The dark night gave way to a much brighter morning, inviting a change from darkness to something that felt a little warmer than before. Soon, the sound of car engines echoed along the road as Asih pulled up to her destination, and in her pounding calm, her gaze fell on a black vehicle parked on the side of the road. Her tense face reflected deep worry, but she knew that her task could not be delayed any longer.
With her heart pounding, Asih stepped closer. As soon as the woman in the black car got out of the car, silence instantly filled the air as the two faced each other suddenly, as if there was a silence that exuded tension between them.
Understanding that the situation could be more complicated than she imagined, Asih chose to answer carefully. At the same time, she even decided to ignore all the questions she thought were unimportant when the woman started talking to her as well.
"I brought the child," she said firmly, showing confidence tucked behind her tense face.
The woman then nodded in satisfaction, as if she already knew what Asih was going to say, "You've always been reliable. Where's the boy?"
"The child is in my car."
Asih then stepped carefully towards the door of the car parked behind her, realizing that this moment of child surrender would probably be a new chapter in her life. Her hands trembled slightly as she opened the door and showed the courage she had worked for.
When Asih opened her car door, she saw the boy fast asleep. His calm face and regular breathing hinted at serenity, as if the boy's sleep was a form of escape from the ever-changing world around him.
Asih looked at the child with a gentle smile, trying not to disturb his deep sleep. Carefully, she moved the little body from the car seat into her arms, feeling the weight of responsibility growing with every step.
Although Asih tried not to care too much, her eyes occasionally met the boy's gaze, and there was a moment of tenderness before she went back to hiding it behind her indifference.
As Asih started to walk away, a woman in front of her suddenly stopped her with a sharp question, "What is this child's name?"
Asih was silent for a moment, facing the fact that she had very little information about the child.
"His name..." while Asih didn't know what to say to make the woman feel satisfied, a small memory in her head found her conversation with Karsa, and a word came to mind, "Argani..."
"The child's name is argani. Is that enough for you?"
"Argani? Oh, of course. That is more than enough. We will definitely take good care of this child."
The child's name was the end of the meeting that some of them had planned. Although it didn't go as planned, Asih felt that everything that happened was still much better. The consequences she got for her actions weren't too bad either.
