"Who are you looking for?"
Arwen jumped in surprise, then pulled her hand that had been groping the fence in front of a big house. A tall and handsome man was standing behind her with his hands in his trouser pockets. From his appearance, he looked like a college student.
"Uh, sorry. I was looking for the fence bell, why isn't it there?"
The man narrowed his eyes, then examined every inch of the girl in front of him. Arwen, who felt she was being watched, was a little embarrassed, especially when she was only wearing a loose t-shirt and training pants. Plus worn shoes that are only worn carelessly. The man then glanced at the large suitcase she was carrying. Maybe he thought this girl had run away from home, especially when it was quite late.
"Oh, you're the new resident?"
"Right. By the way, do you live here?"
The man nodded as his hand pushed open the wooden door.
"Please come in!"
The first things Arwen saw were the grounds and gardens, which weren't very big, but looked very neat and clean. Behind stood a large white house with a fairly wide terrace. This was the new boarding house she was going to live in now.
It's been more than a week since Arwen is confused about finding a new boarding house or renting one near her school. The reason is the boarding house that she previously occupied often happened strange things that bothered her. Then suddenly Aunt Rani, her mother's sister, recommended occupying one of the rooms in her boarding house.
At first, Arwen had doubts because this boarding house contained college students, while she was still in high school. But because there was no other choice, Arwen finally accepted the offer. And she is willing to move at night to get away from her old boarding house.
"Are you living here too?" Arwen studied the man beside her. With a model and look like that, he's sure many have a crush.
The man nodded. "My name is Erlan."
"Erlan, have you been here long?"
"It's been 2 years. How did you know this dorm?"
"From aunt Rani."
"Auntie? You mean Aunt Rani's niece?" Erlan asked while confirming that the mention of the aunt was not just a nickname. Arwen nodded firmly.
"Very beautiful!"
"Hey, Erlan! Why is it taking so long?"
Suddenly there was a loud voice of a man standing on the terrace of the house. The man immediately met two people who were still in the yard.
"Noisy!" Erlan said.
"Where's my chicken noodle order?" said the man, still not aware that there was someone else next to Erlan.
"What chicken noodles?"
"Please.. Don't pretend. I already messaged you."
"The shop is closed!"
"Huh, then why didn't you tell me?"
"Better look at the phone first, I've sent a message but you're the one not reading."
The gray-haired man immediately checked his cellphone. Sure enough, because he was engrossed in playing the game, he didn't see a message from Erlan. He groaned as he rubbed his emaciated stomach.
"Shit, I'm so hungry."
"Isn't there instant noodles at home?"
"Mira is stingy. She won't let me eat!" he grumbled. Only then did he realize that Arwen had been there all along. His eyes bulged almost out at the sight of a beautiful foreign figure. He studied Arwen carefully then glanced at the suitcase he was carrying.
"You took a girl away?"
Erlan hit him on the head. "Watch your mouth! This... Uh, what's your name?"
For a moment Erlan forgot that they had not officially met before.
"Arwen."
"Yes Arwen, the new boarding house girl."
"Serious?" The man glared back while rubbing his palms against the shirt. "I'm Banu, the most handsome man in this house."
Arwen welcomed the outstretched hand of the man named Banu with a wry smile. It seemed that he would meet various human characters in this house.
*****
"Arwen!"
A girl's voice was shrill from the entrance. A beautiful girl with long black hair immediately ran towards Arwen. Of course, Arwen knew who it was.
"Mira?"
"Why didn't you tell me you were moving now?" she said after her arm was released.
"Yes, because I was in a hurry."
"How do you know Mir?" Banu said.
"Yeah, she's my cousin. Aunt Rani's niece. Watch out if you mess up," said Mira, raising her fist right in front of Banu's face.
"Pretty sweet."
"Of course. Bring Arwen's suitcase, please!"
Arwen then followed Mira into the house, followed by Erlan and Banu who grumbled while pulling Arwen's suitcase. The first sight that Arwen saw was a green-brown painted living room with natural nuances, looking shady and very comfortable. Plus there are several potted plants in it, making the air in the room cool and not hot.
Then next to it there is a lounge without a partition. Big televisions, as well as various kinds of PlayStation, are seen there. Two men seemed busy playing the instrument.
Mira then pulled Arwen into another room which turned out to be the kitchen. Arwen gasped when she saw the neat and clean kitchen which could be said to be spacious with the same feel as the living room. A long and large dining table is located next to the pantry. This offset the number of residents in this house which is quite a lot.
"Sit Wen!"
Arwen pulled up one of the chairs in front of the kitchen table. It's good to hang out here. Mira also sat next to her, while Erlan who followed him went straight to the fridge and poured water into a glass. He drank it quickly.
"What would you like to drink?" he asked Arwen.
"Just plain water."
Erlan nodded and immediately placed a large glass of water in front of the girl.
"Why don't you come with Regan and Jefri?" Mira followed Erlan who was still standing in front of the refrigerator. His hands are now busy looking for snacks, then takes out a basket of fruit and takes an apple.
"No. Jefri is playing at his friend's house when Regan is dating. I'll go upstairs first," he continued, which was immediately greeted by Mira's nod.
"How many people live here? It's very crowded."
"Eighteen."
"Huh... that much?"
"You haven't seen all of them yet. Just look at people like Banu, just one like that, just imagine there are five."
Arwen immediately laughed while imagining how messy it would be if they all got together. Banu who heard the conversation suddenly stuck his head in the door and immediately interrupted Mira asking for instant noodles.
Mira glared. "What's the matter, just annoying! You know, our supply of instant noodles is running low because you all don't use your brains when you eat."
"Huh... I eat with my mouth, not with my brain."
"Up to you!"
After arguing with each other for five minutes, Mira finally gave in and threw the kitchen cupboard keys at Banu. Which immediately made the man dance happily with two other men who had just entered the kitchen.
One of them is a tall man playing Play station, his name is Levi. His face is cute, but his child is narcissistic. Even the level of narcissism is worse than Banu. When he saw Arwen, he had already given him a temptation that made her nauseous. And it turns out that they are both still in high school.
The other man looked more mature than all the men in the room. He is calm and doesn't talk much. His face was ordinary, but a different aura made him look charismatic and respected. His name is Jais, one of the occupants of this boarding house who has survived for a long time. He greeted Arwen in a friendly and courteous manner.
After getting acquainted with some of the boarding house residents, Mira immediately ordered Arwen to go up to her room after the girl finished eating a bowl of instant noodles with broken eggs made by Banu.
"You better rest now, school tomorrow. You don't need to be awkward or embarrassed because there are many students in this boarding school. Besides Levi, there are still Hafiz and Mark who are in school."
"Yes, thank you. By the way, what's my room number?"
"Number 13."
Arwen immediately snorted. "Not here, not there, always getting unlucky numbers."
"It's just a number, Wen. There's nothing weird like that here because there's already something weirder than ghosts." Mira chimed in while glancing at Banu and Levi who were busy fighting just because of the broken egg.
"Hahaha... That's right."
A few minutes later Arwen was standing in front of her room which was on the second floor. Finally, she got there after dozens of times turning down Levi's offer to take her upstairs. She glanced briefly at the rooms next to her, a total of ten rooms were on the second floor. Arwen is indifferent, she is annoyed why she has to get room number 13. Hopefully, there will be no strange things, because this number usually brings bad luck.
"New resident?"
Arwen squealed softly until her room key fell. She turned her head and found a male voice directly behind her. A tall, tan-skinned man with a very sweet face. He smiled as he grabbed Arwen's key which had fallen and opened the door at the same time.
"Uh, thanks." Arwen bowed slightly, while the man just smiled, then disappeared behind the door that was right in front of Arwen's room. Turns out their rooms are opposite.
Arwen just shrugged her shoulders and went straight to his room. The girl was now amazed to see her room, quite spacious and comfortable. There are already so many ideas in her head to decorate the room according to her style. But maybe it will be done tomorrow because now she is too tired.