The After The Rain
The Missed Story

Dahayu leaned against the side of the car, repeatedly tapping the shoes onto the asphalt while pulling and exhaling regularly.

His head still felt noisier, his feelings suddenly agitated and he began to bite his fingernails to dampen the anxiety that was getting worse.

Five minutes later, he stayed here, waiting for the arrival of Atha who had promised to meet him after delivering Kinara home.

Fifteen minutes ago, when Atha called and asked her to meet here, Dahayu immediately gasped without thinking much. Because not only did Atha need to know about the incident at the cafe this afternoon, but she also needed to know what was the real problem of Kinara and her parents. Because as far as Dahayu knows, Kinara's father is a successful businessman whose assets are everywhere. Although the boy never said clearly what business his father was involved in, Dahayu knew that Kinara was not from a lower middle family.

Dahayu started to move restlessly in her place. The distance between Kinara's house and the coffee shop where they agreed to meet was not too far away, not even half an hour if the streets were empty. But somehow, Atha still did not show the trunk of his nose and made him feel more unsettled.

"Mom,"

Dahayu reflexes straighten her body and turns to the source of the voice. Beside him, a young man in his early twenties looked awkwardly smiling at him. From the uniform that the young man was wearing, Dahayu knew that the young man was one of the employees at the coffee shop where Atha was waiting for now.

"Why, Mas?" because the young man never spoke again, Dahayu decided to ask first.

"I'm sorry, I was told by my manager to ask, Mbaknya want to go inside or not? Otherwise, I'm sorry, ma'am, the car can't park here because this is a special parking area for visitors." The young man tried to make his point with polite words.

"I'm coming in soon, Mom. I am waiting for a friend. He's only been here for the first time, afraid he won't meet." Lying Dahayu.

The young man smiled awkwardly while scratching his nape, presumably confused to decide whether Dahayu was allowed to stay there longer or not.

Luckily, shortly after, Dahayu saw Atha's car driving away from a distance. The more the car approached, Dahayu felt his heart pounding faster. For some reason, he had a bad feeling about the chat they were about to pass by tonight.

"That's my friend, Mas." Dahayu said after Atha got out of her car.

The young man nodded his head then rushed away from there, re-entering the coffee shop where the manager was waiting.

"Old kok?" dahayu asked as she walked along with Atha to the coffee shop.

"Gue nemenin Kinara first, he looked like a shock earlier."

Dahayu just nodded and continued to move on. The small bell attached above the door of the tavern clinked loudly as he pushed the glass door forward. Some visitors who were enjoying coffee accompanied by a simultaneous dessert turned towards the entrance before retracting their views and continuing their respective activities.

Dahayu leads Atha to one of the tables on the corner of the store because the spot looks quiet and slightly separated from the other tables.

Atha according to her, she pulled out a chair and immediately sat a henchman on it while waiting for Dahayu who immediately darted away to the counter to order.

A few minutes later, Dahayu returned with two cups of iced coffee (Atha did not know what Dahayu had ordered) and the girl immediately sat down in the opposite chair while thrusting a cup at him.

Until finally, the ruling silence gradually stepped aside along with the melting of the ice in their respective cups as Atha ventured to turn her gaze to Dahayu. He took a deep breath, intending to grab the attention of the girl before him so that their gazes could meet.

Of course it was quite effective, because now, the two of them could finally nail the face for a few seconds before sentence after sentence came out of their respective lips.

Once again, Atha became the first person to have the initiative to start. After pushing the iced coffee cup slightly away from the front, Atha straightened her back then placed both of her hands on the table. The big hands were clinging to each other, as if wanting to give strength to himself to face whatever would come out of the lips of Dahayu.

Then, after a deep breath and a slow exhale, Atha began to ask.

"So, what happened this afternoon while you were hanging out?"

Dahayu did not answer directly. He took a sip of his iced coffee before putting the cup out of reach.

Then, just like how Atha started the conversation, Dahayu also drew and took a slow breath.

"We met Kinara's father at the cafe."

As Dahayu said that, she while watching the expression change on Atha's face. And swear by anything, she had never seen the expression on Atha's face that stiff.

"As we know, Kinara's father was a successful businessman who did not tin cans. But this afternoon, his dad went to the cafe in a uniform that used to be worn by a private driver." Dahayu. He was still watching every move that Atha took. Starting from how the man squeezed his hands tightly until now began to sit unsettled in his chair.

"What happened, Tha? What did I miss during the holidays last semester? What stories do I not know about Kinara?" now, it is Dahayu's turn to demand an explanation.

While Dahayu waits for an answer to the question that grunts her head, Atha must repeatedly draw and exhale to simply expel the anxiety that surrounds her heart. He had promised Kinara not to tell Dahayu anything, but if this was the case, he could not possibly escape again.

Dahayu and Kinara were just as stubborn. And if Atha is confronted with one of them, Atha will always find herself defeated.

So, after a war with himself, Atha began to tell the story that Dahayu had missed.

Atha told me all the chronologies he knew. Had to pause a few times because his chest suddenly felt tight for no apparent reason.

While opposite him, Dahayu listened to all the stories that Atha conveyed with a sliced heart. He grimaced, squeezing the tip of the shirt he was wearing to withstand the increasingly suffocating pain.

The night, their chatter got further and further away. More and more new stories that Dahayu heard from Atha.

And that night, along with the whole ice inside their cup that had completely melted away, Dahayu, for the first time shed tears for others.

Seriate