Bittersweet Arrangements : A Sugar Dady Affair

Fatimah, who was preparing breakfast for the family, was suddenly surprised when a pair of arms embraced her. From the distinctive scent, Fatimah could easily recognize the man.

“It’s still morning, and you already smell good. Where are you off to?” Fatimah said, continuing her activities of pouring vegetables into a bowl.

“I just want Mama to know, you know how it is, Ma, young people,” Devan replied, indifferent to his own silly confession.

Quickly, Fatimah released Devan’s hands from her body. Then she turned around to look at her eldest son. Her soft gaze examined Devan’s neat appearance carefully. Fatimah smiled as she caressed Devan’s cheek, finding the glow of happiness in her son’s eyes.

“Who’s the girl, dear?” Fatimah asked, feeling overjoyed that Devan had finally found new love.

“Soon, Devan will bring her home, Ma. Please pray for Devan, Ma,” Devan replied, reaching for Fatimah’s hands. Devan gently kissed the pair of wrinkled hands one by one.

“So sweet!” commented Dion, who had just arrived. “Everyone has been waiting at the dining table, and here you are having a date!” Dion continued, stepping closer.

“You’re free to hold hands. This is Mama Dion!” Dion protested while forcefully releasing Devan’s grip on Fatimah.

“Come on, Ma, let Aunt Dona handle the food!” Dion put his arm around Fatimah’s shoulder, leading the elderly woman away from Devan, ignoring any protests from Fatimah.

“Possessive as always!” grumbled Devan. Dion never changed. He had always been jealous when Devan was alone with their mother.

Devan then followed their steps towards the dining room. Aunt Dona, who had been in the kitchen with Fatimah, also smiled. She shared in the happiness. Dona hoped what she heard earlier would become a reality. Devan, her employer, would soon shed the widower status he had held for ten years. Especially for Erick, who would undoubtedly feel the joy of having his real mother.

“Does Erick know who his potential mother is?” Dion threw a question to Erick, who had just arrived.

Erick was startled by Dion’s question. As far as Erick knew, his father had never discussed the issue of stepmothers before. All Erick knew was that Devan was close to a woman he called Aunt Dinda, his father’s college friend. As for the status of their relationship, Erick really had no idea.

While pulling a chair for himself, Erick looked at Devan with a lot of question marks in his eyes. Erick admitted that lately his father’s behavior had changed a lot. Devan now often smiled to himself without Erick knowing the reason. Erick thought maybe his father was joking with his friends through the Club Cogan group chat, which Erick knew was always filled with jokes and laughter. Just like the PTT group chat he joined.

“What does Uncle Dion mean?” Erick asked in confusion.

“Seriously, man! How come your dad doesn’t tell you about your future mom?” Dion replied, feeling surprised. Despite the close relationship between Erick and Devan, why didn’t Erick know that his father was in a relationship with a woman?

Devan looked at Erick with an unreadable expression. Telling Erick about his relationship with Elena was not an easy task. Especially since Erick and Elena’s relationship, since the girl had lived with them before, was not in good shape. And Devan just realized that it wasn’t only Elena’s parents’ approval that would be a test for their love but also Erick’s. There was no way Devan could ignore the feelings of his beloved son if he happened to reject it.

“I haven’t told him yet!” Devan continued casually and then sat down.

During breakfast, Erick and Devan exchanged glances several times, conveying different meanings. However, Erick chose to remain silent, waiting for the right moment to demand an explanation from his father. Having a mother was his request. But even so, Erick also wanted to get to know the woman better before she truly became his stepmother.

“Not yet. I’m still looking for the right time to introduce her to Erick,” Devan replied while looking at Erick with a gaze that was difficult for the teenager to interpret.

Devan quickly excused himself, glancing at the watch on his wrist that already showed eight o’clock. Devan would go to the workshop for a while to take care of something that Lucky might need before picking up Elena at her friend’s house.

“Oh come on, it’s only 8, and he’s in such a hurry to leave!” Dion protested when Devan shook hands with their parents.

“You’re so nosy, little brother. Besides, you said you wanted a sister-in-law soon!” Devan replied playfully.

Devan then approached Erick. He gently patted Erick’s head and said, “Dad is leaving now. You can play with Uncle Dion or your friends.”

“Yes, Dad. Take care!” Erick responded with a faint smile.

Devan immediately set off as he didn’t want his beloved to wait too long. Today, Devan wanted to take Elena to a beautiful place, where their love story would begin.

Meanwhile, Elena was currently hiding her anxiety. Today was a holiday, which meant her entire family would gather at home. Elena paced back and forth in front of the mirror for the past 20 minutes, thinking of a reasonable excuse to get permission from her parents to go out.

“Ugh, what to do? It’s almost 9 already,” grumbled Elena while looking at her neatly dressed appearance.

Elena closed her eyes for a moment and determinedly walked out of her room. Step by step, she made her way until she reached the swimming pool. There, her two siblings were swimming, while her parents were relaxing in shaded chairs, engaged in conversation. Holding the strap of the shoulder bag she was wearing, Elena stood right in front of them.

“Where are you going, dear?” Vanessa asked, scrutinizing her daughter’s beautiful appearance.

“I want to go out with Citra and Melodi, Mom. Can I?” Elena asked without daring to look at Jeremy, who seemed relaxed.

Vanessa then shifted her gaze to Jeremy, seeking approval from her husband. Honestly, Vanessa was no longer willing to give Elena permission to go out without Jeremy’s knowledge.

Understanding the direction of Mommy’s gaze, Elena had to gather the courage to look at Jeremy. Unexpectedly, the man who now only had a tattoo on his right shoulder responded with a smile.

“Go ahead! Be careful on the road. Have fun!” Jeremy’s response, of course, created a radiant smile on Elena’s lips. But not for Vanessa, who felt something strange. Behind Jeremy’s smile and relaxed attitude, Vanessa felt worried.

“Thank you, Daddy dear.” Elena immediately reached for Jeremy’s hand to kiss it. Elena also planted a kiss on Jeremy’s cheek. The same went for Vanessa, who was still silent.

***

Citra looked restless while waiting for Elena. It turned out that Devan arrived earlier, and her friend was nowhere to be seen. Citra’s anxiety increased because Elena hadn’t answered her calls since earlier.

“Citra, who is this guest?” Suddenly, her mother surprised Citra, who was trying to contact Elena. “Your friend seems older? Mom doesn’t like it if something happens with him!” the woman warned seriously.

“He’s Elena’s uncle, Mom. Besides, the way Mom talks is confusing. There’s no way Citra has anything to do with that uncle!” Citra explained whatever was on her mind. This was just her mom asking. Fortunately, her dad wasn’t at home right now.

The awaited moment arrived when Citra went out to Elena’s car, which had just stopped in her home’s driveway. Devan, who was waiting on the porch, immediately welcomed Elena’s arrival. Not wanting to linger there, Devan said goodbye to Citra and took Elena into his car.

“Why the rush, Uncle?” Elena protested because she only had time to greet Citra with a wave. Originally, Elena wanted to talk about something important to her friend.

“It’s okay, Uncle just doesn’t want a lot of questions from Citra’s parents later!” Devan answered while fastening his seatbelt.

“Where are we going, Uncle?” Elena asked curiously. What surprise awaited her? Elena couldn’t wait to see it.

“We’re going on a date, Bee,” Devan replied. “But we’ll stop by the workshop first. I left something behind.”

Elena remained still, hearing Devan’s sweet words that sounded so charming. Elena felt like she was floating on clouds with Devan’s gestures. The heartbreak Devan once caused her seemed to have vanished completely. What’s certain is that Elena is falling more and more for this seemingly cold yet overly sweet older man.

“I might get diabetes if this continues,” Elena murmured in her heart, diverting her gaze outside to conceal her face that was starting to feel warm. Before long, the car they were in stopped in front of The Doctor’s Car workshop. Devan quickly got out after instructing Elena to wait inside the car. With urgency, Devan headed to his office to find his important item that he left behind. Not finding it on his desk or in the desk drawer, Devan returned outside to ask Lucky. Unfortunately, the search was in vain. Lucky hadn’t seen him carrying the item since Devan arrived earlier that morning.

“Maybe it’s left at home, Sir?” Lufti suggested, trying to remind him.

Devan rubbed his forehead, trying to remember when he last had his phone.

“Possibly. Well, I’ll try calling home,” Devan replied, intending to go back to his office to make the call.

However, before Devan could take a step, Dion interrupted him. Devan and Lucky immediately turned towards the source of the voice.

“Your phone was left on the kitchen table. You were looking for it, right?” Dion handed the flat object to Devan.Content from NôvelDr(a)ma.Org.

“Thanks, I’ll go now!” Without saying much, Devan accepted it and patted Dion’s shoulder before leaving.

Dion, haunted by curiosity, followed Devan’s steps. He was very sure that the girl Devan and his mom had discussed in the kitchen was in Devan’s car now.

“What’s inside, Bro?” Dion asked, sharpening his vision to catch a glimpse of the person inside.

“What are you doing following me? Don’t you have anything better to do!” Devan scolded, retracting his hand that had already grabbed the car door.

Ignoring protests from his brother, Dion waved and greeted the person who had made him curious. Dion really wanted to see the face of the woman who had melted his brother’s heart after him being content as a widower for 10 years.

“Go away now. Don’t disturb my date!” Devan shooed Dion away when he persisted in trying to identify the girl inside his car.

Without caring about Dion’s protests, Devan opened the car door. Seeing who was inside, Dion’s body froze instantly, his mouth agape.

“Hi Uncle Dion!” Elena greeted with her trademark innocent expression.

Unconsciously, Dion responded to Elena’s greeting, “Hi Elena, beautiful!”

“No need to be flirtatious with your future sister-in-law!” Devan pushed Dion away from the car door. Unconcerned about Dion’s protests, Devan quickly got in and rolled down the car window.

“Now you know who Erick’s future mom is, right?” After saying that, Devan quickly started the car, leaving Dion still stunned.

Elena immediately protested after hearing Devan’s confession to his brother. Devan’s confession would undoubtedly cause significant trouble for both of them.

“Don’t worry, Bee. Uncle doesn’t want to play hide and seek. I’ll meet your Daddy and Mommy as soon as possible,” explained Devan, making Elena’s face turn pale. It could be confirmed that Elena was not ready to face her parents.

***

“Oh my gosh, I swear this is really good!” Elena shouted out of breath after walking quite a distance.

“I said what I said earlier. That’s good, right?” Devan answered then took Elena’s hand tightly closer to the waterfall.

Currently, they have just arrived at the Curug Pulosari waterfall tourist attraction. The location of Pulosari Waterfall is in a fairly deep valley and the surrounding area is surrounded by rocky hills and barren land. To reach this waterfall location, visitors like Elena and Devan must be willing to walk about 100 meters, down a slippery and steep rock path on the river bank. Even though it was difficult, Elena really enjoyed their trip. They had stopped three times and rested in small houses at several points. During the trip, Devan was always alert to look after Elena. Make sure the girl is okay. Actually, Devan had offered his back so that Elena wouldn’t feel tired. But Elena continued to refuse on the grounds that she would be embarrassed if she had to be a spectacle for other visitors.

Devan took Elena’s hand towards a large rock at the edge of the waterfall. Devan was grateful because this place was still quite quiet. Only a few visitors were seen playing in the water there.

“I want to go there, uncle!” Point Elena towards the falling water.

“No. We’ll just stay here. I don’t want you to get sick!” Devan refused seriously.

Elena pursed her lips. Feeling disappointed because Devan forbade it. Even though Elena really wanted to play there.

“Don’t sulk, Bee. I invited you here to make you happy,” said Devan as he hugged Elena’s body.

“Oh, why don’t you do this! You’re embarrassed to be seen by people,” warned Elena as she slowly removed Devan’s hand from her body. Honestly, Elena felt strange when Devan touched her body.

Devan laughed then hugged Elena’s body tighter. “I don’t care. Just pretend there’s no one here!”

“You flirtatious grown man!” taunted Elena, who immediately received a pinch on her sharp nose.

“Just watch out if you dare call me grandfather again!” Devan threatened while kissing Elena’s forehead.

Finally, Elena gave in to ward off the cold air which was starting to feel like it was piercing her bones. If he had known that Devan would take him to a place like this, of course he would have brought a jacket. But even so, Elena also couldn’t resist playing in the clear water in front of her. Then Elena started to take off the pair of shoes she was wearing. Slowly extend both legs into the water. What a coincidence, Elena was wearing 3/4 trousers. So he didn’t need to bother folding his trousers.

“Oh, what is our relationship like?” Elena dared to ask. To be honest, Elena also wanted to confirm what their relationship was like.

“What do you want?” Devan asked back. Elena swallowed saliva to wet her throat which suddenly felt dry.

“What is certain is that I will not ask for a date. Because what I need is a life partner, not just a relationship,” explained Devan, feeling extraordinary happiness now.

“But…?” Elena hung up her sentence. He didn’t even want to imagine his father’s wrath when he found out about their relationship.

“Don’t worry. Daddy will be my business. You can just believe that I love you.” Devan’s confession succeeded in making Elena’s heart beat fast. Then without another word, Elena dared to return Devan’s hug.

“El loves Uncle too!” Elena replied in her heart.