MAHMUD, I Love U
Befriend Fish

Azka looked blankly at the aquarium in the right corner of her living room. In that clear water, the colorful chef fish paced back and forth flapping its pretty tail. Silent. The wall clock in the room showed at 2 a.m.

Azka tapped into the glass plan of the aquarium hoping that one of her cockerels would come to her. Hearts scared. His wife's words in the garden complex had completely messed with his mind. He knew his wife's soul was still shaken, but Azka really did not expect that the woman he loved so much would utter a sentence that he had never thought of at all.

⁇ ️ While in a complex park ....

Around 20:40 WIB.

"We're home, yuk! The air was getting colder," Azka asked Mayra while holding her hand. He deliberately ignored the words of his wife who asked to be separated from him.

Bandung air that was washed out by rain was indeed quite piercing the body. Moreover, they were just the two of them in that vast complex garden. It was as if the many winds there were only attacking the two of them, it was extremely cold. And Mayra froze. He was silent, looking down at the foot of the swing he was still sitting on. Her tears are spilling. Azka knew his wife was crying without any expression, her face was flat, only her tears had fallen from the corner of her eyes. But Azka deliberately ignored.

"Come, Yank!" Azka repeated her invitation. This time by grabbing Mayra's shoulder to get up from her swing. And Mayra manut.

"In front of many snacks, you want us to go there first? Buy canticles? Chicken noodles? Meatballs?" take Azka as if nothing happened.

In front of their housing complex there are indeed many shops or freelance traders who run every night. For that the inhabitants of the complex, especially Azka and Mayra never have trouble finding food if they are hungry at night. And the weather that night is very appropriate if spent with a bowl of a can especially coupled with a plate of boiled beans.

__Sekoteng is a drink made from ginger water which is usually served in hot conditions and consumed at night. Ingredients that are usually added to a can of green beans, peanuts, a chinese girlfriend, and a piece of bread.

But Mayra was still silent. In her silence, she actually wanted to hug her husband who loved her so much, but suddenly she felt embarrassed. He knew Azka deliberately avoided and ignored her words so as not to be prolonged. And Mayra felt so foolish as to have been rash to utter a sentence that she herself never imagined that she would be able to say so.

Mayra never had the slightest desire to separate from her husband. Azka is the best gift she has ever had. Mayra as she pleased, her shoulders shaken.

"Already, Yank, it's okay." Azka stroked both of his wife's arms gently. "Now we're ahead, yuk! Let's eat first." Azka wiped away Mayra's tears that kept falling.

The distance from the park to the front of the complex is closer than the distance from the park to their home. For that Azka deliberately invites his wife to walk to the front of the complex just all meals. And finally Mayra is dead.

Azka walked to the right of Mayra, holding her hand tightly while occasionally deliberately talking about trivial things that were still answered quietly. It only took about 5 minutes, now they had arrived in front of the complex. The rows of wagons whose lights were dimly lit from a distance seemed to wave welcome their arrival.

"What do you eat or drink, Yank?" ask Azka before crossing. But Mayra was still silent.

"Nasi sit, will you?" Azka is still trying.

Across the street there is a cart that sells rice and yellow rice that is famous for delicious. Azka and Mayra ate there often. As his wife was still silent, Azka finally decided her plans without consent. He took Mayra's hand to cross and walk towards the rice-selling wagon.

"Kang Bandi . rice with two, yes. Don't forget the egg, plus the warm tea, too." Azka raised both fingers on the rice seller uduk already known, Bandi his name. Azka then sat on the long chair that was already available. Mayra sat in front of him.

"Siaaap," answered Bandi, tilting his head on the sidelines of his hands busy concocting rice for other buyers.

"You, Yank?" Azka plucked one of the available tempeh fritters on the table and directly devoured it. His stomach was rumbling due to the cold weather.

Mayra was still silent, biting her clumsy lips. He still cursed himself for what he said in the garden. She hopes that with her saying the word 'divorce', Azka will be angry with her. Mayra deliberately wanted to see her husband angry so that the guilt in her heart could be reduced. Since Anggun died which he considered to be his fault, Mayra wanted Azka to blame him, at least that was the honesty he hoped for. He knew everyone was actually blaming him, yet they were pretending to be silent. And Mayra wants Azkah to represent all of them to blame and be angry with her. But her husband hugged her tightly.

Guilt that erupted, that's the reason that made Mayra finally dare to ask for separation. Mayra felt unworthy to be a husband companion as good as Azka.

"Yank, I'm staying you, yeah."

Mayra who was silent from earlier suddenly woke up to hear Azka's sentence, there was the word 'stay' there. Mayra squealing. Will her husband accept her split request? Mayra looked at her husband inside. His face that had been grim since then, had now turned tense. Azka chuckles.

"I'll stay for a while. I'll go home and get a car, yeah," Pinta Azka.

"Take the car for what?" Mayra astonishment.

"For you to go home. You must be tired of going on foot?"

Mayra breathed heavily. Then a little laugh. Why is her husband selugu?

"Already, don't even think about going home, Yank. What if I wanted to stay here?" Mayra chuckled again. "Now we eat first, yeah."

Right after Mayra finished talking, an order of two dishes of rice and warm tea landed on their table.

"Please, Mr. Doctor," said Bandi who is already quite familiar with Azka.

"Nohun, Kang."

_Nuhun \= thanks.

The still warm rice with slices of omelet, vermicelli, oreg tempeh and egg rendang scented a delicious aroma that immediately made Azka and Mayra immediately devour it. Both are now focused on their own dishes. It didn't take long, Azka had already cleaned the contents of her plate. Mayra still has half.

"Yank, you spend the rice first, I go home first." Azka wiped the corner of her lips with a tissue, still adamant to pick up the car.

"No need, Yank. We go home together" protested Mayra with her mouth still busy chewing.

"You didn't achieve it?"

"Accomplish, dong."

"Then?"

"We'll just order an online motorcycle, Yank."

"Maha." Azka.

Why didn't he think of that? Isn't that an easier solution than having to walk home to pick up a car? Maybe because Azka almost never ordered an ojek online before, or because he was too worried his wife would be exhausted? To be sure, Azka was willing to do anything for her woman.

Mayra smile. The laughter of the man in front of him was truly sincere. It was as if nothing had happened between them.

➡️

Although in the rice shop Azka always showed that he was fine and did not bother to talk about his wife, but actually his heart was hurt. Thought garbled. Actually on what basis can a woman who has been with him for a long time say the word separation? Azka sighed deeply, her eyes looking at the fish chef who was looking at her. "I have to how?"