Chapter 27: Jarak; A Promise

I knew it would be like this. Problems are bound to come. Two people went somewhere at three in the morning; Santi panicked, especially Bayu.

However, Kayro looked like nothing happened. That bastard doesn't seem to have a heart that keeps talking.

What can I do at a time like this? Of course, until noon, the two of them, Rianita and Banyu, had not yet returned home.

There was an agitated conversation between them. At first, I just watched, but in the end, this body acted and intervened, and unfortunately, I was hit in the face.

"Fuck! Your crew doesn't need to be so rude! That's my brother; if he's dead, I'll kill you!" Bayu exclaimed.

The commotion between them stopped. Unfortunately, another problem was the sound of the fence being opened, followed by uncontrollable groans as if in pain. Santi went down the stairs quickly, followed by Bayu, who preceded him.

Kayro and I followed, while Deka remained upstairs just watching.

"Where is Rianita? Where is she going? Why isn't she with you, Nyu?" Santi's voice sounded loud.

When I came down, Banyu had fallen helplessly into Santi's arms. The wounds on his body were no joke. It couldn't have been caused by a corpse either.

,

The corpse couldn't use its hands to hit it until Banyu's nose was bleeding, and his face was bruised. Then also the knife cut. This is human activity.

I ran upstairs, covered Deka's eyes, and then picked him up while whispering, "You should sleep, Deka. Go!"

"Why is that, Jalak?"

"Everything is okay. Deka is still sleepy, right? Come on, let me accompany you to sleep."

"Deka's not sleepy."

"It's okay; let's just go to our room."

Even though Deka said, he wasn't sleepy. After I took him and laid him down, he still fell asleep.

***

"It's your fucking fault, Kay!" Bayu glared at Kayro when I had just come out of Deka's room.

"I didn't ask them to come out." As Kayro spoke casually, Bayu looked angry. He came closer, then grabbed the annoying man's shirt collar.

Santi intervened; she held Bayu's hand, and they finally finished arguing. I can only see from here that the blow to my face still hurts, and I don't want to be hit again by that fist.

"Come on, we have to heal Banyu!" Santi was worried, "After all, Rianita is also missing. Do you still want to make a fuss yourself? It's better to find a solution!"

Maybe they both just realized it's useless to fuss; now, focus on the first problem. I said, "If there was a tool, you could heal Banyu's wound, San?"

"I will try." Santi wasn't too sure from her tone.

Kayro suddenly walked closer to Banyu. He tried to touch that boy, but Santi stopped him.

Kayro raised both hands and said, "He'll get a fever if left like that. There's no time."

We were silent momentarily; who knows how long Banyu would survive with wounds like that? I see a place that stores medical equipment, so I can't say whether it's still there or has been ransacked.

"This is a wound on his arm; he can still walk. I'm going with him; Rianita may be still alive." Banyu tried to sit up; his twin helped him. Santi said to lie down, but Banyu insisted.

"If you all come along, what about that kid?" Kayro pointed at Deka, who was rubbing his eyes in front of the door.

Deka approached me. It was clear he was hungry because he had stroked his stomach.

"If I go, I don't know what to look for and take with me," I said.

"You're here, look after Deka and Banyu. Let the three of us go." Kayro made a unilateral decision. However, I agree with this.

"Banyu, don't move too much. Then, you are the only one who can protect them both here." Bayu also seems to agree. He started preparing everything.

"Just bring what you need; we'll leave in a few minutes. The wound on Banyu's arm can't wait." Kayro is probably the quickest at packing; he is deft. The only weapon he used was a knife sheathed at his waist.

After preparing, Santi approached Deka. She was stroking Deka's hair and saying a few things. The child nodded with a smile.

"It's raining." Suddenly Bayu spoke. He was looking up at the sky.

"Good. The stronger it is, the better," answered Kayro. "They will be distracted by the sound of rain, as long as we don't make any noise, everything is safe."

True, it rained pretty heavily after that. They said goodbye; two bodies were immediately killed on the other side of the road. Then I closed the door as soon as possible.

"They'll be home later, right?"

I looked back. Deka asked, worried; he might remember about his brother who left and didn't return.

"Sure." I matched my height.

"When?"

"When you're finished, you'll come back here."

I won't use the word 'home' because there's no suitable place for that right now. We will continue to move, as in the past, like ancient humans. However, it added fear every second.

"When is it coming?"

He was a child, and this type of human would keep asking questions non-stop. The only way is to change the conversation.

"Hungry? Let's cook, Deka; take the sardines from your bag with a lighter, okay?"

He nodded. I prepared rotten wood, lit a fire, then cooked the can of sardines without adding anything else.

The rain still hasn't stopped. Deka was eating his sardines, and Banyu was daydreaming, perhaps also enduring the pain in his arm. When I offered him sardines, he refused because he was full.

I also wondered if they would come home entirely or vice versa.

No one knows the future, especially with the current situation.

***

In the afternoon, still with Banyu and his wound. I could only take care of it by changing the bandage and cleaning the wound as best I could.

Deka was always hungry; he sat on a chair eating his sardines. Here, I have to give in; I've only been drinking since this morning; that's okay; I'll eat later tonight.

"I already told them, don't look for Rianita. It's dangerous." Standing near the door, I turned around when Banyu said that.

I approached him, took a chair, and then sat down, "Don't think about it; just think about your situation."

He had a fever; his face was pale. I had eaten earlier, but I couldn't overcome the pain.

"No..." Banyu coughed before continuing; I got him some drinking water, and after he got better, he said again, "No, they are delinquents; there are more of them than us. I'm afraid their good intentions could end up causing harm."

"I'm sure they weren't that careless. You should know better, right?"

"That's why they won't leave their friends behind like that." Banyu coughed again. His condition was getting worse.

I took medicine to reduce the fever. However, he refused, saying it would not solve the problem. This is an external and internal wound; both must be healed simultaneously.

***

The sun has gone, and the rain has stopped, wetting the earth. The night I now greeted us was uncontrollable darkness. I lit several candles, only two, where Deka was sleeping, and Banyu was slumped.

"What if they don't come for a week?" Banyu looks worried.

"It doesn't matter; I'm more worried about your condition that week. They might be fine, but you can't wait that long."

The wind outside blows away the trash that is now flying around. The sound of a corpse groaning could be heard approaching. I took a peek, and they were walking toward the blowing wind.

Just leave it alone; as long as we stay quiet, it will be safe. While Deka fell asleep in a separate room, now it was just Banyu and me.

"I can't stand it, sorry I can't take the night shift," said Banyu, still holding his wound. Then lie down and close your eyes. Thank goodness he could fall asleep.

I took a deep breath, then exhaled slowly. Damn it, my problem just gets more complicated. With that wound, I'm not sure Banyu will survive for long. Untreated and ends in infection.

I could just run from here, getaway, avoid trouble. However, that was too cruel; promises still had to be kept.

Tomorrow, hopefully, they will go home. Because if not, in a few days, Banyu fever is what I'm afraid of.