The Second Choice (English Version)

Chapter 04

For an hour they overtook vehicles here and there just to avoid the dense city traffic, finally they arrived at a luxury restaurant which was right in the middle of the city center. The car continued to drive and entered the parking lot. While parking her car, Aluna was busy gawking at the large building she was about to enter. Not long after that, the car parked and stopped.

"Come on out, Aluna." Invite father to remove the seat belt around his waist, then he opens the door. Aluna just nodded, then took off her seat belt and got out of the car like her father.

"How? You like it, hum?" asked the father while embracing his eldest daughter's small shoulders. Aluna nodded enthusiastically, "Yes! Aluna really likes it, Dad!" Aluna answered enthusiastically while smiling happily.

"Then let's go in." Invite his father to help. Aluna nodded enthusiastically accepting her father's helping hand. They walked hand in hand into the large and luxurious restaurant.

I hope you continue to smile happily, my darling Aluna Natasya.... Her father smiled while glancing at his daughter who was laughing happily.

"Okay, son. Come on, order the food you want to eat, son!" father ordered to hand over the menu list given by the restaurant waiter to Aluna. Aluna nodded, accepted the menu in her father's hand, then looked for the food she wanted to eat.

"Dad! Aluna wants to eat this, Dad. Is that okay?" Aluna asked, pointing at the fairly simple food while looking at her father doubtfully. The father, who saw his daughter's order, immediately looked sad. "Why did you order that? It's just ordinary fried chicken mixed with balado sauce, Aluna. You can eat that food at home, Aluna." Father complained sadly while gently touching Aluna's hand. Feel guilty.

"Umm, Aluna thinks this is enough, Dad. Because if you look at the menu, all the food here is very expensive. Aluna is afraid that the money that Dad has collected will be wasted, just because he bought Aluna expensive food." Aluna answered that it was no problem while smiling sweetly. Father looked at Aluna with moved and sad eyes, feeling very sorry and guilty for Aluna. It turned out that it wasn't just the father who was moved by Aluna's words, the restaurant waiter was also moved and looked at Aluna with pity. Sympathetic.

"Sir!" father called, ordering the restaurant waiter to come a little closer to him. Aluna just tilted her head slightly, feeling confused and curious.

"Please prepare two portions of the best steak in this restaurant, and one portion of balado sauce chicken without rice. For drinks, please have one glass of hot black coffee, and one glass of cold mixed fruit juice. And for dessert, please have a portion of apple pie, and one portion of choco lava." Father whispered his order, in a very, very low voice.

"Okay, then please wait for approximately thirty minutes." The restaurant waiter nodded, all his orders had also been recorded. Then he said goodbye to Aluna and her father and left. After receiving approval from Aluna and her father, the restaurant waiter left in front of them. Aluna, who was curious about what her father ordered, squeezed her fingers anxiously.

"Calm down, son. The food that Dad ordered won't disappoint you, and Dad has also ordered the balado sauce chicken that you want to eat." The father, who was sensitive to Aluna's strange behavior, explained that he wanted to calm his child down. Aluna breathed a sigh of relief, then asked her father confusedly. "Didn't Dad just say that Aluna can't eat balado chicken? But why did dad order that too?" Aluna asked, not understanding.

"You misunderstand, Aluna. What I mean is not that I won't let you order that food, but that I want you to buy food that is more expensive and better than that balado sauce chicken." Obviously dad, answered. Aluna nodded in understanding, then thanked her father with a happy face.

"And, before that, Dad wants to clear up the misunderstanding between us, Aluna." Aluna was silent, wanting to listen to what her father wanted to say. Dad took a deep breath, then exhaled slowly, about to continue his words.

"Dad wants to tell you that I never once didn't care about you. It's just that I was stupid for having too much hope and trust in your Mom, who might be as kind to you as your little sister who was treated kindly by your Mom." Dad said while looking down, feeling guilty. Aluna was just silent.

"Dad should pay more attention to you, son. I know you have always been Alana's shadow since childhood, that's why I left you with your Mom while I went abroad or out of town to work, because I'm sure your Mom can look after you and be fair, because she was the woman who gave birth to you. But, stupidly, Dad believed her, and acted impulsively by entrusting you to the person who was supposed to love you, but instead she always behaved badly towards you," continued Dad, lowering his head deeper. Aluna fell silent again as she stared at her father's downcast face with a look that she couldn't describe.

Honestly, she felt disappointed, angry, sad and happy when she heard his father's confession. The reason is that several questions that she had buried for a long time were finally answered, and this made him understand that his father really loved and cared for him. However, there were still many unanswered questions, and she had to choose to remain silent in thousands of words. From the question "Why does Dad never approach me, unless I approach Dad first?". Or, "Why is Dad acting indifferent and cold to me, even though I want to approach Dad? As if Dad doesn't care and is angry with me?" Or, "Why is it only now that Dad is looking for me and treating me well like a child? Even though in the past Dad always acted indifferent to me, until I misunderstood him and hated Dad?" Or, "Did you know, Dad, that I forgot the memories of our happy times, and only left behind our dark times?" All these questions kept crowding around. like bees in his head, fighting each other as if they were annoyed, disappointed and angry, but unable to express it, even though that was his desire for a long time?