Dusk At the End Please

Baihaqi Abdillah

Tok.dok...

The sound of knocking on the door rattled Shanum from his daydream. She wiped away the tears that had unwittingly wet her cheeks. Shanum rushed out of his room towards the front door of his house.

"Assalamu'alaikum" said greeting began their meeting when the door opened.

"Steams...." Rida called out to Shanum in a soft voice. He immediately hugged Shanum when he found his brother who opened the door with his eyes clearly visible.

"Wa'alaikumsalam, uh.eh..eh..what's the matter?' shanum asked frantically when he found the younger brother hugging him tightly accompanied by sobs.

Asked like that Rida increasingly tightened his embrace. At the back is seen following Adam Rida's husband who closed the trunk of the car and brought his luggage.

"What's wrong?" shanum asked silently towards Adam and Adam answered with just a shrug of his shoulder.

"Here, already.yuk we enter, later there will be a neighbor passing by if there is anything" Shanum rubbed his sister's back and unraveled his embrace.

Rida also said she entered the house and continued to wrestle spoiled on Shanum's right arm.

"Sit down first, Teteh get a drink let you calm down. Poor son, remember now you are not alone there is a life that must be kept extra in your womb" Shanum advised his sister at length, but the advised even more tightened embrace in his arms.

Adam relented, he went from his seat to the kitchen to take a drink for his wife and himself who also felt thirsty.

"What's up, Deck?" Shanum turned his face to the right side right where his sister was.

"Rida dear Teteh" said Rida ignored Shanum's previous question.

"Tea knows, you love you too" Shanum replied with a smile on his lips. Since her sister's pregnancy it has indeed become very spoiled to her somehow, congenital fetus may be.

"Steach, you want to get married now?" Rida suddenly asked a question that was quite sensitive for Shanum at the moment. Shanum sighed before answering his sister Rida's question. Adam had returned from the kitchen with three glasses and a pot of water.

"Why?" asked Shanum lirih.

Rida reached into the sling bag still hanging on her shoulder. He took the device and opened the app on his device and then showed it to Shanum.

Shanum sighed, he could not dodge again apparently the sister had already found out about the news that was being warmly circulated. News of him being Akhtar's infidelity.

"Teh asked for help not to let Mother and Father know this" said Shanum Lirih, he lowered his head when saying that. To be honest, he was shocked by the news. But Shanum did not want to show his weak side in front of his younger siblings.

The atmosphere became silent, no one dared to make a sound after Shanum said that. Rida knows that her brother is very uncomfortable with the news, but her brother still shows that she is a strong woman.

"Assalamu'alaikum, Teteh.." shouted someone who was none other than Fauzan's youngest brother Shanum surprised three people who were sitting together in the living room but were cool with their respective thoughts.

"Wa'alaikumsalam" the three answered compactly.

"Tea, it's okay, isn't it?, it's okay, right?" Fauzan showed Shanum his device, clearly displayed on his sister's screen, the same news he had read earlier.

Shanum took another deep breath, he really had to act before this news was increasingly rampant spread in the real world. But he was confused as to what he had to do to prove the untruth of the news.

"Assalamu'alaikum" greeting someone again shifted their focus in the living room. The door is still open so that everyone can immediately know who is coming.

"Wa'alaikumsalam" everyone answered the greeting in unison.

"Liani, have you come?" ask Shanum.

They hugged each other because they hadn't met face to face in a long time. Liani's embrace grew even tighter as she recalled that her arrival was due to news of Shanum going viral at this time. Even the entire foundation already knew about the news.

Some people did not believe the news because they knew very well what Shanum was like. However, there are also those who choose to believe because it could happen considering Shanum resigned suddenly for reasons unknown to everyone.

"Sit down" Shanum invited Liani to sit down, asking Fauzan to get some drinks and some snacks that were available in the kitchen.

"Shanum, I.." Liani's remark paused as Shanum nodded his head giving a code that he already knew about the news they were talking about on the phone earlier.

"I already know, Li. Even their arrival was also to give me support" Shanum pointed at his two younger brothers and sisters-in-law with his chin.

"Then what are you going to do?" ask Liani. Shanum still silently did not answer.

"I've called Akhtar's sister asking him to clear the name of Teteh" this time Fauzan replied. All eyes were on him.

"Yes, Tea" answered Fauzan briefly.

"When?" susul Liani's.

"So before I came here I called Mr Akhtar to clarify the news. Akhtar said he didn't know anything and promised he would carry it out. He asked me to be calm and not think too much, he said. Akhtar hoped he would not know about this news before he cleared it all up, but it turned out he knew first" Fauzan explained making everyone gawk.

"Dad?" Shanum called out to his sister and looked at her with a questionable look. Fauzan who was stared so wrong he just realized that he slipped. During this time he often communicated with Akhtar.

Starting from him asking the truth of the phone number he got from a business card on behalf of Akhtar. Since then, they have been sending messages frequently. At first Akhtar sent him a message asking about Shanum but then some days it was like a habit for Fauzan to report all the activities that Shanum did every day.

Akhtar advised Shanum not to know about their relationship that is getting closer. Their last meeting was at a tea plantation, Shanum asked that he not come again considering Akhtar's status is not good if it looks still meet other girls especially himself who used to have more relationships than just friends.

"I'm just asking the truth of the news" Fauzan tried to give a reason that everyone could accept. But it seems that Shanum is not satisfied with the reason he gave. He was still staring intently at Fauzan who was so misbehaved.

"Mrt ... Adek dapet number Kak Akhtar from a business card that he once gave back time here the same as the other tea, who is tea?..eumhhh, the wedding time of Teh Rida came geuning" Obviously Fauzan hoped this time his eldest brother stopped giving him a sharp look and believed in his explanation.

Sure enough, Shanum's gaze began to soften. She believes that Akhtar gave her business cards because she remembers seeing them both chatting quite familiarly before Akhtar and Ahsan finally returned to Bandung.

"Num, it looks like Raina will not stop before Akhtar is completely out of your shadow" Liani said back to the topic.

"Yes Tea, it seems that now you really have to make the final decision. If you just avoid by staying away from Kak Akhtar as you have been doing all this time I think Kak Akhtar will still easily find and meet you and that means his fiance will not stop teasing peace of life teteh" timpal Rida.

"So, what does that mean with the final decision?" ask Fauzan curiously.

"It would be nice if Teh Shanum got married soon" this time Adam who helped answer.

All eyes were on Shanum. They were all curious about the answer Shanum would give. Rida became the most stubborn person because she was the first to give the solution plus her husband just answered her sister Fauzan's question.

Shanum still chose silence, he seemed to be thinking.

"Actually I do not want to force myself to get married quickly just because of the talk of others or fear that age has aged. Sure effort but if God has not agreed, even a beautiful introduction just ends up being a brother" Shanum revealed his heart. He was not unwilling to try to accept others but in his heart there was still someone who reigned.

"Because Teteh hasn't tried yet, Tea" interrupted Rida.

"Yes Num, didn't you ever say that marriage is not only a matter of love and happiness of the world, but marriage is fighting together towards heaven" liani reminded Shanum of what he had said in one of the studies he had completed.

Shanum held his breath which felt tight hearing what his sister and best friend had said. He took a deep breath trying to neutralize his mood.

"Actually Tea, ..." Adam spoke again, he paused for a moment to see the reaction of everyone who seemed curious about what he was going to say.

"What actually?" Liani who dared to interrupt Adam's words, she became anxious herself out of curiosity about what Shanum's sister-in-law would say.

"Actually there has been someone who likes Teteh, but he is not confident enough to come directly to meet Teteh and express his heart" continued Adam made everyone more curious.

"Who, Bang?" Rida was the first to ask who her husband meant. She wondered why her husband would know if someone liked her brother, while she did not know about him.

"Bang Haqi, Deck" replied Adam

"Most Haqi?" Rida asked back.

"Yes Dek, when we got married he was also present, he was my distant cousin Teh, just happened to be closer since he lived in Bogor because he was transferred. Now he's on duty at the plantation that we were walking on. He had known about teteh for a long time, but certainly when he met directly with the wedding of me and Rida. From then on he said he really couldn't forget Shanum Tea" Adam explained about his cousin who had long liked Shanum.

"Do you know where he likes Neeth, Bang? why didn't you ever tell me?" rida asked increasingly curious and expressed her frustration because her husband had never told her this before, she sulked with a pouting face.

"She's been to Brother's office, Dek. Deliberately came to see Abang to seek support he said, but before all his courage was gathered he asked that Abang keep this secret from anyone including you hehe .." replied Adam honestly ended the piety.

"Ang Haqi?" Shanum asked about the man again

"Yes Tea, full name Baihaqi Abdillah. For three years he served on a plantation close to the settlement. Inshaa Allah he sholeh Teh, his religion is also good. Even her family was so excited when she revealed she had found the woman of her dreams",

"Bang Haqi greatly glorified his mother's tea, he was also very fond of his only sister. His father had died since he was in High School and he was the one in charge of his mother and sister. So his mother was very happy that Bang Haqi was happy because he had found a companion who loved and accompanied him all his life" Adam explained a little about the man he said liked Shanum.

Shanum could only quietly listen to the explanation from his sister-in-law. He really did not expect if there was someone who returned to be a stalker over him.