The next morning, Lisa opened her eyes and got up and sat on the end of her bed. The last thing she remembered was that she was taken to Oscar's house from the hospital where the blonde haired man wanted to get reconciled with her immediately. It's amazing that Lisa's head felt dizzy when she got up from the bed. Her memory returned to recall yesterday's events at the hospital. Her mother was still there, accompanied by Mrs. Rusminah. She hoped her mother would feel at home with Mrs. Rusminah by her side.
After washing her face and brushing her teeth, Lisa went downstairs to find Oscar. She approached Oscar's room but the man seemed to have left for the office. Lisa went downstairs to the kitchen to prepare breakfast. As she passed the dining room, her gaze fell on two plates of German-styled breakfast with bread, sausage and egg topped with butter. Not forgetting a glass of milk and a few slices of apples.
Lisa thought for a moment. Who prepared all this food if Mrs. Rusminah was still in the hospital now? She walked over to the kitchen and then saw Oscar's figure cooking something. Lisa was a little surprised to see the European-blooded man cooking. When she was a child, she never saw her father cook at all. Lisa had always been taught by her father that men didn't cook, so she was a little surprised to see Oscar struggling in the kitchen.
Lisa walked over to the man with very slow steps, trying not to startle him. She was about to pat the man's shoulder but was caught when Oscar felt her presence. The man turned around, looked at Lisa and then turned to look at the stir-fried vegetables he was cooking.
"Good morning Lisa. How are you feeling?" Oscar said, stirring the vegetables on the pan. Lisa was so amazed by him. As long as she lived and grew up in the capital city, she had never seen a man who was good at cooking except a restaurant chef. She stood beside Oscar, staring at her ex-husband in awe.
"Is everything on the table…. Your cooking?" Lisa asked, trying to convince herself.
"Of course, who else but me? Mrs. Rusminah is accompanying your mother at the hospital and my personal chef is on leave. I have to be able to cook myself so as not to starve," Oscar explained, flipping the pan.
"But you can order food, right? Why do you have to cook?" Lisa asked again, leaning back on the kitchen's counter.
"Buying food out too often can also be boring. Every now and then I want to cook by myself. Besides, it's not uncommon for my family from Sweden to cook on their own. My father, Peter, even often took turns with my mother to cook," Oscar added.
Lisa nodded as she watched Oscar show his skill in the kitchen. For her, a man who could cook was cool. The problem was, her father was very traditional and conservative, so she had never seen her father cook even though her mother was sick. Her mother was forced to cook even with that condition. According to her father, it's against men's nature to cook. But for her, especially for most residents who lived in the capital, cooking was something anyone should do to survive.
Oscar poured the sauteed vegetables onto the plate and looked at Lisa. "What's wrong, Lisa? Have you never seen a man cook?" He asked curiously. One of the man's eyebrows rose.
In return, Lisa just shook her head. She stared at the vegetable plate as she swallowed hard. The aroma was so appetizing!
"Could you please bring this to the dining room?" Oscar asked as he handed the plate to Lisa. The woman grabbed it and put it on the dining table.
They both pulled up chairs and took their seats to have breakfast together. The atmosphere around them was very warm and familiar that morning, even more intimate than when Lisa was Oscar's wife. It looked like this would make a good start, Lisa thought.
In the middle of breakfast, Lisa's heart was driven to ask a question that might offend Oscar, but the question really made her curious and she really wanted to know the truth. She paused for a moment then began to speak.
"Oscar, I want to ask you something but promise not to be angry or offended, okay?"
The man muttered, still busy with the chewing bread.
"Clara and William. Why didn't I see them anywhere here?" Lisa asked, bracing herself when the man got angry.
"I bought a house for Clara and William. I let her stay with William together," Oscar replied curtly as he cut the egg on his plate.
"Oscar, actually you don't need to do that, I mean William..." Not finished with the sentence, Oscar immediately cut her off.
"William is Clara's son. When I was in the hospital, I told you that William was an adopted child," Oscar added, reassuring Lisa who still looked doubtful.
"But why does William have the same last name as yours?" Lisa asked again, insisting on finding the real answer.
"Is that true?" Oscar's face suddenly turned sour when he heard Lisa's question just now. "I don't know if William's last name is the same as my last name. Clara must be telling you bullshit!"
Hearing Oscar's words just now made Lisa's heart relieved. She could trust her ex-husband and give him a second chance to mend their long-broken relationship.
"Thank you, Oscar. Sorry if my question offends you," Lisa said softly.
"Hey, no problem," Oscar replied curtly.
***
In the afternoon, Oscar drove Lisa back to the hospital to visit her mother. Fortunately, Kumala's health condition had improved and the middle-aged woman could go home. The doctor had prescribed medication to be taken regularly so that Kumala's disease would not recur in the near future.
Lisa walked over to her mother who looked refreshed. The middle-aged woman was sitting on the bed with a flowery face when her daughter walked over to her and hugged her.
"Ouch, I don't want to be in the hospital any longer! The food is not delicious!" Kumala complained in Lisa's arms.
"Yes, you can go home today. Come on Mom, Oscar is waiting for us."
Half an hour later, they arrived home. Oscar helped Lisa unload her mother's belongings in front of the fence then led Kumala down from the car slowly.
Lisa reached into her pocket, looked for the fence's key and then someone came out of the house.
Seeing the figure of her younger sister, Bella, Lisa was immediately shocked. It had been a long time since the two of them had been in touch with each other since the day they had an argument over Rangga. Seeing her big sister, Bella did not say hello. She ignored Lisa by passing her and immediately approaching Kumala, who was led by Oscar.
"Where did you come from!? How come I don't know?" Bella asked with a curious look.
"It's okay, I only stayed in the hospital for two days. My illness recurred," Kumala answered frankly.
"Why don't you text me?" Bella insisted, her voice sounded irritated.
"I don't want to interfere with your studies. You said you'd have a thesis examination soon, so I didn't want to make you worry!"
"Come on mom, hurry up and get in! You'll be dizzy if you stay out for too long," Lisa insisted, guiding her. Oscar then said goodbye to Lisa and Kumala and left the two of them.
Inside, the situation at home was very awkward and cold. Bella still held a grudge against Lisa, seen with her cold and indifferent attitude when Lisa stopped by at her mother's house.
"What are you doing here, Lis? Just go home, I can take care of mom. You don't have to bother!" Bella snapped when Lisa was about to get Kumala's cup of tea.
"Bel, do you still have a grudge against your sister because of the problem with Rangga?" Lisa asked sharply.
"Because of you, Brother Rangga doesn't want to talk to me until now! He kept avoiding me, Lis! But what was that just now? Oscar escorted you and mom back here, are you cheating on Rangga?"
Bella's words just now were so sharp and painful. Lisa did not think that the girl's grudge towards her was getting stronger every day. She then took a deep breath, trying to calm down. What her sister said just now sounded more like an accusation than a question.
"Bell, don't just say things carelessly. Rangga is just my friend!"
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