What Happened to You?

Agatha stared at her reflection in the mirror. Her hair was styled as usual with minimal makeup. She wore an oversized milk chocolate brown hoodie, loose black pants, and a small bag hanging on her shoulder. Tonight, she would go to Jayden's house with a simple appearance. Regardless of what her boss's family thought, Agatha just hoped her attire looked decent in their eyes. Her only goal was to accompany Layla and carry out her duties as her caretaker. Agatha breathed out, just yesterday she met Jayden's father, and tonight she was going to his house. She prayed that nothing unexpected would happen while she was there. "Wow, Auntie looks so pretty," Layla suddenly stood beside Agatha. "You too. In fact, you are prettier and sweeter, while my appearance seems boring," Agatha praised back. She acknowledged that Layla was indeed the prettiest little girl she had ever met. It was clear that the genes passed down from Jayden were no joke. "Hehe, thank you, Auntie. But I still think you look the prettiest. That's why I like you," Layla smiled sweetly and turned to face Agatha. Agatha couldn't help but smile broadly upon hearing Layla's response. 'Oh, right. Will you accompany me to meet grandma later?" Layla asked. Agatha, who was initially only looking at Layla in the mirror, finally turned to face the girl. Agatha smiled as she ruffled Layla's hair. "Of course, Layla. That's my job." Layla smiled happily, her eyes sparkling with joy. "Yay! Thank you, Aunt Agatha. You are the best!" Agatha chuckled softly. "You're welcome, sweet Layla. In that case, let's go out. Your dad has been waiting since earlier." "Ready, Dad!" Layla nodded and saluted obediently. With enthusiasm, she reached for Agatha's hand, held it, and led her out of the room. Receiving such sudden treatment from Layla, Agatha was taken aback. Usually, she was the one who held Layla's hand. Upon reaching the living room, Jayden was already waiting while playing with his phone. Agatha purposefully looked away as Jayden raised his head and stood up. She pretended to take her phone out of her bag to avoid eye contact with him. "Is everyone ready?" Jayden asked. Initially directed at Agatha, but seeing the girl busy staring at her phone, he turned to look at Layla, who nodded. "Let's go, Dad. I can't wait to meet grandma," Layla exclaimed. Jayden smiled faintly. Unintentionally, as he ruffled Layla's head, he noticed Agatha tightly holding her daughter's hand. Jayden smiled slightly, realizing that Agatha was indeed avoiding him and showing indifference towards him. But on the other hand, he was quite relieved because Agatha still showed warmth towards Layla. "Okay," Jayden replied, then hurriedly opened the door and left the apartment. He walked ahead while Layla and Agatha followed behind. Agatha could finally breathe a sigh of relief when she sat in the back of the car with Layla. Usually, she sat in the front with Jayden, but tonight, unexpectedly, Layla wanted to sit in the same seat as her. Agatha was glad because she didn't need to ask for permission or make excuses to Jayden about trying to avoid him. "Good, Layla. Thanks to you, I can get through tonight," Agatha thought with a faint smile. She didn't need to suppress her racing heart while sitting in the front seat with Jayden Byanthara. Silence filled the journey. After a few minutes of Layla's cheerful chatter, the girl suddenly fell asleep. This created an awkward atmosphere that had to be endured. Agatha chose to pretend to close her eyes so that Jayden wouldn't engage her in conversation. Because as Layla had mentioned earlier, Jayden's house was quite far from the apartment. Instead of answering Jayden's questions in the silence that filled the car, it seemed better for Agatha to let the man focus on driving. "I have to really fall asleep so Jayden doesn't suspect me," Agatha thought to herself, closing her eyes and resisting the urge to look ahead. "Oh, and besides, the journey is still long. I have to gather a lot of energy to meet Jayden's father later," Agatha added. She sighed inwardly. Indeed, she had to steel herself for the encounter with that man. Agatha glanced at her reflection in the mirror. Her hair was styled as usual with minimal makeup. She wore an oversized milk chocolate brown hoodie, loose black pants, and a small bag hanging on her shoulder. Tonight, she would go to Jayden's house with a simple appearance. Despite thinking that Jayden was focused on driving, it turned out to be a big mistake. Jayden had been observing Agatha's behavior since she first sat down until now as she pretended to close her eyes. Jayden wasn't sure if the girl was really asleep, but he also didn't want to disturb her. "What is really going on with you?" Jayden thought to himself as he occasionally glanced at Agatha through the rearview mirror. Although somewhat annoyed that Agatha was being nonchalant towards him, her act of pretending to be asleep now couldn't help but make him smile. Jayden was convinced that it wasn't just a mood change that caused Agatha's behavior to shift; there must be something else that Agatha was hiding since she came home from campus that afternoon. While focusing on the road, Jayden picked up his phone, opened the WhatsApp application, and searched for his secretary's number. Finding it, Jayden prepared to type a message when the traffic light at the intersection turned red. [Send all CCTV footage near Cakra's campus. I'll wait until tomorrow night]  *** The cold air immediately hit Agatha's face as she stepped out of the car. While holding Layla's hand, Agatha couldn't hide her admiration as she looked at the grand and majestic house in front of her. She almost struggled to contain her awe as she gazed at the house of Jayden Byanthara's family. "Your face looks funny, Auntie," Layla chuckled softly, looking up and observing Agatha's expression. "Oh, right. I've never seen a house this grand in person before. Do I look silly?" Agatha grinned. She saw Layla's innocent face and shook her head. "No. Because you've never been here. So in my opinion, that's an honest expression. If I were you, I'd be the same way," Layla replied. Agatha couldn't help but smile broadly. She affectionately ruffled Layla's hair. "Oh, you are so understanding." Layla smiled sweetly. Agatha noticed the slight blush on the girl's cheeks, adding to her charm. After a few seconds, Agatha saw Jayden stepping out of the car. The man had been on the phone when they arrived. "Dad, we're not staying here, right?" Layla approached Jayden. Agatha quickly looked away. Jayden noticed it, but he just smiled faintly. He then looked at Layla and shook his head. "Dad knows you'll refuse, so after dinner, we'll head straight home. You also have to leave early for school tomorrow." "Yay! Dad is the best!" Layla cheered, met with Jayden's affectionate chuckle as he playfully pinched her cheek. "Let's go inside. Remember to be polite to everyone inside, even if you don't like them. Understand?" Layla nodded lazily. "Hmm, okay. For you, Dad, I'll do it." Jayden smiled, without saying more, and only glanced briefly at Agatha, who seemed reluctant to look at him, then he walked ahead to go inside. Several servants welcomed him at the open door. Jayden just nodded briefly without a smile. Agatha did the same, although she felt a bit awkward because she had never received such treatment. If it weren't for holding Layla's hand, they probably wouldn't have bowed again as they welcomed Jayden earlier. "So this is the life of the rich?" Agatha remarked to herself. She wondered how much the staff working in the house were paid to have to humble themselves before the master of the house. "Oh, wow? Is this really a house? Isn't it a palace?" Agatha continued to marvel internally as she realized how luxurious the house was. As she walked inside following Jayden's steps, her sense of wonder increased. The opulence that she saw was beyond words. Everything she saw now was exactly like what she had seen in foreign films. It wasn't just the exterior that was lavish; the interior was even more impressive. Okay, for now, Agatha admitted that Jayden's family house was beyond extraordinary. She dared to praise all the extravagances she saw. But only for a few minutes before her gaze caught someone who was none other than the owner of the house. For him, Agatha wasn't sure she could give as glowing praise as she did for the house. "Well, it's understandable if he threatened me so much. His wealth already speaks volumes. It would be very surprising if he had a son-in-law from a lower social class," Agatha thought to herself as her eyes unintentionally met the man. "Oh, I thought you wouldn't come? It seems you've also brought a new member, right? Who is this beautiful lady?" Jonathan walked closer to Jayden and Agatha, who stopped their steps. Agatha suddenly felt a cold atmosphere between them. The two father and son looked at each other in a way that Agatha didn't understand. "I thought they would hug," Agatha thought to herself when she unintentionally saw Jayden clenching his fists at his sides. "But it seems they're filled with resentment," Agatha added. She still didn't quite understand the relationship between the father and son. "Isn't their relationship like in my imagination?" Agatha wondered. Remembering when she was threatened by Jayden's father, the man seemed possessive of his son.