Sketsa Harian

[JungCath] Broken

Cerita: Liaisons: Catherine

[SPOILER WARNING] Bagi yang belum membaca Liaisons: Catherine dan Jakarta Vigilante sampai tamat, sebaiknya tidak membaca cerita ini.

Cerita ini akan berpengaruh untuk Escapade. Kali ini pake bahasa Inggris yah. Udah lama banget gak nulis cerita pake Inggris soalnya. Kalau mau komen pake bahasa Indonesia boleh kok. Tapi jangan minta diterjemahin yeee. :P

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July 2017

Slamming a large yellow envelope on the desk that Tanjung was working at, Catherine stared at her husband long enough until he looked up. But he did not. Without opening it, he had already known what was inside the envelope.

Divorce papers.

Tanjung sighed. Catherine had been nagging him about this for weeks, even months. After the death of their beloved daughter Angela, she had constantly scolded him about what an incompetent father he had been, how he had failed to protect Angela until she was kidnapped and killed by a group of mobsters, because Tanjung had been attending a meeting with his brother Surya, the CEO of Jati Group, discussing about the MRT project when it happened. And then Catherine had also brought up the disappearance of Jason almost thirty years ago. She knew her accusations hurt him deeply. She intended so.

The truth is, both of them understood that neither of them was at fault. Catherine was only digging up reasons so that she could pacify herself for leaving him. Parents are merely humans -- they cannot watch their children twenty-four seven. Angela had been studying in Sydney for a semester, without her parents accompanying her, except for the first two weeks and then occasional visits from her doting dad, who could not live without his daughter for too long. She had been safe without a scratch. And in the case of Jason -- well, he disappeared mysteriously. Puspa always insisted on a conspiracy she believed, that a mysterious group kidnapped him for unknown reasons, but it had not been proven yet.

"So you really want to go through this, Cath?" asked the husband, with sorrowful eyes.

Catherine pursed her lips. "Yes, I do."

Tanjung sighed again. He opened a drawer under his desk and snatched a pen. He pulled out papers from the yellow envelope and looked at which places he should sign. Without much resistance, he signed the papers.

It was too easy. He should have fought her more, arguing there were other ways besides divorce. But he had run out of energy. He had married Catherine for almost thirty-five years -- whatever she wanted, she would get it. All her actions of blaming him and scolding him were just reasons that she made up. Tanjung was sure she didn't believe the reasons herself. She was only too broken, too pained, too hurt to admit that looking at him would remind her of her children that she had lost. Catherine was never one to confess being vulnerable. She would rather be angry than be sad.

"Done," said Tanjung. "And I won't see you at court." He shook his head and looked away.

"Thank you ...."

For a second, Catherine's voice faltered. But she steadied it again and marched away eagerly.

"Cath!" called her husband. "Can I -- can I just hug you, one last time?"

Catherine stood in front of the doorway for a moment, contemplating what to say. She was as broken as he was. But her pride was stronger. Tanjung did not wait for her reply. He stood up and went to her, putting his arms around her and pressing her head on his chest. Tears streamed down his wrinkled cheeks -- and feeling the warmth and wetness on his shirt, he knew she was crying as well. But she pushed him away, wiped her tears, and resumed her walk out.