Lara's Admirers

Episode 72

　

　

Now that lunch time has passed, two-thirds of the contents of this school have disappeared and returned to their homes. They leave little room for us, twelfth graders to be more free. What they left here was a silence for the seniors who would soon be here.

“We eat lunch here or in the cafeteria aja.” asked Clara while pressing her things a little messy on the table top.

“Here aja, males down to the bottom.”I reply with what is.

“OK deh.” Short reply.

Then the girl immediately called Stefani, Adit and Titan to join us. Meanwhile, the man sitting in front of me was still too busy with Alice. They seem to be so quick to get familiar. I think Arka can really get along with anyone, without exception to anyone.

“Lo don't want to follow you?” adit asked while patting his best friend's shoulder.

The man then turned to the source of the voice, to meet someone who was trying to invite him to chat. Arka seemed to think for a moment, considering Adit's invitation just now. Don't tell me if this time he'll refuse to join the freaks who have become his best friends.

“Bby deh.” reply Arka so casually.

“Lo want to join lunch with us lice?” arka asked the girl, taking out her lunch box.

“No need, you guys are.” replied Alice hesitantly.

“Udah follow yes.” force Arka once again.

When we wanted to talk about it, we finished our lunch. As usual, Adit always makes jokes that are able to melt the atmosphere. At least it makes us a little forget about the attitude of Arka today.

“You want me to bribe sha?” ask the man to me.

“No need, I can eat alone kok.” reject me raw.

“But your hand is again injured.” he said.

“The wound is left hand, not right hand. So don't let me.” reply me with a trenchant tone.

I only realized one thing if it turned out that now all eyes were on us, and made me with this man the center of attention.

“You guys fight again?” ask Adit so innocently.

“The name of the courtship person, do not fight too much.” said Clara while chewing the rujak he bought earlier.

“Gue who told them, if you have turned it back again.” continued Stefani by putting on a look as if it is not cosy at all.

“So you two are dating?” ask Alice who is surprised not to play.

“Reverse.” reply Titan with his serious face.

“That means you have been dating before dong.” said Alice who tried to guess.

“I'm sorry everyone, including you two. Because of me you guys so fight like this, even though I do not mean at all.” he continued.

Suddenly I remembered that annoying sister, who was trying to tell me that time in the hospital. Besides why he had to reappear in my head at a time like this. He once told me that there were too many scenarios created by people around me. Now I'm starting to feel that his statement was true. Sometimes everything that looks real is not necessarily true. It could just be an illusion or trick of the eye trying to distract us from the real world. And they make everything feel the same, so we'll find it hard to tell which ones are right and which ones are not.

“Gue dizzy tau no!” snapped Arka with a tinnier tone of speech.

“Lo really want what the hell sha? You were jealous because I was more concerned with Alice than you. Now I've tried to give attention to lo, and you instead say that it's lebay.” he explained with explosive emotions.

“Lo think dong! Yes it is clear that Eresha is jealous.” said Stefani who began to be provoked by emotions.

“Think of yourself ka, I'm again males looking for trouble today.” I said with the tone as calm as possible.

I always try to be as calm as possible, even though I can't be like that right now. Only my body was calm as if nothing had happened. Do you know what my soul feels? He whimpers crying alone in the deepest recesses of the heart. He does not want to show the universe if he is fragile right now. I hate why all women have to be doomed with this feeling. I hate to look weak in front of others.

This is the first time this man has called it with my lo word, it's never been like that before. He had always been so sweet toward me before, and never even expressed his anger like this. But for today he was different, now the figure of the dwarf who had been calling me by the name of the fairy had turned into a monster who turned to attack me. Arka changed from a figure I could always trust to protect me, to someone who even now hurt me.

Sometimes we cannot trust a human being. They are too cunning to be given trust just like that. His words were never in harmony with his heart. People always put their ego forward at the wrong time.

“Did I really love her, and she really love me?” my mind in my heart.

Sometimes a relationship status will not guarantee if the two people involved in it will love each other. Love is beautiful, but sometimes it can hurt. I thought it was not true, but now I have found the answer. In fact, all these feelings never bia to love each other.

Arka and Kak Sendy are almost the same and there is almost no difference. Two men that God purposely created as lost souls to each other. But that doesn't mean there's nothing that can tell the two of them apart. And now I've found that distinction, which I don't need to tell you because you probably already know.

“Eresha never protested at all. He can always dampen his ego, even because too often he harbors everything until the drop.” explained Clara who began to open her voice.

“You should be grateful to be able to get a girl like Eresha.”.

“Today lo nyebelin really know not ka.” said Adit who seems to be starting to run out of patience.

Now this lunch is not a pleasant atmosphere anymore like that. It all turned out to be so gripping and frightening me like a supernatural terror. We shouldn't have invited Arka to join us before, if the edges would only be like this. I thought it would solve the problem, but it was better. Arka made the thread that I had tidied up the interlace, became again tangled and irregular.

***

As usual, me and my five best friends are always out of the last class. Me and the others were waiting in the hallway, observing the situation down there. But this time it wasn't just the six of us who were there. Alice also came with us there, who else if not Arka who invited her. Even that guy didn't want to start talking to me again like he used to. From then on he just kept quiet and kept being cold towards me. I guess we really don't fit in.

I don't know what's going to happen in the future. Man cannot predict his own future, although he can be sure that person is a fortune teller. Sometimes it is better to be confused than to know the truth. Not everyone is ready to know their future early. It is very scary if you have to imagine what events will happen in our future, whether it will end happily or tragically.

“Bye!” adit said after arriving at the parking lot.

“Dah!” reply to the others.

“Sha, I go first yes.” said Stefani then immediately ran towards the motorcycle there, with Titan already looking waiting on it.

“Sha, I can't get you back today. You see I have already promised Alice to nganterin her home, as a sign of my apology.” said Arka while holding her helmet with a huff and doubt.

“Recognize what you think is right, and follow your heart. Because sometimes the feeling is much more believable.” reply me.

“Sorry to me about that.” he said once again.

“Sana gih, pity Alice has been waiting.” I said as I passed away from before her.

This time everyone had left sooner to leave me. Starting from Stefani who is going on a date, Clara who has to teach piano lessons, to Arka who is still fixated on Alice. I don't know what Alice did so that the man could be so bewitched. In the end everyone will always be alone, in their own time.

For today only dusk and the afternoon breeze accompanied me. After walking for a long time and it was quite far away, I finally decided to take an online motorcycle taxi. It's not good if I keep pushing myself like this. If I indulge my ego too much, something bad might happen later. I also have to pay attention to my health which could deteriorate whenever he wants.

“With Mbak Eresha?” asked someone who suddenly stopped in front of me on his motorcycle.

“Iya right mas.” reply me briefly.

The man nodded for a while, struggling with his cell phone. But it didn't last long, then he immediately thrust the helmet at me.

***

Today it looks like I'm going to one of the dance studios, to train my skills that I haven't worked with in a long time. Not far from this place, there is a mall that provides dance rooms for rent to anyone interested. The duration of the rent is one hour, so it is quite efficient for me.

I got ready with a t-shirt suit and long training pants, then brought along a small backpack with me. After I finished preparing and making sure nothing was left behind, I immediately went downstairs to say goodbye.

“Ma, Eresha go first yes.” I said to my mom who is not on tv alone in the middle room.

“Where do you want to go these nights?” asked the woman while looking at me.

“Whose trip is the same?” ask again.

“Sama brother ojek.” answer me as is.

“Ya be careful yes, do not go home at night. Remember mama's message yes!” said the middle-aged woman.

“Iya.” I replied briefly, then immediately grabbed his right hand to salute.

Just like last afternoon, now I also go there using an online motorcycle taxi. Actually I've walked to the end of the complex to ride the base motorcycle. But I undo my one intention, after finding a normally crowded place suddenly become quiet like this. Maybe the motorcycle taxi drivers who usually hang out here, are delivering other passengers.

After arriving at the mall I meant earlier, I immediately rented one dance studio for a duration of two hours. The size of each studio is not too big, and also not too small. Their calculations in settling this place, must have been well planned. This place also provides other facilities such as a gym. What I like about this place is the private room. So I'm free to do anything and I don't have to worry about being the center of attention.

I started warming up for a few minutes before the core activity. I had to warm up more than I've ever done before. It's been almost a year since I did this activity. I hope my body is still as flexible as I expected. I don't expect much training this time, my physical condition is not what it used to be.

I stared at myself in the reflection of the giant mirror that was stuck along the wall. Now I can look at myself from all sides. It turned out that the person in front of me right now was Eresha who everyone else had known.

“You can do it!” I said while encouraging myself.

Within seconds, the music began to fill the room. My body began to follow a rhythm that stroked the subtle senses of my hearing. I started off with a song and easy moves. Starting from repeating the movements I trained with them first. With my old school dance team, with all of them. With a competition that pushed me far beyond my limits.

How are the children, a group of human children who are together because of a similarity. Coincidentally making up a new story, about us. Why do I remember that city again. Maybe the city did not want to go from my memory, or vice versa because there were too many memories in that place. I don't know why I suddenly miss that place, and some place in the corner of the city.

That field, it feels like my memory recorder. Too many significant events in that place, now I miss a patch of land that is a silent witness to my journey. A place where I can no longer tell which ones are tears and which ones are sweat. But this time I could no longer reach that place full of memories, even though I wanted to.

But how can I keep dancing, while my own mind goes nowhere. And even more surprisingly, I danced with precise and accurate movements. After my mind had completely returned to this place again, I decided to pause for a moment. I need a little water to wet my throat that's starting to feel this dry. It feels good to be able to visit that place again, even though I just imagined it. It turns out that imagination is beautiful, if placed in the portion.

I looked at my watch for a moment, and the round thing showed it at eight past ten minutes. It turned out that I had been in this place for over an hour, which meant that the rest of my time was still around fifty minutes away. After feeling enough rest, I resumed my training. It's not really a practice, it's better if I call it fun. It felt like every drop of sweat was coming out of my body, making me feel even lighter and calmer.

This time I continued the exercise with a randomly composed song. Then the rules I have to dance with a different free style in each song. It looks like this round will be a little more challenging. If the previous one forced me to remember each choreography, now I am required to create choreography independently.

But who would have thought if this day I will experience the unlucky thing again. I fell over because I tripped on my own shoelaces. I'm really careless and always will be. But that's not the real problem. I fell to the point of causing my injured hand to slam onto the floor, to hold myself. Because the wound has not completely healed, let alone dry, of course, the pain is not a joke anymore.

“Eresha!”  said someone from behind as I grimaced in pain.

This time I couldn't see who it was. After all in a public place like this, who knows me even to the point of knowing my name. Even so, I can feel if that person is slowly approaching towards me. I could hear her footsteps sounding almost like running. A moment later he hugged my body from behind, trying to calm myself down. One of his hands grabbed my injured hand, then he held it very tightly. I seem to know who this is, wouldn't it be if this guy was an Ark? Who else would've held my hand this tight, if not that one guy.

But it's impossible if this guy is an Ark. How could he know if I was in this place, and instead of being too busy with Alice, he just forgot me. It's impossible if this is Arka, then if not Arka who he is.

“You are nothing sha?” ask the man to me.

I'm trying to raise my head and find out who this guy really is. Judging from his voice, he seems to be a man. It turned out to be true if that person was a man, who was none other than Arka.

“Arka?” mummified slowly.

“Your hand is nothing? The role seems to need to be replaced.” he said with a worried look.

I removed the man's hand from my hand. For the time being I was still not ready to start a conversation with him again, after he had silenced me for so long.