Chapter 4: Waiting Without a Word
Day by day passed.
One week, two weeks, a month...
Aurel was still waiting.
Every afternoon, she sat beneath the mango tree where they had last met. She hoped Rey would return with a smile—or at least send a letter.
But only the wind and the sunset ever came.
"Why haven't you sent any news, Rey?" she whispered softly, her eyes staring blankly at the sky.
Her phone was always in her hand.
But it never rang.
No messages. No calls.
Her parents began to mock her.
"I told you—he's just a poor village boy! A man like that will run away and leave you behind!"
Aurel held back her tears. She still believed Rey wasn't that kind of man.
But the long, lonely nights slowly wore her down.
She cried in silence, hugging her pillow, staring at the photo of Rey she secretly kept in a small wallet.
"Rey... where are you?"
Meanwhile, in the city, Rey was still working hard.
Now he was a construction laborer. The pay was a bit better.
He ate only once a day and saved the rest.
In his heart, there was only one goal: to return to his village as a successful man.
But in chasing that dream, Rey didn't realize...
His silence was slowly killing the hope of the one person who had loved him with all her heart.