"Why are you smiling like that?"
I gasped and quickly turned to Mother who was sitting across from me. Touching my cheek which was a bit perhaps from smiling so much without realizing it, I asked, "Am I really smiling all the time?" She nodded. No wonder my cheeks felt stiff for some reason.
"Did something interesting happen?" She asked again. This time she looked at me seductively as she passed some side dishes onto my plate.
"Not really, but I am happy that my worries were wrong. I thought there would be another missing person, but there wasn't."
"Missing? You mean the abstinence of people who go out at night?" Mother's eyes looked like she was assessing me. It was a bit cold. If I weren't her child, I would have cried out in fear, just like the other children who used to pass in front of the house.
Don't they know that behind those sharp eyes, Mother is a warm person? In fact, they love it when Mother gives them cookies.
"Yes. Even though it's said to be taboo, I don't believe it. But if you go out at night, you're afraid that wild animals from the forest will come to the village, right? People could go missing because of that, right?"
There was a long pause from Mother. She didn't eat her food and just silently looked at me. Her hand moved to put down the glass she was holding. "When you picked up the missing person five years ago, did you see any wild animals in the forest?"
I didn't shake my head or nod in response. "Unfortunately, I've forgotten. It's an old incident, Mother. People always bring it up, even though I don't remember it at all. Seeing that I made it home, that's a sign."
I stuffed the dried meat into my mouth. Hearing no answer from Mother, she seemed to accept my answer.
Even though people said I was the one who managed to find the missing person, he could have gone missing because he got lost in the forest at night, not because of those nonsense rumors. After all, the forest would be very dark and confusing, even for the villagers themselves.
No one could memorize the ins and outs of the forest well. Especially in the absence of any light. It was no wonder that they would disappear as they circled around the same place, or even walked farther than the hamlet.
Then, I myself also never disappeared despite always being the last to enter the house. The villagers exaggerated the problems and taboos.
"You can't help it if you've forgotten. Maybe it's the best for now."
Her words made me wonder what the meaning behind them was. However, seeing her not explain further made me undo my intention and choose to enjoy dinner today.
The rest of the conversation was mere pleasantries. Even though I only live alone and it's never as crowded as other people's homes, I'm always grateful. At least I'm not alone. There was someone waiting for me to come home and eat together.
For Mother, who had lost her husband, of course, living alone as a mother and raising me would be difficult. That's why I don't want to trouble her and will always obey everything she says.
***
"They say that today there is a guest from another hamlet who wants to propose to Danastri."
My body stiffened after hearing that. I turned my head quickly when I heard such a sentence from the group of women who were weaving rattan. Because of the sudden speech, I doubted my ears.
"It looks like Danastri will be rejected again. It's a pity, even though the village chief's son came too."
It seems to be not wrong. Danastri's prediction that someone would come to propose to her really happened. I've heard that a woman's intuition is always on target and only a few times it doesn't match.
The minds of women are like master archers who can always hit their prey. In fact, even my mother often found me when I was hiding or lying as a child.
What haunts my mind even more now is the fate of Mahesa. What's going through his mind when he finds out that someone else is coming to propose to his girlfriend? He must not be able to calmly look after his sheep. Mahesa would also not be able to enjoy Mother's special lemper even if I brought it to him.
"Chandra just put the rattan here!"
I snapped out of my reverie. Quickly, I placed the rattan that I had tied around my back on the floor where the others were. We chatted for a while, just small talk and it wasn't about Danastri being courted by someone else, but just how the forest was this morning.
I excused myself after finishing all of today's tasks. Instead of returning home, I decided to search the fields where Mahesa used to be, walking down the path and following the small stream that led me to a familiar place.
The wind blew faster when the trees were no longer around. The buffalo with a white patch on its left thigh was the first to greet me. His quacking sound was heard when our eyes met.
"Hello, Madam!" I greeted, patting the large female buffalo on the back as I walked past her.
The presence of Nyonya meant Mahesa was here. Behind Madam's back, I could see Mahesa relaxing under a tree. Her head was bowed and her gaze was focused on what she was doing with her hands.
"Mahesa!" a shout rang out, causing the owner of the name to raise her head. His eyes flicked to me briefly, then searched for who had shouted his name. I also turned my head and searched, then found one of the Dusun youths who ran towards Mahesa.
I moved quickly like a rabbit over the mounds of weeds to approach Mahesa and the young man. Seeing his face full of sweat and labored breathing made me wonder what news he was carrying.
"What's wrong, why are you panicking?" I asked. Mahesa also repeatedly turned to me and the young man. I hoped he didn't bring bad news like Danastri accepting the stranger's proposal.
"Danastri is missing!"
"What?!" I was the one who shouted, not Mahesa.
Mahesa just stood up quickly, making the wood chips in his lap fall down. Although he didn't cry out in panic like me, he still looked surprised. There was a sudden concern in his eyes, like a farmer who knows that a swarm of rats is attacking his barn.
The young man with the news nodded quickly. "Yes. Someone came to visit her. Danastri and her father had a big fight, then Danastri ran to the pedestal. Her brother went to look for her, but he lost track of her."
Mahesa and I exchanged glances, then nodded together. Without saying a word, I already knew that what he would do after this was to go looking for Danastri. No one wanted to lose that girl.
Danastri's emotions must be in turmoil right now. She had repeatedly rejected the proposals that came. Her head was as hard as a rock. No matter if hundreds of men came to propose to her if it wasn't Mahesa, Danastri would reject it.
Unfortunately, the hamlet chief's head is harder. If Danastri rejected hundreds of men, then the Hamlet Chief would bring a thousand men until Danastri accepted.
"Mahesa!"
Again there was another person looking for Mahesa's figure. The voice was different from before. This time the one who was looking for Mahesa was a small young man with a loud voice.
It was none other than Mahesa's younger brother, Arsa. He ran by waving his hand at us as if he was attracting attention by bringing bigger news.