"the only photo of him that I managed to snap up to this moment"
I'm a country boy. Grow up and grow up like other village children who every day explore the meadows, groves, swamps, and empty gardens that are neglected by their owners. A skinny, black, and dirty body is the hallmark of every village child, and so am I. It is very rare to see clothes worn neatly on the body. Usually a piece of clothing is only placed above the left or right shoulder, while in the sky the sun shines brightly, burning our black skin.
I'm not proud of myself, but in fact I'm classified as a child who can quickly respond to knowledge. The world of elementary education is a golden age for my knowledge. During the six years I attended one of the elementary schools in my village, I never got a top five or below. As I recall, it was only during the fourth grade that I was ranked fourth, the rest I was always ranked 1-3 even more often in the first rank.
As soon as I entered secondary education, I had to study harder because my classmates from the same school came from a larger area, not only at the sub-district level but also from other sub-districts and not only from one ethnic group. Although not quite the same as when I was in elementary school, in middle school I was also an obedient student, a little smart and according to teachers and friends I was of good character.
Long story short, three years I have finished at that school and I am starting to enter the stage of adolescence into adulthood. This time I chose to go to a vocational school which has been my dream since childhood. Regarding that school, I used to have a relative who went to school there and he gave birth to many works in the field of electronics which made me very interested. The school is not in my village, not in my sub-district, and not in my district, but in another district which is about an hour's drive away using public transportation in the form of a bus.
The time I went to school at the Upper Level was a time of change from adolescence to adulthood, or what is commonly known as Puberty. Puberty is known to have many changes in a person, be it voice, physical and thought. Where the voice becomes deeper (heavy), the physical body begins to be overgrown by various hairs and the mind begins to like the opposite sex. Especially when it comes to liking the opposite sex, I have a little problem expressing it. Unlike the other friends who in fact already knew the dating world at that time. I went to a homogeneous school, where all students from grades 1-3 were almost all boys. Even if there are several women, most likely their behavior and physique are almost like men.
Apart from a homogeneous school that fortified me to get to know the world of dating, at that time I lived in a boarding school, where every Islamic boarding school absolutely forbids a man from approaching a woman. Therefore, the world of dating for me is just a dream that will never be achieved, even though in reality I am starting to be interested in seeing women.
After I finished school, I returned to my hometown and enrolled in a college which happened to be located in my sub-district. The days after college I was busy with work at my uncle's shop. It has become my routine, after college, eating, changing clothes, then being behind the photocopy machine, photo room, and dark room when I want to print photos.
Back again to the issue of feelings towards the opposite sex. Of course the feeling I have is getting older in liking the opposite sex. It's no longer just a beautiful face that is a dream, but the nature and attitude have also been included in my calculations. I'm not interested in a woman who is beautiful but has a bad character, I don't like a woman who is beautiful but has a strange behavior, even if there is a woman who is beautiful, has a good character, is polite but has a perfunctory style of speech that can't attract my attention .
Until one afternoon, my younger cousin, who was a girl, came home from the Field Work Practice, which her school demanded. Unlike usual he went home alone, this time he took a friend with him. I was surprised when I saw my sister's friend who came home with her. A sweet-looking woman who at that time was wearing a red dress made my neck turn to follow the direction of her steps. I remember very well that time when I was in the photo room, my sister and her friend walked past me up the stairs and towards the second floor. Suddenly the woman asked my sister.
"Nita. Is that your young-brother?" he asked halfway up the stairs.
"That's my old-brother hi ..", said my sister who was already on the second floor.
"Yes. I'm Nita's young-brother”, I chimed in with a smile.
After the woman disappeared from my sight, I started to feel strange. My heart was beating faster than normal, and my eyes wanted to see it again soon.
“Oh my… that woman is so sweet,” my heart mumbled.
And the next minutes I passed by remembering his face when he was on the stairs earlier. After an hour, they came back down. I began to fidget, put on a face that hoped to be liked and tried to get his attention.
Coincidentally, my sister at that time asked for my help to photograph the woman. With her relaxed pose, I was more and more interested when I saw her behind the shooting lens, especially her smile that showed her white teeth made her face even more charming. I tried to ask her name and at that time I knew her nickname was unique only two letters, "IA". (Picture above, is the result)
The days after that, I was like a butt that got an arm. Every day I ask "IA" to my sister. Have you met him, please send my greetings to him, and I always ask my sister about her questions. Until I forget what day, my sister said that "IA" answered and returned my greeting.
...............Continued.