Chapter 8
1140 Words
That night, Clarissa lay wide-eyed in her bed, staring at the ceiling as David's cutting words circled through her mind like a broken record.
The clock read 2:15 AM, but sleep felt impossible. Every time she closed her eyes, David's face materialized—those calculating eyes that had studied her so coldly, that thin smile harboring a thousand hidden meanings.
A smile that now felt like a sneer.
She rose from bed and walked to her wardrobe. On the highest shelf sat a dusty cardboard box—one she hadn't opened in two years. A box containing college memories she had deliberately buried deep. But now, she needed to open that Pandora's box.
The scent of old paper and evaporated perfume greeted her, bringing back bitter waves of nostalgia. Inside lay photographs, letters, and various campus memorabilia that had once seemed so precious.
A light blue photo album with "ITB Memories" emblazoned on its cover lay on top. Clarissa lifted it carefully, as if it were a grenade ready to detonate at any moment.
She turned the pages slowly. Colorful college photographs filled with laughter—herself with friends at various campus events, at cafés that had been their regular haunts.
Her face in those pictures radiated such brightness, such confidence, such... arrogance. An unconscious, cynical smile.
Then her fingers stopped at a final semester class photo.
Her heart hammered against her ribs.
There, in the right corner of the photograph, stood a young man with thick black-framed glasses. His hair was disheveled, his white shirt slightly oversized, and he wore an innocent smile.
David.
"Oh God," Clarissa whispered, her hands trembling as she held the photograph. "David..."
He looked so... pure. So guileless. The eyes behind those thick glasses sparkled with genuine kindness.
Not a shadow remained of the cold, controlling man who now ruled as her superior. A cruel irony that cut deep.
Clarissa stared at the photograph longer, and gradually, like water seeping through cracks in a damaged dam, memories from five years ago began flooding back... unstoppable.
---
Five years ago.
ITB campus, Business Management building, late afternoon after Professor Hartono's class.
The campus corridor buzzed with students flowing in and out of classrooms. Clarissa walked with her usual crowd—Sarah, Dinda, Rico, and several other popular students.
They laughed loudly, discussing plans for that evening's hangout.
"Clar, you're still coming to that new café in Dago, right?" Sarah asked, adjusting her designer bag.
"Obviously," Clarissa replied with characteristic smugness. "But don't forget—you're treating me. I'm in the mood to be spoiled."
Their laughter erupted again. Clarissa was known as the girl who loved being pampered, and her friends always happily obliged. Money wasn't an issue for them—wealthy kids living without financial burdens.
"Hey Clar." Dinda nudged her arm. "That's David over there. Looks like he wants to approach you."
Clarissa glanced where Dinda pointed. Sure enough, David was walking toward them with hesitant steps. His face was flushed red, his hands clutching something behind his back. A bad feeling crept over Clarissa.
"What does he want?" Clarissa muttered irritably.
"Do I really have to be bothered by that nerd?"
Her friends were already giggling, their eyes bright with anticipation for the drama about to unfold. Clarissa felt their stares, savoring the attention.
David stopped several meters away, drawing a deep breath as if gathering courage. "C-Clarissa..." his voice trembled nervously. "Could I... could I speak with you for a moment?"
The previously bustling corridor gradually fell silent.
Other students began stopping and turning, sensing drama in the air. Whispers started rippling through the crowd.
"Wow, David's going to confess to Clarissa..."
"Seriously? He's actually brave enough..."
"This is going to be interesting..."
Clarissa felt every eye upon her. Her position as the popular girl was at stake. How could she let David—that nerdy guy with thick glasses—make her look like just another girl anyone could approach? Her arrogant pride screamed in protest.
"Just say it from there," Clarissa replied coldly. "I'm in a hurry."
David swallowed hard, his face reddening even more, spreading to his ears.
Slowly, he revealed what he'd been hiding—a bouquet of white roses, slightly wilted, and a white envelope that looked crumpled from nervous handling. A small, fragile hope.
"Th-this is..." David extended the flowers and letter with violently shaking hands, as if holding something infinitely precious yet breakable. "I... I've wanted to say this for so long... I..."
He couldn't finish his sentence. His face was completely red, sweat beading on his forehead. His eyes pleaded, full of hope.
The corridor atmosphere was now completely hushed. Everyone held their breath, waiting for Clarissa's response. Some gazed at David with pity, but no one dared speak.
---
Clarissa slammed the photo album shut, yanking herself out of memories too vivid, too painful to bear.
"No," she whispered harshly, shaking her head repeatedly. "No, I don't want to remember."
But the memories were too powerful now, had already breached the defenses she'd built over five years. The vision of David's hopeful eyes, the roses trembling in his hands, the love letter written with such feeling—all of it returned to haunt her.
She rose from the floor and walked to her bedroom window. Jakarta's city lights twinkled in the night, but all that illumination couldn't dispel the darkness now devastating her heart.
"If only I had known..." she whispered to her reflection in the glass. "If only I had known you would become this, David. If only I had known that nerdy boy would become the king controlling my destiny."
But regret came too late. Five years too late. Far, far too late.
And now, the man she had once cruelly humiliated sat in the CEO's chair, holding control over her career, her life, her future. A bitter, piercing irony.
Clarissa closed her eyes, trying to banish the image of David's tear-filled gaze. But the harder she tried to forget, the clearer the memory became.
And most painfully—she began remembering details she had long buried. How David had always watched her from afar. How he would smile softly whenever their eyes met in class. How he would always choose seats that allowed him to see Clarissa unnoticed.
David had loved her. Truly loved her.
And she had destroyed that love in the cruelest way possible.
"Forgive me," she whispered to the silent night.
"Forgive me, David."
But that apology came five years too late. And now David was no longer interested in hearing her pleas for forgiveness.
What he wanted now was revenge.
And Clarissa realized—she would pay for every cruel word she had ever spoken, every mocking laugh she had ever released, every dismissive look she had ever given.
One by one.
Slowly but surely.
- Writer
