Jumping up and down on the soft bed has become Lupus’ new habit. Yeah, ever since his mom kindly replaced the old mattress with this spring mattress. Lupus really loves bouncing around on it. Like a circus performer. As a result, it often rains feathers unevenly in his room. When that happens, his mom gets mad because the pillows get all messed up. But Lupus is really proud to have that new mattress. No bedbugs. Not like Boim’s hair, infested with them.
And that afternoon, around three o’clock after their practice at Senayan, Lupus headed straight to his room. He quickly jumped up and down again. But when he was about to take a leap into the toddler play zone, his mom’s face suddenly appeared from behind the door. Busted. Lupus grinned sheepishly.
“Come on, Lupus. You’re too old to be a toddler again…,” his mom scolded.
“Yes, Mom,” Lupus obediently replied.
“Your friend came earlier. Waited for a while. Left a message on your whiteboard. Said it’s quite important.”
Lupus turned to look at the whiteboard. There was a piece of paper stuck to it. Lupus picked it up and read it.
My dear Lupus,
Earlier, Adit, the theater club president, left a message. He said you should come to the children’s theater event this afternoon. Be there before sunset. It’s important, he said. And, he also said, there’s a good chance there will be some food involved.
Don’t forget to invite me, if it happens.
And don’t invite me, if it doesn’t.
But aside from the food issue, the matter itself is quite important. So, according to Adit, try to come. Well, in the worst case scenario, pick me up first.
Have mercy on me, Pus.
This morning, I suffered because I couldn’t join the aubade. Didn’t get my share of boxed tea and traditional cakes.
Feels like all I can say is,
Come pick me up safely.
I’ll wait for you, always.
Hopefully, this message can be clear. Even if it’s just a little, the important thing is that it’s legit.
But, don’t get caught.
The coolest thing,
Gusur.
Lupus’ mom was busy baking cakes with Lulu when Lupus came out of his room with his bag full of clothes.
“Where are you going again, Pus? Running away? Go far away,” said Lulu while spreading egg whites on the cake.
Lupus didn’t respond.
“Mama, I want to go to the children’s theater event in Cibubur. I already promised to join the Jurit Malam event to prank the new theater members. Can I, Mama?”
“Did you bring warm clothes?”
“Yeah. In my bag.”
“And did you bring your bed too?” teased Lulu.
Lupus rolled his eyes at Lulu. Lulu screamed and covered her eyes. She’s really scared of crossed eyes. Afraid that her eyes will also go crossed and never come back.
“Byeee!”
Lupus rode his bike to Gusur’s house.
Even though Lupus isn’t a theater kid, he asked Adit not to hesitate to invite him if there’s a Jurit Malam event. Because Lupus wants to disguise himself as a ghost to scare the new theater members. And to show off a bit.
The day was almost midnight when the new members gathered at the Cibubur field. Their faces were tense. Understandable because one by one they would be taken to secluded areas for a mental test. The atmosphere, which was meant to be spooky from the start, made the kids scared. Some even fainted when Gusur jokingly told stories about his encounter with a stingy genie.
Lupus, who would be tasked with scaring them, was busy imagining how fun it would be to see the girls screaming hysterically.
On the other hand, Gusur was busy flirting with the sweet girls.
Apparently, he had a specific mission here.
“Sometimes, even if it feels impossible, at some point in our lives, we will encounter strange things. There is another life beyond this. But just chill. This Jurit Malam event is to test your mental strength. If you’re scared to death, feel free to faint. We’ll pick you up…,” said Adit before letting the kids go. Each child had to leave a few moments after the previous one, carrying a candle that must be kept from going out. “If the flame goes out, crawl to the next checkpoint to ask for a new flame,” explained Adit. “The route has been determined. There are signs, as explained earlier. There are four checkpoints and at each checkpoint, the committee will test your knowledge about theater. Okay, have a spooky night. See you at the last checkpoint, or not at all.”
“Waaaaa…,” a girl fainted again. Scared.
After that, Lupus, Gusur, Anto, and Dian left for the slaughter arena. Dian, with her long hair, looked perfect as a kuntilanak. While Gusur became a stingy genie. His beloved genie. Lupus and Anto chose to be pocong.
The four of them walked calmly, whistling. Following the dark path. Gusur’s whistle was the loudest. Because Lupus knew, he had a crush on someone. Not Fifi Alone, Gusur was bored with her, although his love might not be reciprocated until now. But Gusur was into the new girl with a round face. Her name was Wulan. That’s why he was so excited. He might even write dozens of love poems for Wulan tonight.
Passing the third checkpoint, they strategized. Gusur stayed near the checkpoint, Anto and Dian were being sneaky, wanting to be alone near the graveyard. While Lupus was at the end of the path.
“Come on, don’t leave me alone!” Lupus whined.
“Oh, you’re such a scaredy-cat! Scared of ghosts? Go quickly, the kids will pass by!” Dian said.
With hesitant steps, Lupus headed to the end of the path.
“Let’s make them scream in fear. Hahahaha…” Anto exclaimed enthusiastically.
The atmosphere became quiet and tense.
Lupus felt like he had been crouching under a tree for hours with all his gear, but there were still no signs of the new kids. Why is it taking so long? Even Lupus secretly started to feel scared. Scared that suddenly his doppelganger would be crouching next to him and greet him, “Hey, pocong, let’s get to know each other. You’re new here, right?” Eeek!
So Lupus peeked at the path. Where are the other kids? Ah, maybe they haven’t arrived here yet. Lupus waited again. But damn it! Those pesky ants kept biting him. Don’t they know I’m a ghost? I’ll strangle them! Lupus cursed at the ants.
Suddenly, Lupus saw a candle light in the distance. Ah, this is his first victim. So, Lupus prepared himself. It’s going to be fun! There will be screaming.
Lupus took a deep breath, ready to go.
One minute, two minutes. Why aren’t they coming?
Lupus was curious. He peeked his head out from behind the bushes. Wait, where did that person go? Don’t tell me… Eeek, Lupus started to get scared. Especially since the surroundings were so dark. He could barely see with his small flashlight.
Suddenly… crunch! There was a glimpse of a white figure behind Lupus. Lupus turned and screamed, “Hiyaaa…” He ran as fast as he could, crashing through the bushes. The white figure seemed to be following him.
“Help… there’s a g-g-ghost…,” Lupus screamed.
“Lupus… Lupuuuuus… it’s me… Anto…,” a voice called from behind him.
Half in disbelief, Lupus stopped and turned around.
“It’s me, Pus, Anto,” Anto said while revealing his white cloth.
“You jerk. You scared the hell out of me…,” Lupus’s voice still trembled with fear. His throat felt like it was about to fall out.
“Sorry, dude. I’ve been looking for you all this time. There haven’t been any kids passing by. I started freaking myself out.”
“Same here, man. It’s weird, right? Why hasn’t anyone passed through here?” Lupus and Anto said, scared, under the shade of a tree.
“Maybe we took the wrong path. The route doesn’t go through here.”
“Where’s Dian?”
“She said she’d go back to the checkpoint for a bit. But she hasn’t come back yet. I’m getting worried. Hey, do you hear a baby crying?”
Lupus leaned closer to Anto. “Don’t scare me, man. I’ll smack you!”
“Eh, listen for yourself, dude. Hm… what’s that smell?”
Lupus sharpened his hearing and sense of smell. Yeah, what smell is this? Like…
“Hey…” A delicate hand tapped Lupus’ shoulder. “Hiyaaa…” Lupus screamed and ran as fast as he could. Anto didn’t lag behind in the sprint. They ran noisily. Unbeknownst to them, they had reached the final checkpoint. The senior kids and the new kids were already gathered there.
“Help… help… there’s a g-g-ghost…” Lupus shouted. The kids at the checkpoint panicked. Welcoming Lupus and Anto, who looked as pale as corpses.
“Where’s the ghost?” Adit asked.
“It… it was near the graveyard. Tapped my shoulder…” Lupus said, crouching in fear. Anto followed suit. They both looked like lost children. Scared, miserable, and hungry.
Before Adit could ask again, a girl came running and crying. “Lupus is mean. He left me,” she said. Ah, so it was the lost girl who tapped Lupus’ shoulder earlier.
The kids at the checkpoint burst into laughter. Including the new kid. Huahahahaha… there’s a scaredy-cat ghost… hahahaha…
A few moments later, the tense atmosphere subsided. They returned to the camp to sing songs. All the lost kids had been picked up. Only Gusur was still missing.
“Where’s Gusur, Dit? We can’t lose that rare creature. I have to take responsibility to his grandpa. I was the one who invited him,” Lupus said.
“He was there earlier,” Adit replied, looking around. “There he is. Near the pond.”
Lupus looked in the direction Adit pointed.
“Why is he alone there?”
“Oh, it’s normal. He’s probably writing heartbreak poems. Earlier, he got all worked up because there was a girl who fainted when she saw him on the trail. Even though he wasn’t wearing anything scary. Is his face naturally terrifying without the ghost disguise?”
Lupus laughed. “Who’s the girl who fainted?”
“Wulan. She’s in the first aid area. She’s out cold. Maybe she’s in deep shock. She regained consciousness a few minutes ago, but as soon as Gusur moved, she fainted again. Traumatized, I guess!”
Lupus chuckled.
The kids were happily singing around the campfire, while Lupus was busy coaxing Gusur to join in.
“Come on, forget about Wulan. There are still other girls out there. Like Brooke Shield, Yanti Issoedibyo, or even the unlucky Fifi Alone.”
“Huh, feels like my life is meaningless now. No hope for my future,” Gusur whispered.
“Hey, don’t be so pessimistic, dude.”
Gusur’s empty gaze stared into the dark horizon. As dark as his future?
“No way, Sur. As long as there are rickshaws waiting, you’ll always have hope for your future…”
Gusur looked at Lupus.
“…as a rickshaw driver.”
Hahahahaha…