New Love For My Wife

Forget

In a luxurious mall at Jakarta, a tall slender man with clear glasses stands before an ATM machine. His brow furrows as he appears lost in thought. It becomes that he has forgotten the ATM PIN he was supposed to enter. It takes another minutes, when the machine beeps and displays the message, ‘Do you need additional time’ He remains frozen before the ATM, contemplating his next move. Eventually, he concedes, presses the cancel button, and retrieves his card.

As he exits the ATM room, he spots two beloved women—his wife and their daughter , patiently waiting

"Did you withdraw the cash, dear ?" the gentle-faced woman with a sweet smile asks.

"The ATM couldn't dispense cash, honey," he replies, attempting to come up with an excuse. He doesn't want to admit that he forgot his ATM PIN because he knows his wife will tease him. After all, how could Valdi Amarta, a renowned science professor and the head of the Sigma research laboratorium known for his brilliance, forget such a trivial thing?

"Why did you even need to withdraw cash from an ATM, honey? You could have used a credit card for purchases or just a debit card," his wife suggests as she takes Valdi's hand, leading him toward the restaurant where they plan to have lunch after shopping for their monthly groceries in the mall below.

Valdi stands frozen, realizing that he has forgotten something else after hearing his wife's words. Why did he need to withdraw cash from the ATM in the first place? Nowadays, all transactions can be done with credit cards or debit cards. There must have been something important that required him to get cash. He can't recall the reason at all, which is very unusual for him.

Valdi is known for his meticulous attention to detail, given his role as a researcher in Indonesia's largest research laboratorium. The lab serves as a reference point for many pharmaceutical and food factories to analyze their products before they hit the market. It's also the government's go-to for researching various viruses and parasites, both for treatment and prevention of infectious diseases. Valdi is truly perplexed by what happened today, finding himself completely blank in front of the ATM, unable to remember a simple six-digit PIN.

Valdi wonders why he's experiencing this. This is the second time in a month that he's forgotten things he usually does routinely. Two weeks ago, while at work, he forgot the numeric PIN to enter his office. He stood in front of the door for an extended period, struggling to recall the four numbers he entered daily to access his office. But it was nothing. Valdi even had to pretend to go to the pantry to make coffee and calm down. After finishing his coffee in the pantry, he returned to his office and smoothly entered the numbers as if he had never forgotten them before. Valdi is puzzled by what's happening with his mind. It's as if there's something wrong in his brain, sometimes remembering, sometimes forgetting routine tasks. Valdi takes a deep sigh, feeling very confused.

"Oh, dear, did you just sigh because you couldn't withdraw cash? You could have used a credit card here at the restaurant, or a debit card or I can use my card," Nanette, his wife, says as she continues to cut the chicken steak into small pieces for their daughter Viona, who sits calmly in her baby chair.

"It's not because I couldn't withdraw cash, Hon " Valdi replies.

Nanette asks, without looking up or pausing her chicken-cutting.

"Then why?"

Valdi quickly comes up with a lie. "I was thinking about the work at the office, which is piling up for Monday. There's a virus sample I need to study its genome."

"Darling, we made a promise. Saturdays and Sundays are for our family. We should put aside work and spend time together. You used to insist on this and even made me promise not to schedule student consultations on Sundays for their thesis. But today, you're thinking about work during our lunch," Nanette says, gazing at Valdi with her clear, loving eyes.

Valdi looks at his wife, bewildered. Why can't I remember my own rules? His mind feels hollow, and he can't recall anything about what Nanette just said. If he could remember, he wouldn't have used work as an excuse for the uneasiness he's been feeling lately, constantly forgetting things over the past month.

Valdi offers a reassuring smile to calm his wife and prevent further questions.

"Yes, you're right. I've been quite busy lately. Maybe I need to relax and clear my mind. How about we plan a trip to Resort at the mountain next weekend?"

"Sounds good, dear ! We can leave early on Saturday and come back on Sunday afternoon. Viona will love it. It's been a while since we went there. I'll get the villa keys from my mom. We can stay at our Astyna family villa," Nanette suggests.

"How about a hotel instead, honey? I read reviews about a new hotel in the Mountain area. It has a Bali-like atmosphere. Let's stay there. I want to experience something new," Valdi says.

Deep down, Valdi doesn't want to borrow Nanette's family villa because he doesn't want her to be looked down upon by her wealthy family. Nanette's two elder sisters have husbands who are wealthy businessmen, while Nanette married a scientist and isn't part of the business world or an heir to a vast fortune like her other sisters' spouses. Valdi's father is a small-scale convection business owner with only a few employees, nothing compared to Nanette's family and the other in-laws, who run multinational businesses with billion-dollar turnovers. Although Valdi knows that Nanette's father approved of their marriage and considers him a good son-in-law, he still feels uncomfortable around Nanette's family. He can never connect with them as well as the other two husbands do. In Valdi's presence, his in-laws only engage in casual conversation, either because they don't know what to talk about with him or because they assume he can't discuss business matters like them. Valdi always feels uneasy during family gatherings. But he can never express this to Nanette because she'd insist that her parents are not like that and are proud to have a son-in-law who's a prominent and renowned scientist throughout Indonesia.

" Okay. I agree to stay at hotel." Nanette smiles to her husband. Valdi returns the smile of his beloved wife, whom he loves deeply, but will his love last forever?