Chapter 2 Part 2

But if she didn't show up, she wouldn't be able to reel Carlos in for a meeting. Chelsea was weighing her options on how to save her parents' marriage and fund her father's medical treatment.

"Yeah, Dad, what is it?" Chelsea greeted at the other end of the call as her phone rang. Her father was calling her.

"C-chelsea ..."

"Hello, Dad. What's up?"

"Can you come home, dear?"

"I'll be home soon, Dad!" Chelsea hurriedly ended the call. No need for many questions; her father's heavy and intermittent voice could explain the situation at home.

Chelsea rushed to the parking lot, riding her old scooter to leave the café area and catch up with her father. Unbeknownst to her, her actions had negative consequences on her job. Despite only having worked at the café for a month, she had somehow managed to leave without seeking permission from the café's management.

This resulted in a stream of complaints from her co-workers as Chelsea left suddenly, especially since her break time had already ended.

"Dad, what happened?" Chelsea tried to help her father stand. He lay weakly on the floor, and there was no one at home to look after him.

"Your mother is demanding a divorce, dear. She says she wants to get married and needs a divorce decree from the religious court."

"Mom?" Chelsea repeated, making sure she heard correctly.

"Yes, she said her boyfriend proposed, and she even showed me the ring he gave her. As a sign of his seriousness about marrying her."

"Oh my... Mom!" Chelsea growled. She couldn't understand how to get her mother to reconcile with the situation, especially since the middle-aged woman knew how much her husband loved her.

And the bankruptcy they were experiencing was partly her doing as well. It was very unfair for her father to be left alone in such a dire state.

"Dad, are you sure you want to let Mom go? You want her to be happy?" Tomas tried to sound accepting at this point. Rather than holding onto Margareth and making her resentful, divorce seemed like the right path now.

"Are you sure, Dad?"

Chelsea checked. It was the path she wanted too, but she didn't want her father's condition to deteriorate further.

"Of course, if it's best for your mother."

Tomas responded, resignedly forcing a smile as a sign that he was fine, even though his heart was shattered by losing the woman he loved so much.

"Well, if we have to let Mom go, that's okay. As long as Dad is okay."

Tomas simply nodded, putting on a smile to show that he was fine even though inside, he was shattered by the loss of the woman he cherished.

"Dad, wait here. Chelsea will get your medicine," Chelsea said after ensuring her father was lying down comfortably on the bed.

She hurried to the nightstand to retrieve the medicine but let out a long sigh. There wasn't a single pill left there; she had completely forgotten to buy more, even though she had seen earlier in the morning that the weekly supply had been completely used up.

"Ayah, I need to buy medicine, I'll go out for a moment," Chelsea excused herself.

Tomas simply nodded, letting his daughter buy the medicine at the pharmacy. He felt utterly resigned to living with half of his body and dependent on medications. The last doctor's visit had revealed swelling in his brain that required immediate surgery. He wanted to ask Chelsea to give up and stop caring, but the determined girl was insistent on fighting until he fully recovered.

Even though Chelsea had to work tirelessly day and night to earn money, it was all for herself. Tomas felt like a burden, and instead of his condition improving, it seemed to be worsening.

Not long after, Chelsea returned. Luckily, she had been paid two days ago and had enough money to buy the medicine. Before entering the room, her steps halted, frozen in place as she heard her father's sobs coming from the room.

"I really can't bear to lose you, but what can I do? It's the only way that can make you happy. Be happy there, Chelsea and I will try to live without you."

Chelsea sighed deeply. If this continued, her father's condition would only worsen.

"I will try to bring Mom back," Chelsea muttered to herself before entering the room. She put on a smile, hiding her anger and deep-rooted resentment towards the woman she called 'Mom'.

After tending to her father, Chelsea bid farewell to him and headed back to the café. It was difficult to leave her father alone at home, but there was no other option since she had to work.

Once she arrived at the café, instead of being allowed to work, she faced dismissal.

"You lack manners and are no longer fit to work here!" the café manager scolded as Chelsea tried to continue her duties.

"B-but, Sir!"

"There are no 'buts' here. Professionalism is key in the workplace. You often skip work and leave during your shift, citing your father's illness. I won't accept that anymore."

"But my father really..."

"I've already told you, we won't accept any excuses. You're not professional in your work. Pack up and don't show your face here again!"

Chelsea slumped, knowing that if she was fired like this, she wouldn't be able to pay her tuition fees. She had only about one million rupiah left.

Not to mention, she needed money for daily expenses and her father's medication.

"Dad's medication is only enough for a week. What am I going to do?" she muttered, squeezing the phone in her hand.

Chelsea wiped away the tears streaming down her cheeks before getting back on her old scooter.

She aimlessly wandered around, weighing whether or not to follow Indri's suggestion. She couldn't imagine living without a job. Her tuition fees needed to be paid, and she had to cover daily expenses and her father's medication. How could she manage all that? Earning money without a job was nearly impossible for her, and finding work wasn't an easy task either.

Taking a moment to rest, Chelsea sat in a park. She contacted Olive to ask for guidance on becoming a sugar baby. Olive happily guided her and provided instructions. True to Indri's words, being a sugar baby wasn't just about physical intimacy; it could start as companionship or friendship.

Of course, the payment wasn't as high until things progressed physically. From there, Chelsea was determined to agree to Indri's suggestion. She contacted Carlos again and confirmed the meeting time.

To her surprise, Carlos was willing to move up the meeting time, so Chelsea headed to the café he had chosen.

Chelsea clenched her hands tightly, took a deep breath, and tried to appear composed. She walked gracefully toward the table where Carlos was waiting for her. It wasn't too bad; he still looked relatively young despite being in his forties.

"Hi, I'm Carlos!" Carlos extended his hand, introducing himself to Chelsea.

Chelsea turned up the corners of her lips slightly. "Chelsea," she replied, as friendly as possible to pique Carlos's interest.

"Alright, let's get straight to the point, shall we, dear?"

"Have you already known the purpose and intention behind my ad on the chatting app?"

Chelsea nodded quickly. "Of course, and I want to be your sugar baby."

"A sugar baby? Oh my... you're something else. My intention for finding a girl on the app was to have someone for my son to date, not for a secret affair. Let me set things straight, I was looking for a girl to be my son's girlfriend, not mine. Honestly, I would have to be in a relationship with someone as inexperienced as you," Carlos shook his head.

He couldn't believe that the girl who had approached him was asking to be a sugar baby. Carlos was actually looking for a girl for his son, someone who was very shy around the opposite gender. His eldest son was a bookworm who preferred to stay locked up in the library, engrossed in books rather than going out to play. He had no interest in getting close to others, let alone dating a girl.

Meanwhile, Chelsea intentionally approached Carlos to become his girlfriend, in order to keep her parents' relationship intact as it was before Carlos came into the picture and made her mother, Margareth, fall in love and file for divorce from her father.

"But I don't like your son, Sir. I like you. What should I do?" Chelsea teased, sitting on Carlos's lap and gently stroking the older man's firm jawline.

Growing irritated by Chelsea's behavior, Carlos pushed her off his lap, causing her to fall onto the hard floor.

"Don't act foolish in front of me, young lady. Watch your behavior before I lose my temper and do something drastic!" Carlos warned.

Instead of being scared, Chelsea stood up and lifted her chin defiantly.

"I'm not afraid of your threats, Sir. Where do you want to do it? At a hotel? A guesthouse? Or at your place? Come on, I'm not afraid!" Chelsea challenged.

"Alright then, meet me tonight at the Pelita Inn. If you're serious about becoming my sugar baby, prove it!" Carlos countered, confident that the girl would be scared and wouldn't show up.

"Deal! I'll be there at 8 PM sharp!" Chelsea declared firmly, standing on her tiptoes to plant a kiss on Carlos's right cheek.

"See you tonight, Sir!" She winked at him before leaving Carlos, who stood frozen due to her audacity.

As Chelsea distanced herself from Carlos, she wiped away the trace of his cheek on her lips, as if erasing any remnants that could cloud her sanity.

"Oh God... forgive me. I'm forced to do this so that my mother won't leave my father. I don't want my father's condition to worsen because of their divorce," Chelsea whispered within her heart.