New Resident Tradition
That night the atmosphere of the boarding house looked lively. They had a bonfire in the backyard which turned out to be quite spacious and comfortable. Plus the atmosphere of a clear night, there is not the slightest clump of clouds above. There are only thousands of stars ready to accompany their night.
Dozens of young people are busy with their respective duties. Jokes and typical young people's chatter made the atmosphere even more boisterous. Arwen who saw that of course was happy and forgot all the annoyance she had experienced since this afternoon. And now she was busy peeling onions with Lira and Jihan.
Banu, Levi, and Mark who had been busy preparing the grill made a fuss because they didn't know how to set it up. Finally, Jefri intervened. Meanwhile, Mira, Dinda, and Rosa were busy taking care of the fish they were going to grill. Mira was annoyed that the men were supposed to take care of this task.
"Never mind, Mir, there's no point in nagging, you'll be tired yourself," said Dinda, who was tired of hearing Mira's nagging since earlier.
Mira snorted harshly. "I'm annoyed Din. Just look at the men, relax and just wait to eat. We haven't eaten yet, we're tired."
"Come on, let's just say that you practice having a husband," said Rosa which made Mira purse her lips.
"I have a husband who doesn't want to help his wife, I will cut off his genitals!" Mira sliced the fish roughly with a knife. Dinda and Rosa who saw it immediately grimaced.
"You're scary, Mir. What if you and Banu don't have a baby?" But Mira even cut the fish even more roughly hearing Dinda's narrative.
Small fights make the atmosphere warmer. Arwen has started to get to know some of them, but some of them haven't, because some of the residents of the boarding house have not yet returned.
It was already eight o'clock in the evening, all the food was almost ready and neatly arranged on the mat. Other residents who had just returned began to join one by one until a complete of 18 people gathered there. They all sat on the mat.
Sulis, as the oldest member of this boarding house, is desperate to open an event that makes everyone glance at each other. Arwen who saw the other's strange behavior just looked at him confused and surprised.
"Good evening everyone. I am Sulis Pranomo, the host here. I would like to say a few words and introductions before entering the dining session. First of all..."
"Come on bro, straight to the point!" cut the handsome man sitting opposite. Arwen still doesn't know his name.
"This is also straight to the point."
"Your intro is too formal," said another.
"What's too formal. Everywhere if you open an event, that's how it should be!"
"Bro Sulis, please! This is a casual event, not a wedding. So get straight to the point, don't beat around the bush!"
And after arguing with each other for a few minutes. They handed the opening task to Tania. Sulis, who felt his duty was taken over, could only snort.
Tania opened the event casually and immediately introduced Arwen as the new boarding house occupant. The girl bowed shyly and immediately introduced herself, which was greeted boisterously by the other boarding house residents.
Arwen was delighted with this family-friendly welcome. They are all friendly and fun. It's rare to find a boarding friend who can be this solid. It's no wonder that Auntie's boarding house has never been quiet.
And now it was Sharon who took over to introduce another boarding house to Arwen. "Okay. Now I want to introduce you to Arwen. We start from the right. It was Lira, Mira, and Jihan. Study at the Antara University. Mira and Lira are majoring in informatics, while Jihan is majoring in mechanics." Arwen smiled and nodded because she already knew the three of them.
"Then, next to him are Mark, Levi, and Hafiz. Arwen has known them first, hasn't he this morning?" Arwen just nodded slowly while glancing at the three boys who were shouting excitedly while waving their hands.
"Then, on the other hand, this is Bro Sulis. He already works in a company near your school." Arwen replied to Sulis' nod who still looked sullen. His unique and funny behavior made Arwen smile herself.
"Beside him are Erlan, Regan, and Jefri. They also study at Antara University. I don't want to admit it, but the three of them are indeed the popular students on the campus. Jefri and Erlan are literature students."
"Then, next to him is Tora. He is also studying at Antara University. Tora is only on a different level, he majors in literature and is also a teaching assistant." Arwen smiled back at the man named Tora while nodding politely.
"Then this is Jais, have you met him? He's the same age as me. But we don't study at Antara University. We study at the Nusa Tungga University and we have the same major, namely dance."
The residents tease each other because it seems that they are currently dating.
"Then this is Banu and Rosa, they also study at Antara University. Rosa is a communication student. Banu is an engineering student. Now lastly there are Tania and Dinda. They are on the same campus as Jais and I, only in different batches. Tania is majoring in medicine while Dinda is majoring in literature."
"Well, Arwen is all the residents who live here. If you need something and want to ask, you can ask anyone. That's how they will help," said Mira.
Arwen smiled sweetly. "Thank you, Sis, I didn't expect it to be so friendly and open here."
Arwen's statement was of course met with a smile and warm applause. And the next event is eating. The men who had been starving for a long time snorted in annoyance that Mira forbade them to take any food. She emphasized that it must be divided fairly because of the large number. Mira was afraid that someone would not get it. But still, Mira's screams were finally ignored. Who can stop the hordes of starving skinny men?
Night's getting late. They were still so engrossed in chatting, joking, and telling stories that they forgot that it was almost midnight. Piles of dirty dishes were everywhere, not to mention the scattered garbage and also the yard that looked like a broken ship. But they were too tired to fix it. Even some of the girls fell asleep from exhaustion, some people had started to go into their respective rooms.
Arwen who felt bad because this party was made for her was now busy washing dozens of dirty dishes alone. Cleaning the yard could be done tomorrow, but Arwen didn't like the sight of dirty dishes still piling up like that.
"Do you need help?"
A man's baritone voice made Arwen nearly drop the plate she was holding. How not to be surprised, when the atmosphere was quiet then suddenly a voice appeared right behind her. Arwen turned and snorted in annoyance at the man who was smiling seductively at her. Jefri folded his arms in front of his chest while leaning his body on the dining table.
"No need. Please don't come like that!" Arwen snapped.
"You're the one who's too focused. Besides, you're diligent about washing the dishes at night. The others are already asleep."
"You know, if you wash dirty dishes tomorrow, it's getting harder to wash them because there's a lot of leftover food stuck to the plate. Besides, I also feel bad, this party was made to welcome me as a new resident."
"That's how it is here, everything is done together so you don't have to worry. It's an old tradition when there are new people."
"Yes, I understand. You didn't sleep?" Arwen turned to the man who was now standing beside her. Just standing around, but at least Arwen was happy to have someone to chat with.
"I'll be up in a minute."
The atmosphere was quiet again. Arwen continued to rinse the dishes while Jefri just stood there drinking a glass of water. For some reason, Arwen felt the man was watching her. Arwen could see that out of the corner of her eye. But the girl was indifferent.
But a second later Arwen felt her heart almost burst when she felt something touch the ends of her hair. Arwen almost turned her head, but Jefri held her back.
"What are you doing?" asked Arwen.
"Tie your hair."
Arwen's eyes widened in shock. The girl held her breath because she felt nervous and awkward.
"No need. I rarely tie my hair."
"Yeah, but I don't like seeing you holding your hair while washing the dishes. So let me do this!"
Arwen just froze in place, trying to contain her uncontrollable heartbeat. Especially when Jefri's cold fingers touched the skin of her neck.
It's not that Arwen has never been treated sweetly by boys, Jefri is the second guy after Juna who dares to touch her hair. Arwen could feel her hair being pulled back slowly and then Jefri tucking her chopsticks in between. What girl wouldn't be flattered to be treated like this?
"Okay, done!"
Jefri immediately turned Arwen's body slightly so that she was slightly facing him. As if checking that the result must be pretty. Arwen just obeyed, she could see the smile of the man in front of her that made their eyes finally meet. For five seconds the two pairs of eyes did not move until they both looked at each other. Jefri then rubbed the back of his neck slowly.
"Okay, then I'll go up now," said Jefri finally.
Arwen nodded. "Okay, thanks for the free salon."
"Don't be late, you have school tomorrow." Jefri pointed to the clock on the wall. Arwen just nodded and let the man pass. Arwen immediately exhaled the breath she had been holding.
Huh... What kind of atmosphere is this? Very awkward.
"Arwen"
Arwen turned her head again and found Jefri still standing in the doorway.
"Is there anything left?"
"Don't think about it. You might fall in love with me soon."
Arwen who initially smiled sweetly immediately put on a cold face. She wanted to throw the plate at Jefri. But unfortunately, the man just disappeared without waiting for a comment from Arwen. The feeling that was initially swayed with pleasure instantly vanished.
Yeah. No need to be fascinated by a guy who likes to tease like Jefri. Arwen went back to rinsing the dishes with an annoyed face.
"Irritating!"