Chandanas

Kiran (11)

"Lo really sure it's okay?" Edy asked Kiran again, trying to make sure that the spearhead of his team was really in good condition even though Edy understood Kiran was not prime.

"Yes" Kiran answered.

Now they have been in the stadium, waiting for a turn to play which is only a matter of minutes.

Since then Kiran has been more silent and only speaks if there are others who invite her, and even then she answered briefly and directly at the core of the problem. Despite not knowing each other for long, all of Kiran's teammates seemed able to understand and understand what happened to her even though no one really offended or told the truth. Therefore they prefer to silence Kiran because they believe that Kiran will indeed be more comfortable like that.

Meanwhile, Kiran still could not stop thinking about what Chandana said this morning. He doesn't understand where his mistake lies, he doesn't understand what's really going on until Chandana can do this to him.

If the girl did not love Kiran like what she said earlier, then what did Kiran mean to her all this time? Why did he accept all of Kiran's feelings as if he felt the same way? And what Kiran doesn't understand the most is, for whatever Chandana kissed her last night if the next day she would just be left behind.

Kiran was sure something must be wrong. Chandana is not someone who would easily hurt others. He would not have done so if not for good reason. Kiran held to her belief. Either because he does trust Chandana, or because he is reluctant to accept the fact that Chandana does not want him, that the girl has thrown him away.

"Come on!" Bayu patted Kiran on the shoulder as the match commentator called for the team's name and their school's origin.

Kiran gave a short nod then walked following her friends who had first walked towards the arena of the match.

The stadium began to rumble when one-to-one members of the two teams that will compete began to emerge. In the semifinal this time the spectator bench looks fuller, different quite far from the first day of the game. Now, as far as the eye can see there is no empty bench at all. Not even a few people are seen sitting on the wall, on the stairs, even on the boundary trellis.

Kiran spread her gaze to all directions. As usual, the crowd felt very uncomfortable for him. Even so, Kiran tried to pay attention to every corner, hoping to see a figure that even she had expected would not be there. Instead of discovering Chandana's whereabouts, Kiran finds Roka standing while waving her hand in a burning spirit. Next to her, Naya was sitting with a face of panic and embarrassment, trying to make Roka sit back.

Once all the members of both teams have been completed, they shake hands to mark the start of a sporty match from both sides. After the two teams shake hands, the referee calls Edy as captain of Tunas Kelapa High School futsal team and captain of the opposing team.

When viewed from the posture, Edy was not even taller than the chin of the gallant and burly man who was now standing face to face with him. They look more like a sister and sister instead of two people who are half the age. Even so Edy seemed undaunted at all. He looked so confident regardless of the demeaning highlight of some of the opponents' supporters. He is aware that as a captain, he must inevitably be the face of their team. Once Edy was undaunted and hesitant, so were his friends.

Kiran looked at Edy's back with a proud feeling. He truly appreciated Edy's extraordinary efforts and leadership attitude. Kiran, however, hoped that one day Edy would become a great man, one who managed to bring and lead many people. If that happens later, Kiran will make sure she is one of the many people who are happy about it.

After doing the raffle with coins, Edy walked up to his team members who seemed to be warming up lightly in their respective positions.

"Let's pray," Edy flicked his hand, calling his teammates to gather to pray before the whistle was blown by the referee.

The five members of the Coconut Shoot High School futsal team who are currently in the field walked over to Edy and formed a small circle by hugging each other's shoulders.

Edy looked into the eyes of his colleagues and then exclaimed, "Praying according to each other's beliefs, begins!"

For a few seconds, the five fell silent while closing their eyes. Pray that they can get back to winning even though this game seems to be much tougher and harder than before because the opponent they face is the defending champion for the last 5 years. Who else if not Balaraja High School.

Kiran recalls that Ratih once warned about the way Balaraja's children's games were notoriously loud. Moreover seeing their higher and larger posture compared to some of his colleagues made Kiran feel even more cautious. His position as a striker will make himself the main target of the opposing defender. In addition, Kiran must also learn the movement and style of rescue of the Goalkeeper so that he can read patterns and build the right strategy to break down the opponent's goal.

After finishing their prayers, the entire team members spread out to their respective positions. Not long after, the referee blew the whistle and the match began. Cheers from the spectators cheered their match, adding to the already high tension of the game even from the first minute.

Although Edy has done analysis and made a new game scheme to face Balaraja High School, they are still overwhelmed by the onslaught carried out in a row. Kiran who was supposed to attack the opponent's defense was forced down to her own defense area to help her comrades who looked troubled.

Amidst the pressure they received, Edy continued to shout motivation and support so that his colleagues remain excited, so that their mentality remained strong and did not fall. Although it sounded quite trivial, Kiran who had to go the extra mile to help the defense and counterattack in a row also felt a little better after hearing the encouraging sentence given by Edy. At least by listening to his friend Kiran felt more motivated and had to work harder.

This was proven when Kiran managed to score a goal to the opposing net after counterattacking by running fast alone to the opposing defense area. Despite being blocked by one of the opponent's beck, Kiran managed to pass it with a little trick that he had until finally able to break the deadlock and make the entire stadium cheer because of it.

On the field, Kiran smiled happily as her comrades scurryed over to hug her. The grim and stressful expression that had previously encompassed everyone's faces was now changing with a happy and hopeful expression. At least with the goals he pushed, Kiran managed to give hope and enthusiasm to his friends. He wants to give confidence to all that the Coconut Shoots can win this match despite the undeniable fact that they lost in various ways.

"Good! Let's get excited again!" Edy exclaimed while rubbing Kiran's hair that was soaked with intense sweat.

Kiran nodded then returned late in the game. This time, the opposing team played more aggressively. They began to often do tackling and provide encouragement that made teammate Kiran in the fog because of the body posture that is not comparable. Even for Kiran who has a tall body and the ideal of a strong muscle dissertation, the Balaraja children are a little too powerful to be handled easily.

Pressure after pressure continued to be obtained by the Coconut Shoot team until finally Balaraja managed to break down their goal, change the scoreboard and incised a balancing number. The stadium rumbled with the cheers of the opposing supporters. Roka and Naya who were originally unusually happy now look weak and re-energized with anxiety.

About a minute after the equalizer goal was scored, the referee blew a whistle sign of the end of the first half match.

Edy rushed to gather his colleagues to give directions, "We can't keep this up. From the beginning we were constantly forced to follow the rhythm of their game. We can't even attack at all if it's not a counterattack. In addition, they also began to play rough with the nenggal-senggol people until almost nyungsep. Does anyone have a solution?" Edy asked. This time he really can not think of anything else because the opposing team is so difficult to face.

Kiran swigged the water inside the bottle quickly and then closed the bottle and slammed it on the floor, "We put more attackers or wings. I can set the pattern of attacks but if I am alone I am overwhelmed. I need one or two people to support me. Like the game yesterday, they can change up and down depending on how the opponent. I would also go straight down if they attacked," Kiran tried to give some input considering how difficult it was for her to break through the opponent's defense without a helpful partner.

Edy nodded, responding to Kiran's request.

That way, Edy replaced his two defenders with two wings to help Kiran organize the attack. While Edy will stay behind to be the last guard before their opponents hit the goal.

After resting for a few minutes, the players were asked to immediately return to the field and resume the second half match.

This time, the Coconut Shoot High School team began to be able to control the rhythm of the game with attack after attack they did. It seems that the new strategy they apply managed to make the opponent surprised and a little overwhelmed despite several times had done a fairly dangerous counterattack.

This time Kiran intended to enter the goal as soon as possible to burn the spirit of his comrades once again. With all the skills and the remaining power he had, Kiran repeatedly attacked the opponent's defense area with the help of one or two of his colleagues. Several times he shot a long distance because of difficulty breezing into the area of the box penalty opponent. After dozens of shootings and attacks, Kiran again met with golden opportunities.

This time he combed the left area with a very high running speed, passed on Bayu, then ran to the middle and received an assist then..

"Gooooolllllllllllllll!!!!" exclaimed the match commentator accompanied by thunderous cheers from all supporters of Tunas Kelapa High School.

They have been biting their fingers for minutes because they watched their school team being beaten all out. Now hope has returned. Chants after chants of encouragement began to flow along with the match which was only a few minutes left before it was over. The remaining 3 minutes felt so long for the futsal team of Tunas Kelapa High School while for Balaraja High School team, the time felt very fast.

The referee blew the whistle marking the end of the semi-final match this afternoon, sending cheers rumbling all over the stadium. Kiran ran towards her comrades with a happy and happy expression, she even seemed to forget the heartache that some time ago still gnawed at her heart and mind.

On the other hand, Balaraja's son looks disappointed and does not believe the results of the match just now. For the last 5 years they have almost never lost, especially in the semifinals and also the final.The last 5 years they can bring the victory trophy and display it on their school window. However, just because of the Coconut Shoot High School, for the first time in 5 years they failed to advance to the final round.

Despite being overwhelmed with deep sadness, they acknowledged the prowess of the opposing team. Several members of Balaraja's team were seen approaching members of the team Tunas Kelapa to congratulate them on their victory. Some of them were seen praising Kiran who played so great and fearless throughout the match.

"Great lo. Just this time there are people who make me as a keeper keeper kecapean," goalkeeper Balaraja High School futsal team told Kiran.

During this time not many players can penetrate the defensive wall built by Balaraja team, so as a male goalkeeper does not do much to save the goal. However, today felt quite tiring for him because of the long distance shooting and close range Kiran did almost every two minutes.

"Lo is great too. I don't know how many of my kicks you've managed to fail" Kiran greeted the man with a wry smile.

This greeting and congratulating each other lasted quite a long time. Even some supporters from their school were seen taking to the field to participate in celebrating their qualifying for the final round. Kiran smiled brightly looking at the hustle and bustle presented before her. He smiled as he looked at the people jumping around happily.

However, slowly his smile faded. In the middle of this crowd, he somehow felt empty. His body was among many people while he felt alone. Not wanting to linger on the field, Kiran decided to go to the dressing room. Maybe he should clean up and go back home. There are many things he has to think about, many questions he needs to get answers to. And of those things, one of them is Chandana.