Good News

The sun was blazing overhead when Aruna turned the wheel of her white Hyundai Creta and pulled into the parking area of The Glass Pavilion.

She didn’t want her client arriving before her, but once again, Bu Anggun had changed her mind and moved their meeting to an earlier time.

So Aruna had rushed out of the studio, and now she was extremely nervous. Ten minutes earlier, Bu Anggun had already messaged to ask where she was because she had arrived at the meeting location herself.

Aruna glanced at herself in the rearview mirror, straightened her linen blazer, then got out of the car with a work bag weighing heavily on her shoulder.

She headed straight for The Glass Pavilion’s semi-outdoor area, walking along a shaded stone pathway beneath the canopies of small ketapang kencana trees and fossil frangipani trees. The landscaping blended perfectly with the restaurant’s industrial-tropical architectural concept.

If she hadn’t been in such a hurry, an interior designer like Aruna would have happily taken the time to study the restaurant more closely, gathering references for future ideas.

But there, at table number fourteen, Bu Anggun was already waiting, tapping her manicured nails against the wooden tabletop as she stared directly at Aruna approaching.

Aruna carefully placed her work bag beside her chair, then sat across from Bu Anggun after greeting her with a professional smile.

On the teak table, a glass of Iced Matcha Latte was already half-finished.

Bu Anggun immediately launched into her demands in a firm, pressing tone.

“Aruna, about the flooring—I want marble, period. I’ve been looking around on Pinterest, and I think my living room will look cheap if we use vinyl. Change it to Ujung Pandang marble, or Carrara is fine too. And about those downlights we agreed on yesterday … ugh, why do they look so plain? Just replace them with a crystal chandelier in the center. Make it grand.”

Aruna silently drew a deep breath.

Her fingers unzipped her bag and pulled out two folders in different colors.

One was blue.

The other was red.

A waiter wearing a denim apron approached, forcing Bu Anggun to wait while Aruna finished placing their order. Aruna used the moment to take control of the situation.

Once the waiter had left after taking their orders, Aruna began calmly.

“Bu Anggun,” she said, placing the blue folder on the table first, “this is the original cost estimate and the work contract we signed last week. All the specifications here, from the vinyl flooring to the downlight system, have already been finalized so the site team can proceed with the work.”

Aruna then tapped the red folder beside it.

“And this … is the revised cost estimate after I received your messages about changing the flooring to marble and adding the chandelier.”

Bu Anggun raised one eyebrow, picked up the red folder, and flipped through it quickly.

A second later, her eyes widened when she saw the figure in the bottom column.

“Oh, Aruna! Why has the number gotten this high? This is almost twice our original budget!” Bu Anggun exclaimed, her voice rising enough to make several people at nearby tables glance over.

“The biggest increase doesn’t come from the materials alone, Bu. It also comes from the additional work required after the original specifications were changed—from partial floor demolition and structural preparation to electrical installation and ceiling work,” Aruna explained.

She pointed to the unit price analysis table inside the folder.

“Marble is a heavy natural stone. We need special cement, stain-resistant coating, cutting costs, and installation by specialized marble workers. We also need to make sure the flooring structure of your house can support the additional weight.

“As for the chandelier, part of the ceiling structure will also have to be opened so we can install steel reinforcement. A crystal chandelier that heavy can’t simply be supported by a standard hollow ceiling frame. Naturally, the work on-site will be delayed by another two weeks, Bu.”

Bu Anggun pouted and leaned back against the canvas cushion of her chair.

“But this is what I want, Aruna. Surely an interior designer can find a way? Oh, and one more thing. The sofa. I still want microsuede fabric in Burst Orange. Period!”

Aruna briefly massaged her temple, which had begun to throb beneath the increasingly scorching midday heat.

She took two small fabric catalogs out of her bag.

The waiter returned and placed her Iced Americano in front of her. Aruna immediately took a sip before resuming the battle of arguments with Bu Anggun.

“As I explained at the studio, Bu, about the sofa color … the Burst Orange fabric you chose is currently out of stock nationwide. The next imported shipment won’t arrive for another three months. The entire project would be stalled if we waited for it.”

Aruna placed two 10-by-10-centimeter fabric samples on the table.

“You can compare these two samples. The one on the left is Burst Orange from Seraphina Fabrics, which is currently unavailable. The one on the right is Rust from a local vendor, Nusantara Tekstil.

“Visually, there’s almost no difference between these two microsuede fabrics, even under natural light like this. The only difference is the name because they come from different manufacturers. The price is the same too. If you agree to use Rust, I can reserve the fabric from the warehouse this afternoon.”

Bu Anggun narrowed her eyes as she studied the two fabric samples, turning them over beneath the shade of the restaurant umbrella as she searched for something she could argue about.

Aruna held her breath, waiting for a decision from her demanding socialite client.

“Aruna, when we were at the studio, why didn’t you show me this Rust fabric? You only showed me samples in colors that weren’t to my taste!” Bu Anggun protested, folding her arms across her chest with an accusatory expression.

Aruna smiled, trying to ease the tension between them.

“Precisely because I understand your high standards, Bu, I didn’t want to give you half-hearted options. This Rust fabric only arrived at our studio this morning, directly from Nusantara Tekstil, a new premium vendor that has already gone through our team’s strict selection process. Take another look at the fabric’s details.”

Aruna let Bu Anggun examine the two fabrics under the restaurant’s natural light.

Bu Anggun fell silent for a moment.

She lowered her head, running the tip of her manicured nail across the surface of the Rust fabric, then repeatedly comparing it with the Burst Orange sample.

Her sharp eyes searched for any difference, but visually, the two fabrics really were almost identical.

Aruna took advantage of the silence to deliver her final card.

“If you agree to use this Rust fabric, the sofa budget won’t change by a single rupiah from our original estimate. We can save the difference here and allocate it toward the ceiling work for the chandelier you want.”

At the word save, the hard glint in Bu Anggun’s eyes slowly softened.

She continued staring at the Rust sample before leaning back in her chair again.

A faint, almost imperceptible smile appeared at the corner of her lips.

“Okay, I’ll go with you on the sofa fabric. But, Aruna .…”

Bu Anggun tapped the red folder with her slender index finger.

“As for the lighting, I don’t want the downlights removed completely. My living room is spacious. If we only use the chandelier, the corners of the room will be too dark. I want the downlights to remain around the perimeter of the ceiling as the main lighting, and the crystal chandelier hanging luxuriously right in the center above the coffee table. What do you think?”

Aruna entered the point into her tablet.

From an aesthetic and layered-lighting perspective, Bu Anggun’s request this time actually made perfect sense.

“Of course, Bu. In fact, that will give the room a much more dramatic and luxurious ambience. But, as you can see on the worksheet in the red folder …”

Aruna turned the document to the cost summary.

“… the total cost, which was originally seventy-five million rupiah, has now increased to one hundred and sixty-five million rupiah. That figure includes the new wiring installation for the dual-switch lighting system, structural steel reinforcement for the chandelier, as well as the natural marble and specialized installation costs.”

Aruna deliberately paused, watching Bu Anggun’s reaction.

One hundred and sixty-five million rupiah was no small amount for the renovation of a single room, especially for the small interior design studio Aruna had built from the ground up.

Bu Anggun glanced at the total figure at the bottom of the page.

This time, instead of looking shocked and angry as she had earlier, her expression became calm—almost proudly composed.

The figure of one hundred and sixty-five million seemed to validate her social status.

Her living room was a premium project, not some cheap renovation.

“One hundred and sixty-five million, huh?” Bu Anggun murmured before finishing her Iced Matcha Latte.

“Fine. It’s not a problem. Besides, next month I’m hosting the diamond arisan at home. I don’t want to be embarrassed if my socialite friends see that my floors are just vinyl. So the marble and crystal chandelier are non-negotiable. You take care of everything.”

Bu Anggun pulled a gold-accented Montblanc pen from her designer handbag.

With an elegant, dramatic flourish, she signed the revised cost estimate.

“But remember, Aruna. At this price, I don’t want to see even the slightest flaw in the marble grout when it’s done. Understood?”

“Yes, Bu.”

Aruna held her breath for a moment, staring at the wet ink glistening across the red document.

A win.

The biggest contract in the history of her small studio had officially been signed.