Chapter 103: Idol and Reality

"What's wrong with you?" Kenn asked.

"Her?" My eyes widened in shock. "Are you serious you didn’t see her? That just now ... that was really her!"

A second later I screamed hysterically. "Aaaaah! Claretta!"

Instantly Kenn clamped his hand tightly over my mouth. "Can you be quiet? This is an orphanage, remember that."

I nodded repeatedly in agreement. My eyes pleaded for him to release his hand. Kenn immediately let go, and I smiled awkwardly while scratching my head.

"Do you know who she was just now, Kenn?" I asked. "I mean, do you realize how lucky we were to just run into her?"

Kenn kept walking without paying any attention to me at all. I jogged to keep up with his pace.

"Hey, answer me, Kenn! You know her, right?"

He only shrugged in response to my question.

"Oh my God, so you don’t know?" I exclaimed excitedly. "The woman who bumped into me earlier is a model who successfully broke into the international fashion world, Kenn. Her name is Claretta Maharani. She is one of the Indonesian models I admire the most," I explained enthusiastically.

"She’s beautiful, talented, and has a very proportional body," I continued. "Her face often appears on international magazines and several well-known publications."

I kept walking while talking, slightly out of breath. "Kenn? You’re still alive, right? Are you listening to my story?"

"Hm." Kenn only muttered softly and continued walking.

"Dara and I really admire her. Rumor has it that after graduating from high school, she moved to London to continue her education, and there she caught the attention of the owner of a well-known modeling agency. That was what gave her the opportunity to build a career abroad," I said even more excitedly.

"You know, Kenn. Not long after that, her career skyrocketed to Japan, Russia, Italy, Paris, and many other countries. Now it is said that she will collaborate to become a model for magazines and several major fashion brands in Indonesia."

I continued in a confused tone, "By the way, why didn’t I know Claretta had returned to Indonesia? Isn’t all information about her always covered in Dara’s magazine? Or could it be that Claretta came back secretly?"

I slapped my own forehead. "So stupid! Why didn’t I ask for a photo earlier? I could have shown it off to Dara. She would have been insanely jealous!"

Suddenly Kenn turned around, making me stop abruptly before crashing into him.

"Are you done talking? My ears are about to burst from listening to your chatter," he sneered sharply. "Right behind me is Abel and Reno’s room. I need you to focus on them, not on something unimportant."

I was stunned.

"So fierce," I whispered softly. "Alright, we’re here, right? I’m ready and can’t wait to meet them."

Kenn looked at me for a moment, then drew a breath and let it out roughly. "Put your admiration aside for now. Go in," he ordered.

He turned around and slowly opened the door. At that very second I heard Abel and Reno sobbing in Mrs. Siti’s lap.

"What’s going on?" Kenn asked. His voice suddenly softened but was full of concern. "Why are Abel and Reno crying? Mrs. Siti, what happened?"

"Father!"

I was startled and nearly gaped when I realized that Abel and Reno simultaneously called Kenn "Father" as they ran toward him and hugged him tightly.

They still call him father until now? My mind suddenly went blank at the sight.

Kenn picked up Abel with one hand, while his other arm carried Reno.

"Mrs. Claretta wanted to take them out for a walk, but Abel and Reno refused. They cried loudly when Mrs. Claretta forced them," Mrs. Siti explained.

"She forced them?" I repeated in disbelief. "That Claretta Maharani from earlier?"

Kenn gave a small nod while glancing at me sharply. "Satisfied now? The idol you’re so proud of just made them scared," he said coldly.

As quickly as possible, I looked away to avoid meeting his gaze.

All this time I had never heard that my idol model behaved harshly toward anyone, especially toward children as innocent as them. Ah, impossible. There must be some misunderstanding.

"Wow, Mom is here too," Abel exclaimed after seeing me standing not far from Kenn. His swollen face suddenly brightened.

I grinned widely and waved. "Hi, Abel."

Unexpectedly, Abel and Reno simultaneously swung their legs, asking to be put down. Kenn struggled for a moment before carefully setting them down.

"Mom!" Abel and Reno shouted.

They ran together and hugged me tightly, making me smile sadly.

"Hi, Abel, Reno. How are you?" I greeted them. I bent down to match their height.

"We’re fine, Mom. I’m happy that Father finally granted our request," Reno answered. He then turned to Kenn with sparkling eyes. "Thank you, Father, for bringing Mom here."

Kenn nodded and gave a faint smile.

So all this time they were waiting for me? Really? And Kenn, why did he never tell me?

"Kenn, why didn’t you tell me they were waiting for me?" I asked softly.

But Kenn only remained silent, his eyes hinting at something I could not read.

Oh God, how foolish I am. Why did I only come now?

......................................