The whole school painting thing is finally over, but Lupus is still annoyed. Especially with mischievous Lulu, who acts like swallowing a spoon is a big deal. Not to mention the stern warning from the principal about chewing gum. And the fact that his mom has been super busy lately. She doesn’t even have time to talk to Lupus like she used to. These past few days, Lupus hasn’t been able to share stories with his mom like before.
Honestly, Lupus is annoyed because of his mom’s actions. She’s been way too busy lately. And Lupus is on a long break. When Lupus wakes up at eight, his mom is already off to work. When Lupus comes home from painting in the evening, his mom still isn’t back. She usually comes home around eight in the evening. And then she just goes straight to sleep. Uh! Rumor has it that Lupus’s mom just got a big catering contract from a major company. She’s got tons of orders to fulfill and has to work with her other relatives.
She’s acting all busy and stuff!
Sure, they had a cook yesterday. But Lupus still doesn’t like it. Why should they eat someone else’s cooking when his mom is a great cook? Lulu, on the other hand, is enjoying it. With the new cook, they have a gossip theme going on!
So, as compensation, Lupus has been hanging out with his friends a lot during this break. Boim, Gusur, Anto, Fifi, Meta, Ita, Nyit-Nyit, Gito, Aji. They even planned a trip to Bandung to make the most of their vacation. Luckily, they still have the money they earned from painting. They can use it for transportation and snacks. It’s nice to spend money that they’ve earned themselves. Like Lupus always says, “Better to have no money but your own money than to have a lot of money but your parents’ money… hehehe.”
Take Boim, for example.
“If we go, let’s stay at my grandma’s house in Suryalaya,” said Meta. “Sounds good. It’s not far from the city. We can have some fun!”
“Ah, it’s not exciting. Boring. Who wants to join?” Anto objected.
“Ha, not fun. Everyone’s got their own plans,” Lupus added.
In the end, only six of them agreed to go. Meta, Fifi, Anto, Lupus, Boim, and Gusur. The others have their own stuff going on. They agreed to leave tomorrow morning in Anto’s beat-up car.
The next morning, Lupus woke up early. He quickly took a shower and brushed his teeth. When Lupus is on break, he usually wakes up around nine. By that time, his mom is already gone. Lupus hurriedly packed his clothes, afraid of being left behind. He was in such a rush that he didn’t have time to eat breakfast. But since his stomach was growling, Lupus packed some snacks for the road. He grabbed the cookie box and Lulu’s thermos to bring along. He quickly grabbed a spoon from the dish rack.
After finishing up, Lupus looked around for Lulu to say goodbye. Uh, where is that kid? Probably went to the market with Bibik! Lupus didn’t want to bother with it. He headed straight to Anto’s house. And true enough, when he arrived, the gang was already gathered. They were all annoyed waiting for Lupus.
“Listen up, guys. Turns out we can only take this pickup truck. We borrowed it from a friend. We’ve agreed that I’ll drive with Meta and Fifi in the front, while you guys, Lupus, Boim, and Gusur, will be in the back. What do you say?”
“In the back to Bandung?” Lupus stared.
“If you don’t agree, you don’t have to come.”
Grudgingly, Lupus had to climb into the back. He was warmly welcomed by Boim and Gusur, who had been waiting in the back.
During the journey to Bandung, to get rid of their annoyance and the scorching heat of the sun, Lupus, Boim, and Gusur chatted. The three of them looked so miserable in the back. At every red light, they were bombarded by fans selling cigarettes, newspapers, fried tofu, and drinks. Most of the vendors were busy watching the three of them squatting in the back. They were puzzled. Huh, why is there a hippo riding in a car… hehehe.
Gusur, feeling offended, got really annoyed by the vendors teasing him like that. Oh well, because there is a story behind Gusur and the hippo. Want to hear it? Here it is. Gusur actually participated in a student exchange program between Indonesia and Africa. At that time, the priority was given to students who spoke the local languages. Because it was considered necessary for them to understand each other’s languages. So, for some reason, when Indonesia was asked to send their candidate first, they chose Gusur to be sent. Because that kid always spoke proper and correct Indonesian. Almost too correct, actually. Oh, Gusur was so thrilled. He was jumping with joy. His grandpa, who was also surprised to death, threw a seven-day celebration. The whole neighborhood was invited. And of course, there was an outdoor movie screening. Gusur’s favorite Indian film.
And on the day of departure, Gusur was sent to Africa. The whole village had three buses accompanying him to Soekarno-Hatta International Airport. They all cried and wailed together, bidding farewell to Gusur. As a result, Soekarno-Hatta Airport was flooded with tears from Gusur’s entire village.
A few days later, the African government sent their candidate to Indonesia. But Indonesia was shocked to find out that the candidate sent by the African government was actually an African rhinoceros. Indonesia immediately sent a protest wire to Africa. Why send a rhino? And what was their response?
Hey, didn’t you guys actually send a hippo over here first?” The Indonesian government was shocked. Hahaha! Turns out Gusur was the one sent to Africa, mistaken for a hippo. Hahaha! Whether the story is true or not, only Lupus knows. Because that crazy kid is the one telling the story. He didn’t even care when Gusur got angry and protested. Lupus just continued the story, “And, folks, turns out Africa was really impressed with that ‘hippo’ from Indonesia. Because after they put it in the wildlife park, the breeding was incredibly successful. Hihihi…” Gusur got even angrier. That’s why he’s traumatized when being called a hippo.
By the time they reached the peak, Boim was almost as black as the spare tire, because that’s just his natural color. And with the scorching sun during the day, it completed the look. Meanwhile, Gusur got worried a few times because Meta suggested, how about we trade Gusur for some roasted corn to lighten the load? Because this borrowed pickup truck isn’t in the best condition. It coughs sometimes. Especially when going uphill in Puncak, Gusur, Boim, and Lupus often had to help push, even though they didn’t want to get off the truck. So they pushed while still on the back… hihihihi, it’s basically cheating, right?
Fifi, Meta, and Anto were sitting calmly in the front seats. Meanwhile, Lupus in the back was starting to feel uncomfortable. He shouted to Fifi, who was sitting near the window. “Hey, Fifi! Can I switch seats with you?” Fifi just smirked. “Or maybe I’ll join you guys there, the four of us. It’s so windy back here!” “No, Pus. You’ll get caught by the police,” Anto refused. “Aw, if there’s a cop, I’ll hide under the truck. Or I’ll disguise myself as a Garfield doll!” Lupus pleaded. But Anto still said no.
So, in the end, Lupus stayed at the back with Boim and Gusur. Just for fun, instead of being sad, Lupus made a joke to Boim, “Hey, what’s the difference between a louse and Boim?”
“Well, obviously,” Boim replied. “Boim is handsome, lice are ugly.”
“Wrong! If Boim could die from lice, but lice wouldn’t want to die from Boim. Hihihi…”
When they arrived at Grandma Meta’s house in Suralaya, the kids jumped out of the car excitedly. They were all clamoring for the bedrooms. Grandma Meta, who may be old but still sweet, welcomed the kids with joy. She kissed their right and left cheeks, then busily asked about souvenirs.
After a few minutes, Gusur started making a fuss.
“No, I can’t! I can’t!” he shouted loudly.
Meta, who felt responsible for bringing the hippo, immediately calmed him down, “What’s wrong, Gus? What can’t you do?”
“I protest strongly! I can’t do it!”
Meta became even more confused. She looked at Gusur and Fifi alternately. What’s going on with these two kids?
“That’s right, Met,” Fifi said angrily, “Gusur is protesting because his room is separated from ours. Boys sleep in the front room, while we sleep in the inner room with Grandma. Right, Met?”
“Of course. Why would Gusur want to sleep with us?” Meta said firmly.
“Well? So, what does unity mean to us? What does togetherness mean to us when we painted the school together? Why do we have to be separated? This is destroying unity!” Gusur said passionately.
The boys burst into laughter. Only Meta and Fifi were angry.
“Such crazy kids!”
Meanwhile, Lupus pushed his old bike that was leaning against the house. He really loves riding his bike. So, without the knowledge of the other kids, he sneaked out and pedaled his bike quickly. Going in and out of the small housing complex. Wow, the view is really nice. Lupus even bumped into a few cute girls on their way home from school. Some of them were rollerblading in the park.
The day was indeed approaching dusk.
“Hey, watch out!!!” suddenly a loud shout made Lupus jump in surprise. Before he could turn around, two girls on a scooter bumped into his bike, causing it to swerve and almost fall into the ditch. Luckily, Lupus managed to jump off. Phew!
“Oh, sorry. It was an accident. We’re still learning to ride a motorbike,” the two girls quickly apologized.
Lupus was about to complain, but he couldn’t resist the charm of the two girls who turned out to be cute. Well, no. Only one was cute. The other one was handsome. They looked like Sobarudin!
The two girls helped lift Lupus’ bike and kept apologizing.
As a result, they ended up getting to know each other.
“Oh… so, the one who replaced… is her name Yanti?” Lupus said.
“Replaced… what? Replaced with a handsome guy?” Yanti asked.
“No. Replaced with a sassy girl… Hahahaha…” Yanti joined in laughing. Hahahaha…
“And the other one is Ida?”
She nodded. Well, this one looks more like a girl. No leg hair. But more importantly, these two girls are also crazy like us. That’s why Lupus immediately became close with them. As a result, Lupus ended up learning how to ride a motorbike. That kid is really bad at riding a motorbike. But this time, he dared to ride with two sweet creatures around the complex. They even dared to go on the main road. As a result, they crashed into the bushes seven times.
When they got back, Lupus was all dirty. Yanti and Ida accompanied him.
Boim, who was the most interested in cute girls, immediately started fussing.
“Where did you find them, Pus?” Boim whispered.
“Oh, this sweet one is named Ida,” Lupus introduced. “We met in a normal way, while we were hanging out on the street. And the other one, the sassy one, is named Yanti…”
Yanti immediately grinned and greeted, “Good evening…”
“This is Yanti,” Lupus said while holding Yanti’s shoulder, “we met by chance. When I bought some snacks at the store and didn’t have any change, the seller gave me this sweet Yanti instead… hihihi.”
Yanti started getting all excited.
The next day, they made plans to learn how to ride a motorbike again.
“But don’t bring Yanti, okay?” Lupus said to Ida. Ida burst into laughter, while Yanti started cursing.
The next day, Boim joined Lupus, Ida, and Yanti to learn how to ride a motorbike.
While the other kids were busy with their own activities, hunting for jins in Tanin, Boim suggested that they didn’t need to go all the way to Bandung to hunt for jins. He claimed that there were plenty of jins in the attic of his house. But these jins were a bit creepy, like kuntilanak… you know!
Yanti and Ida each brought their mopeds. Boim, of course, chose to ride with Ida. Cheater! Meanwhile, Lupus reluctantly rode with Yanti. Wow, this girl is aggressive. Before the bike even took off, Lupus was already being tightly embraced, struggling to breathe.
Meanwhile, the shy Ida, hugging Boim, was left behind. Before she could even sit on the seat, Boim hit the gas. As a result, Ida successfully landed on the asphalt.
Before they knew it, their money was almost gone. That meant they had to hurry back to Jakarta. And you know what? Lupus leaving for Bandung without telling anyone for a few days caused his family to panic. Turns out Mami couldn’t sleep for several days. She just couldn’t fall asleep, hihihi… But seriously, Mami even placed advertisements in the newspaper. Lulu, who was assigned to house-sit during the holidays, became the target of Mami’s frustration, “How could you not know where Lupus went?”
“Usually, he goes to paint the school in the morning. But when Lulu went to the school, he wasn’t there. The school was already neat and tidy. So Lulu tried to find his friends, but didn’t know their addresses. The only places Lulu could think of were Boim’s and Gusur’s houses, but even those were forgotten after going in and out of the alley ten times!”
“Has he been restless lately?”
“Yes, Bu. Restless. Super restless. He keeps asking about you…”
Mami fell into deep thought. Ah, had she been too busy lately and neglected her children?
Lupus himself, on the way back to Jakarta, started to feel guilty. He felt bad for Mami and Lulu. What if they were worried sick looking for him? He should have at least let them know he was going somewhere. Especially since he hadn’t come home for several days. Initially, this was meant to be a protest against Mami being too busy. But as Lupus thought about it, was this really the right way? Mami was clearly working hard to earn money. Why should he protest like this?
Lupus realized that he had been too narrow-minded about this. We should have a different attitude. When it comes to kids who are not happy at home, especially those who get involved in forbidden things, it’s not always the parents’ fault. Why should they be blamed? We’re grown up now. Aren’t we the ones who have the biggest responsibility for ourselves? Aren’t we the ones who can change our own attitudes?
Lupus felt even more guilty. Luckily, he hadn’t gone too far.
And one thing he wanted to do as soon as he arrived home was to hug Mami and Lulu…
“Mama, it’s Lupus coming!!!” shouted Lulu as she saw Lupus getting off the trishaw and walking into the house yard.
“Lupus!!” Mami immediately jumped from her seat.
“Mama!!” Lupus ran towards her, leaving his backpack behind.
They hugged. Like in an Indian movie.
“Oh, Lupus, Mama was so worried. Where have you been? But thank goodness, you finally came home. Did you read the ad in the newspaper? About the missing news?”
Ad? So Mama placed an ad in the newspaper? Ah…
She hurriedly took the newspaper she kept under the pillow and showed it to Lupus, “Read it. Oh, Mama doesn’t mind if you want to go anywhere, stay for a few days, as long as you don’t bring Mama’s spoon with you! Mama was so confused looking for it. Now, where is Mama’s spoon that you brought? You know, the one with carvings on the handle. And Lulu was asking about her thermos and her cake box…”
Lupus was stunned. Huh? So…
Lupus quickly read the small ad in the newspaper: ‘Missing news. A small spoon with carvings on the handle has been lost. The spoon might have been taken by a 16-year-old boy named Lupus. Whoever finds the spoon, please send it to the address below. As for the boy, do whatever you want with him.’
Lupus was even more stunned.
Then he screamed and ran out of the house.
Mami was shocked. She hurriedly chased after him, “Lupus! Lupus! Come back…”
But Lupus kept running. Lulu had to join in the chase. And even the trishaw driver, who hadn’t been paid by Lupus, joined in the chase.
Finally, the whole village joined in the chase… hihihi. Always something happening…
