BRAK!
Finally, the door opened wide. There were liquor shards scattered about. Chia was sleeping with a disheveled appearance. Hands full of scratches, puffy eyes, torn clothes, and hair like it hasn't been maintained for days. Quickly, Lana tried to wake her up.
"Chia, wake up. Come with me, Lana. Your brownies have arrived."
"Chia, chia..."
There was no answer. He hugged Chia, while continuing to say her name.
Ten minutes later...
Chia woke up. Seeing the man in front of her, she immediately screamed.
"GO! GO! DON'T COME NEAR ME! I'M NOT YOUR APPETIZER! I DON'T DESERVE ANY OF THIS! GO!!!"
Chia roared, trying to break free from the man's embrace.
Lana sighed, "Hey, calm down, calm down. It's me, Lana."
Chia was still screaming. Lana kept stroking her head, hugging her as she said,
"Calm down, calm down... no problem... scream, let it all out... I'm here, you don't have to be afraid anymore... cup... cup... calm down, yes... We'll eat brownies together when you feel better."
Lana patiently faced the frightened Chia. Chia slowly stopped screaming. She accepted Lana's hug and cried on her shoulder. Then, Lana began to sing a snippet of her song Melukis Senja.
"I understand.
The journey of life that you are now on
I hope
Even though it's hard, you don't feel alone
You've fought
Conquering your uneasy days
Let me accompany you
Wash away your tiredness
Let me paint the sunset
Engrave your name there
Hearing you tell stories
Crying, laughing
Let me paint the night
Bring you the stars
'For your wounded friend
Until you are happy..."
It was a beautiful song. Chia hugged Lana tightly. Tears continued to fall down her cheeks.
"I...I don't deserve to live in the world anymore. I'm so despicable. People have the heart for me..." Chia said softly. Lana still did not let go of her hug. She didn't know what had happened, but it was certain that something very heavy had happened to Chia in her absence.
"Sorry, I came late."
"No, I'm not. I'm really grateful that Mas is here now. I just haven't had the energy to get up since last week."
Chia slowly told her story. Although her voice was soft with tears in between the stories, Lana could catch what she was saying. After hearing the story until the end, Lana's blood boiled. She wanted to go and beat that bastard up.
"Now where is he? I want to get back at him so that he'll get what he deserves!" said Lana in a fit of rage. Chia cried even more. She began to feel sorry for herself, feeling helpless. Lana finally took care of her until Chia's mother arrived.
"What's going on?" he asked.
Unable to explain, Chia immediately hugged her mother who had just returned home. She cried hysterically. Chia's mother was stunned, but also felt that something bad must have happened.
"Tell me, son. What's wrong?" Chia's mother shared her son's sadness.
"A man named Rio raped her at home when you left her." Lana said.
Mrs. Chia's eyes widened in shock. She couldn't believe what she had just heard.
"Is that true, Chia?"
But instead of answering, Chia cried even harder as she nodded her head. Her mother's heart ached, but she also felt like killing that person right now. After learning the truth, they decided to take a few days off. Chia received special treatment to recover mentally. Her mother contacted Komnas Perempuan to investigate the case. Because of the proposal to report to the police on this matter, the problem could have gotten worse and the case ended up unresolved.
Lana accompanied them both. She had finished her internship report quickly so that she could focus on this matter.
***
The search for Rio began after Chia's case was reported to Komnas Perempuan. It took a month to catch him, then he was handed over to the police and sentenced for his crimes. When she met Rio in court, Chia's mother went berserk.
"WHAT DID YOU DO TO MY SON, HUH? YOU SHAMELESS BEAST!"
His anger was unstoppable. Chia, who accidentally saw the face of the person who had done the despicable act to her, immediately trembled and screamed in fear. Her psychiatrist, Dr. Lisa, tried to calm them both down. This kind of incident is common. Victims issue a self-defense response in the form of screaming because they see a threat or an enemy who has attacked them.
Rio was sentenced to 3 months in prison. It does not seem fair. The perpetrator was only sentenced to a short jail term, while the victim had to endure a lifetime of trauma. But no matter, life in a prison cell would not go as smoothly as he imagined. Dozens of people tortured her for 3 months in the cell. Hopefully, he can repent after such unpleasant treatment.
***
She was absent from school for a month, in March to be precise. None of her classmates asked even one question about her whereabouts. The teacher had told them to visit her, but they remained silent. Meanwhile, Heri regularly visited Chia once a week. Even though she only chatted briefly, Chia already felt a little calm.
Lana also accompanied Chia after she finished her lecture. Her internship program was over, the report had also been accepted by the head of her department. Now, it was time for her to prepare to choose a thesis title.
Chia was happy to be surrounded by people who cared about her, even if just a little. The medication given to her by her psychiatrist also helped her to restart her activities.
"How are you, Chia? Are you feeling better?" Lana asked her.
"Not bad, hehe."
"Get well soon, my beautiful fairy. Here, I'll buy you some vanilla ice cream."
Lana gave her a cup of her favorite Vanilla ice cream. Chia smiled happily. After receiving it, Chia asked an unexpected question.
"Mas, can I just die?" she asked as she stuffed ice cream into her mouth.[]