《Blue-Winged Fairy》 CH 1.1 Ding dong¨C! Ding dong¨C! The bell rang impatiently. Vina, who was reading a comic while crossing her legs on the living room sofa, grumbled and shouted, ¡°May! Open the door!¡± Once Maya came in hurriedly, Vina hissed in annoyance. ¡°Are you deaf! Can¡¯t you hear that the bell rang? Do I need to call you before you notice it?¡± While holding a spatula, Maya quickly ran outside to open the gate. In front of her was a handsome-looking young man who was carrying a big backpack on his shoulder. The youngster was wearing a woolen hat¨Clike a rapper¨Cand his T-shirt clung tightly to his scrawny body. ¡°Is this Mrs. Rini¡¯s house?¡± he asked coldly. Maya opened the gate. ¡°Mr. Yoga? Mrs. Rini had informed earlier me that Mr. Yoga will be coming.¡± ¡°Just Yoga is fine.¡± The indifferent young man entered the house without looking at his surroundings. Maya looked at Yoga¡¯s figure from behind. She heard that this young man was studying in a nearby university; the university was only about ten minutes walking distance from here. Yoga was the second renter after Lintang, who was found by Rini¨CMaya¡¯s stepmother¨Cwith much difficulty. Nowadays, not many people like to rent a room from an actual house. Most people prefer studio apartments that are more private; there is no need for them to face other tenants who are practically strangers. Actually, their family also felt restless living with strangers, but it couldn¡¯t be helped. They didn¡¯t have a choice. Money is a bit tight currently. Maya ran in small steps passing Yoga who was walking leisurely with swaying hips like a coverboy. In the living room, Vina stood up embarrassedly once she saw a handsome young man enter. Vina must not have thought that the person named Yoga would be this handsome, thought Maya. ¡°Uh, did you just arrive?¡± said Vina awkwardly. She extended her hand towards Yoga who shook her hand reluctantly. ¡°My name is Vina.¡± ¡°Which one is my room?¡± Yoga replied flatly. Vina immediately pouted. She pointed towards Maya. ¡°If it¡¯s about room, just ask her. I don¡¯t take care of that kind of stuff.¡± Maya immediately took over. ¡°Just follow me, sir. This way.¡± They passed the quite spacious living room and entered the side hallway. This house that was left behind by Vina¡¯s grandfather contained four bedrooms. Previously, Maya slept in her own bedroom and there was one spare bedroom. But recently she was told to sleep in the same room as Vina and the other two rooms were rented out. The first room was rented out to a twenty-four-years-old office lady named Lintang, and the second room was rented out to Yoga. In the side hallway, they passed a room that had paper stuck to its door. On the paper was a writing: LINTANG¡¯S ROOM¨CENTER AT YOUR OWN RISK. The room next to it was Yoga¡¯s. Maya opened the bedroom. This was previously her room, and she missed the garden view that could be seen from its window. But what could she do, this room is now someone else¡¯s. The room looked neat and the smell of mothballs from the clean bed sheet entered Maya¡¯s nose. She just cleaned this room earlier this morning. ¡°This is the room, sir. I will send breakfast here in the morning and take the dirty laundry. The clean clothes will be sent to you in the evening. If the door is locked, I will put sir¡¯s clothes over there.¡± Maya pointed to the shelf in front of the room. ¡°Oh right, sir¡¯s dirty clothes can be put here too if sir would not like to be woken up early in the morning.¡± ¡°Oh okay,¡± Yoga answered quickly. He looked outside the window in a daze, seeming to not pay attention to Maya¡¯s instructions. ¡°If so, I will also leave the breakfast on the shelf. Uhm¡­ if there is something else, feel free to call me.¡± Maya left the room. Yoga seemed to come back to his senses. ¡°Uh, what is your name?¡± he called. Maya turned around then extended her hand. ¡°My name is Maya.¡± Yoga received Maya¡¯s hand, holding her slender hand. As she shook Yoga¡¯s hand, a flash of image came to Maya¡¯s mind. Whack! Something flew and hit that youngster¡¯s forehead and caused it to bleed. ¡°Get away from here! Mommy doesn¡¯t want to take care of you anymore!¡± Sound of crying. ¡°Don¡¯t cry anymore! A man shouldn¡¯t cry so easily!¡± The image dispersed when Yoga pulled back his hand. Maya was startled. Her body felt limp. ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡± asked Yoga. Who is that young man? Is it Yoga? Is that woman his mother? How could his mother be so cruel? Maya thought in her heart. Could it be that this man¡¯s indifferent behavior is due to his mother? ¡°Maya¡­! Maya¡­?!¡± Maya was startled again. ¡°Eh¡­ oh, Mr. Yoga¡­¡± ¡°I told you already, just Yoga is fine.¡± ¡°Yoga, uh¡­ I¡­ I will return first.¡± ¡°Okay. If I don¡¯t understand something, I will look for you.¡± Maya quickly went out of the room. Yoga could only be in a daze. ¡°Weird girl.¡± He snorted. CH 1.2 The morning sun shone brightly. The house of husband-wife pair Setiawan and Rini faced east, where the sun rises. Even though it was bright, the morning sunlight is good and can activate the vitamin D in human¡¯s bone. It was not like Maya cared about the morning sun that she was currently busy in the garden. She didn¡¯t have a say in this as she had to hang the clothes that she washed at dawn earlier. ¡°Maya¡­!¡± Maya smiled hearing that alto voice that she recognized very well. She turned to look. ¡°Leaving, Ms. Lintang?¡± The beautiful woman with neat makeup smiled sweetly. Her eyes smiled amicably behind the thin glasses that she wore. ¡°You already know yet you still ask!¡± Maya laughed listening to Lintang¡¯s quip. Lintang walked towards her. ¡°May, why did you not wash my clothes together?¡± ¡°No, miss. These are Mom, Dad, and Vina¡¯s clothes. I will do my clothes and Miss Lintang¡¯s clothes, along with the new tenant¡¯s clothes in the evening. Would that be okay, miss?¡± ¡°Oh, that¡¯s okay. I was just asking. Oh right, how old is that new tenant? I saw him a bit earlier when he went to the bathroom. Quite handsome, huh!¡± ¡°If I¡¯m not wrong, he is a freshman, miss. That means about nineteen years old maybe.¡± ¡°Sigh, young leaf,¡± lamented Lintang. ¡°Five years difference, can or cannot?¡± ¡°But the person is a bit quiet, miss. How can he get along with Miss who is talkative?¡± ¡°I just wanted to tell you that. That¡¯s right! He didn¡¯t even greet me, even though as fellow tenants it would be better if we know each other, right? Am I right?¡± ¡°Well¡­ different people have different thoughts, miss. But living here is good, right, miss?¡± ¡°Yes, I like living here. There is laundry service. My friends who live in different rentals have the same price, but without laundry service. Plus, I also get to have breakfast here.¡± ¡°It¡¯s good if Miss likes it. That means Miss is comfortable here,¡± Maya said as she firmly flapped the clothes that she was going to hang. Lintang had to take a step back, afraid that she would get hit. ¡°Hey, my clothes will get wet here!¡± ¡°Sorry, miss.¡± Lintang looked at the girl in front of her that worked without stopping since she moved into this house. ¡°Hey, aren¡¯t you tired of working non-stop, May? I never see Vina working.¡± ¡°Hasn¡¯t it always been like this, miss. She is busy with school.¡± ¡°What busy with school? If not watching TV, she would read magazines or comics everyday. When does she ever study? After two months of living here, I know you are only a step daughter in this family, but¡­ how could they do that, making you a maid. It¡¯s better if you go to school¡­¡± ¡°I have told Miss previously, Mom and Dad could only send Vina to school with their finances. Since Dad got fired, we are having financial problem, miss. This is also why the two rooms are being rented out,¡± Maya explained patiently. Even though her heart stung a little, she didn¡¯t want to show it. It would only make her even more sad, and it wouldn¡¯t change the current situation. ¡°But they¡­¡± Lintang was still in doubt. ¡°Hey, Miss, it¡¯s quite late now,¡± Maya cut her while pointing at the sun with her chin. ¡°Wouldn¡¯t Miss be late?¡± Lintang looked at her wristwatch hurriedly and half-walked-half-jumped outside the house. ¡°Oh my goodness, yes! I will be leaving now, May!¡± she said as she waved. Maya could only smile while shaking her head. ¡°Be careful, Miss!¡± ¡°Oh right, there will be a surprise for you later when you collect my dirty clothes!¡¯ Lintang shouted again, and she ran towards the main road where her figure could no longer be seen. ¡°Mayaaaa!!!¡± another voice sounded. This time Maya didn¡¯t need to turn her head. She knew that voice very well. It was Vina¡¯s voice. She wasn¡¯t sure what else that kid wanted. It would be better for her to pretend to not hear anything. Maya entered the house using the side door. From there, she passed Lintang and Yoga¡¯s rooms. There were plates after their breakfast in front of their rooms. There were also their dirty clothes. She lifted the clothes and put them in the empty basket that she brought. As she lifted up Lintang¡¯s dirty shirt, she found a bar of chocolate. Maya smiled. Lintang is very kind. Yoga¡¯s bedroom door opened. The young man¡¯s head appeared outside. ¡°Maya, do you have a nail clipped?¡± ¡°I do, would Sir like to borrow it?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Yoga followed Maya to the kitchen. After she put the laundry and dirty plates in the kitchen, Maya looked for the nail clipped in the kitchen drawer and gave it to Yoga. ¡°Thank you,¡± Yoga said. Maya was dumbfounded. When Yoga retrieved the nail clipped, she saw that Yoga¡¯s nails looked well-groomed and neat; it was also coated with clear nail polish. Her nails were less clean than his. Wow. At that time Vina entered the kitchen. ¡°Oh my gosh, May, you must be deaf. I have been calling you for a while now and you didn¡¯t respond?¡± But once she saw Yoga, Vina blushed shyly. ¡°Eh¡­ Mr. Yoga.¡± ¡°Looks like she is not deaf, but busy,¡± said Yoga coldly, then he left. Vina¡¯s face immediately scrunched. Maya tried her best to keep her smile in. ¡°What is he doing being so arrogant! Acting like a ladyboy, he thinks he looks good!¡± she grumbled. ¡°What¡¯s the matter, Vin?¡± Maya asked. ¡°Dad is leaving. Where is the breakfast?¡± Maya immediately prepared the plates. ¡°Oh right, I forgot.¡± ¡°See? I am not making this up! It is you who is forgetful!¡± Vina spouted while leaving. At the dining table, Setiawan, Rini, and Vina were already sitting. As Maya entered while bringing three plates of fried rice, Setiawan asked, ¡°Why is it only three? Are you not eating together with us?¡± ¡°I will eat later in the kitchen, Dad,¡± Maya answered. ¡°Huh? Let¡¯s just eat together. Come on, make another plate for yourself.¡± Maya nodded and went back to the kitchen quickly to scoop a plate of fried rice for herself. She then joined the family of three at the dining table. Rini is still wearing her nightgown and hair rollers. Her indifferent face seemed bored as she looked at the newly arrived newspaper. It looked like she wasn¡¯t interested in socializing with her family members. Vina followed suit. She took her comic book and read it as she ate. ¡°Vin, Dad has told you so many times, do not read while eating!¡± Setiawan reprimanded. ¡°Then why Mom can do it?¡± The girl protested, but she put the comic book on the table. ¡°What holiday is today?¡± asked Setiawan to Vina. ¡°Just the usual, teachers¡¯ meeting.¡± ¡°How is your school?¡± asked Setiawan again. ¡°It¡¯s alright. Why do you ask, Dad? Are you afraid that my score is bad?¡± ¡°You! Why do you keep answering back! Dad just wanted to say, study well. School is expensive, isn¡¯t it bad if you waste it? This is why Dad didn¡¯t agree that you go to school at that place from the beginning! If you had gone to a standard school, wouldn¡¯t Dad be able to afford Maya¡¯s schooling too?¡± Whack! Rini placed the newspaper that she was reading on the table. ¡°Not this again! Why is Papa still talking about this matter?¡± [Rini, the wife, refers to Setiawan, the husband, with Dad (Papa) too. But when they refer to each other I will use Papa Mama like in the original to avoid possible confusion.] Setiawan¡¯s voice weakened. ¡°It¡¯s not like that, Ma. I am just giving advice to Vina. I see that everyday what she does is watching TV or reading comic books. Isn¡¯t she an adult already?¡± ¡°So Papa has a problem with my way of raising our child, is that so? I cannot raise a child properly, is that so?¡± Rini replied with higher pitch. Maya lowered her head. This was why she didn¡¯t want to eat together. Again with the fight. ¡°It¡¯s not like that, Ma. I just feel bad for Maya, she couldn¡¯t go to school¡­¡± ¡°Pity for your illegitimate child?¡± ¡°Mama!¡± Setiawan stood up. He didn¡¯t finish the food. It looked like he had lost his patience. ¡°It¡¯s better if I leave now.¡± ¡°Yes, go leave now! Staying out all day, unclear what he actually does. It would be better if you at least bring money when coming home!¡± Rini grumbled. Setiawan didn¡¯t reply. He left the dining room and went outside the house. As Setiawan left, Rini and Vina continued reading. Maya was still trying hard to finish her food as quickly as possible so she could leave the table. CH 1.3 Suddenly Vina placed her comic book down. ¡°Oh right, Mom. Do you know that the owner of the house next door has been caught by the police?¡± Rini placed her newspaper down. ¡°Oh, that businessman who is an ex-official? Dimas Gunawan?¡± ¡°Yeah!¡± ¡°Where did you hear this from?¡± ¡°From Maya. She heard from the newspaper boy. Right, May?¡± Vina asked. Maya replied, ¡°Yes. The news came out yesterday evening, and his status is a suspect. It¡¯s a corruption case, just waiting for the court.¡± Indeed, the house next door belonged to Dimas Gunawan. The gate of the house was so tall and the owner never socialized with the local residents. Dimas Gunawan was a tycoon with many businesses. It was said that the large capital that he had was a result of corruption from when he was the head of the Bureau of Logistics a few years prior. ¡°Serves him right! Eating the citizens¡¯ money!¡± Rini curtly said. ¡°Oh right, May. Are you done packing the peanuts?¡± Maya nodded. ¡°It¡¯s done, Mom. Should I bring it to the front?¡± ¡°Yes. Just place it near the sofa. I will bring it later to the distributor when I leave for my gathering.¡± After Setiawan was fired, the family lost their money source. To continue living, they depend on rental money, the money that Rini got from selling clothes in her social gathering, and also selling snacks that were packaged simply and processed by Maya. This was why Maya was indeed busy. The packaging was simple, only using plastic with sealed ends by using fire from a candle. But the process was very time-consuming. Maybe this was why Rini told Maya to stop going to school this year¨Cit has been three months since then. Maya should have been in the second grade of high school, just like Vina. Maya understood, she knew her situation well. She was just an adopted daughter in this family. When she was five years old, she lost her house in the Sukabumi area due to a landslide. Her parents and her younger sibling died. At that time, Setiawan, who was operating the heavy duty machine excavating the landslide, was looking for the victims. He saw the young Maya that just returned from school accompanied by her neighbor; she was crying seeing her house buried by the landslide. Setiawan felt moved and brought Maya home. Because there were no relatives nor other party that wanted the child, Maya was then adopted by Setiawan¡¯s family. It turned out Setiawan didn¡¯t talk about this matter with his wife before. Rini didn¡¯t agree and was furious. ¡°Didn¡¯t you say you want another child?¡± Setiawan asked. ¡°Moreover, Vina could have a friend¡­¡± ¡°Yes, but not other people¡¯s child! I want my own child, my own flesh and blood.¡± ¡°Come on, Ma. Isn¡¯t it all the same? A child is God¡¯s gift. If you are not getting pregnant, who knows it is our destiny that we only have one child? With Maya, we now have two kids, right?¡± ¡°Where did you put your brain, Pa? Two kids means more expense!¡± ¡°Come on, I believe she is bringing her own luck. You don¡¯t need to think about the expense. As long as I am working, I will work hard to provide for our family.¡± ¡°Huft, I am now suspicious that the kid is your illegitimate child with another woman, Pa.¡± ¡°Oh my goodness, Mama! Just check it on your own. She had her own parents. How could she be Papa¡¯s illegitimate child?¡± At that time maybe they forgot that the young Maya and young Vina were still in the same room as them. The young kids were listening to the two adults¡¯ argument in front of them intently. Since then, if Vina got annoyed, she always called Maya ¡°illegitimate child,¡± just like how Rini did. Actually, Maya¡¯s life in the house was quite good. Until she was seventeen years old, all her needs were met. About her dropping out of school, she had already accepted it with sincerity. She realized that the family was having financial difficulty since Setiawan¡¯s workplace went bankrupt. Even though Rini often got mad and told her to work all the time, Rini never hit her. Not like the stepmother from TV dramas. Rini was wise enough and gradually realized that she needed Maya¡¯s help. And for Maya, Rini¡¯s scoldings and rebukes were already a daily thing for her. However, there was one thing that made Maya sad¨CRini clearly doesn¡¯t cherish her. Rini only gave the best for Vina, her biological child. She didn¡¯t think of Maya as her own child, or even admit Maya¡¯s existence. She only talked to Maya as needed, and Maya didn¡¯t dare to speak to Rini if there was no need for it. Different from Rini, Setiawan was very kind for a stepfather. He treated Maya well, as if Maya was his own biological child. Even when he reprimanded Vina, he would make Maya feel flattered by praising the girl. Unfortunately, Setiawan was rarely at home. Previously he was busy with work and only came home during dinner time. Now after he no longer works, Setiawan still left the home as if he was still working. He said that he was looking for a job, but just as Rini said earlier, Setiawan no longer brings money home. Maya guessed that her stepfather was running away from home during the day because he didn¡¯t feel appreciated by his wife and daughter. She felt bad about it, but she could not help. There was nothing else she could do except work even harder, so Rini wouldn¡¯t get angry if they ran out of money. ¡°Does that mean the house is now empty?¡± Rini asked, bringing Maya back from her thoughts. Vina answered, ¡°Yes. They said they are going to sell it. All the maids have been fired by the wife.¡± ¡°Ex-wife,¡± Maya corrected. ¡°Yes, his ex-wife,¡± Vina repeated. She had known that the house next door had only been occupied by Dimas Gunawan because his children now lived with his wife in Jakarta, after they divorced. ¡°Eh, Mom, does that mean that house will be seized by the government?¡± ¡°It depends. If he is smart enough, the house title would be under his wife or one of his family members. That means the house cannot be seized.¡± ¡°Wah, that means it¡¯s better if we do corruption then. After we get the money, we can put it under someone else¡¯s name. And if we get caught, the money would still be safe.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t even think about it, Vina! Just study properly!¡± Rini scolded. Vina laughed. Maya stood up and took her plate and Setiawan¡¯s plate from earlier. But Rini called her. ¡°Where are you going, May?¡± ¡°Kitchen, Mom. I will be washing the dishes from cooking earlier.¡± ¡°Yesterday¡¯s pile of clothes, did you finish ironing it?¡± ¡°Not yet. Yesterday I drained the water tub and cleaned the stoves, so I couldn¡¯t do it.¡± ¡°What is wrong with you?!¡± Rini scolded. ¡°I was going to wear that black clothes! Working all day in a daze! No wonder it takes so long!¡± Vina couldn¡¯t hold her smile seeing Maya getting scolded. ¡°Then¡­ then I will iron it now, Ma.¡± ¡°Just iron my black shirt first, then wash the dishes. Put the clothes in my room, okay?¡± Maya quickly went to the kitchen. She could still hear Vina¡¯s words. ¡°She¡¯s getting more stupid day by day. Right, Mom?¡± ¡°Not stupid, but lazy!¡± Maya¡¯s heart hurt. She was not being lazy. But there were plenty of chores that she needed to do. It felt just two hands were not enough to take care of this big house. She had to cook, do the laundry, sweep, mop, iron the clothes, clean the bathroom, take care of the garden, wipe the items around the house and the windows, cook drinking water and pour it into bottles, not to mention other tasks that seemed to be never ending. It wouldn¡¯t be so bad if her stepmother didn¡¯t ask too much and was always grumbling. It seemed that Rini was never satisfied with Maya¡¯s work. No matter what she did, there was always something wrong with it. Maya quickly ironed Rini¡¯s black shirt. Because she was in a hurry, her hand accidentally touched the bottom part of the iron and she grunted in pain. After being done with ironing, she quickly washed the dishes in the kitchen because Rini disliked seeing many dirty dishes piling up in the sink. Crash¨C!! The glass plate that she was holding fell to the floor due to the slippery dish soap. A sound of footsteps entered the kitchen. ¡°Oh my goodness! Another one? You are too much, Maya. That plate is a legacy from Vina¡¯s grandmother, you know!¡± Rini picked up the plate pieces with a red face. ¡°Where else can we find a plate like this nowadays?¡± Vina entered. ¡°What¡¯s wrong, Mom? Another broken plate?¡± ¡°Look, another Grandma¡¯s plate is now broken. If things keep going on like this, we will have no more plates.¡± ¡°She is ungrateful. Just because Dad always sides with her, she feels full of herself. Just kick her out, Mom!¡± ¡°Huft, if it¡¯s not for your father, I would have kicked her out long ago.¡± Maya couldn¡¯t hold it anymore. She ran outside. ¡°Maya! Maya! Where are you running off to?¡± Maya went out of the house. She stared at the road in front of the house absentmindedly. She didn¡¯t have the courage to leave this house. She actually just wanted to avoid Rini and Vina. She didn¡¯t want to face them right now, when her heart was currently fragile. But there was no other place for her to go to. The storage in this house was also full, so she couldn¡¯t hide there. She also didn¡¯t have her own room anymore. Maya looked to the side. She saw a tall jackfruit tree looming over. She climbed it once before and from the top of it, she could see the house next door. She didn¡¯t know what was in her mind at that time. Her feet had started climbing the tree. CH 1.4 ¡°Maya! Maya! Where did that kid go?¡± Rini¡¯s voice sounded. But Maya didn¡¯t care. She climbed higher and higher, entering the lush leaves. From atop she could see Rini and Vina looking for her, but they didn¡¯t see her. After tired of looking around, the mother and daughter duo entered the house. ¡°If she comes home later, just beat her up, Mom!¡± said Vina. Maya looked at the house next door. The house didn¡¯t have anyone occupying it. The water fountain that used to be on for the fish pond was also turned off. The house looked dark, perhaps the electricity had also been cut off. Maya saw that the wall dividing her stepfather¡¯s house and the house next door can be jumped over with this jackfruit tree. She started climbing the wall and saw on top of it, then looked around to see if there was anything that she could use as a step. She saw the ornamental rocks above the fish pond. She descended by holding those ornamental rocks. Finally, she jumped. She was now standing in the house next door¡¯s yard. Maya decided to look around this empty house situation. She didn¡¯t want to return yet. Letting Rini and Vina lose her once in a while might be good, she thought in her heart. She tried to open the front door¡ªit was locked. She walked to the side. The door was also locked. She walked around with disappointment, perhaps she wouldn¡¯t be able to enter because all entrances were shut tight. Her sight fell to the side window that was a louver window. She tried to take off the glass panel as this kind of window in her house was easy to remove. It turned out she could remove them. She happily extended her hand to open the side door. It works! she thought happily. She then entered the house. ¡°Hellooo¡­¡± There was no response. Of course, because this house was empty. Maya went further inside. The air in the house smelled stale, like a mixture between dirty clothes and stink from trash. She saw a black bag that was surrounded with flies. This seemed to be the culprit. She took out the bag and put it outside without thinking. ¡°Why did I do that, Ms. Oh-So-Clean?¡± she mumbled, then laughed to herself. Her cleaning habit came out here. At least having the stink outside the house was better than inside the house. The electricity inside the house was cut off, so the inner part of the house was dark. Maya opened the curtain so the sunlight could come in. She smiled. If the house owner came here again, he would be confused because everything changed. Maybe that will happen far away in the future since the owner is currently in jail? Maya entered the kitchen. The equipment inside the room was still complete. Even the kitchen cabinet still had spices and plenty of instant noodles. When Maya turned on the stove, the gas stove was still on. Next, Maya went to the living room, family room, dining room, and bedroom. But the bedroom was locked. Maya went up to the second floor. There were four bedrooms there. Two of them were locked. One of the opened rooms was a guest room because there were no personal items there. Only an empty closet and a bed that could fit two people. Maya entered the other room. The room looked neat and had a feminine nuance. The owner of this room must be a woman, thought Maya. She sat on the single-sized bed. Feeling the softness of the bed, she plopped herself on the bed repeatedly. Maya smiled. Her anxiety disappeared. What a waste, the completely furnished room was left behind just like that by the owner. Maya was confused, she didn¡¯t know that there was a woman living in this house. She recalled that she only saw a few maids who rarely went outside of the house, and now they have stopped working since the house¡¯s owner was incarcerated. Maya then opened the closet. The closet was big and packed. The clothes inside looked good even though they were not the latest style. She took a light blue dress that had big white flowery pattern on it and she put it in front of her body while looking at the mirror. It seemed the owner was still young. She felt like she wanted to stay here. A young lady was twirling with the dress. ¡°This dress is really nice. Where did you buy it, Mom?¡± ¡°This is a gift from the man who came yesterday. He wants to marry you.¡± The young lady stopped dancing. The dress dropped to the floor. ¡°But I will marry Mr. To, Mom. I will never marry someone else.¡± Slap¨C! A slap fell on the young lady¡¯s face, and she fell to the ground. Maya was shocked and felt her body go limp. She hung the dress back in the closet. It had been a long time since she knew that she had this ability. She could capture images of someone else¡¯s life through a touch of a hand or touching objects that held special meaning. But she had never gotten a glimpse of a stranger¡¯s image before, let alone through an inanimate object. She once thought of bringing this strangeness up to someone else, but after being laughed at, she never did it anymore. She eventually got used to it. After all, sometimes this ability had its use, though every time she used it, she would feel tired as if she had worked hard. Perhaps it used a lot of her mental power. She had held Setiawan¡¯s hand in the morning once, when he was leaving for work. She saw Setiawan¡¯s figure fall from the train. She then warned Setiawan to not take the train that day, and to pick another alternative. Unexpectedly, Setiawan didn¡¯t take the train. That evening, they heard the news about an accident with the train that Setiawan usually took. There were many people injured. Another time when Rini was selling cakes in Vina¡¯s middle school, she received a chocolate delivery without a sender¡¯s address. When Maya held the box, she saw an image of a hand opening that sealed box. She stopped Rini from eating the chocolate. Rini gave it to a cat and that cat died* after licking it. It turned out the chocolate was from Rini¡¯s business competitor who was angry because Rini took away their customers. [*Translator note: Chocolate (with or without poison) is deadly for cats. Don¡¯t feed cats with chocolate.] A few months ago, a young man¡ªwho was Vina¡¯s friend¡ªcame to the house and was introduced to her. When she was shaking hands with the young man, Maya saw an image of the guy injecting himself. Maya reported this to Setiawan and he forbade Vina to have contact with the young man. Vina sulked and was angry. But not a few days after, they heard that the young man was caught by the police for abusing drugs. So it was clear that the strangeness of Maya seeing images was a useful special ability. Maya accepted it as a gift from God. Maya moved towards the vanity table. There were a few makeup bottles that were covered with dust. Then her eyes fell on a very beautiful item. It was a small brooch, the size of a dragonfly. The brooch was in the shape of a fairy with butterfly-like wings, and was made of flannel and tulle. The fairy was looking sideways while closing her eyes. The face was drawn with care and looked soft. So beautiful. Maya couldn¡¯t stop her hands from holding the brooch. The same young lady. She was wearing this brooch on her chest while sitting on the vanity table. Tears were wetting her face and smearing her makeup. ¡°Don¡¯t cry! Your makeup is ruined now!¡± The young lady quickly wiped the tears on her cheek with a handkerchief. She was wearing a bridal gown. It turned out the young lady is getting married. The image was gone. Maya sighed. Who is that lady? Why are the images so clear? The old-style dress showed that this even happened over a decade ago. Maya placed the broock back on the table. She opened the drawer of the vanity table. She took out a piece of identity card that looked washed out. The name on it was Anggun Karina. Why does this name sound so familiar to her? In that drawer, there was another thing that attracted Maya. A notebook with a brown paper cover. In front of the book was the name Anggun Karina. Maya took the book out and opened it. On the first page was ¡°Blue-Winged Fairy¡±. Maya concluded that the book was a compilation of poems or writing of this woman named Anggun Karina. Hand-written, with a black pen whose ink has turned yellow with time. Maya skimmed the book to see the content. The universe is a recycling system¡­ I believe that the spirit who dwells in the human body also undergoes the recycling process, through reincarnation. My name is Maiya. On my first arrival in this world, I am a dog¡­ ¡°Mayaaa!!!¡± Maya was startled. Vina¡¯s hollering could be heard clearly in this house. Or it could also be because¡­ Yes, this room¡¯s window was facing their house. Maya quickly put the ID card back into the drawer, but decided to take the book with her. She went down from the second floor and closed all the curtains, then went out of the house without forgetting to close the door latch and placing the window back in the louver window. Her heart is no longer sad. Instead, she felt happy, like a child who just got a new toy.