Chapter 23: Chapter 23
Food Distribution at the Village Hall
After showering and changing, they both left the house again and walked towards the village hall. They saw many people queuing up for food, which was being distributed by staff in humanitarian volunteer uniforms.
"Should we... join the queue?" Nadia asked.
"Yeah, let's get in line. I want to see what kind of food they're giving out," Irwan said.
They immediately took a spot at the very back of the line. Some villagers passing by or standing in front or behind them greeted them with "good morning." Of course, Irwan and Nadia returned their greetings, but after that, the villagers went back to happily chatting with their partners, ignoring their surroundings. For Irwan and Nadia, this was actually good, as it allowed them to avoid unnecessary conversations with the villagers.
Irwan and Nadia moved forward step by step with the queue, their eyes darting around, looking for anyone they knew. After a few minutes, they finally reached the front of the line. A plump woman wearing a volunteer uniform and a mask stared at them from behind the table. She looked Irwan and Nadia up and down, then up again, making them a little nervous.
"Oh, you're not pregnant yet, dear?" the woman asked Nadia.
"N-no, ma'am, not yet," Nadia stammered.
"Come on, work harder! Don't just let your wife sit idle at home," the woman said to Irwan, patting his upper arm.
"Of course, ma'am... of course, don't worry," Irwan said, forcing a smile.
"Here, I'll give you some food to help with pregnancy," the woman said, putting several vegetables like bean sprouts, spinach, water spinach, broccoli, avocado, and cabbage into a red plastic bag.
She also added pieces of beef and chicken that looked very fresh. After that, she bent down to pick up a five-kilogram sack of rice and placed it on the table.
"Here you go, please," the woman said to Irwan and Nadia.
"Y-yes, ma'am, thank you," Irwan replied, lifting the sack of rice.
Nadia took the plastic bag filled with a substantial amount of vegetables and meat, then carried it. But as they turned to leave,
"Oh, wait, you forgot this," the woman said, placing a red plastic bag containing several bottles of mineral water on the table.
"Oh, right, ma'am, thank you!" Irwan replied, taking the bag.
They finally left, and the woman served the villagers right behind them. As they walked, they kept looking around for any signs of Brian and Riana or for Felix and Lusi, whom they knew. But they found nothing along the way, so they eventually walked back to their house.
"There's no one we can ask, and no signs of Brian and Riana either," Irwan mumbled.
"Yeah, let's just go home first. I can cook you something," Nadia said.
"No need. We have food, sure, but somehow I don't trust the food we just got," Irwan said, looking at the rice sack he was carrying.
"It's true, though. These vegetables are for people trying to conceive. I can't get pregnant, so I guess it's fine for us to eat this," Nadia reasoned.
"Just stop, let's discuss our next steps first. Don't keep thinking about food," Irwan replied.
"Okay, okay, sorry," Nadia said.
"Oh, you two already got food?"
Hearing a man's voice behind them, Irwan and Nadia immediately stopped and turned around. They saw Felix standing behind them, with his arm around Lusi. Irwan and Nadia's eyes went to Lusi's stomach, which looked normal and not pregnant, but Lusi's face showed deep sadness.
"Well, what a coincidence running into you two," Irwan said.
"Um... Lusi, what's wrong?" Nadia asked.
Felix and Lusi's pale faces turned slightly sad. They immediately hugged each other.
"We lost our baby, a week ago. Lusi miscarried again. This is the second time," Felix said.
"I'm sorry, honey," Lusi said, looking sad.
"It's not your fault, honey," Felix replied.
They hugged in front of Irwan and Nadia, who were stunned and speechless, their expressions blank, because they already knew what had actually happened to their two friends. After that, Felix turned back to Irwan and Nadia, talking with Lusi. Felix pulled Irwan aside, away from Nadia and Lusi.
"Where have you been this past year, Wan?" Felix asked.
"Huh... didn't we just meet yesterday?" Irwan asked.
"We haven't seen each other for a year, you know," Felix replied.
"Oh, really?" Irwan said.
"Two months ago, I met Brian and Riana. They were looking for you and Nadia. Then I never saw them again," Felix continued.
"Huh... two months ago?" Irwan asked, surprised.
"Yeah, they said you and Nadia went home after being at their place, but the next day, when they went to your house, your place was empty. They immediately looked for you, even came to my house a year ago," Felix explained.
Irwan fell silent and thought. For him and Nadia, meeting Brian and Riana had just happened yesterday. They had also met Felix and Lusi, who was heavily pregnant, two days before that.
"Hey, why are you quiet?" Felix asked.
"Uh... oh... nothing," Irwan said, startled.
"Anyway, I'm going to take Lusi to the village hall first. She's still sad about losing our baby for the second time. Maybe Lusi and I will stop trying for a while, at least until Lusi calms down," Felix said.
"Y-yeah, I get it. I'm so sorry for your loss," Irwan said.
"Thanks, Wan. You're a good friend," Felix replied with a smile, patting Irwan's shoulder.
After that, they rejoined Nadia and Lusi, then said their goodbyes. Irwan walked beside Nadia towards their house, while Felix, with his arm around Lusi, walked towards the village hall in the opposite direction. After they had walked a little distance,
"Brian and Riana looked for us two months ago, according to Felix. And when we went home from their place, the next day they came to our place and then immediately went to Felix's place looking for us. That happened a year ago," Irwan said.
"Hmm, I see. Lusi also just told me an interesting story. She lost her baby two months ago and met Riana. According to Lusi, when they met, she noticed Riana was in her early pregnancy, which made Lusi a bit jealous because she had just lost her own baby," Nadia added.
Stop! Irwan stopped walking and turned to look at Nadia, who also stopped and was staring at him.
"Seriously? Riana's pregnant?" Irwan asked.
"I don't know for sure, but Lusi said so. Lusi even told me she felt annoyed seeing Riana, who seemed to be deliberately flaunting her pregnancy, right in front of Lusi, who had just lost her child," Nadia replied.
"Wait a minute, didn't Brian say he had a vasectomy? How could Riana be pregnant?" Irwan asked, confused.
"Exactly! That's why Lusi's story is interesting. We don't know the truth, but I'm sure of one thing," Nadia said.
"What's that?" Irwan asked.
"From the two places we visited, either Lina's cave or the school building where we slept last night, one of those two places can speed up time if we're there. What do you think?" Nadia replied, then asked again.
"Hmm, you're right. Being there last night meant a year passed in the village. (He thought) Okay, for now, let's study everything in and around this village. Let's not rush and panic like yesterday," Irwan mumbled.
"Okay, let's go home. I want to cook," Nadia said cheerfully.
"Why are you so cheerful? We haven't found Brian and Riana," Irwan asked.
"Well, at least we're not alone, right? I have you," Nadia replied cheerfully.
"But... you still want to get out of this place, right?" Irwan asked.
"Of course, together with you," Nadia said.
"Hmm, okay. At least we're in the same boat," Irwan replied.
They both resumed walking towards their house. As they walked, Irwan glanced at Nadia, who seemed cheerful and carefree, walking beside him.
"Just yesterday she looked so terrified. What's really going on with her ?" Irwan wondered to himself.