The next day, Indah tried once again to start a class discussion regarding the culture festival. She informed us about the rundown of the event discussed with the student council yesterday. There has yet been a fixed theme for our class, and the conclusion of the discussion was not much different than before: We couldn't reach a unanimous voice on the matter.
Frustrated by the passive stance of our class, Indah complained to me, "Argh! Where's democracy!? Do they seriously expect me to decide for them!?"
Since I had told her about my future circumstances regarding the event, she didn't expect me to participate in the class project. That being said, all I could do was listen to her rant and pity her.
To further worsen the situation, the mood in our class also seemed to be a bit sour. To tell the truth, I wouldn't have noticed it if Indah didn't inform me. Out of nowhere, she spoke to me, "Y'know, it seems that Shakira and Laras are on bad terms lately."
"Yeah? I was there when they argued."
"No, not that. They did argue that one time, but their relationship didn't get better."
"Is this from one of your gossip circles?"
Despite my attempt to tease her, she was not amused by it and sighed instead. "As I said, you don't have to put it like that..."
I didn't have the slightest hint as to why she would tell me that information. I mean, the people she mentioned didn't go out of their way to tell me their problems, hence I had no say in the matter. Perhaps Indah just wanted to relieve some stress of being a class representative by talking to me.
Though I couldn't refute that she had sparked some interest in me. Maybe I could score some extra social credits by trying to help one of them. Luckily, the current subject of Physical Education class was volleyball. Normally, I would pair up with Kevin, and he would give me an offer whenever the teacher instructed us to practice in pairings. But this time, before he even had the chance to do so, I went my way towards Shakira and spoke, "Hey. Wanna pair up with me?"
It was kind of unexpected of me to ask her out, so she and her friends around her, including Laras, seemed a bit flustered. Fortunately, she didn't turn it down, and we proceeded to practice volleyball.
Still a bit confused by my abnormal conduct, Shakira asked while serving the volleyball to me, "You're weird today. Why did you want to pair up with me?"
"No reason," I said while anticipating the incoming ball. When the ball was coming closer, I put my hands together, and practically we were passing balls along with words. "You've been hanging out on my desk for a while."
"Do you mind?"
"Not at all. I mean, you usually hang out with Laras."
Shakira went mute after I said that, so I continued, "You guys in a fight or something?"
"Well..." She was about to say something, but her voice gradually diminished. I couldn't tell whether she was in the process of constructing words inside her mind or debating whether she wanted to tell me or not, until she said, "Nothing happened."
"I see. That's a relief."
As soon as I said that, as if it was a curse, a stray volleyball was caught in my line of sight and hurled at Shakira. I rushed towards her as I ditched the ball in my possession. Since we were only 3 meters apart, I managed to deflect the stray ball in the nick of time. As a result, the ball changed trajectory and hit one of my classmates.
I apologized to the unlucky victim in my heart and turned toward Shakira. "Are you hurt?"
She seemed to be taken aback for a bit, though it wasn't long until she regained her composure. "Eh? Ah, I'm fine."
I switched my gaze towards the initial point of the stray ball, hoping that I would find the one responsible. The person that approached us, unexpectedly yet at the same time was expected, was Laras.
While giggling, she clapped her hands together in front of us and said, "Sorry~ that was an accident!"
I could give Laras a cold look, but I was more concerned about Shakira. So I glanced at her and a smile could be seen on her face. Yet, somehow, I got the feeling that it was forced instead of genuine. "I'm fine, thanks to Uril."
"Wow, Uril. Such a gentleman. Shakira's so lucky." Laras said with a bit of a mocking tone.
"You should be careful." I reminded her while letting out a faint trace of coldness in my voice.
Laras rolled her eyes after I said those words and returned to her practice partner. The situation diffused as soon as she left us, but when I looked back at Shakira, she seemed a bit melancholic. I was about to ask about her condition, but she was one step ahead by urging me, "Let's continue the practice."
****
As soon as the teacher left our class and the schedule shifted to a recess, Indah went towards the teacher's desk and shouted, promptly alerting the class residents of particularly important news. "After discussions with the student council and other classes, it's decided that our class theme will be Betawi culture for the festival."
As a matter of fact, a decision for our class was never made; At least that's what Indah told me. However, for a perfectionist like Indah, the indecisiveness of our class in specifying a theme has put her nerve at the limit. More than a week had passed since the initial announcement. She feared that preparations will be overdue if the concrete theme for our class has yet been defined, so she resorted to making a one-sided decision. As a person who also prefers planning, I support her authoritative act.
It was such a blessing that no one in our class objected to it. Perhaps everyone has resigned their fate to Indah in this event because they all chose to use their rights to stay silent.
Now that the class had passed by one hurdle, the next ones would surely be easier to do. The only thing left to be done is to decorate the class based on the theme and decide what kind of performance will be done. Once the decision is made, all that is needed is to practice it.
Indah leaned with both of her hands on the teacher's desk, supporting her body. She then went on to gauge a discussion in the classroom. "If anyone has a suggestion, please raise your hand."
I rotated my head to observe the face of my classmates, waiting for someone to speak of something. Several other classmates were also doing the same thing as me.
I felt a bit complicated about how to approach this. I was already bound by the handicraft club to do preparations for the festival, resulting in me having less time to help out my class. However, at the same time, the desire to help Indah welled inside me.
Another problem that might arise would be that if I were to volunteer once again like in the Independence Day event, a social loafing effect would take place. A one-time display might be effective for baiting responses, but a repeating occurrence, I'm afraid, will produce the opposite effect.
Unsure of how I should act, I turned my face to Indah and saw her slipping away a small sigh.
'Aaah, to hell with everyone. I don't care anymore.' I muttered in my mind as I raised my hand.
"I can help with decorations."
Indah widened her eyes in disbelief at my declaration, seemingly not expecting me to say anything. "But you said you'll be decorating the school...?"
"I think I can allocate some time to help out. However," I paused my speech to add some importance. I rotated my head to look at my classmates, then continued, "I'm not familiar with Betawi culture. So I need everyone's cooperation in this."
I've thrown the bait. Now all I need is to wait for the fish to take it. Hopefully, by giving them a sense of being needed, it would move their heart to be proactive in this.
It wasn't a lie that I don't know much about Betawi culture despite living in Jakarta. We were taught about the variety of cultures in Indonesia since elementary school, and it wasn't enough to get into details. Given that we have hundreds of different cultures, can anyone expect somebody to know the nitty-gritty of a certain culture?
My expectations were fulfilled when a fish named Chandra voluntarily took the bait. "I can make an infographic about it." He said as he coolly adjusted his spectacles.
'Way to go, four-eyes.' I mumbled inwardly while giving him a thumbs up.
"I'm a Betawi. I can help with that!" Another classmate said with an accent.
Indah's eyes sparkled when the discussion started to get lively. Her right hand danced on the whiteboard, recording things that were being spoken inside the classroom.
As the bell that marked the end of recess rang, Indah made a concluding statement to postpone the meeting. "Thank you, everyone! We have cleared some things now. Once the research by Chandra and others is done, I hope that we can move on to determining the performance and the decoration."
Indah threw a punch into the air with her fist after she made the statement and spoke with a rediscovered vigor. "Keep up the spirit!"
Sasa, Kevin, Shakira, and I mimicked her gesture and shouted at the same time. "Spirit!"
While the other classmates didn't share the same passion, at least we were going forward in the right direction.