"Very well then! I do appreciate your help, Mrs Nuriana," Havi said, exhaling a long breath, his voice laced with gratitude.
"I am not married yet!" Nuriana snapped, her tone tinged with irritation. "From the very first time we met, you've insisted on calling me Mrs! Do I truly appear that old to you?"
Haryo, seated beside her, was briefly taken aback, but quickly covered his mouth to suppress a laugh.
Even Grandfather Har, Mr Ridho, Mrs Saras, and Diana struggled to contain their amusement, their faces lighting up with barely restrained mirth.
Meanwhile, Havi brought a hand to his forehead, shaking his head slowly, as though chastising himself.
"I've done it again…" he murmured inwardly. "Why do I keep allowing myself to be haunted by echoes of that past life…"
"Oh, forgive me, Mrs... Ah… I meant to say, Miss Nuriana," Havi murmured with a sheepish grin, attempting to conceal the awkwardness that clung to him like a second skin.
"Hmph!" Nuriana huffed, clearly affronted, her arms crossing over her chest in a defiant gesture.
"If you insist on calling me Mrs, then you might as well marry me!" she snapped without thinking, the words slipping from her tongue like an arrow loosed in haste.
"What?!" came the collective outcry, startled voices rising in near-perfect unison, reminiscent of a discordant choir caught unaware.
For a fleeting moment, the room fell into utter stillness, as though time itself had drawn in a breath.
A scarlet hue crept swiftly across Nuriana's cheeks, her eyes widening in mortification as the weight of her own statement settled upon her.
"Ah… I meant… what I meant was…" she faltered, her voice caught in her throat, lips parting and closing again like a fish stranded on dry land.
"Blast it! Why on earth did I say that aloud?" she scolded herself inwardly, her gaze dropping to the floor in a vain attempt to escape the heat of her own embarrassment.
Meanwhile, Havi regarded Nuriana with a countenance marked by a curious medley of bewilderment, unease, and suppressed amusement.
His gaze wandered, first to Grandfather Har, whose shoulders quivered as he stifled a chuckle, then to Haryo, and then his parents, Mr and Mrs Ridho, whose eyes sparkled with mirth, their laughter threatening to spill forth at any moment.
What had begun as a scene of earnest intention had, in the span of mere seconds, unravelled into a tapestry of absurdity and unspoken delight.
And yet, not all were caught in the merriment.
From her quiet corner of the room, Diana watched with silent intensity.
Though her lips were pressed into a practiced smile, a shadow passed over her expression.
Something clenched within her chest, an emotion sharp and unwelcome.
Jealousy, like the faintest chill on a spring breeze, crept into her composure and gently unsettled the still waters of her heart.
"Hark here! Havi is mine, do you hear me? He is my beloved!" Diana's voice rang out, sharp and clear, slicing through the convivial murmur like a bell struck in the hush of dawn.
All eyes turned towards her, startled by the sudden vehemence.
Nuriana spun round, her expression stiffening into incredulity and affront.
"Silence, you impetuous child!" she snapped, her voice tinged with the flush of embarrassment. "It was a mere slip of the tongue, nothing more!"
"A child, am I?" Diana shot back, her tone icy with indignation, her cheeks blooming red with temper. "And what gives you the right to speak so carelessly in front of everyone?"
The once light-hearted room began to brim once more with tension, the laughter fading into an uneasy hush.
The warmth that had filled the air gave way to a taut unease, like the hush before a storm.
There sat Havi, squarely between them, stiff as a statue carved from indecision, his expression caught in the liminal space between dismay and disbelief.
Two women stood poised on either side of him, fiery, proud, and utterly unrelenting as if the very air they breathed had turned to flint and would spark at the slightest provocation.
"Come now, let it be…" Haryo's voice, though soft, bore an undertone of quiet command, his words weaving through the tension like a calming breeze.
"Let love be the one to choose…" he added, his eyes meeting Havi's with a glimmer of something unspoken, perhaps understanding, or perhaps a silent nudge toward courage.
"Let love be the one to choose…" Havi murmured to himself, the words sinking into the marrow of his thoughts.
They echoed, not merely as advice, but as an omen, something deeper, as if the future itself had sent them on the breath of time.
Grandfather Har drew a long breath, the kind one takes when the heart is laden with knowledge.
His gaze sharpened, though it still carried the grace of age, "What matters now," he said slowly, his tone rich with gravity, "is how you intend to humble my son-in-law, lad."
"And what manner of strategy do you propose?" he continued, eyes narrowing slightly as he studied Havi's face, not with doubt, but with the tempered expectation of one who has weathered many storms and now watches for the lightning in another's soul.
Havi lapsed into a contemplative silence. He understood all too well that Hextex Ltd was no mere small-time enterprise that could be dismantled by passion or righteous fury alone.
It demanded more, a carefully wrought scheme, steeled with intellect and shaped by foresight.
Then, lifting his gaze with calm conviction, he turned to Haryo, "Mr Haryo," he said steadily, "I would like you to take me to meet Yunus."
Haryo's brow furrowed slightly, a flicker of curiosity in his eyes as he searched Havi's face for deeper meaning.
"As it happens," he replied slowly, "he's due at my factory tomorrow to discuss the company's future direction. If you wish, you may attend the meeting."
"Uncle… are you certain?" Diana asked, her voice wavering between concern and cautious intrigue.
Haryo inclined his head, his expression firm, "I am. None of us knows what's truly in Havi's mind. But I..." he paused, allowing a slight smile to play on his lips, "...I am rather curious to find out."
"Then so be it!" said Havi, the fire in his voice unmistakable.
His eyes burned with clarity and purpose, "Let this mark the beginning of Yunus's downfall."
The words rang out, and for a moment, the room seemed to hold its breath.
The others looked to one another, startled by the boldness of his declaration.
Yet amid the hush, Haryo's smile broadened, not with arrogance, but with admiration.
"So the boy has flame," he thought.
"He might just have the mettle to shake the foundations of this brutal world of commerce. Let us see how far his vision dares to go..."