After Leonard went upstairs, Lilia pulled her hand away from the man's lips and wiped her fingertips. She licked the corner of her mouth and sighed. "I don't know when Mellisa and him will be back on good terms!"
She is worried and anxious, but she still hopes that the love between those two will prevail. Hopefully, her prospective brother-in-law can handle his family affairs in Bandung well.
Three minutes later, Leonard paced back and forth in front of Mellisa's bedroom excitedly.
He was standing at the entrance of the second floor spiral staircase, his face looking anxious and serious. "Is Mellisa out yet?"
Lilia held the dried sour plum in her hand, but she was a bit surprised by the low growl and made it fall to the floor. "Huh? Isn't she in her bedroom?"
She suddenly stood up swiftly. Jean also got up from the sofa then pulled her aside to protect her and turned to look at Leonard. "What's wrong?"
At the entrance to the spiral staircase, Leonard's face looked gloomy. He clenched his fists with both hands, gritted his teeth and said a few words, "The window is open, Mellisa… is gone!"
"Gone?" Lilia looked at Jean in surprise, the two of them hurried upstairs.
During that time, the man didn't forget to remind her. "Watch your way, don't rush your steps."
Lilia really didn't expect it. On this cold night, Mellisa jumped out the window from her room on the second floor.
It wasn't that high, but not low either.
When she came to Mellisa's bedroom, she felt a biting cold wind blowing in from the open window.
The breeze made the drape loosely fly. Lilia then walked slowly to the window and looked outside. With the bright light in the room, the scratches on the marble pillars were clearly visible.
"She's still wearing sandals."
Lilia narrowed her brows and glanced at Leonard, unable to hide the panic in her eyes.
Mellisa actually escaped this way.
Leonard looked out the window. His hand was trembling, his breathing was a little messy, and he smiled hoarsely. "With her abilities, a few minutes is enough for her to return to the next door with everything."
He didn't expect that Mellisa's determination to leave was so strong.
By the time Leonard let his guard down, he lost Mellisa from his grip.
Indeed, just as Leonard thought, they found that there was a lost suitcase in the room next door. Mellisa had taken all the clothes in the wardrobe and everything that she could bring with her.
Leonard stood in the living room with a grim face without making a sound for a long time.
When Lilia saw him like this, she couldn't calm down, and she didn't know what to say.
...
In about half an hour, Jean returned home with her. Lilia sighed as she entered and muttered to herself. "I told her before that if she wanted to leave, she had to tell me first. But why didn't she say anything before leaving? She… Was it too much for her to face Leonard?"
The man took her back to the living room. "I don't think that's the case. She must have been forced to leave. I will have someone check her whereabouts, so don't be worried."
Lilia sat up, looked to the side, and lowered her head in sorrow. "I'm not worried, just ... never mind, forget it. I just texted her, I hope she can reply when she opens it."
Tonight, Leonard stayed up all night. He was sitting in the room alone and the calm atmosphere around his ears gave him hallucinations.
He seemed to hear the door ringing, then the sound of footsteps, and faintly heard Mellisa's voice calling out his name.
"Leonard ..."
The man walked out of the room to the entrance with blurred eyes. The place where he usually saw the woman put her shoes was empty now.
He looked at the door blankly and paused for a long time, but he never saw any change.
In the living room, her shadows lingered on every corner, but they slowly disappeared by the ticking clock.
Leonard felt his heart empty and he began to regret it. If he hadn't treated her harshly during these two days, wouldn't this happen?
He knew that Mellisa was really about to leave, but he managed to prevent her. However, his family in Bandung still put a lot of pressure on him.
He ended up using the dumbest method by locking her by his side, and Leonard justified himself on the grounds that this was all meant to protect her. And yet, it seemed that he hurt her badly instead.
He was very sorry, but to whom this regret should be conveyed, he didn't know...
Leonard sat withered wearing his coat stiffly as the sun shone brightly.
He didn't take anything with him and everything in the room remained the same.
On the veranda, he stood still then turned his head back. His gaze sweeping all over the place.
Lifting his hand and touching his aching chest, he smiled bitterly and shook his head, then he turned around and left the door.
Starting today, this house will be empty again. Being a silent witness to Leonard and Mellisa's relationship, this house will faithfully await both its old and new stories.
...
Two days after Mellisa left, Lilia received news of her late arrival.
She only answered a few words and never contacted her again for a long time.
Mellisa only said, "I have returned to Jakarta. Everything is fine, please wait for my return."
Lilia sat in the living room and sent ten messages from her cell phone. She waited for an hour but didn't get an answer from Mellisa.
But her sister said that she had to wait for her return.
That meant she would come back sooner or later.
Lilia comforted herself this way, but her heart couldn't feel at ease.
She knew that Mellisa had something to do, and she could not always be protected by Leonard like a fragile flower.
The Mellisa she knew was a brave and dauntless girl.
'Sister, I'll be waiting for you to come back!'
...
After having two days of rest, Lilia's morning sickness did not appear again.
She browsed a bit of information about the nausea during her pregnancy and understood how to treat it better.
Now that Mellisa had returned to Jakarta, Lilia couldn't waste her time anymore.
The Aphrodite Agency, Milia, Alfred… There were so many people waiting for her.
In the afternoon of the same day, Lilia sent a message to Harold. She asked him to arrange announcements for her from tomorrow.
Returning to the entertainment industry, her only goal was to seek justice for the crimes she suffered in the first place!
The next day, at eight in the morning, Lilia left with Jean.
In the car, Jean looked at her anxiously, "No more morning sickness?"
"No, don't worry, there are Dina and Rini in the company, and I would be very careful myself. I also take plum acid and water. I think perhaps it's because I gave what the child wanted these past two days that they no longer made me experience 'morning sickness'? I don't know."
Her eyes stared at her stomach deeply and cursed her own child a little for making her like this before they were even born, what a devil!
Half an hour later, they arrived in front of the Aphrodite Agency. Lilia turned and kissed her husband on the cheek before getting out of the car. "Then, I'll go first. If it ends early, may I go to the company to find you?"
"Yes, Mrs. Widjaya is always welcome at any time." The man smiled and joked, kissed the corner of her forehead, and watched Lilia walk into the building.
Kenny could only be silent in the driver seat. Lilia's figure had disappeared behind the glass door but he still hadn't started the engine.
The man narrowed his eyes, his tone a little cold.. "Go."