Lunch was exclusive and indeed it was a treat. Iddin took me to Celestial Court at the Sheraton Imperial Hotel. The moment we were seated, I noticed there was a stalk of yellow rose on the table. Iddin started to order for the both of us.
Somehow he realized something and said, "Oh....I'm sorry,....may be you would like to order something else? Hans said you like when he orders food for you.", Iddin explained.
I smiled. "Are you baby sitting me? Hans this..., Hans that....macam-macam lah you ni. No I'm perfectly fine. Dim Sum sounds wonderful.", I replied. But he didn't look at me one bit. He placed the menu on the table and proceed with his orders. The waiter repeated our orders and left.
"By the way, the yellow rose is for you....", then he looked at me with a cute smile. I picked up the rose and bring it close to my nose. "Hmmmmm.....I love the smell of fresh rose.....comforting. Is this from Hans?". Aku buat-buat bertanya....
"A pretty rose for a beautiful lady and it's from me. Kalau ikutkan hati I nak saja I beli a dozen or two roses but I did not want to over do it." He replied and he has a huge beam on his face. I may say it was a nice gesture.
"What's all this? Lunch and roses...? What's on your mind?", I asked as I looked at Iddin. Still being the same Iddin who likes to flirt around. "Are you flirting with me? Cause if you are, I am really flattered. Anyway, I love yellow roses and thank you very much." I said. He smiled and kept looking at me.
"Flirting? Is there anything wrong with that? You kenal I kan.....macam ni lah,....a sincere gift from me. A beginning of a new friendship...", he laughed. I laughed too but it sounded kind of suspicious...........
He enjoyed small talks and laughed. Ten minutes later our hot tea arrived and followed by steamy Dim Sum. We had a good sitting spot which was quite distance from the rowdy lunch crowd..
Credit all pictures to Celestial Court, Sheraton Imperial Hotel, Google Images
"You nak tunggu apa lagi? So, do you want me to fix you up dengan Fazura? You are not getting any younger you know.....", I teased Iddin.
"Atika sayang,......I'm gonna say once again and for the last time, I have other important things on my mind. I know what I want in a woman and it's not Fazura! I have nothing against her. She's descent, sweet, sexy and all, it's just that I have another person in mind.". He was serious. "And please don't asked me more about this."
"Wow! aren't we a bit edgy this afternoon.", aku memerli Iddin. Mukanya merah menyala."Oh I see you dah ada pilihanlah ni. When are you gonna introduce me to her?"
"I will, one fine day, I will. You seem to be too nosy about my personal life,...kenapa ya....?, Iddin put on his cynical facial expression.
"Tak ada apa-apa cuma I feel that you need to date other women instead spending your time with old me. Mulut orang kita tak boleh tutup. I'm worried nanti nama and reputation you, Hans and the firm akan terjejas....". I was being frank with him.
"Yes, memang mulut orang kita tak boleh tutup but who are they to talk about us...?" Iddin argued. I have to agree with him.
"You tu single and I am not so,....pandai-pandailah you fikir....", I replied and munched on a piece of 'Siew Mai'. "Hmmmm....this is good."
"You like it?", Iddin asked. I nodded and picked up another one with my chopsticks. I dipped in the sweet sauce. "Open your mouth.....", I said.
He took a bite and munched. Then I finish up the rest and placed my chopstick on the plate.
We discussed a little bit about work and about Tariq who is starting to recognize voices and Iddin proposed that while Hans is still away, he'll take Tariq and me for a stroll at the park later this evening and end the day with dinner. I wanted to decline his offer right there and then but instead said politely to give me time to think about it. He look disappointed and I won't budge my decision. "It's just a stroll in the park....and light dinner.", he persuaded me. I kept silent. I do not want to encourage him but me going out with him after office hours.............I don't think it's a good idea. Iddin has plenty of suave and he has his way of getting me weak in my knees. When he smile, I melt. When he stares, I go bonkers. Ghezzz....., this is hideous, I should not be thinking about other man. What is going on here? Mengucap Atika!
We left the hotel around 2 p.m. and didn't talk much in the car. I was mostly thinking about what Iddin said of his new found love. Who is she I wonder? Kenapa dia nak merahsiakan dari aku? Eh....! am I feeling a bit jealous here?......Yeah, finally I have to admit, I do wonder at times how would it be different if we stuck together from day one. Now I know how Iddin must have felt....The urge to discover the unknown.
Credit to RihannaVEVO and You Tube
Sambil memerhatikan suasana jalan yang sangat sibuk di keperitan panas tengahari, tiba-tiba berkumandang lagu Rihanna, Unfaithful. Ouch! Listening to her lyrics made me sweat even though I am seated in an air conditioned car. Guilty pun ada.....malu pun ada.....Aku menjeling ke arah Iddin hoping to see his reaction. But he look relaxed while tapping his fingers on the steering wheel at the same time to the tune of the song. Mungkin aku sendiri yang rasa bersalah.
When we reached the office basement car park, "Iddin about the stroll in the park....., can we hold it until tomorrow?" I said and planned to delay the outing. "I feel like you are making advances towards me?Are you? I seriously think we need to put a stop to all this because I may have encouraged you..."
"No....no....no.....I am sorry you felt that way. It's nothing like that.....", Iddin started to explained. "I was just being myself.....we flirt, don't we? You enjoyed it as much as I did and don't lie.....I like being with you Atika. Hans entrusted me to take care of you when he's away.....and I take my responsibility seriously."
"Okay, okay.....but I'll come back to you later today. Let me speak to Hans about it. If he says it's alright with him, then I'll go. I ni isteri orang. Keluar bersama-sama outside of working hours walaupun Hans benarkan, is not my style." I explained.
"Understood, mam.....", he replied and purposely hold my hands. "Thank you...", I smiled and slide my hand underneath his and lightly tap his hands. I said, " Bad boy...!". He lifts both hands towards his chest and giggled. "Ok.., ok..., ok...I'm sorry.", was his reaction.
Part 2.
After putting Tariq to sleep, I crept on to my bed and check messages on my cell phone. Hah! Apahal pulak dia hantar gambar...... Mengadalah Iddin ni.
👻 Iddin
Everything's alright at home? 9:10 PM
Me : Yup. Nice pic. That bird is so lucky....9:15 PM
👻 Iddin
You think so? 9:15 PM
Me : I said it, didn't I? 9:15 PM
👻 Iddin
Yes you did, saja je suka buat you marah. I can now imagine surely dahi you berkerut...😆 9:16 PM
Me : 😒 what can I do for you at this time of the night? 9:16 PM
👻 Iddin
Well if you ask me such a general question, I can produce 10 answers that's lingering in my head now....9:18 PM
Me : 😏 9:19 PM
👻 Iddin
You ni bila in WA garang ya...? Tapi bila berdepan dengan I you are so much different. Macam burung tadi, kalau kita pandai memikat, burung boleh dijinakkan....9:22 PM
Me : I bukan burung! BTW do I sound that way with you? I mean garang? Because tak ada lelaki yang baik akan call bini orang malam-malam macam ni.....9:30 PM
👻 Iddin
Ouch! 2x I did not call you cuma message saja. Kalau tak suka kenapa layan? You took 8 minutes to come up with those lines to bash me? You can do much better....9: 31 PM
Me : You are so mean....9:31 PM
👻 Iddin
I'm mean........? You started it....9:32 PM
Me : No, You tricked me into this....9:33 PM
👻 Iddin
I'm no magician. I can't do tricks.....9:33 PM
I did not reply.....I was thinking of something that could really pissed him off for good. Let's make him wait....
👻 Iddin
So you decided to chicken out? Classic move as always.....9:45 PM
Me : I HATE YOU! 9:46 PM
👻 Iddin
😢 9:46 PM
Oh no, I've upset him.....I instantly speed dial his cell numbers. It rang. I still have the time to hang up......but then his voice was on the other end....."Hello...?"
Me : "Hi.... (I tone down my voice....hmmm.....his voice gives me a good goose bump), I'm sorry.......I did not mean it......", I kept silent.
Iddin : "At times your attitude shift confused me but you do excite me. Please don't be offended. Oh btw, isteri orang tak akan call lelaki bujang malam-malam ni.....", he whispered softly...
Me : "Urgh!!!Okay macam ni lah, whatever it is I am not running away from anything. Let us sleep on it tonight. Tomorrow we wake up fresh and pretend all of this never happened...", I replied.
Iddin : "Okay let us sleep on it tonight,...hmmmm....your place or mine....?, aku terdengar Iddin cuba menahan dari ketawa....
Me : Shit!!! Iddin.....oh yeah,...you're good. That was good.....you kenakan I ya......", aku juga mula tergelak terkekek-kekek. Aku menarik nafas and apologized to him, "I don't hate you Iddin. I'm sorry if I was being rude to you..."
Iddin : Ketawanya reda. "I know.....apology accepted. You know I can't hate you. I bergurau saja....alright I'll say good night to you. I'll pick you up tomorrow for work? Let's carpool to avoid unnecessary pollution."
Me : "Wow! you are so slick. Pandai saja you cari peluang nak goda I ya.....Okay, I setuju all because I work with an UN agency who puts health as their priority. How fast do you drive?", aku memikirkan about timing so I am able to adjust around my schedule.
Iddin : "Fast.", he replied.
Me : "Can you pick me up around eight tomorrow morning?", I asked.
Iddin : "I'll be there by 7:50 a m and please let the guard know I'm coming."
Me : "I will....and good night Iddin...........", I said softly.
Iddin : "Sleep tight and good night sayang.", he hung up.
A few seconds later,....beep.....beep....
👻 Iddin
Remember this? 10:14 PM
Me : Oh my God! You still have those pictures from the trekking trip? 10:15 PM
👻 Iddin
That's my favorite picture of you...💓 the snail is so lucky, huh.....10:15 PM
Me : Hahaha....we do look good as a couple kan, Iddin?.......10:16 PM
👻 Iddin
Yes, we do.....but kenapa you cakap macam tu? 10:16 PM
Me : Entahlah......I guess sebab lately I have been spending more time with you than with Hans. Kadang-kadang I tak tahu samada I lakukan secara ikhlas or because of guilt towards you. I know I hurt you before....can you ever forgive me...?
👻 Iddin
I dah lama maafkan you sayang 💋💋......10:19 PM
Me : Really appreciate it, Iddin. One last thing, can you drop the 'sayang' when you call me?
👻 Iddin
Bila I tengok gambar2 you hati I terdetik.....timbul perasaan sayang yang sangat mendalam terhadap you. Bukan senang nak lupakan cinta pertama. Yours was my first. 10:21 PM
Me : I understand. It could've been the biggest mistake or could've been the other way round. Kita tak tahu apa yang in store for our future. That's life, Iddin. Anyway it's getting late.....10:22 PM
👻 Iddin
Yeah....sleep well sayang....I'll see you tomorrow....10: 23 PM
Me : I'll see you tomorrow....oh, before I forget.....10:24 PM
👻 Iddin
What?? 10:24 PM
Me : Good night, Iddin 😁.....10:25 PM
And I hang-up. Kalau dilayan lagi, tak tidur lah jawabnya aku.
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