As the fasting month approached seven o’clock, Lulu was always busy looking for her prayer outfit. She’s really diligent with the evening prayers. And her fasting is on point until the call to prayer for Maghrib. It’s different with Lupus. When it comes to the evening prayers, he’s not really into it. But his fasting, well… it gets canceled all the time… hihihi.
And Lupus is the laziest when it comes to being invited for the evening prayers. He says he always falls asleep at the mosque. And after breaking the fast, Lupus tends to overeat. As a result, he’s always feeling sleepy.
“Pus, have you seen my prayer outfit?” Lulu yelled from her room.
Lupus, who was enjoying his banana compote, casually replied, “Whether I’ve seen your prayer outfit or not, do I look like I care?”
Lulu got annoyed. She immediately planned to prank Lupus again, just like yesterday. Which was by sneaking a few tiny, sweet ants into Lupus’ banana compote. Lupus is really fond of eating banana compote. Whenever it’s time to break the fast, he always eats banana compote first. Meanwhile, Lulu often gets the task from their mom to make banana compote for Lupus.
Now, here it is. Lulu successfully found her prayer outfit in the pile of their mom’s clothes. Oh no… but where are those little ants that usually appear? Just like Lupus, Lulu always believes that there must be a lot of ants in her room. Because ants love something sweet. And Lulu always thinks of herself as sweet. But, ah, forget about the ants. The evening prayers are about to start!
Lulu quickly grabbed her prayer mat and wrapped her scarf around her head. She didn’t forget to bring her favorite flip-flops.
“Where are we praying Tarawih, Lu?” Lupus greeted as Lulu passed by the living room. Lupus was there, enjoying his banana compote while watching TV. His favorite show during the fasting month is none other than the call to prayer for Maghrib. He eagerly waits for it every afternoon.
“Where are we praying Tarawih, Lu? Why are you so indifferent when I ask?” Lupus repeated.
“At the mosque near the football field,” Lulu calmly replied.
“The football field? Which football field?”
“The football field near the mosque.”
Lupus often wonders about his little sister, Lulu. Even though there’s a pretty big mosque near their house, Lulu always prays at the mosque near the football field. When asked about the reason, Lulu said, “If we want to pray in congregation, the farther the mosque, the greater the reward. Because every step we take towards the mosque, we’re always rewarded.”
Yeah, that’s totally true. But, like, not always. The important thing is the intention behind it. What’s the purpose, you know? And when it comes to Lulu, she’s definitely suspicious. She’s got some sketchy intentions. At the mosque near the football field, the guys there are pretty cool. ‘Cause those real estate kids from across the street always pray there. And Lulu purposely goes there for Tarawih with her friends to show off. “Yeah, multitasking like a boss!” Lulu says with a smirk.
That mosque practically becomes a flirting spot.
And that night, after Tarawih, Lulu was busy fixing her prayer stuff with Ritma. They intentionally took their time so everyone else would leave. So they could have some fun.
“Hey, girl!” suddenly a cool guy’s face popped up from behind the divider. “Waiting for us, huh?”
Lulu was surprised. It just so happened that she was sitting near the divider.
“Shh… that’s Edwin, Lu. The one who always asks about you!” Ritma whispered.
“Oh, really?”
But Edwin’s face disappeared again. Ritma quickly urged Lulu to pack up her prayer mat, “Hurry up, Lu. Before he leaves. He’s a real estate kid.”
A few moments later, they were among the crowd heading home after Tarawih. They couldn’t help but look around for that cool Edwin. Where is he? He said he wanted to tease them. Why is he hiding?
Every afternoon, there’s always something new happening in Lupus’ room. There’s the sound of guitar strumming and loud quacking-like shouts. Whose voice is it if not Lupus’ practicing to make a song? There’s gonna be a farewell event for the third graders at school. And Lupus got the task to make a theme song for the class play. So, even though he only knows three guitar chords, he’s been composing songs from Monday to Thursday. Recording the melodies he comes up with on cassette tapes.
Actually, Lupus didn’t do it all by himself when it comes to making the song. The neighbors on both sides helped him. Not because they willingly wanted to help, but because they couldn’t stand hearing Lupus’ screams every afternoon. So instead of suffering, they sacrificed a little to assist Lupus. Some contributed lyrics or just said a few prayers. The vocalists also joined in. So because of that song, the whole neighborhood got busy and involved. And after it was done, Lupus forced everyone to listen to his masterpiece and asked, “Is it good? Is it good?”
Turns out, out of the ten people he contacted, eleven of them said, “No! No!”
Crazy, right?
But there’s one creature who didn’t get involved at all. None other than Lulu herself. Lately, she’s been busy looking at different hair models. Flipping through all the magazines. Studying which hairstyles are in right now.
When a teenager falls in love, it’s always a mess. They do all sorts of crazy things. And right now, she’s crushing on Edwin, the cool guy she always sees during Tarawih. Even though they only catch a glimpse of each other, Lulu likes him. In fact, they made plans to meet again in front of the ice cream shop across the football field. The shop that all the kids go to after Tarawih. They have kolak, cincau, young coconut, ice cream, and other snacks there.
The meeting is still a couple of days away. They still have about two days to prepare. Like seriously, preparing just to meet someone!
After Lulu did some research, she found out that curly hair is the latest trend. Curly hair is everywhere now. Lupus’ friends, like Boim and Fifi Alone, have curly hair. Even the neighbor’s chicken has curly feathers. Everyone is all about the curls, it’s the cool thing now. For example, even the crackers sold at the gado-gado stall are curly. Or the instant noodles that Mom often buys. They’re following the curly trend too. Even cassette tapes get curly when you leave them out in the sun.
So, after making up her mind, Lulu joins the other girls to get her hair curled. It’s a good preparation for meeting Edwin. And a day before their meeting at the ice cream shop, Lulu is ready with her magical curly hair. It’s totally curly.
What was Lupus’ reaction when he first saw Lulu coming back from the salon?
He was stunned and said, “Oh, Lulu, where are you centered? I mourn the tragedy that has befallen you.”
Lulu immediately got angry and started messing up Lupus’ hair until it became curly too. Lupus was so annoyed after looking in the mirror and seeing his hair become magical like that. He immediately washed his hair to make it straight again.
But on the other hand, Lulu’s school friends immediately praised her appearance, saying, “Oh my gosh, you look like a suitcase girl. Like a girl who sells suitcases…hehehe.”
A little past seven o’clock, Lulu suddenly rushes into the house. Her face is messy, indicating that something is wrong. She throws her prayer mat and veil onto the long chair. Then she sits down in the corner of the room, looking upset.
Seeing her messy face, which is just as messy as Lupus’ curly hair, Lupus, who was previously watching TV, smiles. Wait, but it’s only a little past seven. Why is Lulu back from Tarawih already? Usually, she doesn’t show up until at least half past nine.
“No Tarawih, Lu?”
Lulu looks at Lupus and lazily answers, “Tarawih got canceled. The imam didn’t show up.”
Lupus chuckles. She’s always got something going on!
“Something wrong, Lu?”
Lulu stays silent, nibbling on the end of her curly hair.
“Hello? Why so quiet?”
Lulu squints her eyes.
“Guess what, Lu. It’s a small box, tucked in the corner. What is it?”
Lulu opens her eyes.
“I don’t know?”
Lulu shakes her head.
“The chessboard is throwing a tantrum.”
Lulu bursts into laughter. Hahaha. She immediately pounces on Lupus and messes up his hair again. Lupus screams in protest.
Then Lulu starts telling her story of sadness. Edwin, who promised to treat her at the ice cream shop, didn’t recognize her when they met during Tarawih. Not at all. Well, how could that guy recognize her when her hair suddenly became curly like that? Lulu wanted to surprise him, but he didn’t recognize her at all.
It was only when Ritma appeared and convinced Edwin that the curly-haired girl was indeed Lulu, that Edwin was shocked. Because he doesn’t like it when Lulu messes with her hair. He prefers the natural, the real.
Lulu regrets curling her hair so much.
“Sometimes people prefer things as they are, Lu. Something that is made up, something that we think will make us more beautiful, sometimes backfires. So, just be yourself. Love what already exists in you. Because what already exists in you is what Edwin loves,” that’s the advice from Ritma, her friend. Lulu bows her head sadly.
“That’s just how people are…,” Lulu says sadly.
Meanwhile, Lupus just comments, “Well, that guy really has no sense of humor. He doesn’t know that it’s rare for a girl to have magical hair like yours. Hihihi…”
The next night, Lulu starts getting ready again. While Lupus has been busy looking for his banana kolak that he forgot to eat.
“Tarawih again, Lu?” Mom asks.
“No. It’s a break. Lulu wants to straighten her hair at the salon,” Lulu says casually.
“What?” Lupus is taken aback. “No, Lu! Oh, don’t straighten your hair! We and our friends have agreed to have you join us in the school play. You’ll play Boim’s sister, who also has curly hair. Because there are no curly-haired kids at school!”
“So I’ll be Boim’s sister? I DON’T WANT TO!!!”
“Oh, come on! Please, Lu!”
Lulu immediately runs away. As if being Boim’s sister is so great!
But when she’s on the street, she suddenly remembers something. And she quickly turns back. She’s running halfway. But it’s too late, she arrives at Lupus’ house and finds him panicking and spitting in the backyard drain.
“Lulu!! Did you put those ants back in the kolak??” Lupus scolds.
Lulu can’t hold back her laughter. “Hahaha… I was just about to tell you, turns out I’m late… hahaha.”
Lulu is immediately chased down the street. Hahaha, hahaha!
