Karenina parked her car in front of a food stall on Jalan Pancoran Raya, got out of the car wearing a hat and worn levis pants and a black t-shirt, on her shoulders, she hung an old old guitar.
Karenina walked over to one of the street singers, "do you want to sing too?" Asked the boy named Yudi, "You just like singing, can you help singing?" Asked Nina to Yudi.
"Yes, Sis, beautiful sister, who knows how many people give money, so we can eat deliciously today." Said the boy.
"Okay, come on, where are we singing?" Karenina asked Yudi.
"At the Pancoran monument, sis, at this time it's jammed, sis."
"Okay, let's go." Invite Karenina to Yudi.
"Have you been singing for a long time?" Karenina asked.
"Long time sis, since father died."
DEG
Karenina's heart seemed to stop beating, such a small child had to work hard in the notorious capital city. Singing all day long for his family to enjoy a grain of rice.
"Where is your mother?"
"At home, my mother is a washing worker, sis."
"Oh, uhm_ you have a younger brother?"
"Got. One." Yudi answered.
"What time do you sing?"
"From school, sis, until just before Isha."
"Oh, aren't you hungry?"
"I'm hungry, but if I buy rice here, what will my sister and mother eat later?"
Again, his heart was very happy to hear what Yudi said.
"Come on sis! While our red light is hurrying to the intersection." Yudi pulled Karenina's hand to be invited to run at the Tugu Pancoran intersection.
"Brother who sings, I keep the money." Yudi smiled at Karenina.
Karenina nodded and then started playing her guitar, her melodious voice was like an oasis in the middle of the desert for those who heard it, her guitar playing with minimal fals tones made her ears beautiful, Yudi was able to brandish used cans at every car that stopped at the red light of the shower.
Sweat started pouring down Karenina's forehead, which was covered in a hat, not infrequently Karenina was teased by drivers and road users because her face was very beautiful.
"Last night you transformed into a star that sparkled among the passing black clouds, and this afternoon you turned into a flower on the sidewalk, tomorrow morning who you will be, dear." Murmured the man in the white shirt behind the wheel of the newest car.
"Because, You are mine, whatever you are. You are still because of me." The man continued to mutter, his sharp eyes turned soft as he gazed at the beautiful face seductively.
Karenina and Yudi walked closer to the man's car, softly Karenina, who was always ringing in her ears, was now literally beside the steering window she was holding.
"Small hearts whisper to come back to her_" A song by Karenina was sung nicely by Karenina behind Yudi standing up.
Yudi held out the used tin to the man, then the window opened, two hundred thousand bills were lying in the tin can from the man, making Yudi repeatedly thank the giver. Karenina smiled briefly as a form of gratitude to the man who kept her secret and then went to another car that was still stuck in a traffic jam at a long queue of traffic lights.
"Sis, Alhamdulilah sis, we got a lot of money, just one hour of singing, and already got this much money." Yudi said with a big smile and sparkling eyes.
Karenina ruffled Yudi's thick hair. "Try to calculate how much, Yud." Karenina said she was happy to see Yudi's smile.
"Yes bro." Yudi said, who immediately poured out the entire contents of the used cans containing denominations ranging from five hundred rupiah to one hundred thousand nominal.
"All almost got eight hundred thousand kak, this can be used to buy shoes for my sister's school, and also pay for books at school, thank you Allah, thank you sis for helping Yudi, this is your brother's part." Yudi gave half of the money to Karenina, but she quickly refused.
"Just for you, I just want to help you out."
"Really, Sis?" Yudi asked, gawking.
Karenina nodded with a smile, stroking Yudi's head, how lucky he was from Yudi.
"What time are you coming home? It's almost sunset, you know." Karenina reprimanded Yudi.
"Just now, sis, but I want to buy food first at the shop, for my mother and sister. Do you want to stop by the house?"
"May?"
"You can, sis, you helped Yudi sing, this can make you eat the rest of the month sis."
Because only with a smile, eat a month? Karenina usually spends that kind of money just to buy one glass of vodka.
Karenina took a deep breath, then followed Yudi's steps towards a food stall, bought packaged rice with tuna and scrambled tempeh as well as kale vegetables, Yudi smiled when he received four packs of rice, then gave five to the mother who owns a shop.
"Come on, let's go home."
Karenina nodded and followed Yudi's steps along the sidewalk, then into a small, narrow and winding alley. Soon they arrived at a house with tiles. Yudi said his greetings and then a woman who was holding a small child came out of the door of the chawl.
"Yudi, don't you think you've come home, son?" Asked the mother to her son.
"Yes, I already got a lot of money so Yudi comes home, there is a test tomorrow so that tonight Yudi can study, ok yes, introduce this to Karenina who was helping Yudi singing, Yudi gets a lot of money."
"Oh yes," replied the mother happily.
"Son, Karenina, thank you for helping my child."
"You're welcome."
"Buk, this Yudi has bought four packs of rice, let's eat it." Invite Yudi.
"Alhamdulillah, come on in, son because we eat together." Said singing mother.
"Yes thank you."
Karenina enters a 4x6m tenement with a sore heart, even though Karenina is not a child from a conglomerate circle but is motivated by an employee in a factory who is able to provide them with a decent life and no shortage. Until when his father died he had to change into the backbone of the family by caring for his mother who was seriously ill.
The house that he bought with difficulty he sold for the treatment of his mother but still not enough, finally Karenina worked as a singer in several cafes and nightclubs for one of her friends.
"Sis, how come this is eating instead of daydreaming." Yudi scolds, which makes Karenina stuttered.
"Oh yes thank you." Because of the open rice packs that Yudi bought, who knows when was the last time he ate this food, as long as he worked in cafes and nightclubs what else after his mother died, Karenina never ate home-cooked food like that.
Her tears almost dripped but she could endure as much as possible, until a few minutes later she finished her food, then took out several hundred thousand bills and gave them to Yudi's mother.
"Nak Karen, this is too much, besides son Karen has helped Yudi sing, how come you still give money to all mothers, you don't need to be a child, this is just for the needs of Nak Karen." Ibu Yudi said because she was not happy about receiving help from Karenina.
"This is for my mother, I still have it, and tomorrow I will get paid, just accept it." Karenina's words suddenly made her mother cry because she was crying because of Karenina's heart.
"Thank you mom, I'll excuse me."
Karenina left Yudi's house after saying goodbye to Yudi and his mother. Karenina went back down the narrow alley to the big street that would take her to the food stall where she parked her car.
"Thank you, sir." Karenina said to the food stall parking attendant while giving thousands of money to the parking attendant who immediately smiled happily because Karenina did not want to accept the change.
Karenina drove her car into a busy street, to get rid of the silence she played her favorite song, her curved fingers took out a cigarette from the pack, then lit the cigarette then smoked it deliciously.
He did not realize that wherever he walked there were eyes that would always watch him. Before returning home he stopped at the orphanage, as he had just left the money at the door of the orphanage, then just left after confirming from a distance that the money had been received by the caretaker of the orphanage.