nearly ten minutes of queuing up and ordering drinks, Andien came bringing cappuccino warmand matcha latte for Lisa. Her friend accepted the green plastic cup, then took a quick sip. The thirst was unbearable.

“Since you got pregnant, you often get thirsty, don’t you, Lis?”

Lisa smiled softly as she sucked her drink with a straw. That’s right, her appetite had increased and so her thirst over the past few days. She had finished half a glass in one gulp.

Andien was still blowing her cappuccino, while staring at her best friend. She then moved her chair closer and asked, “So what do you want to tell me, Lis?”

“Oh, it’s about our beloved president!”

“It’s just your favorite! Ha ha ha!”

“I’m serious Ndien. Did you remember that Mr. Dani told me to go to Oscar’s office when I was in the cafeteria? I was given money to pay the house tax penalty with him!”

Andien jumped from her seat. Confused if she had to react pleasantly or worried. But she was relieved that someone was helping Lisa, even if it wasn’t her.

“That’s great, Lis! Now you don’t need to bother having to borrow money from Damar or anyone! What’s the story, how come you can borrow it?”

“I wasn’t loaned out. He really gave the money to me! And the number is more than it should be!”

“That’s crazy! How lucky you are to be the president’s mistress!” Andien teased.

“Duh, I’m not a mistress! Actually, he proposed to me to be his wife.”

“Good heaven! If you marry the president director, that means your job…?”

“Now that’s it. I’ve been given a week to think about whether I’ll accept his proposal or not! If I refuse him, it means that the child I bring now will have a bleak fate. If I accept it, it means I have to quit my current job and I don’t want that to happen!”

Andien tapped her friend’s head and said, “You are an idiot if you don’t want to marry the president! I mean come on, aren’t you sure your financial problems are really guaranteed? He’s like—Lis! I’m sure the money in his wallet must be dollars!”

“Oh, but I still want to work. I don’t want to depend on other people, let alone my husband!”

“Duh, Lis. Just be realistic. With your current job, can you afford to pay off all your family debts? Your mother’s medical expenses and Bella’s tuition, for example?”

“Yeah, I can’t pay it all with just the salary I receive…”

“So what are you waiting for? Just accept his proposal!” Andien said excitedly.

“The problem is I don’t have the courage to tell my mother about this…”

“Just calm down, Lis. First, settle the matter of your house tax that was fined. Then you can answer the president about your marriage’s proposal, okay?”

“Yes, not to mention the divorce papers that my father still holds up until now. I can’t afford to hire a reliable lawyer to solve that problem!”

Lisa put down the empty plastic cup. Her hands were folded, her head was slightly lowered.

“This morning I saw my father on the busway. I remember how that man was very cruel to my mother. Instantly, I remembered the divorce papers and realized that I couldn’t hire a lawyer. Ah! I’m dizzy, Ndien!”

Andien held one of Lisa’s hands tightly. She emitted a positive aura from behind her face as she said, “Lisa listen to me, after returning from Sunbucks you have to tell your mother that you are going to pay the house’s tax fine. Then after the tax problem is over, then you can tell Oscar your answer. Trust me Lis!”

Lisa looked at her best friend with a happy and relieved look. “Luckily I have a good friend like you, Ndien!”