2024-05-23 15:45:39Ethan held onto his old phone, which still displayed a message about receiving a substantial amount of money. "Where's an ATM around here? I've been walking and still can't find it. Is it difficult to find an ATM on this street?" Ethan muttered to himself. His brow furrowed as he reexamined each building in the corner of the city where he was staying.
However, his wanderings had now become meaningless. Everything was ruined due to his excessive trust in everything, including the man who had clearly led him astray. "Enough of those thoughts, Ethan! Everything has happened, and I can't redo it to make it right again."
Ethan closed his eyes for a while, attempting to reconcile with and continually make peace with all the demands for justice. "Calm down, Ethan. Not everything you want will go as you wish. Everything unfolds according to God's plan. You should always remember that God's plan is the best plan."
Ethan reassured himself. He didn't want his thoughts to drift away again. Although his heart felt heavy whenever he thought about his current fate, the pain persisted. The pain felt like a deep wound, but no one was willing to see it, let alone empathize with him. Seeing his wound, everyone seemed to lack the intention to do so.
"That's enough! The discussion about that wound is over. I shouldn't think about it anymore. Everything is clear enough, and it doesn't need further clarification. Enough."
Ethan didn't want to reopen and deepen the wound in his heart. Because when his memories recalled it all, he felt like he was cutting his own hand. Everything had passed, regardless of regrets and tears, they wouldn't change anything.
He had received that warning letter. And all of it happened because of the person he trusted deeply, someone he considered like a brother. But what else could he do? Sometimes reality doesn't align with one's emotions. Conflicts can arise that humans can't control.
"Anyway, it's called the heart; sometimes it can change over time. Ethan doesn't regret getting to know people like his boss and his friend, Ricard.
He's just annoyed and starting to resent it. Resenting himself for trusting them all without considering the risks that would come in the future.
You could say back then Ethan was naively assuming that everyone around him must be good, when in reality, it wasn't like that.
Ethan's footsteps continued to search for an ATM machine he hoped to find soon.
However, after walking for quite a while with thoughts full of regret about his behavior, the ATM machine he was looking for still hadn't been found.
Ethan wiped the sweat streaming down his face.
His head still felt dizzy, though not as painful as before he took that pill. The scorching sun was still making Ethan feel wobbly.
Nevertheless, Ethan kept trying to be strong despite his heart feeling the opposite.
"Maybe I can ask the security guard in the housing complex. He must know all the details about this area."
Ethan sharpened his gaze as he spotted a security guard stationed up ahead, not too far from where he was standing.
With forced steps, Ethan approached the security guard.
As if fully understanding the pain and the desire to collapse, the security guard immediately extended his help to Ethan. He held onto both of Ethan's arms to prevent him from falling to the ground.
"Hey, come on, Sir. Sit down here for a while. You don't look well right now."
The security guard then led Ethan to rest on the porch of his guard post.
"Thank you, Sir."
Ethan expressed his gratitude to the security guard. He felt thankful that there were still kind people who cared about him.
"Well, then, Sir, just rest here for a while. No need to go anywhere. I'm going back to my post. I'm worried people in this complex will see me not working."
Ethan gazed intently at the security guard. Before the guard could take another step, Ethan hastily rose from his seat and quickly intercepted him.
"Wait, sir! I have something to ask you."
Ethan hurriedly got up from his seat, stopping the guard in his tracks.
"You want to ask something? Sure, sir. Go ahead. What do you want to ask me?" the security guard inquired, looking directly at the man before him.
After spending a few minutes on the guard post's terrace, Ethan's headache had subsided. At least, it wasn't as intense and painful as before.
Ethan straightened his posture.
"Where's the nearest ATM, sir? I've been walking from the supermarket to this area, but I still can't find the ATM. Maybe you know where it is."
The security guard fell silent for a moment, as if contemplating where the nearest ATM might be located in the vicinity.
"Oh, right! I remember now. There's an ATM nearby. Just go straight from here. Then, when you reach a turn, take that turn. You'll find the ATM at the end of the road. It's close to the car dealership area. Not far from here."
The security guard, who had just recalled the location of the sought-after ATM, proceeded to point Ethan in the right direction.
Once Ethan understood and grasped the directions, he immediately thanked the guard.
With quick steps, Ethan headed towards the ATM he had been searching for. He continued walking straight as per the guard's instructions. He eventually made the turn, and true to the guard's words, shortly after entering the alley, he spotted the ATM positioned next to the car dealership, just as the guard had described.
"Thank God. Hopefully, this is like a windfall."
Ethan whispered a more heartfelt wish. He hoped that he would indeed receive the money as stated in the text message on his phone.
"In the name of God."
Ethan silently recited his prayer as his foot crossed the threshold of the ATM.
The man then reached into his pants pocket, took out his wallet, and quickly retrieved his ATM debit card.
"I hope this is real and not a scam or just wishful thinking."
Ethan muttered the prayer he said just before he inserted the debit card into the ATM machine.
The man followed the instructions given by the ATM machine, going through each step of the process until the moment came to check his current account balance.
Thunk! Ethan's emotions began to swirl. He feared that it might all be mere illusions rather than reality.
"In the name of God!" Ethan pressed the final button before his ATM balance appeared on the screen, covering one eye with his hand.
After he felt he had pressed the button, Ethan was suddenly struck silent. His gaze was fixed on the screen in front of him.
"Is this just a dream?"
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