Page 46 - B. Ing_Antologi Cerpen Xl-6

When Fira asked for a car for her birthday, it was

a simple wish in her eyes, a rite of passage, a mark of
growing up. Arman’s heart sank. The bank accounts were

emptying, and the company he worked for was barely
afloat. Yet, the idea of saying no, of revealing the

fragility of their world, felt unbearable. He made a

fateful decision. Swallowing his pride, he borrowed
money from a colleague, a man whose tone turned colder

with each passing day.

The birthday party was ethereal. Fairy lights

bathed their garden in gold. Fira glowed, the guests
laughed, and for one night, everything felt whole. Arman

watched her dance beneath the stars, her laughter ringing
through the air like music, and thought, perhaps, it was

all worth it. Perhaps.

But celebrations are fleeting, and the truth always

finds its way in.

Later that night, the facade crumbled. Fira’s
mother, Maya, stumbled upon the financial records

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