Alice was seen curled up on the couch in her living room. She was watching a K-Drama that Airi recommended to her. Tears rolled down her face as she watched the protagonist about to finally get together.

  As the protagonist was about to walk towards their love interest, Alice suddenly heard a loud ringing. She looked at the source of the sound and noticed that the landline phone was ringing. Alice tried to ignore it and continue watching, but the ringing was ruining the mood for her, and she decided to pause the show. She reluctantly got up and slowly made her way to the phone and picked it up.

  In a low-energy voice. “This is the Shah’s residence. How may I help you?” Alice said.

  “Alice? It’s me, the manager.” The caller told her.

  Alice perked up after hearing his voice. “Ah, manager! Why did you call me on the line?” She asked.

  “I couldn’t contact your mobile phone number, so I decided to contact your home number instead.” The manager told.

  Alice looked at her phone and noticed she had set her phone to Do Not Disturb, to avoid any unnecessary notifications to bother her K-Drama. She turns it off and there she notices all the missed calls from the manager.

  “Crap! Sorry manager! I didn't mean to ignore your calls!” She apologised profusely.

  “It’s okay, Alice, I was just calling to ask if you’re interested in driving a Formula D car.” He told her.

  “Ah, that’s all…” She muttered before realising.

  “Formula D!?” Alice said loudly.

  Formula D is an open-wheel racing category, which is different from the one she typically drives in, which is Road Cars. The cars in Formula D have exposed wheels, higher down force than a road car, and an open cockpit. Formula D is what people call a step to get into Formula A, the pinnacle of Motorsport racing.

  The manager chuckled upon hearing her reaction. “Yup, a friend of mine is trying to find talented young drivers in Akinabalu. He called me up to ask if you could try it out, since you won the last 2 races in the ROA.” The manager told.

  Alice was surprised to hear that the manager was offering her a chance in a Formula D car. But she was also confused why the person wants a driver who mainly drives road cars to be in a Formula D car.

  “I see… But I don’t have much experience driving an open-wheel race car. The only experience I had driving those types of cars was back when I was like 9?” Alice told.

  “Don’t worry, Alice, you will be fine, besides, this is only to try-out the car. Who knows, you might adapt to the car fairly quickly.” The manager assures her.

  Alice thought for a while, though it’s just a try-out, she feared she couldn’t perform. But her curiosity outweighed her fear, and there Alice told the manager.

  “Alright, I’ll give it a go.”

  “Good, are you free this weekend?” The manager asked.

  “Yeah, I should be free,” Alice told.

  “Great, I’ll book you a flight this Friday. Just send me your details and we’ll be on our way.” The manager told.

  There, Alice perked up when she heard the manager mention something about taking a flight. “W-Wha-?” She muttered.

  Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA),

  Malaysia,

  X April 2025,

  16:XX PM.

  Alice stood there flabbergasted, she had travelled to another country, which she did not expect to do during this week. She looked around the arrival hall of the airport and stood there for a bit. There, Ghazali, was also with her to be her guardian. Alice was still trying to take it all in, but Ghazali tapped her shoulder, which caused her to jolt.

  “You okay, Alice?” He asked her.

  Alice nods. “Yeah, I’m okay. Just a bit overwhelmed.” She told.

  He nodded as well. “I can tell, first time going out of the country or something?” Ghazali asked.

  Alice shook her head. “I did when I was younger, but it’s been years since then.” She told.

  “Don’t worry, Alice, I’m here to guide you through the city.” Ghazali told.

  “And me too!”

  They turned around and saw Aini bringing two big luggage while walking towards them. There, Ghazali scoffed slightly.

  “You do know we’re staying here for like, 2-3 days, right? You packed like your entire house in there.” He told Aini.

  There, Aini crossed her arms and sneered at him.

  “This is barely anything! Besides, these are basic needs, okay?” She told Ghazali.

  There he scoffed again. “Your stuffed animals are not basic needs.” He told her.

  There she rolled her eyes as she unlocked the case and took out a stuffed turtle. “Whatever.” She muttered.

  Alice looked at them and blankly smiled, seeing their average sibling relationship. Ghazali drove them to his hometown on the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur. As Alice looked out the window, she saw the mighty Twin Towers in the distance and was mesmerised by them.

  After an hour or so, they finally arrived at the place they’ll be staying. There, Alice noticed it was a traditional Malay house. Ghazali parked in front of it and turned off the ignition.

  “Alright, we’re here. You guys go ahead while I’ll grab the bags.” Ghazali told.

  They both nodded and soon got out of the car. There, they smelled the fresh air and sighed.

  “I haven’t been here in ages, I wonder if my grandmother still recognises me.” Aini pondered.

  Alice reassured her. “Of course she would, how else would she forget her cute granddaughter?” She said to her teasingly.

  Aini smirked and placed her arm over her shoulder whilst nudging her head. “Says the cute little girl!”

  A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

  “Hey, stop it!” Alice playfully pushes her off.

  As they were still playing around, they heard a coconut fall near them. They looked up and noticed a monkey with a lead tied around its neck, grabbing coconuts and tossing them to the ground.

  “Oi! Aliff! Watch where you’re throwing that!” Aini yelled at the monkey.

  Alice looked at her with a confused expression. There she muttered, “Aliff?”.

  “Yeah, that’s the name my grandma named him.” Aini told.

  Alice nods, understandably but is still slightly concerned. “I see… What a strange name for a monkey.”

  There, they suddenly heard a voice. “Aini? Is that you?”

  They looked towards the source of the voice and saw an elderly woman, wearing a conical hat, old clothes, and a small towel around her neck, which she used to wipe her sweat.

  As soon as Aini saw her, she screamed out her name and ran towards her. “Grandma!”

  Her grandma opened up her hands and soon embraced her. Aini gave her a big hug before letting go. There, her grandma hits her shoulder lightly.

  “Why didn’t you tell me you guys were coming! I could’ve prepared you guys something to eat!” Her grandmother told her.

  She sighs. “Ghazali wants to surprise you, that’s why he didn’t want to tell you in advance.” Aini told.

  Her grandmother sighs as well.

  “That boy really is something. I hadn't seen that boy in years, and he suddenly came up unannounced. I guess he’s still the old him. Where is he anyway?” She asked.

  Aini gestured behind her. “He’s currently unpacking our stuff. He should be here shortly.” Aini told.

  Her grandmother nods lightly, but there she notices Alice, who was observing their interactions from a distance.

  “And who might this little girl be?” Her grandma asked curiously.

  Aini suddenly jolted, knowing that Alice doesn’t like being referred to as a little girl. She slowly turned around to see her reaction. There she saw Alice smiling as she went up to her.

  “I’m Alice Shah, a friend of Aini and Ghazali.” She told her.

  The grandmother nodded. “It’s nice to meet you too, Alice.” She replied.

  Alice went up and greeted her by placing the grandma’s hand on her forehead, as a sign of respect to the elderly. Aini, on the other hand, breathed a sigh of relief seeing Alice not freaking out by her grandmother’s comment.

  After they were done, they began walking her to the front of the house, where they saw Ghazali sitting down by the stairs after unpacking their stuff out of the car. Ghazali noticed them and got up he took off his glasses before he went to them.

  “Peace, grandma, how are you?” He held his hand towards her.

  She held her hand and let him place his forehead on her hand.

  “I’ve been good, Awang. Why haven’t you come back in so long?” She asked.

  He sighed lightly. “I’ve been busy with work lately. Sorry, I couldn’t visit you guys lately.” He told her.

  As they were having their reunion, two little girls suddenly came running out of the house.

  “Dad! Dad!” They both yelled as they came out of the house and ran down the steps.

  “Hani! Anis!” Ghazali said as he got on his knees.

  They both came over and gave him a big hug. There, Alice noticed the twins looked exactly the same and felt a heartwarming sensation seeing them together.

  “Oh, how I miss you guys! You’ve grown so big now!” Ghazali told them.

  They chuckled as Ghazali ruffled their hair. There, Alice and Aini looked up and saw a beautiful woman standing by the door. Her smile was radiant, and they were captivated by her. Ghazali also looked up and smiled lightly.

  “Welcome home, dear.” The woman said to him.

  Ghazali, unable to resist, climbed up the stairs and went up to her. There, he nudged his head with hers.

  “I’m home… dear…” He smoothly said.

  As they were having a moment, Alice suddenly noticed two of the little girls were drawn to her. Their eyes sparkled as they stared at her.

  “You have orange hair!” One of the girls said.

  “It’s long as well!” The other girl said.

  Alice, seeing their reaction, couldn’t help but chuckle. She crouched down and gave them head pats.

  “So you two must be the twins. What’s your name, guys?” Alice asked.

  “Anis.” The girl told.

  “Hani.” The other girl told.

  Alice clearly couldn’t tell them apart, so she just nods at them, attempting to understand them. There, Aini came and crouched beside her.

  “If you want to know, Anis has a fang whilst her other sister doesn’t,” Aini told.

  Anis opened her mouth wide and showed her teeth to Alice. She looked closely and noticed a small fang on one side of her teeth. Anis mumbled her words. “See?” As she showed her. Alice nods, and Anis closes her mouth.

  “So if they close their mouths, you can’t tell them apart then?” Alice asked Aini.

  Aini shrugs. “Sometimes you can tell which one is the other, once you get used to them first.” She told.

  Despite still being slightly confused, Alice just nods lightly. There, the two girls grabbed her hand and dragged her up the stairs. “Let’s go play!” They said to her cheerfully.

  Alice sat down in the living room, taking in the new environment. She looked around her and saw how it had a mix of aesthetics between traditional and modernity. Despite the exterior showing an old traditional house, the interior revealed a cozy atmosphere, furnished with modern furniture.

  Alice, who was still looking around the house, suddenly noticed the woman coming over to her, whilst holding a tray of glass. There she laid it in front of Alice and poured her a glass of orange juice. Alice looked up at her, slightly intimidated by her.

  “T-Thanks.” Alice muttered.

  There, the woman smiled before going up and sat down beside her.

  “You must be Aini’s friend. What’s your name?” She asked.

  Alice was still mesmerised by her beauty, snapped out of it and stuttered. “A-Alice, Alice Shah.”

  The women looked at her and chuckled slightly while seeing her reaction.

  “Calm down, Ms. Shah, I don’t eat people.” She assured her.

  This, in fact, did not reassure her. Alice could only smile awkwardly as she picked up the orange juice, taking a small sip. The woman also picked up a glass and took a sip.

  “I heard many things about you, Ms. Shah.” She told her.

  Alice perked up, surprised that she heard about her. Alice looked at her and asked.

  “You heard about me?” Alice asked in curiosity.

  She nods. “My husband talked about you as we were on a video call, he told me many great things about you, how you are an incredible driver, how you won races for the team, and the many good things you’ve brought to the team in such a short time.” She told.

  Alice listened and felt a warm sensation in her heart, hearing that she had made an impact in her time at Akinabalu Motorsport. She decides to downplay her achievement.

  “I haven’t done that much for the team yet. I still have a lot more coming my way, so it’s a bit too early to tell.” Alice told.

  The woman chuckled slightly, seeing her trying to be humble. She placed her cup down and got back up.

  “Then I’m looking forward to your future, Ms. Shah. I’m sure you will succeed in your career. I will cheer for you too." the woman said.

  Alice nods slightly, still a bit taken aback by her comments. The woman went back to the kitchen to attend to other needs. As she stared at the women, she thought to herself.

  “Ghaz’s wife is really incredible… To have a woman like her must be a bliss.” She muttered to herself.

  The twins suddenly popped out of nowhere and looked at Alice with sparkles in their eyes.

  Excitedly “Hey hey! Come play with us!” Anis said.

  With the same energy “Yeah! We have a huge doll house!” Hani told.

  Alice chuckles slightly after seeing their energy. She stood up and attended to them.

  “Alright, alright. I’ll play with you guys.” Alice told.

  “Yay!” They both shouted excitedly.

  They grabbed her hand and dragged her to their room, playing tea parties and dolls with her. Aini soon joined in with their shenanigans, and they played for hours until they were called to dinner.