Rajata looked back, following Kalyana’s eyes. Rajata’s gaze met the torso wearing a suit.
A burly hand squeezed Rajata’s shoulder. “Hi,” said the owner of the hand.
Rajata looks on. Armand seemed to be smiling. “Hi,” replied Rajata, smiling awkwardly.
“Discussing plans for an art exhibition?” asked Armand.
“Art exhibition? No, I think.”
Armand’s smile slowly faded. “As expected,” he said.
“Armand …,” argued Kalyana.
“So what are you for Kalyana?” asked Armand to Rajata, ignoring Kalyana’s words, “her boyfriend?”
“I’m not!” Rajata stammered, “we are just friends!”
Armand grabbed Rajata by the collar and pulled him until Rajata stood up. “A friend who can make Kalyana stop talking to me, huh?” he snapped.
“Armand!” Kalyana snapped, standing up as well.
Armand’s hands were clenched into fists, ready to punch Rajata.
Rajata could see Armand’s fist sliding closer. He raised his hand trying to protect his
Rajata woke up quite late that weekend. Still half asleep, his eyes stumbled to the magazine on the study table. For fun, he took the book and then lay back on the bed and read the main article.The main discussion for the month was on ongoing research at CERN.‘Counsel Européen pour la Recherche Nucléaire, CERN, a multinational organization in Geneva, Switzerland engaged in nuclear-physics. CERN has a device called the Large Hadron Collider, LHC, which is useful for crashing atomic particles at very high speeds. Every time two objects collide, whether a car or an electron, various materials will appear, and the materials produced by the LHC are useful in various nuclear research.’Rajata smiled wryly as he read about "Switzerland" and "physics", remembering Kalyana.‘One of the research projects carried out by CERN is about the Big Bang Theory, a theory that attempts to explain the origin of the universe. In trying to test the Big Bang theory, the LHC has pr
In the afternoon, Kalyana's phone rang. A call from Harso. Kalyana, who was spending time watching television, immediately picked it up."Hello? What’s the news, Har?" asked Kalyana."There is good news and bad news," replied Harso."The good news first, please," said Kalyana.“I've had discussions with my superiors, and after studying the story you told earlier, they allowed me to invite you as the subject of the experiment. We will help with a letter of recommendation for the Switzerland embassy in Jakarta to speed up processing your visa.""Wow!" Kalyana exclaimed stifled. "Then what's the bad news?""Since life events before death are not acceptable to the world of science, CERN does not authorize your travel and accommodation expenses," Harso replied in a weak voice. "I’m sorry, Na.""Woah!" Kalyana again exclaimed. "So what do you think I should do?""I, I hope you can come here, Na," replied Harso. "Although it cannot be proven
Harso seemed to return to the afternoon in Ouchy, the port of Lausanne. The girl, the same girl who was sitting on her back in a chair in a cafe on the edge of Lac Leman in Geneva, sat next to him, engrossed in writing. Unlike the scene in Geneva, this time there was no interference. The computer smoothly replays the events at Ouchy that afternoon.“I fall in love with you, Na,” said Harso's figure suddenly. His eyes were on the port of Ouchy.The girl stopped writing, her hands playing with her beloved black pen. “What? What do you mean, Har?” she asked, glaring at Harso.“I'm in love with you,” repeated the man, this time smiling at Kalyana.Kalyana was speechless. “Since when?” she muttered softly a moment later.Harso took a deep breath before answering. “Since I first saw you in Geneva.”Kalyana snorted. “‘Love at first sight’, you mean?” she said.
Rajata sat on the edge of the bed looking at the passport. An empty suitcase laid open on the floor. It has been a month since Kalyana invited him on an adventure to Switzerland, and finally, like a dream, the country's visa was attached to the passport book. In all his life, he had never even imagined going on a trip to Switzerland.The phone rings. Hurriedly he took the device. From Kalyana.“Hello? What's up, Na?” Rajata receives a call.“What are you doing?” Kalyana replied quickly.“I’m admiring the Schengen visa,” replied Rajata with a big smile.Kalyana burst into laughter. “Uh, you bumpkin!” she said jokingly.“Let me!” said Rajata. “I've never seen a visa sticker from any country, you know!”Kalyana continued laughing.“Have you finished packing the suitcase yourself?” replied Rajata.“I have!” Kalyana replied.
Rajata was stunned when he caught a glimpse of the stamp-ridden pages of Kalyana's passport. They had just passed the ticket and passport checking counter in the departure hall at Juanda airport. "Traveling often, huh?" he said.Kalyana chuckled lightly. "I used to, before Papa retired," he replied.The two of them shuffled slowly down the aisle of the plane, patiently waiting for the other passengers to put their suitcases, until they finally arrived at their seat numbers."You're lucky, Na, you've seen the world," commented Rajata while buckling up his seat belt.Kalyana snorted with a smile. "Lucky?" she said, "sometimes I envy you.”"Envy? About what?""I moved around too often, so I didn't have a place that I could call a hometown," muttered Kalyana, "there were times when I felt like I wanted to go home, but I didn't know where to go." Her eyes were on the aviobridge that was moving away from the plane.
Rajata chuckled, paused for a moment, then sighed. “Yes, I broke my heart with a friend from when I was in middle school,” he replied later.Kalyana changed her sitting position, leaning against the wall of the plane facing her friend. “How, how?”“What how?” said Rajata with a wide grin. “Nothing much to talk about. I was heartbroken because I didn’t dare to tell her my feeling towards her.”“Woah, why?” Kalyana chased.“Actually I almost ‘shot’ her, though,” muttered Rajata. “it was when our class visited Yogyakarta, and that night we ate at the Lesehan stall. The same stall where we met the other day.”“Wow, so that’s your nostalgic stall, huh?” Kalyana replied.Rajata just smiled with a shrug.“Then, why didn’t you ‘shoot’ her?”“Because she and I were of different ethni
The cold air immediately hit Rajata and Kalyana from the moment they set foot on the jet bridge. As soon as they got their baggage back after the immigration counter, they immediately took out their jackets. Kalyana then led the steps towards the train station below the terminal area. A few minutes later, a series of large two-story carriages with predominantly white and blue colors arrived on their platform.“Come on, let’s just sit on top!” asked Kalyana as they entered the carriage. “More comfortable, less crowded.”Rajata followed Kalyana to put the suitcase in the trunk at the end of the carriage, then went upstairs.The train leaves a few minutes later.“Wow, the train is really quiet!” exclaimed Rajata.“Yeah,” Kalyana replied, smiling, seeing her friend’s behavior.Leaving Zurich, a typical Switzerland scenery was displayed on the window. Rajata was busy taking pictures, som
A cool looking man was standing outside the door, wearing a dark blue sweater, black cloth pants, and sneakers. A bag slung over his shoulder. In no way he fit the classical image of a scientist.“Hi, Na, welcome in Switzerland,” he greeted with smile“Harso!” Kalyana exclaimed with a beaming face. “How are you?”Harso held out both hands.Kalyana reflexively hugged her old friend. Her body looked tiny in Harso's arms. After a moment, she broke free. Her face was flushed red. “Come, get inside!” she invited. “Oh, this is Rajata!”“Hi,” said Harso, holding out his hand. A big smile spread across his face.“Hi,” Rajata said, welcoming Harso's handshake.Harso then entered, then the three of them sat in the living room. Harso put the bag on the floor.“Mas Harso,” Rajata said as soon as they sat down.“Just call me Harso!&r
"Harso!" exclaimed Karthikeyan at the laboratory door with his three teammates. “We'll go home now! Happy weekend!"Harso just waved back their greetings. He smiled at Kalyana's message about her airplane seat, then put the device on the table, fell silent.Before long, he heard the sound of a door opening and closing in the distance. Harso got up from his seat and headed to the capsule area. He then went into one of the capsule and closed the door, then concentrated for a moment giving a Reference Point to Lidia.A few moments later he was in the figure of a man who was holding and watching the hand of a woman who was sitting in front of him. The man's hand was trembling slightly and broke out in cold sweat. Harso could feel the turmoil of the figure he entered, the turmoil of a young man who had the opportunity to touch the hand of his idol.Suddenly various images of the woman's future events hit Harso's mind. The description of the meeting of th
“So you are ‘Rajata’,” commented the man who was sitting cross-legged on the living room chair.“I am, Sir,” said Rajata with a slight nod. He sat in a chair opposite the well-built man with his elbows resting on his knees.The white-haired man looked at Rajata investigatively. “Frankly, I don’t know what Kalyana sees in you,” he said a few moments later, “especially when compared to Harso who is a scientist and Armand whose successful career has led him to his assignment abroad.”“Papa …!” protested Kalyana who sat in another chair facing the two men. Kalyana’s fierce face then suddenly changed. “Errr, wait a minute, Pa. How can you know about Harso and Armand? “The father turned to Kalyana. “Na, your papa is old-fashioned, not nonsociable,” he said, “I have many friends who are happy to tell Papa about many th
"Mer, where is your friend Kalyana staying? The place looks interesting. Let’s stay there sometime too!”"Oh, yeah?" said Merina, stopped her reading and then reached for the phone Arsyad had borrowed earlier. In the timeline of Kalyana's social media accounts, her friend is seen posing intimately with Rajata on the front yard of a kind of resort. She smiled then hit the 'like' button and left a line of comments. "Looks cool!" she continued to Arsyad. "You’re right! Let’s stay there sometime later!""But that's why I can't see the news feed from of Rajata account, huh?" murmured Arsyad."Why, are you interested in him?" asked Merina while still stared at the phone screen, hoping Arsyad did not see her expression harden a little."You are crazy! I'm not even interested in other girls, let alone, boys!" said Arsyad. "I'm just curious, how come his name is written differently from other account names of your friends."Merina sm
Changi, Singapore, six in the morning. From the aviobridge window, Kalyana saw the wet tarmac from the rain. The air felt a little stifling, but that couldn't make the smile on her face disappear at all."Why have you been smiling all this time?" asked Rajata at his side."Oh, so I can't smile?" said Kalyana, trying to purse her lips. “Fine, I won't smile anymore.""Well, don't smile too much," murmured Rajata with a serious face. "If you smile like that, I will have a hard time looking ahead, as I want to see you all the time.""Ouch!" Kalyana grumbled. “I'm sorry I went out with you! You turned out to be too cheesy, making me nauseous!”Rajata just chuckled while squeezing Kalyana's hand gently.The connecting flight to Surabaya is still a few hours away. After getting off the shuttle train that took them to change terminals, Kalyana and Rajata chose to sit on one of the benches outside the departure lounge. Kalyana took out the phone, kill
"Your career and wealth are not as good as him," Kalyana replied with a serious face, "but I think you can be like him, if you want to work hard. You have the capability for that.""Thank you," said Rajata, smiled shyly. "So, do you want to go out with me?"Kalyana smiled sweetly, clutching Rajata’s hand that was leaning on the divider of their seat. "Ta, I also have some feelings for you now," she said softly. She paused for a moment then took a deep breath. Her face flushed red before even continuing to say, “And right now, I want you to hug me tightly. It felt like I just see someone I had known for a long time.”Rajata smiled, squeezing Kalyana's hand back."But," continued Kalyana again, "I'm afraid of my feelings.""Afraid?""Yes," replied Kalyana. "How could you, who I only met for the past one or two months, could suddenly replace Armand in my heart? Just because Armand was caught kissing another girl? You also just
A bang on the door woke Rajata. Immediately he opened the bedroom door. Kalyana looked neat at the door."Come on, wake up, you lazy!" Kalyana exclaimed with a big smile.Rajata hurriedly took a shower and got ready.An hour later, they were in the elevator which led them down to the lobby floor."Have you said goodbye to Armand and Harso?" Rajata asked as they walked towards the train station."Yes.""How are they?"Kalyana snorted. "Harso sent his regards to you," she replied. "Armand was still waiting for my decision.""You haven't decided yet?""Yes, I have.""Then, why haven't you informed him?""I’ll tell him later, after I finish my novel."“What does that novel have to do with it?""Hey! Stop the nag!" said Kalyana with a big smile. "Let’s go, we’ll be late!"***The train that would take them to Zurich Flughafen arrived shortly after the two reach
Getting out of the lift, Rajata walked slowly toward the door of Kalyana's apartment. Hesitantly he moved the doorknob. Unlocked. Slowly he opened the door and entered.The apartment was dark, only the TV room was dimly lit by the television set at a low volume. Rajata stepped there.In the TV room, Kalyana was seen sitting with her legs bent on the sofa, wearing her pajamas. Her chin rested on her knees while her hands were holding a cup of drink, wrapped around her legs. The girl seemed absorbed, focused on the French-language film that was shown, not caring about her friend's arrival. On Kalyana's face, which was lit by the television, Rajata caught a glimpse of two small rivers flowing from the eyes down the cheeks."Na?" Rajata greeted gently."Hmmm?" muttered Kalyana, still glued to the television."What is wrong?"Kalyana just shook her head.Rajata is sitting next to Kalyana. “Why did Armand leave the apartment? Did you
The sound of grinding machine, followed by the scent of coffee, awakened Rajata. For a moment he was confused about where he was. His body immediately sat up and alert, residue of emotions that Lidia induced."Morning, Ta!" said Kalyana from the kitchen. "Want some coffee?""Yes!" he exclaimed getting up from the sofa."Then you can help yourself!" sneered Kalyana, busy with the frying pan on the stove.Rajata just smiled, approached the machine and prepared a cup of strong coffee for himself.Soon the aroma of fried egg and butter filled the apartment."Come on, have some breakfast!" asked Kalyana while bringing a plate of sunny side ups. "This is the most complicated dish I can prepare.""Armand will be here today, won’t he?" Rajata asked a few moments later, busy scooping up his rice."Yes," said Kalyana with flushed cheeks."What time will he arrive?""Around seven o'clock, I think," answered Kalyana. "W
Quo VadisThe train was speeding gently towards Lausanne. Kalyana was deeply contemplative, looking out the window.Rajata tried to close his eyes. His body still felt a little tired. A gentle blast of warm breeze from the train's temperature control system carries the scent of Kalyana perfume, refreshing. Rajata opened his eyes. "Your perfume smells good," murmured Rajata.Kalyana turned her head. "Thank you!" she said, smiled, then looked back out."When will Armand be here?" asked Rajata."Oh, this weekend, the night before we fly back to Surabaya," Kalyana replied."You decided to forgive him and make up with him?"Kalyana smiled, shrugged. "Perhaps," she said later. "All the information that Lidia put into my head made me feel chaotic, and it seems like the experiences of all the figures we followed made me realize I miss him.""Congratulations!" Rajata replied with a big smile."Why you asked? Are you jealous?" sne