Back to School

Ken woke up in the afternoon. He was shocked to find himself still in Rose's room. In his dream, he felt he had returned to his dorm room and found Citra sleeping on their bed.

With a heavy heart, Ken reached for his phone under the pillow, trying once again to call Citra's number. It might have been the thousandth attempt.

"You sleep like a cow," joked Rose, placing a cup of hot coffee on the table for Ken. "Drink it, so you can think clearly."

Ken sat up from the bed and moved to the sofa next to Rose. The girl sat in silence for a moment before finally taking a slow sip of her coffee.

"Who is Citra?"

SPLAT...

Ken spat the coffee out of his mouth. The girl quickly put down her cup and hurriedly grabbed a tissue to wipe his mouth. Then, just as quickly, she stood up, rushed to put on her jacket that lay at the edge of the bed, and said goodbye to Rose.

But the girl grabbed his hand, "I don't care about your past. I'm just asking!"

Ken shook his head, "It's not important! I'm grateful for the wonderful night, but I have to go."

"Are you not interested in me?" Rose's beautiful eyes looked sad. "Ken, I feel... I'm really interested in you. That's why I'm a bit disappointed when you mention another girl's name..."

Ken sighed, "She's my girlfriend. My beloved girl. But she left me for another man."

"A man? She's a straight girl?"

"The guy is her ex-boyfriend. I can't compete with true love. Besides, the guy is handsome, rich, and famous. An actor!"

"An actor?"

"Damar, the star of the movie 'Love in the Flower Garden!'"

"Oh, he is indeed very handsome. Unfortunately, I'm not interested in men."

"Why?"

WHY.

Yes, why? That question only arose after their passionate struggle the night before. Without love, without asking each other’s details. Purely driven by uncontrollable lust. Whether it was because of Ken's sadness over losing Citra, or because of the thrill of adventure with Rose.

They ended up sitting on the floor, leaning against the wall, casually smoking with their own thoughts.

Rose began to tell him that she used to be normal. She had a handsome boyfriend who was a member of a motorcycle gang. They had been together since middle school, coincidentally at the same school. The guy was named Mark, someone who made her lose her virginity at thirteen. Rose had even gotten pregnant, then had three abortions. Because it was impossible to expect responsibility from a drunken teenager who only thought about racing.

"I dropped out of school. Mark did too. We stayed together until he got bored with me. What a jerk," Rose lamented coldly, the smoke from her cigarette swirling chaotically around her face.

Ken glanced at her, "Since then, do you like women?"

"Not really. Actually, I'm just addicted to 'that.' Just because I was afraid of getting pregnant again, I tried with women. It was quite alright. My desires were satisfied. But with you last night, I was really smitten. You are different! You really are like a man."

"How old are you now?"

"Twenty-five. You?"

"Seventeen. I'm a college student. And you?"

"I work in a restaurant as a waitress."

Ken smiled at Rose; he liked her relaxed way of handling problems. Maybe she wasn't as beautiful as Citra, but her personality made Ken feel very comfortable.

"Don't feel burdened by this relationship. You can come anytime. I know you need entertainment, and I certainly need an outlet," Rose said, gently kissing Ken's lips.

\*\*\*

Mrs. Hasnah, the Guidance Counselor, looked at Citra who was sitting and crying in front of her. She hadn't been to school for a week and suddenly begged to be "kept."

"I’m a broken home kid. Living alone, uncared for. Dad remarried and has affairs here and there. Then Mom suddenly got married again for the third time yesterday. I'm stressed, Ma'am. I wanted to kill myself at first, but then I just ended up sick for days," Citra said, trying to concoct a story.

Mrs. Hasnah wiped her tears with a tissue, "All this time, you've been a good kid. I had no idea your life was that sad..."

Everything became so easy. Citra could return to her class, studying as usual, even receiving overflowing affection from her teachers and classmates, who believed in the story she made up as she pleased.

"When you were sick, who took care of you, Ken?" asked her classmates.

Citra quickly shook her head, "We don’t live together anymore. We’ve gone back to our own houses."

"Why?"

"Just the usual, parents want us not to wander around all the time. I think living without parental supervision can be dangerous too."

"What happened?"

"Ken went out with his club, I was busy watching my boyfriend shoot."

"Shooting? Are you back together with that Damar movie star, huh..."

Citra smiled, feeling relieved that her story was starting to sync up. At least she felt she wasn't really lying.

"But don't tell anyone, okay? It might turn into big gossip; we want to keep our relationship quiet."

"Wow, that's good."

"Just learning from our past cases. If too many people know and spread it, the relationship ends up breaking."

"Could it be that you got better because of Damar?"

"Of course. Who else?"

"You got so depressed when you found out your mom was marrying for the third time?"

"Yes."

"To the point of wanting to kill yourself?"

"Yes, ugh... My mind was a mess at that time."

"Yeah, it’s understandable. Besides, your mom keeps marrying. You should be patient..."