Alex and Nara: A Fated Meeting
Seven hours earlier, in Bandar Lampung. After graduating from high school, he stayed with his aunt and uncle for two weeks. Now, Alex was ready to depart for Jakarta to attend college there. He said goodbye to his aunt and uncle, as well as his cousin, then headed to the port to take a ferry to Merak Harbor. Upon reaching the harbor,
"Goodbye, my beloved city," Alex said, turning back.
Alex stepped to the ticket counter inside, and after that, he immediately walked to the pier to board the ferry that was already there. Three hours later, the ferry docked at Merak Harbor. Alex disembarked and planned to take a bus heading to Pulo Gadung Terminal because his campus was close by. When he arrived at the bus terminal, he saw a girl sitting by the entrance, looking down and hugging her knees.
Initially, Alex walked past her, but out of curiosity and a slight urge to meddle, he walked back and touched the girl's shoulder. The girl looked up at Alex. Of course, Alex was a little surprised because the girl looked beautiful despite wearing a mask and having beautiful blue eyes.
"What are you doing sitting here?" Alex asked.
The girl didn't answer. She just looked at Alex's face, who was also looking at her. Then the girl took out her smartphone. She typed something on the screen and showed the screen to Alex.
"I want to go to Jakarta, but I'm confused. I took a plane and landed at the airport earlier, but I took the wrong bus and ended up here. The problem is, my ATM card is missing, swallowed by that mini-market ATM. I don't have money for the bus," the girl wrote on her smartphone and pointed to a small mini-market in the terminal.
"Oh, I see. Where do you want to go?" Alex asked.
The girl typed again on her smartphone and immediately showed it to Alex, who was standing in front of her.
"I want to go to Pulo Gadung," was the reply.
"Oh, same place. Want to go together?" Alex asked.
"Are you serious? But I don't have any money," the girl replied.
"I'll pay first. You can pay me back once you've sorted out your card. My name is Alex," Alex replied.
"My name is Nara. Thank you," Nara replied on her smartphone screen.
Finally, Alex boarded the bus with Nara, who was carrying a suitcase and a backpack. When they sat inside the bus, Alex put his belongings under the seat and overhead. He also helped Nara lift her not-too-large suitcase overhead. Then, when he tried to take Nara's bag, his hand was immediately brushed away by Nara, who showed him her smartphone.
"I'll hold this bag," Nara said.
"Oh, okay."
Alex sat next to Nara. He glanced at Nara's backpack. Inside the backpack, he saw two mandau knives and a pair of chopsticks, which made Alex more curious and eager to ask.
"What are you going to Jakarta for?" Alex asked.
"To study, and also to look for someone," Nara replied with her smartphone.
Seeing Nara communicate using her smartphone, Alex thought that Nara couldn't speak.
"Can you speak?" Alex asked.
The girl was silent, both her thumbs wiggled on the screen without touching it, one of her legs also started moving up and down, then she typed something on her smartphone.
"If I speak, I have to take off my mask. If I take off my mask, will you be scared?" the girl asked.
Alex, reading Nara's question, became confused because he didn't understand what she meant. Finally, he asked,
"Scared of what? Are you scary or something?" Alex asked.
The girl lowered her mask. Alex, seeing her entire face, was amazed because the girl was actually very beautiful, but there was no philtrum (the vertical groove between the nose and upper lip) between her nose and mouth. Of course, Alex, who also dealt with supernatural things in his life and often read mystery stories, understood what the girl meant.
"Oh, that's what you mean. Don't worry, I'm not scared. Are you human?" Alex asked.
"Of course, I am! What did you think?" Nara asked in a cute voice.
"Your voice... is nice, hehehe," Alex replied.
"See? That's why I didn't want to talk," Nara replied.
"Sorry, sorry, I was just joking. As far as I know, people like you are only jinn, right?" Alex said.
"Yes, I'm half-djinn. My father is Dayak, but my mother is..." Nara paused.
"Where's your mother from? Abroad?" Alex asked.
"Mom is from the city of Saranjana," Nara replied.
"Huh... that city actually exists?" Alex asked.
Nara just pointed to her own nose while looking at Alex, implying that she was a product of that city.
"Ah, I see. Well, alright then. Why are you coming to Jakarta with a mandau and everything?" Alex asked.
"I'm looking for someone. He has a necklace given by my mom," Nara replied.
"Is he a thief?" Alex asked.
"No, he bought it from a thief... a receiver... maybe," Nara replied.
"And you already know who he is?" Alex asked.
Nara shook her head, and her face suddenly pouted. Then she pulled her mask back up.
"Well, if you don't know who he is, then what?" Alex asked.
"That's why I'm studying here, so I'll meet him someday, and when I do, I'll be ready," Nara replied.
"Ready for what? To kill him?" Alex asked.
"To buy the necklace back," Nara replied.
"Then what are the madaus for?" Alex asked.
"These are my father's and grandfather's heirlooms. I can't leave them behind," Nara replied.
"Oh, I see. I thought it was something else," Alex replied.
"But why aren't you scared to see me, and you seem so normal? I also feel another aura in you. Who are you?" Nara asked.
"Haaah... look at this,"
Alex turned and looked to the right, then to the left. After that, he raised his hands and closed his eyes. His hands briefly turned into tiger paws and then returned to their original form.
"Oh... a Cindaku?" Nara asked.
Alex nodded and turned back to the alley, afraid someone might see him. Finally, after knowing, Nara was no longer wary and felt comfortable. She immediately took out her smartphone and logged into her multiplayer online battle game. Alex accidentally glanced at it and was surprised when he saw Nara's username. He immediately took out his smartphone and logged into his game. He immediately sent a message to his friend named "Psycho." Nara turned because the message told her to look right. Alex immediately displayed his smartphone so Nara could see it.
"Oh, you're Balang?" Nara asked.
"Hahahaha, yeah! Honestly, I thought Psycho was a guy, turns out she's a girl," Alex replied.
"How did we meet here? Maybe it's fate, hahaha," Nara replied.
"Don't be silly... I can't believe the person named Psycho is half-djinn," Alex said.
"Same here, I also can't believe Balang is a Cindaku," Nara replied.
"If you're Psycho, then you're also studying at University T, right? What faculty?" Alex asked.
"Economics. That's why I'm going to Pulo Gadung. Besides, I'm going to my friend's boarding house and staying there," Nara said.
"Oh, same faculty! So we're going together. Your friend's boarding house, huh? Which area?" Alex asked.
"Cempaka Putih... she owns a boarding house," Nara replied.
"Oh, that's cool. Is it a co-ed boarding house or just for girls?" Alex asked.
"She said anyone can stay, so let's go together," Nara replied.
"Alright, I was planning to look for a boarding house around Pulo Gadung anyway, but this is good. How much per month?" Alex asked.
"I don't know, my friend just gave me the address of her boarding house," Nara replied.
"Alright, let's just go there first," Alex replied.
The bus started moving as it was full. Alex and Nara continued chatting because they turned out to be friends from the same game. The bus began to enter the Jakarta-Merak toll road. The journey was smooth, but then it got stuck in traffic. When it started to move again, suddenly, "Screeech!" the bus abruptly stopped, and both their heads lurched forward, hitting the seats in front of them.
"Ouch... what happened?" Alex asked, immediately standing up.
He saw a police officer stop the bus and ask the bus driver to get off the bus to have his papers checked. The bus driver complied and got off to meet the officer. However, when the driver got off, from the front and back side doors, several people wearing masks that covered their faces and carrying sharp weapons entered. Without shame, they took passengers' belongings and pointed their weapons. Finally, one of them reached Alex and Nara's seats.
"Hey... your bag... quick!" the man said.
"Whose bag? Mine?" Alex asked.
"Yes, of course, quick, or I'll hack you," the man replied.
"Go ahead and hack me," Alex retorted.
The man immediately raised his hand and swung his machete downwards. Casually, Alex caught the machete, and "Crack!" Alex crushed it until it was destroyed. Meanwhile, next to him, Nara pulled out her chopsticks, complete with their needles.
"Stab... stab... stab!" Immediately, all the masked men fell without anyone knowing why they fell. Both of them fell back asleep, their heads leaning against each other. The bus driver got back on the bus and was shocked to see many people lying on the bus floor.
"What happened?" the bus driver asked.
"I don't know, they were robbing us earlier, sir," a passenger replied.
The bus driver immediately turned to look forward. The police officer who had stopped the bus had vanished from sight, and the driver knew that the officer was apparently a fake, part of the gang of robbers inside. But he wondered to himself, scratching his head that wasn't itchy, who had made those robbers fall sprawling in the middle of the bus. "Snore... snore... snore," everyone turned to see Alex and Nara snoring loudly. After arriving at Pulo Gadung, they got off and immediately headed to Amanda's boarding house, but they got lost first because Nara had entered the wrong address on Google Maps, leaving both of them tired and emotional.
"So that's the story, we even got lost everywhere, because of this girl," Alex said.
"Hehehe, the important thing is we arrived, period, right?" Nara replied.
Everyone immediately laughed upon hearing Alex and Nara's story, then they continued their conversation.