The Journalist

Part 45: When My Heart is as Bright as the Sky

Morning dew greets as the turn of the day has occurred. I woke up earlier. Ah, not exactly. I mean, I didn't sleep all night. Just to wait for this moment. A moment where I could meet him to just show the photos of the sky I took. Unfortunately, even though we were in the same place, we even had difficulty meeting. I don't have much time here and just wait for them to be ready to take me. However, until now I have not spoken to him with four eyes.

This afternoon, Ameena has been preoccupied with teaching the children of the orphanage where Khalila is also a part of her students. For almost an hour, I was sitting under a shady tree with a camera hanging around my neck. I watched the learning process in the open space, as if I were part of the student.

Seeing it from here alone, has made my lips continue to sing a thin smile. As my eyes continued to point at him, subconsciously my hands were busy digging the ground with wooden stalks. Maybe soon, will be created a well made by my hand.

Shortly afterwards, Khalila's voice came running towards me followed by some of her friends. Turns out Khalila introduced me to her friends. He proudly said I was his friend. It seems like it's their break. However, some of the children were still doing chores while being watched by Ameena.

"Sister, are you American?" ask one of the kids.

"No, I'm Japanese."

"Ah, are you an artist?" ask them again.

"No, I'm not an artist."

"Then, what's Brother's job?" askthem.

Since I don't know my vocabulary in their language, I speak English. "I'm a journalist!"

"What's that?" They compactly frown. They must be strangers to that word.

I thought for a moment to mention a word they could easily understand. "My job, writing."

"Writing?"

"Yes, writing. It was a hobby that became my job. Sometimes it also reports events that are around."

"That means Blonde Sister is the same as ummi. Ummi also loves to write!" sahut Khalila suddenly.

"Did your mom like to write?"

"Yes, every night, he would lock himself in a room to write in front of a computer. Ummi is even a literature teacher."

This fact surprised me, because I did not expect Ameena also had the same hobby as me. My gaze suddenly led to Ameena who was still busy collecting children's duties.

"Sister, come play with us!" The boys pulled me and forced me to play with them.

They then closed my eyes with a piece of black cloth to make my vision darken. Then, I was assigned to catch one of them running. Hhmm ... Simple way to play, right?

When my eyes were covered with cloth, I started to walk slowly with both hands outstretched forward in order to catch them. The kids were so nimble to avoid. However, I used my sense of hearing to capture the sound of their foot movements. Thanks to that, there were already three people I managed to catch with my eyes closed. Khalila was the last one I caught.

"You caught it!"

"I don't want to be next!" whinek Khalila tried to escape from my embrace.

"You have to be a sportsman!" I said while holding his body that continues to wriggle.

"Ummi!" call Khalila suddenly followed by a body that stops moving.

Hearing that, I let go of Khalila while opening my closed eyes. Right, I saw Ameena walking as she pulled her two students towards us.

"Teacher, come play along with us and the big brother!" persuade his students who now surround him.

Me and Ameena looked at each other in silence. Khalila who was in front of me, then took the black cloth blindfold in my hand. He blinked one eye at me, then brought the cloth to Ameena.

"Now it's Master's turn to arrest us" said Khalila, who formally called Ameena.

"Come, Master, come play with us!" encourage other students.

Apparently, Ameena could not refuse the request of the students who were also her foster children. He squatted voluntarily so that the children could wrap a covering around his eye area. Now, replace Ameena who is in charge of arresting the children.

For a moment, I was silent. My eyes can't see him. He seemed confused and tried to reach the children who ran. He tried to walk with his arms swinging forward to feel his surroundings. At the same time, I saw a large stone not far from him. Immediately, I ran over to him just to get rid of the stone. The field is barren and there are many rocks. If you are not careful, it will make people stumble.

"Teacher, get me!"

"Here, Master!"

I'm still in front of him. Trying to adjust the direction of the step. Keep walking backwards, while escorting him from the front. With my feet, I sidelined the stone or whatever barrier it would cross so that it wouldn't stumble. Like a busy father watching his little boy walk to keep him from falling. It was as if I was a substitute for her closed pair of eyes.

I don't know just my feelings, but now Ameena's steps just keep coming to me. Although I had shifted to the side so as to no longer control him from the front, but he instead continued to follow my steps. I continued to lead him straight away from all his disciples and out of the field. We passed the path decorated with flamboyant-flamboyant nature.

His steps stopped when the students called out to him. However, in just a few seconds, his body turned back towards me as the tip of my shoe deliberately scratched the ground.

Until it was not felt, these footsteps took us to a place so vast. On the left-right side we passed there were weeds that swayed gently. The sound was created from the friction of the leaves of trees around us, as if dancing along with the tip of the hijab in the wind. Even with her eyes closed, she still looked charming and graceful.

I quickly left him. I deliberately took a good photo shoot. Yes, I want to photograph it with a beautiful skyline. Just as my lens was focusing on photographing him, a panic attack seemed to strike him.

"Why are you guys not making a sound? Can the teacher open their eyes?" ask her with a head that looks there and there confused.

"Have you left Master?" A voice with a panicked tone started to come out from his mouth.

I stepped slowly and walked closer to him. My feet stopped right in front of him. It seemed, Ameena was aware of the existence of someone before her. His hand lifted slowly and came into contact with my chest. Groping right in my heart that has been throbbing incoherently.

I looked at his wavy eyebrows. His hands try to go up, down the neck, jaw, chin, lips, nose, to my eyes. This was the second time he touched my entire face, after the previous time when we were lost in the desert. If he's reluctant to be touched, then I don't mind being touched by him.

"Who is this? Did you get on the chair?" ask her with a slightly slanted head. He probably thought I was one of his students.

Both of my hands wrapped around her head to unbind her blindfold. Once we were lost, our eyeballs met. Ameena nodded at me. Our same height, makes our view parallel. His feet even backwards. Then he looked around the place. I did take him quite far from where he was before.

Without saying anything, he turned around as if he was leaving me.

"Mina-chan!"

He turned stiffly towards me. "Khai, we'd better get back. Don't get prejudices from people who see us. It'll make it hard on yourself."

"If we can't talk here, why do you keep following me?"

He paused for a moment, then said, "I just ... follow my instincts. While walking, I seemed to know the smell of a distinctive and familiar body."

I thrust a camera at him, intending to show him a collection of photographs of the sky that I shot directly. "Actually, I brought you here just wanted to ...."

"I'm sorry, Khai" he said back with his head bowed.

I'm unmoving. There's nothing I can say. I can't force her if she doesn't want to. Just a step of his foot left me, he turned back towards me.

"I am glad to see you here again" he said with a hand squeezing his side, "May Allah protect you always on the way home to Damascus."

I pegged for a moment. He didn't intentionally avoid me, did he? No, it's impossible! From his words, he just didn't want to make people misunderstand us.

"I just... follow my instincts. While walking, I seemed to know the smell of a distinctive and familiar body."

"I'm glad to see you here again."

Those two sentences go back to spinning in my memory. When the shadow had disappeared from my sight, I turned slowly, then placed my camera on the ground. In that instant, I jumped up while shouting with excitement. Not only that, I even salted among the weeds that would probably make my body itch. I don't give a shit!

I can't describe this taste. The emptiness that lingered in my heart seemed to be squashed with a feeling of pleasure that I had not felt for a long time. A vast blue rug stretched over my head as if cheering in joy. But will this feeling of pleasure last long?

.

.

.

another recommendation for this part. J-soul brother with the title living in your sky. please denger at Yusup.com