Like a Former Nail
Episodes 5.2
“I'm an accounting major, Tan.” Gebri was silent for a moment before answering. He seemed hesitant. Afraid the woman showed a sharp look that was more than this. “Me and Rion have met. We are one faculty, Tan.”
The silence struck again. Gebri immediately lowered his head, suddenly feeling intimidated. The gaze of the middle-aged woman grew sharper. Raya doesn't seem to like it. He should have lied a little. Saying that they never met even though they were on one campus, considering that the campus centered on Kaliurang street 14.5 km is very large.
KRETT...
Gebri slightly raised his head, listening to the sound of the chair being pulled, looking as though Riyan had stood up.
“I'm thirsty, want to order a drink first. Mama ice lemon tea, right?” ask Riyan and get a brief nod of the head from Raya. “What do you want, Geb?”
Gebri shook his head left and right. “No need, Brother.”
“I order you orange juice only, yes?”
Without waiting for a thump from Gebri's mouth, Riyan approached towards the service counter. The silent and awkward atmosphere at the table grew. Gebri was confused as to what to say, all the words that came out of his mouth seemed wrong. In his heart, he always hoped that someone would come to him who could be used as an excuse to leave, like Koning's actions so far. While this woman before him was still with eyes that stared intently.
“What...”.
Chief Gebri was forced to look up, showing his manners while talking to others, especially with older people.
“Did you give birth to it?”
This is the question that Gebri fears the most when he meets the Rion family. His body instantly stiffened, almost tingling, and grains of sweat began to form on his forehead. The upper and lower teeth clashed against each other, with the eyeballs that had glazed over. Gebri always suddenly overreacted when people asked about the state of this child. Sensitively. He becomes easily aroused by emotions.
“Who is his name? Did you name Fernandez?”
Jemari Gebri clasped each other under the table. His head lowered again, hiding the clear tears that were about to fall.
“Is his face similar to Rion or to you?”
Gebri kept his head down. No longer able to listen to the questions that came out of the mouth of the woman named Raya.
“Or you took it?” Not getting a single answer, Raya threw out another possibility.
Eventually the tears fell on Gebri's cheeks, leaving the woman before him suddenly fixated.
“So you did take it?” tanya Raya again, trying to clarify the truth.
“Au—”
Suddenly the voice of The Chainsmokers and Hasley that tells of a past memory when a couple who had been four years broken up in a beautiful groove. Gebri and Raya both gasped. Then Gebri immediately reached into his jeans, looked at the screen of his phone, and rubbed both cheeks before answering.
^_^
“Im sorry Mother, dear! Forgive Mother!”
In the space of almost an hour, the apology wrapped in tears and tears continued to be spoken. Gebri's fingers did not stop rubbing gently on a piece of photo that showed a tiny baby being held. The eyes of the small figure were covered with a peaceful face, a face that mostly resembled the structure of the teenage Rion's face. Only his lips copied from Gebri's small, thin lips.
“Im sorry Mother, dear! If Mother could be more careful, surely we can joke and play together.”
It turned back into a sound. The flow that came out from both of his eyeballs grew increasingly heavy. To make Gebri's eyelids more swollen and her eye sclera reddened. Same with the nose. Flushed like a tomato fruit with adorning mucus. Gebri's appearance is really messy right now. But he doesn't care. He only needed the release of the burning pain and kept harboring it all this time. Although the sense of loss was never blurred from his heart and brain.
Tok tok...
“Geb, you're inside? I'm Koning.”
Gebri initially did not heed, but the sound of the pounding was loud, forcing him to wipe his eyes, removing traces of tears that continued to flow and immediately went to the door of the room.
“You okay, Geb?” Koning slightly furrowed his brows as he caught something odd with Gebri's eyes.
Not giving an answer, Gebri's eyes back watering and the sound of stuffing back out, making Koning forced to knit eyebrows again. Wonder.
“What happened, Geb? Don't worry me!” koning said as he led them into the boarding room and sat on the bed. It is not good if the crying that sounds sad is watched by boarding children who are starting to be curious. “What...” Koning unhesitatingly stated, so far they have never discussed things that are personal. Their friendship was not close enough to talk to each other about such emotional problems. “Did you cry because of them, the two people you met at Dunkin’ Donuts earlier? Who are they, Geb?”
Gebri still did not answer, the sobbing sound was still heard even though it was not as loud as a few seconds ago.
“For so long we have never discussed things that smell sensitive like family problems or anything else. I know we've only been friends for a few months now, but look at your current condition..” Koning rubbed Gebri's back, hoping to provide comfort to the figure sitting next to him with a bowed face. “You are always smiling, even when friends scorn you, you still smile. But your eyes cannot lie. Every time I look into your eyes, I know you have a heavy burden to bear. I try not to ask even though I am very curious. I want to make you feel comfortable with our friendship.” Once again Koning rubbed Gebri's back before continuing his sentence. “Seeing your eyes are swollen and flushed like this, at least I should know in outline what is going on. Although maybe I can not help, but maybe by telling stories you can feel a little relieved.”
Gebri's head remained down, but the sound of sobbing was no longer heard. The silent atmosphere suddenly came. Koning patiently waited for a reaction from the virgin beside him. Five minutes passed, the bowed head slightly raised and his eyes stared straight ahead, right at the door. The thick-browed girl tries to wander into the past, starting from a brief encounter at Dunkin’ Donuts.
“The man and woman are...” Gebri was silent for a moment, slightly exhaled then continued his sentence. “family Rion.”
Koning did not show any reaction, it was not the time for him to open his voice. Enough to be a good listener.
“You must have known that I was pregnant out of wedlock when I was 15 years old and was expelled from school exactly three days before the National Examination. But no one knows who the man who has possessed me, not even my Junior High friends. Most of them thought I was raped, but it wasn't like that. We do like equally. And that boy...” Gebri's eyes now look teary. Memories are too painful. “That man is Rion. Rion Michael Fernandez we know as a 2014 Management student and friend of your cousin.”
Gebri's tears fell again, and without hesitation Koning rubbed the traces left behind.
“Why doesn't anyone know?” Koning decided to ask, not out of high curiosity, just hoping that Gebri could let out all the tightness that surrounded his chest. It must be hard to keep all those stories without a single person knowing. “Then what about the kid? Did you give birth to her?”
The trail that had been lost, re-emerged and more swift than before, making Koning grieve for his words. But the round-faced girl just let it go, letting Gebri spill all the pain with tears. There is no harm in crying if it can eliminate the burden that has been borne so far.