MOON IN PESANTREN
My flip-flops
“Yaudah, Cell. Don't think about it first dong, tar even mind makes dizzy.” Iffah took a sip of iced tea.
“Typically a sincere man times Cell payin chick so,” sahut Najwa while chewing rice in his last mouthful.
I who had just eaten half of my lunch only sighed slowly. I was not good to eat because I still had a debt to the man who paid for my food and my friends.
“Abisin used to be his rice, Cell. That's us to the dorm,” said Zahra.
Zahra is one of the best-performing students in my class. He was selected several times to compete in academic fields between schools to the national level, not infrequently he won the race. Her white skin with round eyes and pliable eyelashes make her look very beautiful. Zahra is often the target of santri rijal.
“No need to finish, I'm full.”
“Terus want you atain his rice? Waste?”
Iffah put rice in my mouth. “I know you are a laper but not good because this is still a debt, right? Easy it mah, tar also meet again ama tuh guy.”
My mouth grabbed a bribe from Iffah. “The problem is I do not know his name so can not ask you what organization knows what class.” I also tried to finish my food however this was a sustenance that I should not waste.
“Emang what are the characteristics of his face? No handsome?” ask Zahra.
“Ganteng. She's so white again, almost as white as you, Ra. Not too high anyway, as ama I'm a little high. Keep a little mole on his cheek,”.
“Well come back,” continued me while standing followed by my three friends.
Arriving at the room, I immediately laid my body on the bed. Intended to dart into dreamland because last night I slept too late. However, I undo my intentions when I realize my things are not neat because yesterday was my first day and my roommate occupied this room.
“Tar malem don't forget yes, guys. We have all members ijtima,” said Aidha reminded while putting his clothes into the closet.
“Oke,” answer the whole room together.
“Kira ijtimanya want to discuss what? The opening of the dormitory management was just yesterday,” asked Nisa-my roommates from Sulawesi.
“Entah,” replied.
***
All members of the boarder management have gathered in a special room for Ijtima. The twelfth grade is indeed the time to be busy organizing, preparing for the final exam and the college entrance exam for those who continue. Pesantren is identical to the separate dormitory and nisa, as well as in this pesantrenku. But not with me at the moment.
Santri MI rijal and Nisa live in the same dorm building and just different blocks. Blocks A and B from floors 1 to 6 for santri rijal and blocks C and D for santri nisa. In the dormitory building that I now live, because this building contains santri rijal and nisa MI, then the manager there is rijal and nisa in this dormitory.
After the MC opened the Ijtima event tonight, the chairman of the board also began to provide motivation and direction to the members who if I could be honest, I was really sleepy to hear it because I was lacking sleep.
“In expect everything can work well together. For the division of tasks and other schedules I have set in the management mading, do not forget to be implemented properly yes,” said Yusuf-chair of the MI dormitory management organization.
Like a loss of shame, I was sleepy with my eyes half closed. Though now I was in a room with santri rijal, really I should be able to hide my drowsiness but in fact not.
Seli, don't get sleepy. Don't embarrass yourself in front of guys, my inner self.
I looked at Najwa who was sitting right next to me. “Jwa, hold my hand dong not to sleepy.”
Najwa immediately massaged my hand and my sleepiness began to diminish.
I was surprised when I looked at the line of rijal facing us I found a figure who helped me in the cafeteria this afternoon. “Jwa, that's him. That, which was in the cafeteria this afternoon,” I whispered to Najwa as I turned my chin to point to the man.
“Which one? Harsa meant?
“Oh, his name is Harsa?
“That's wearing that milk chocolate shirt, right? Yes it's Harsa his name.”
“It turns out now he's one organization dong same me? Shame to see him again. But if I don't meet ntar I don't pay my debt to him.”
“Udah abis ijtima this just aja meet continue to pay, sort out. But, you bring the money? ”
I'm nodding. “I was the same zahra wanted to go to this abis shop to buy cleaning tools, so I brought money deh ijtimanya.”
***
A few minutes later, Ijtima was finally closed. The whole manager began to scatter out of the room to return to their respective rooms. I dyed to find the figure of Harsa among the caretakers who were walking in the corridor.
“Well, that's it.” I rushed to him and hopefully I didn't embarrass him in front of his friends.
“Harsa, thanks.” I handed him 40,000 because of the food Harsa had paid.
He looked at me confused. “What's this, huh?”
“Yang this afternoon. I gave you the wrong money, right? Nih, sorry yes and thank you very much too.”
“Seli, ayok. Said he was going to the store?” Zahra called me from a distance.
“You don't owe me.”
“Eh, no debt, how? Obviously this afternoon you paid me.”
Harsa turned her body and walked away from me.
“Harsa, bentar.” I ran after him.
Harsa stopped and looked at me with a smile after I was in front of her. “I'm sincere, so you don't have any debt with me.”
“Eh, how come?” I saw him preparing to die again, I swiftly said, “OK. That's why I bought you a drink in the store yes instead.”
“Well, can tu.” Harsa walked right past me.
“OK, thank you,” I said with a little scream because Harsa who had started walking away towards block A.
I went straight to Zahra and took her to the store. We bought some cleaning supplies for our room. Not to forget, I bought 3 nutriboost drinks, one for me and 2 bottles for Harsa.
This store does provide all the needs of students so that if students need something, there is no need to go out of boarding school because everything is provided here. And indeed all students are not allowed out of the pesantren unless there is a special permit due to severe illness or other urgent matters.
After paying at the cashier, we walked towards our dormitory. The streets are still quite quiet because students from class 7 to class 11 are still in the mosque to carry out tahfidz activities as usual. As for the 12th class, they perform congregational prayers at their respective organization places. In order to get to the dormitory faster, Zahra invited me to turn on the sidewalk so that we would pass through the back streets of the dormitory closer to the store.
Zahra and I chatted along the way to pick up the cleaning tools we had just bought. It has become a tradition if two women or more are walking together certainly anything becomes a chat material but this is also to cover the silence on the road we pass.
“Original, Ra. This street lamp on why? How dark?” I nudged Zahra's arm while looking around with my worried face because I felt mystical auras because at school this morning Aidha told me about her seeing the supernatural.
Zahra just nodded and pulled my hand to walk faster. I panicked more and more when I felt my feet stepping on something long, slippery, chewy and wriggling. I immediately stopped and pecked because I was really panicking when I suspected that what I was stepping on was a snake.
“Why are you, Cell?”
No other choice, I looked at my feet with blue flip-flops.
“Arrrrrgggghhhhhh!!! SNAKERR!!” I ran in a storm followed by Zahra.
Bruck!!
My legs could not support my balance so I fell down after hitting someone's back. All my groceries fell out of his plastic bag.
Zahra immediately approached me who was now reinserting my belongings. “Sel, how can I do anyway? Shame tau.”
This street is a little dark because somehow the lights here often die. Santri-santri rarely cross this road at night because in addition to dark, the streets behind the dormitory is close to the garden so that it adds mystical auras according to the santri.
I understand very well Zahra's words why I fell in a dark and quiet place like this made him ashamed, no other because I fell after running in bed and hit the back of a santri rijal. But how else, I have already fallen like this.
“I've already rationoh, Ra.”
“Ekhemm.”
Zahra and I turned to the source of the voice. It is clear that he was Joseph-chairman of our stewardship between Harsa and Zafran. It is certain that I hit Harsa's back because it was near the sidewalk.
Already embarrassed, I just handed over two bottles of nutriboost drinks that I wanted to give to Harsa as a sign of imaksih about the incident in the cafeteria this afternoon.
Alhamdulillah Harsa immediately received the drink by not forgetting to say thank you so that I could immediately pull Zahra's arm and immediately disappear from before them. However, what happened was not what I expected.
Innalillahi, my sandals are broken. Ah, it would be more embarrassed if this is the story, my mind is upset.
All of them including Zahra turned to my feet. Maybe they realized what happened to my sandals.
“Sendal you broke up, Cell. Nih use sendal ane aja, in the room also ane have two.”
I thought the one offering the sandal was Harsa, but it wasn't. He is Zafran.
“No need, Zafran. I have also deket dormitory this,” answered me.
“No papa time, Cell. Pinjem has Zafran aja first, fear that tomorrow you have not been to the store to buy new sandals. No way we go back to the store now because surely at this time the store began to run because santri bentar again home from the mosque,” said Zahra who did not seem to understand that I was embarrassed and wanted to vanish from before them immediately.
“Try it off first,” Harsa said to me.
I obeyed Harsa's word for taking off my sandals. “You what?”
Harsa grabbed my sandals. “This mah not broken, just dislodged doang.” Harsa handed me my slippers after fixing them. “Udah Now, Safe.”
After putting my sandals back on, Zahra and I rushed to the dormitory and left them with no forgetting to say thank you.
***
