We, From The First
#40. Two Statements on Your Birthday

Today Rakha plans to express her feelings for the second time to Aira. He has even prepared a place in B-Cafe. That place is a room that Rio made a special mini cinema for his friends. In that place Rakha has also installed plans to display photos of Aira in a slide show that will be displayed through a large screen like in a cinema. The slide show will be accompanied by a song sung by Rakha himself while playing a piano, and he has recorded it before.

Rakha has really prepared everything carefully.

Before he saw the clover necklace coiled around Aira's neck a few minutes ago, Rakha was already very confident in his plans. But that was just a few minutes ago. Because after that, without being able to interfere, doubts suddenly surrounded him.

"Kha, before we go in, can I say something to you?" Aira asked suddenly as she had just descended from Rakha's beloved light blue vespa.

"What?" Rakha asked back worriedly. His heart's been fucked up in there. And a sudden heat whack all over his head.

"It's about your question at the time of Last Game."

DEGH! One punch.

Aira lowered her head and for a moment closed her eyes, trying to gather up her suddenly sucked courage while looking into the eyes of this young man.

"I'm sorry, because again I'm so late to answer your question. At that time, I was quite surprised. I don't think guys as good as you like me. I know you're sincere, Kha. I can rasain it. But. The problem is with me. I—"

"Aira, wait a minute!" Sela Rakha suddenly before Aira finished her sentence.

Rakha was really not ready to hear the rejection from Aira right now.

"Kha?"

"You don't have to answer now. You don't even have to answer at all. You already know how I feel, and you appreciate it so much, it's more than enough for me. But please, don't say anything else." Rakha said in a pleading tone.

"Kha, I'm sorry."

"One's feelings can change at any time, Ra. And I chose to wait for you. I don't care who's in your heart right now, but one thing's for sure, sooner or later I'll take that place away from him."

"Kha, just as you like me, I like other people too. From the beginning, she was the only one I liked. From many years ago, until this very moment, I thought he would still be the only one."

DEGH! DEGH! Two strokes long.

"For that I want to say to you, Ra. Whenever he breaks your heart, I will be the first one to come to you. This inget until anytime."

"Kha?"

"I'm sorry, Ra. But I suddenly had other business. We'll continue this next time. You can go back by yourself, right?"

Aira nodded slowly while looking at the two eyes of Rakha who did not look at her in the slightest.

Aira just hopes, that after all this, she and Rakha can still be good friends. Aira is greedy, but she doesn't want to lose Rakha as a friend. They don't want their relationship to change no matter what.

...****...

September, 2017

Aira arrived in front of her apartment building crying sobbing. During the trip, after he met Nico and broke off their relationship, Aira felt her whole world was destroyed. There was nothing left of him.

How could Nico not hold it back in the least? How could Nico who was once full of love now be so cold? Nico could no longer even be called a human. It has transformed into a terrible and very painful chunk of ice.

Aira felt wasted, although in reality, Aira herself was the one who dumped Nico and chose to let go of her hand first.

"Anira?" Call someone gently who was already standing not far from Aira's current position.

Aira who had just lowered her head while sobbing, immediately raised her tear-filled face upon hearing one familiar voice speak her name.

When he saw the young man's face, Aira's cries broke even more.

In front of him now, that tall figure stood firmly. Although her face was slightly hidden behind a hat, Aira knew she was Rakha. A person who has always been a good friend in any situation and condition.

"Aira, what's wrong with you?" Rakha asked when she realized that there was something strange about Aira.

Rakha walked over to Aira. And the more broken Rakha's heart when he knew that Aira was crying bitterly.

"Ra?" Call Rakha again.

But only sounding.

Rakha's heart that had been broken, now seemed to be sliced to hear the sound of Aira's slashing sobs. But even though Aira did not say what the cause was, Rakha knew, there was only one person who was able to make Aira cry to this extent. That person was of course Calvien Nicolas.

Without another word, Rakha pulled slowly on the girl's head and let her face hide in her chest that field. In Rakha's arms, Aira's cries and sobs get stronger and more slashing.

'Ra, you want to say what I said five years ago? Whenever he breaks your heart, I will be the first one to come to you. Now I've come, Ra.' Lirih Rakha in heart.

Rakha then further tightened his embrace even though Aira did not reply, as if she did not want to let Aira go again.

"Don't expect me to let you go again for him."

...****...

Rakha sat on one of the sofas in the mini cinema that she had prepared with Rio for her plans today. Although his plan for Aira had completely failed, Rakha continued with his own plan.

The video opens in the soft voice of Rakha singing the song This I Promise You from NSYNC. The song Rakha deliberately chose because it really illustrates her heart for Aira.

Photos of Aira candidly taken during Last Game by the Documentation Team, as well as some photos taken by Rakha himself, continue to appear in turn. Rakha's feelings became emptier, and the wound became clearer, as the memories of her being together with Aira shimmered in her head. Rakha then smiled smirkily. The wound is now gone.

And on the table there, a small box in which was a bracelet with star ornaments opened and just sprawled.

A while later, Rio who already knew what happened to his best friend came and sat down beside Rakha. Rio followed the direction of Rakha's gaze heading towards the screen.

"Gue knows, but I don't want to know." Rakha replied coldly without distracting her from the screen.

...****...

Nico returns from the bimbel as time shows at half-eight p.m. When he passed a playground, accidentally his attention was on Aira who was sitting alone on one of the swings while playing both feet in the sand. Aira was even still wearing the clothes she had been wearing when she left with Rakha.

Nico intends to just skip it, given that the girl has just returned from her fun date with Rakha. But an instinct of not being able to ignore him suddenly churned within him. He then heavily stepped out his legs and approached the girl after previously breathing out quite hard.

Without saying anything, Nico sat on the swing that was right beside Aira. Suddenly, Nico felt like deja vu.

A few seconds later, Aira turned to the side and smiled helplessly at Nico.

"Hi, Nico!"

"Have you had dinner?"

"Yet."

"Why then?"

"Why? You were wondering what I was doing?" Reply Aira with a constant temptation to make Nico feel careless.

Nico once again sighed. If he could, it felt like he wanted to throw a toyoran in Aira's head so that he could immediately realize that the current situation was quite serious for Nico.

"Let's have dinner! I'll deal with it." Imbuh Nico while rising from the swing and standing on the side of Aira.

"Seriously?" Pekik Aira was enthusiastic with a wide smile on her beautiful face.

Without giving an answer, Nico turned around and walked first. Aira who had indeed felt her stomach rumble since earlier, immediately chased after Nico's steps in front of her.

Upon arriving at Nico's chosen spot, Aira only gawked when she saw Nico put two servings of cup noodles on the table. No more enthusiastic feelings that Aira had felt when Nico said he would treat her. Her shadow of a good meal in a cozy cafe instantly vanished.

It's his birthday. Can't Nico take her to a better place and also?

How not? At that time, Aira and Nico were in front of a minimarket that was located quite close to their home. If only here to eat cup noodles, why not just at home? The protest of Aira in his mind.

"If you want to add, let's know."

Nico sat down in front of Aira and ate his cup noodles in a breath of voraciously. While Aira, he just looked at Nico with a face that was not thought out.

"When I was dating Nana, did you take her to a place like this on her birthday?" Aira asked curiously, who actually only wanted to insinuate Nico alone while stirring the cup noodles in front of him, without taste.

"Why? Did Rakha take you to a fancy restaurant? All of a sudden while you were eating an expensive steak, a violinist out of nowhere showed up playing a happy birthday song?"

Aira gave a sharp glance towards Nico who at that moment seemed to casually put noodles into her mouth with a chopstick. Aira just found out, if it turns out Nico has a pretty good ability to quip.

"Nico, to be honest, you're still mad at me, right? What's my fault?"

Nico was quiet for a while. He also canceled continuing his feed and released his chopsticks in the cup. He then raised his face, challenging Aira with his sharp gaze.

And the look on Aira's face right now, somehow looks pretty mysterious to Nico.

"Do you really not know, Ra?" Ask Nico full of seriousness.

The defense is broken. Suddenly Nico is determined to destroy the high wall between them that Aira has built since they met again. From now on, Nico doesn't want to cover anything anymore.

Besides, it's Aira's birthday. Aira deserves one truth from her.

"Or please tell me, what is the name of this feeling? I'm comfortable being around you, whenever you're not around, I'm always worried, I don't like you being close to Rakha, or laughing at Rakha. You know what that feeling is called?"

Aira was stunned listening to Nico's words. It did not cross his mind in the slightest that Nico would express his feelings in this way. Aira was not that naive, she knew for sure, that whatever Nico had told her, was a declaration of her love.

Now the courage of Aira who has been stirring since, is now slowly shrinking. There was so much fear in his heart that he could not reveal to Nico.

Since first meeting Nico, Nico has transformed into one of the most valuable figures for Aira. And that's never gonna change until now. That was why, Aira no longer wanted to put Nico in trouble because of him. He will protect Nico in any way, including that if he has to hide all his feelings for Nico.

And what happened to Nico recently, was enough to make Aira feel very guilty. It is not true that then he dated Nico and made everyone increasingly have thoughts that should not be on Nico.

"If you don't know the name of the feeling, now let me guess."

Aira was still staring at Nico in the same way. There was not the slightest change from the look in his eyes.

"I think I like you, Nana"

Ten seconds in silence, Aira finally turned her attention to the cup noodles before her. As Nico had done earlier, Aira sighed deeply and then exhaled slowly to fill her chest cavity that was starting to feel empty. Aira's eyes were slightly reddened and glazed.

Aira chuckled awkwardly while returning to stirring her noodles. While Nico, he continued to stare at Aira without pause.

"Great!" Lirih Aira with a slightly quivering tone. He raised his face again and returned Nico's gaze with glass that almost cracked in both eyes.

"It looks like our noodles have swelled." Next later.

Nico nodded for a moment. He smiled faintly after drawing a conclusion that he was so sure of.

"From your reaction now, I think you've known from the beginning, Na."

To Be Continued...^^^