If I Could Dream
CHAPTER 2 - Meet 'He'
“If the best choice for us is ‘easy’—”
Karin's throat was blocked. Saying ‘uas’ alone pinched his chest. Especially if the sentence is complete?
Across the phone, Gabriel Yudhistira waited while staring blankly at the clock on the wall. It's 11 p.m. Karin was supposed to sleep, but she, this brash guy, called the girl after a long disappearance, came to him suddenly without first notifying him through a chat message, only to ask for a break up.
El knew very well that he was a jerk– especially when Karin's breathing sounded disjointed, forcing her throat to make a sound.
"okay."
The girl's final.
He nodded at the phone, not knowing that El had secretly heard her movements rubbing something.
Guess it was tears.
"Thank you for the days, El. Thanks for being so good with me..."
El's view turned to a wall clock. He didn't want to hear anything from across. Not wanting to hear Karin's voice getting louder.
“Sorry if I'm wrong, sorry if I'm whiny, sorry if I need this much - it's the same you.”
Both El's eyes narrowed. The more he looked at the clock on the wall, the more something went wrong with it.
“Sorry if I burden you.”
Is this just El's feeling?
“One more time, I'm sorry.”
Why does the wall clock feel sluggish?
“Makas–”
“I close yes, rin?”
Why was it that when El asked the girl for permission to hang up the phone, then Karin agreed with a small naughtiness before saying,
"Yes." Yeah."
Why is it that when El presses the red button on the screen, it stops to end his three-month-old relationship...
Why that time...
Time to stop?
...****************...
One question that plagued El along the way to school was, “if I met Karin, what should I do?”
The question that suddenly flashed in his brain suddenly made El dizzy. His head was about to break looking for any answer right–
TIN***! ***N!
“WOI! BRING A REAL MOTOR!” Screaming at the guy she almost hit.
El grimacing. What's the matter, anyway? Though it has prepared everything to face the life of senior class 12 High School. Why, out of all that preparation, could he forget one thing?!
One thing!
The fact that he and Karin, his ex, are in the same class!
El hasn't prepared anything to deal with this one thing.
Eelah. Why is the first day overthinking?!
It's better Gabriel empties his mind. If it wasn't for Timo who yesterday shared a school post about Karin winning the Painting championship, maybe he wouldn't be this confused.
Plus Chandra's compartment.
“Can be a topic make reciprocate.” Said the monkey before El curled it up to shortness of breath (please do not imitate the sisters).
While double-tapping Karin's Instagram post, El smiled, happy for everything the girl achieved until she unknowingly tapped on the comment icon.
His thumb was already excited typing ‘congrats ya’ on keyboard– before he was broken reality.
If they break up.
El erases the sentence he typed and then closes all the apps. Pressing the silent, silent, and all ***** buttons is bad until the phone is disabled.
For whatever sake, El doesn't understand why he's like this?
Although Chandra tries to encourage her with, “gapapa, bro. Just relax. Karin also won't kill you kok.”
El kept shaking.
Karin may not have killed him, but the shadow of how awkward those who had not been in a long time without a beat and then without wind, without rain congratulated him, cut El's heart slowly.
He felt guilty for suddenly disconnecting Karin. Then shamelessly even come whatsapp to say ‘congrats yes, rin’?
El believes, Karin will only look at him as a bad or brash guy.
It's better for him to disappear into the earth than to see the girl and hurt her again. El doesn't want Karin to hate him. If you hate it, El chooses not to know. So on the way to this school, he prayed that God would give him a miracle so that there was no need to meet Karin. For example, suddenly there was a class change, huh, God? Amens...
His prayer was not fulfilled.
Now, at this moment, this second, on the doorstep of this 12th grade MIPA 2, El instead met the girl.
Damnit.
El sculpting. Don't know why his gaze was locked on the girl. Looking at the round face with radiant belo eyes, framed with cute long hair and his bangs that were barely eye-piercing. Karin's face, which she had only seen through social media, was now in front of her, looking back at her with confusion, surprise, and nervousness at the same time.
El was as if bewitched with a brown twinkle of Karin that was mounting it. Makes the guy want to kneel down and question himself. Questioning what kind of feeling blinded him at this moment? Is it a feeling of fear? Was happy? Is sad?
Whahuh? What exactly does he feel?
“So come in no?”
A boxed glasses guy with a camera hanging around his tofu neck appeared in their middle.
Karin reflexes away. His eyes formed a scythe as he smiled at the glasses guy.
“Please Vale, please enter.” The girl said friendly.
He is still the same Karin, who once made El moved to protect him.
“Thanks rin, but better ladies first. Please.”
“Ah, can aja you.” The girl patted Valerian's arm making a gesture like a gentleman. Act as if to let the lady out of the carriage.
Karin slightly lowered her head like a storytelling royal princess, following Valerian's increasingly deep-seated role as a prince. The girl chuckles. He looked at each of the friends he met this morning.
Well, they're ‘four’ now. Chandra, Timo, Vale, and El.
Unknowingly, Karin glanced at El who instantly threw away a face.
Oh... It seems Gabriel really doesn't want to go back to being his friend. If that was the case then Karin could do nothing but respect the man's decision.
Karin smiled, treating Valerian Kivandra, who was treating her back before she entered the classroom.
After the girl's back was further away from where she was standing, Valerian turned to look at El who was standing stiffly watching the blue sky.
“If you still like, don't hold back, El.”
"Who still likes it?"
"Who tried?"
Vale just watched. Although Gabriel's face was as flat asphalt streets of Pontianak, his sharp eyes were still unable to deceive the feeling.
...****************...
