When they arrived at the village head's office, which looked more like an ordinary house, Mahendra was welcomed in and greeted kindly.

“Assalamualaikum! Welcome to Paradise Island, Brother!” said a middle-aged man not far from the age of Razzan.

Mahendra smiled briefly, welcoming the man's handshake. “Thank you, Sir!” he said.

“Please sit down!” the man asked Mahendra and Bahari.

“Brother, Mister Susanto is a trusted member of the community to look after the village. So, if anything happens to you, you can report directly to Mister Susanto or me,” Bahari said, introducing the man who had been waiting for them.

“Oh, I see. Yes, Sir. I understand.” Mahendra nodded slowly. “I'm Mahendra,” he introduced himself.

“Mahendra ... Masha Allah, you have a very nice name!” praised Susanto.

“I hope you'll feel at home here and I hope you'll ease into the activities. Make yourself at home and don't think of going home because you will never return until your parents‘ mission is accomplished,” Susanto continued.

“The mission in question must be an attempt to bring me back to the path of God. How annoying! If I return to the straight path, a lot of enjoyment will be lost. Humph, Father is too much! How could he put his son on this remote island? Surrounded by hooligans,” he muttered inwardly.

Mahendra chose to pay attention to the other side of the room instead of listening to Susanto's ramblings.

As the night wore on, Mahendra brooded in his lodging room. The sea breeze coming in through the window slit carried a distinctive salty scent. In the silence, he felt alienated. Not only because of the distance from the city, but also because of the drastic changes he had to face.

Her mind drifted back to the past, when the luxurious and glittering life of the city was always within her grasp. The pleasures she once took for granted now seemed distant and unreachable. However, the image of her mother's face reaffirmed her resolve to serve this sentence. No matter what, she could not let her mother suffer.

Outside, the sound of the waves breaking on the shore seemed to call him to reflect on his mistakes and search for the true meaning of life. The deserted shore and the quiet atmosphere of the village began to open the eyes of his heart that there was a different life from what he had known.

Amongst the discomfort and isolation, Mahendra realised that his trip to this small island might be a chance to find his true self. Although reluctant, he began to open his heart and mind to the changes that might come.

“Then, Mister Bahari will take you to the room we have prepared. Rest and clean yourself up. When the Maghrib call to prayer comes, come to the mosque not far from here,” Susanto said, ending their initial meeting.

Mahendra quickly shook their hands and invited Bahari to leave. He had had enough of this formal behaviour. Mahendra hated being organised. He wanted to live life on his own terms.

Bahari took Mahendra to the back of the health clinic and showed him the room he would be staying in. Mahendra was stunned. “Here?” he asked in surprise.

“Yes, Mahendra. This is where you'll live while you're here. The mattress and wardrobe are makeshift as we are using only the supplies we have. You must understand the difficulty of bringing things from outside the island. However, there is a mosquito net that will protect you from mosquito bites.”

Mahendra was reluctant to enter at first, but then he realised that there was no mother to turn to. If only his mum had been there, then Mahendra would never have experienced such a difficult life.

“Is there no hotel here?” asked Mahendra before Bahari left. After taking a look around it looked like he wouldn't be able to stay. The floor wasn't even tiled yet, just finely cemented.

“Sorry, Bro. There is no hotel here.”

“So, where's the bathroom?”

“The bathroom is outside. You can use this lamp later. You can charge it tomorrow at the health clinic. Ask the staff there and it will be free.”

Mahendra patted his own forehead because he couldn't imagine being in a place so far away from what was appropriate. His lack of gratitude made everything in that room less than desirable to him.

After Bahari left, Mahendra immediately rummaged through the contents of his bag. He was looking for something that had been hidden since his departure. A mobile phone other than the main one he had saved to call for help.

Mahendra switched it on and waited for the signal to pick up so he could contact his mother.

However, his wish could not be realised as there was no signal at all. Mahendra was forced to go outside, sneaking around the back of the room looking for a signal. He raised his hand high, shaking it in the hope of catching a signal.

His serious face suddenly changed drastically when he saw the beauty of the twilight sky that day. The familiar glow of the setting sun made her smile rise.

And, just then, he heard the sound of a twig snapping from the side of the forest. Mahendra turned from the sky to the forest, where the sound was coming from.

“Who’s there?” he asked as he chased behind the trees.

Mahendra accidentally saw a woman in a black robe running through the forest. The rattan basket in her hand fell and sent the fruits rolling to the ground. The woman turned her head briefly, but as Mahendra continued to approach, she chose to leave without quoting anything more.

The man stopped right in the middle of the fruits and looked down. “Strange, she left everything here. She should have picked them up again, but why did she get scared like that?” he asked himself, then dropped down to pick all the fruits and arrange them into a basket.

“I'm not a ghost. I'm not a bad person either. If you want to be friends, I'd be happy to. Besides, she's not the first woman I've seen,” he grumbled to himself, though he wasn't sure if the figure he saw was a woman.

“If you don't want this fruit, I'll eat it! Thank you!” Mahendra screamed again and went back to his room.

"Who is she? Why did she run when she saw me?" Mahendra asked curiously.