The Arrangements

Early in the morning, Devan was startled by a tiny hand encircling his body. Devan's body froze instantly as he stared at the small hand. Trying to piece together the fragments of memories from the previous day before falling asleep with a woman. The scattered pieces slowly merged into a complete 100% recollection. Yes, he had been busy working yesterday, and it had been a while since he visited a nightclub. So, who was the daring woman now on his bed?

The warm breath caressing his bare back further puzzled Devan. In the dim light, he scanned the entire room, ensuring whose room he was in. Soon, a sigh of relief escaped Devan's lips as he recognized it to be his own room.

With a heart that started to beat faster, Devan held the small hand and carefully lifted it from his body. Still curious, Devan slowly shifted his body to free himself from the woman hugging him and took a sitting position. Glancing at someone under the blanket, revealing only long, dark brownish-black hair, he reached for the bedside table to find the sleep lamp switch.

"Oh God, Elena!" Devan exclaimed after partially unveiling the face of the girl, instantly recognizing her as Vanessa and Jeremy's daughter. Devan had completely forgotten that the beautiful girl with hazel eyes would be staying with him temporarily from yesterday afternoon until the next four days. However, what puzzled Devan was why she moved to his room when he had prepared a guest room specifically for her to feel comfortable during her stay.

Devan was relieved to find out that the woman in his bed was Elena, a girl he considered as his own daughter. Perhaps Elena was scared to be alone in her room or simply not accustomed to sleeping in a strange place. Devan knew Elena well; she was a bit timid and spoiled.

"You probably think Uncle Devan is your daddy, huh?" Devan said in a hushed tone, smiling gently as he looked at the sleeping Elena. Devan carefully got off the bed after adjusting the blanket on Elena. He headed to the bathroom to perform ablution.

Devan put on a traditional shirt with a sarong that he had just taken from the wardrobe. He also grabbed a prayer mat and a black prayer cap, which he placed on his head. As usual, he would try his best to join the congregation for the obligatory prayers at the mosque not far from his house.

In a bit of a hurry, Devan descended the stairs, not wanting to keep Erick waiting for too long. With a blossoming smile, Devan approached Erick, who was already standing at the bottom of the stairs.

"Let's go!" Devan invited, embracing his adopted son. Realizing Erick didn't move from his position, Devan turned and stared at his son, full of questions.

"Did you not wake El, Dad?" Erick asked innocently, still looking towards the door not far from Erick's room. Devan was surprised by Erick's unexpected question.

"Um... El. Ah, let's go. I'll wake El when we get back from prayers," Devan replied with a hint of hesitation. It was not the right time for Devan to tell Erick that Elena was curled up under his blanket.

"Okay," Erick replied, then looped his arm around Devan's waist. They walked together out of the house towards the place of worship.

***

After returning from prayers, Erick went straight to his room, as did Devan. Devan's steps halted when he saw one of his household assistants named Dona cleaning the kitchen.

"Dona, has Elena woken up?" Devan asked, and the woman replied immediately.

"Not yet, Mr. Devan. I haven't seen Miss Elena come out of her room."

"Oh... Alright, thank you," Devan replied and promptly headed upstairs to his room.

Upon reaching the room, Devan found Elena still sound asleep. He shook his head with a chuckle. Normally, El was used to waking up early and performing the dawn prayer with her family. If El's parents knew that Devan let her miss her five daily prayers, they would surely be angry. So, Devan turned on the main light in the room to wake the girl up. True enough, shortly after, she wriggled, covering her eyes with her hands to shield them from the light. She followed it with Elena's groans as she pulled the blanket over her, burying herself in it.

"Come on, El, time for prayers. If your Mommy and Daddy knew about this, they'd be mad at Uncle," Devan said, pulling the blanket covering the girl.

"Oh, Uncle Devan, just let me be. It's still early!" protested Elena, rubbing her eyes, which still felt very sticky.

"Get up. A good girl doesn't sleep in!" Devan retorted.