The Gema Shahadah Aisyah
Returnees

"I cry with all my heart, answer me, O Lord! Thy statutes I shall hold." Jaya's voice was heard loudly throughout the prayer room. Afterwards Jaya, Renata, Atalie and Daniel bow to focus on God.

The greater song of Your power was heard filling the room, the sweet voice of Atalie leading the hymn that morning. Among them Atalie does have the most melodious voice, no wonder if he also often leads the praise in the church.

They regularly perform morning worship before starting activities in a special room located next to the back garden.

"Ma, tomorrow I don't want breakfast bread." Atalie said after they came out of the prayer room. He had a peek at their breakfast menu today which is bread.

"Keep what?" Renata stepped first towards the kitchen checking out the dishes for breakfast. Usually they eat snacks at breakfast such as bread or porridge.

"Mom knows not in this world there is a purple yam."

"Know it."

Atalie turned her back, so only she who was not there knew there was a purple yam when she intended to show off at her mama.

"But why have I never seen it?"

"Because you don't think, you often eat potatoes together from the ground." Renata did not understand why Atalie had a problem with it when she had given the best food.

"Relax Brother, I didn't know there were purple yams either." Daniel patted Atalie on the shoulder.

"Oh yeah? you've never eaten?" Atalie was relieved that she was not alone. They were born and raised in the same neighborhood, if Daniel knew more things then Atalie would protest at her papa and her mama.

"Look at you never." Daniel stepped into the dining room first.

"That's so bad, I've eaten." Atalie catches up with Daniel, finally she has a chance to show off her experience of eating purple sweet potatoes that have a sweet taste especially if eating them in front of Umar. Even if Atalie eats lemon will definitely taste sweet if there is Umar. What the hell Atalie, it's not sane. Atalie laughed realizing her own stupidity.

"Where?"

Atalie could not answer, she could not tell if she had gone to Umar's house yesterday. Atalie had been hard-earned to find a reason to stay at Gracia's boarding house in order to go to Maryam's study.

"On campus." Answer Atalie.

Daniel sneered, knowing his brother was lying. Daniel's mouth opened to mock Atalie but his words were forced to swallow again as ART served food on the table. Baked bread with spread butter and eggs of beef eyes, sausage, button mushrooms, smoked meat and roasted tomatoes served on one plate.

"Bi, tomorrow Atalie's asking for purple sweet potato breakfast." Renata sat down to join the dining room.

"Good Mom."

"Thank you Bi." Atalie said as she rubbed aunty's arm. Atalie can't wait to eat the purple yam tomorrow.

They prayed together before eating.

"I'll be with you to college." Atalie said after praying.

"Usually ride in your own car."

"My handsome grandpa, I'm so lazy."

"Yes, you will try the purple yam that is sold on the campus Brother."

Atalie glared and kicked Daniel in the leg, not serious about eating yams on campus.

"Awh!" Daniel whimpers dramatically.

"Why Niel?" Jaya saw Daniel suddenly moaning in pain.

"So, don't kick my leg."

"Have it been, you guys fuss over your feelings." Renata tried to stop the commotion of his two children.

"Atalie, later do not come home late, some days you do not attend afternoon worship, Papa has checked your lecture schedule, the last class is finished at 2 pm."

"Yes Pa." Atalie had no more reason to go to Umar's study this afternoon. After all, worship remains more important than any other business.

******

"No beauty?" Atalie shows her picture while wearing a robe on Daniel, they are in a car heading to her college.

"Who's this?" Daniel grabs Atalie's phone and looks at the photo carefully. He even blinked a few times because he could not recognize Atalie who was clad in black.

"Your brother is." Atalie smiled amusedly at Daniel's reaction.

"Praise God for creating a woman as beautiful as Atalie." Daniel is serious about saying Atalie is beautiful, he has never met a woman more beautiful than Atalie.

"Oh my God, how dramatic my sister is." Atalie Ledek.

"Why don't you wear that kayak shirt?" Although Daniel admitted Atalie looks more beautiful with long clothes that almost cover all parts of his body but he felt strange. Maybe because Atalie wore more open clothes.

"What's the matter, pretty, right?"

"Beautiful anyway."

"Yes, Ummi Maryam said I was beautiful wearing this shirt." Atalie palpitates considering Maryam's praise, she wants to come again to the study but her mom can be suspicious if she often stays at the Gracia boarding house.

"Who else is Ummi Maryam, I'm afraid Atalie's sister is wrong."

"Well, you're just like Mama, you're all grown up, you can't be wrong."

"Keep why do you rarely attend afternoon worship?"

"Go to the mosque."

"Part of hanging out weird, time to the mosque."

"The mosque is not a strange place."

"It is not strange for those who are Muslims, different again if the brother who is there."

Atalie pursed her lips against Daniel, she took back her phone. They're almost at Atalie's college.

"Well, why are you coming down?" Atalie sees Daniel who also gets off the car when they get to the front of her campus.

"You're trying the purple yam." Daniel took Atalie's hand to take her to the campus yard which was crowded with other students.

"Niel, I lied about it." Atalie tries to take her hand out of Daniel's.

"At Umm Maryam's house, it's gone."

Daniel smiled with satisfaction as he managed to get his sister to confess. He does not know who Ummi Maryam is but he thinks Atalie has been wrong.

Finally Daniel let go of Atalie's hand, but before leaving he hugged his sister first as if their relationship as a brother and sister is very harmonious when in fact they fight more often.

Daniel waved with a mischievous face before leaving in front of Atalie.

From a distance Umar who was parking his motorbike accidentally looked towards Atalie and Daniel.

"Of course, nowadays there are almost no single girls, they always have girlfriends." Umar chuckles at his own stupidity thinking that Atalie has no boyfriend. "Why do you have a boyfriend, what's his business with me?" Umar stepped from the parking lot through the corridor towards the classroom.

A few months ago Umar got an offer to teach at the campus. After much consideration, Umar accepted the offer. He only came two to three times because he also taught at another campus.

"Mas Umar!"

People spontaneously stopped the pace of hearing someone call him in a loud enough voice until some students who were sitting in front of the class turned their heads.

From a distance of about 5 meters Atalie ran towards Umar.

"Sorry, I forgot to change the parking money when we met yesterday."

"Not to be replaced." Reject Umar.

"Don't I don't feel good that you helped me at that time, otherwise you might not be able to go home."

Finally Umar received the money, and they were not that close.

"Mas Umar went to college here too?" Atalie saw Umar enter the rector's chamber yesterday.

"I'm teaching here."

"Oh yeah? what college?"

"Hadith Tarbawi."

"Oh." Atalie gawked, she had heard of the course from Ayana and Khanza. Of course it wasn't in Atalie's major. That means Atalie's chances of meeting Umar in class are zero percent.

"You have a crush on Umar, right?"

Atalie shook her head strongly as Gracia's words suddenly flashed in her head. No. gabe. Nah!

"If you'll excuse me." Umar stuffed a sheet of 20 thousand into his shirt pocket.

"Yes, thank you again." Atalie lowered her head to thank Umar.

******

Atalie circulated the view looking for an empty table in the park located in the middle of the campus after the last class. Instead of going straight home, Atalie sat in one of the empty seats and opened her laptop.

On the sidelines of the final semester, Atalie worked at one of the online comics companies as a translator. Atalie did not want to waste a year learning Mandarin in Hangzhou without doing anything. He translated Chinese comics into Indonesian.

Atalie propped her chin with both hands staring at the laptop screen before her. He felt empty—emptiness that did not know what caused it. What doesn't he have? smart, beautiful, rich and soon to pass S2 at the age of 23 while Gracia is still busy taking care of her S1 thesis.

"Aisyah was great, she was 9 years old when she got married and could remember thousands of hadiths recorded until now, she was not just a good wife." Atalie dropped her head on the table. "I want to get married but who is the same?" He pensively long. If there was Gracia here he would have shouted Felix's name many times. The guy who said boyfriend material it.

"What the hell is Atalie, you're crazy!" Atalie raised her head and patted her own cheek several times. "Focus!"

Atalie is busy with her laptop. Her flickering fingers danced over the keyboard, no matter the boisterous sounds around her, Atalie kept working.

"Atlene!" Ayana and Khanza come from behind, they sit joined by Atalie who looks serious typing.

"Not home yet?" Ask Khanza.

"Not yet." Atalie saw the two friends taking turns.

"You want to know, my God, what dream I had last night!" Ayana patted her cheeks that looked flushed.

"What's the matter, you got an A?" Atalie tried to guess what made Ayana that big.

"Not in vain I dandan beautiful today, it turns out my new lecturer was Ustadz Umar."

"Astaghfirullah, that's why." Atalie rolled her eyeballs.

"Astaghfirullah Atalie, why are you so I'm supposed to say that." Khanza laughs.

Atalie laughed, she was used to saying such words because she often heard Khanza and Ayana beristighfar.

"I feel lucky to be able to join Ustadz Umar's class."

"Because?"

"His class is very fun, he is an alumnus of Nurul Jadid University."

"Oh yeah?" Khanza turned his back while Atalie only listened because she did not understand what they were talking about.

"Known, alumni of Shuren Zhejiang University." Atalie reached out her hand.

"Udah know!" Spray Ayana and Khanza, they still talk about Umar.

Atalie chuckled pulled her hand back and continued her work. Let Ayana and Khanza talk about a new lecturer who is none other than Umar.

"I'm going home first." Atalie tidied up her stuff, because Atalie's typing preoccupation forgot that she shouldn't be late for home.

"Go home?" Ask Khanza.

"Yes." Yeah."

"Why rush?" Ayana's turn to ask.

"You want worship." Atalie draped her bag and waved at Khanza and Ayana.

"It's time to go back." Atalie whispers to herself, returning to her afternoon worship routine with her papa and mama. Praise God with beautiful songs full of wisdom.