The Lady in Blue (part 3 of trilogy)

Bali
The first time I saw the lady in blue was when my friend and I went to Bali for some silly holiday—there were no such term as backpacking at that time. I created such nickname for the lady simply because she’d always wearing blue dress every time I saw her. Arya, my friend, was sure that the lady was so drunk to wear such a blue gown to the Nusa Dua beach in the middle of sunny day.
I argued him. “She doesn’t look like a drunken woman at all. She walked and acted normally, except for the dress.”
Arya responded cynically. “She might be an insane woman, then.”
We starred at the lady who was standing facing the blue sea. She didn’t wear any slipper, just a gown most ladies wearing to some party. It was beautiful gown, blue and I believe it was from satin.
“You like her?” Arya caught me starring the lady. “Ok. Get her. She is really your type.”
“Damned you,” I answered and punched Arya’s arm, but he evaded and run to the beach and swimming. I came after him, swam, and forgot the lady for a moment. However, as we enjoy our coconut ice when the sun started to slide to the west, I saw her again. She was like merely had one step movement from her previous place.
“Jeez, how long has she’s been standing there?”
“Oh, you fall in love with her? Already?” said Arya, Again with his annoying sense of humor.
I keep looking at the lady, who didn’t even wear sun glasses. She looked focus on some point of the sea. Her dress was wet by the wave coming to the shore. Her bare foot was full of sands. Her eyes looked sad, as if she was just experienced some terrible event or maybe has running away from a funeral.
“She looked lonely,” I said vaguely.
“Why do you always attracted to older woman?” Arya laughed.
The wind blew stiffly. It might give me clue to answer. “Do I?”
“Yes, Absolutely.”
I didn’t really agree with Arya, but I find it hard to explain to him about my objection.
“But it’s all right, I will never make fun of it, if you really serious with her.”
I responded with a glance. “What are you talking about?”
“You two will make perfect couple,” Arya said it seriously. “Look, we are 17. Between the two of us, you’re the one who never get laid until now. So, you’re practically a virgin. Don’t you think it’s kind of cool to sleep with a beautiful mature woman as your first experience? Don’t you think it is such redemption?”
“Arya,” I said. “This is 1990’s. It is ok to be a virgin at 17 and to wait until married for your first sex.”
He paused. I knew he couldn’t buy the idea to relate sex and marriage.
When the night came, we back to the hotel, had a very splurge dinner and went to the some clubs afterwards.
Arya could easily attract many girls as usual. I hate to admit, but he was a very good looking guy, with such personality, and a lot of money. I feel lucky to be his best friend, but many times I feel like his co-star or even his shadow, and for the lady part, oh I feel more than a looser every time he brings lady to hotel, asked me to exit the room. “The girl wanted to educate me biology,” he said to me, smiling decently.
“Is it because my glasses?” once I asked him.
“No,” he shook his head. “It’s about how brave you are. It’s about your manhood. It’s about how do you want it or not. Life is nothing but experiencing. As for me, I want to experience as many things I could.”
That night, he left me at the club with some UB40 song. I try to enjoy myself. I bring a novel, but nobody here was reading, so I keep in on my backpack. I started to feel sleepy when I saw that lady in blue entering the club. I was almost jumping on my seat as I saw her. She walked and sat at the very corner of the club where the lights couldn’t reach there properly.
There some tourist staring at her. They might be amaze on the lady’s appearance while they just wearing some short pants and armless shirt. But, the lady didn’t even notice. She was just there, staring at some point almost without blinking. Her face looked so intense, and I guess she hasn’t take a bath, or change.
At some table not far away from her, some bule was making a porn joke and pointing at her. I feel so sorry for the lady, so I stood, walking headed to her. In my mind was Arya’s spell, “life is about experience.”
So, I stood there, asked to join the lady. “Excuse me, can I sit here, while waiting my friend?” I asked her. “All the chairs are occupied.”
She nodded.
I sat carefully as she is starred at me. “Are you Indonesian?”
“Yes. Why?”
She sighed.
“I actually saw you on the beach today.”
“What? You saw me?”
I nodded. She looked shy.
“But I won’t think you are nuts or something. We can wear anything we want to go to beach. I even plan to wear some koteka and go sun bathing.”
“What is koteka?”
“It’s a….” I tried to describe it, but it’s not easy to explain about koteka to a lady right?
“Koteka is Indonesian traditional wardrobe.”
We went on and she introduced herself. Her name was Nicole, she was 40 years old, a novelist, and came from Australia.
“How old are you, Ricky?” she asked me.
“I am 25.” I lied.
“Uh-uh”
“Ok, I am 22.”
“Uh-uh”
“Ok. The truth is, I’ll turn to be 20 this year.” I still lied.
She starred at me, for some reason, I feel as she was examining me.
“So tell me, how do you come with those dress to the beach?” I asked her.
“It’s a long story,” she answered reluctantly. And then we move on, and I surprised that it wasn’t as scary as I think before. Nicole was quite talkative, she told me about her journey to Uluwatu to watch Kecak Dance. Her eyes sparkled as she tries to recall her experience as something spiritual. “It was amazing to watch such a very sacred dance with the sunset as the background,” said Nicole.
“You go there alone?” I asked.
She didn’t answer. The light on her face faded.
“I’m sorry for being impolite,” I said regretfully. “I just want to know you better.”
She looks at some point, stood up, and said, “I need to go back to my room and write.”
“Can i… come?”


Nicole unlocked the door. She went to get her laptop that looked very heavy and bring it to the bed, and turned it on. I sat on a chair, at the floor I saw a man’s shoes that I was sure it was not hers. “Whose shoes is it?”
She glanced. She wake up and put the shoes on a bag, she looked shy. She went to a table, get Pall Mall and throw it to the trash can. At the table, there was an ashtray full of smoke dust.
It was obvious that there was a man in this room, but I hesitate to ask as I don’t want to interrupt her privacy. Nicole was typing I can hear the sound of her finger upon the keyboard. She looks busy and vigilant.
“Do I disturb you?”
“No, you don’t. Please suit yourself. There are some drinks in the fridge. I just need to continue my novel. But if you feel bored, you are free to go.”
So I just sat there and accompany her. Sometime she talked to herself, and her lips spelled dubiously. For hours, I was just staring at her until she turned of the laptop.
She went to the restroom, as I eat some snacks. She back with water drops from her face. But she’s still wearing the blue gown.
“What story you wrote?” I asked.
“Just some stupid love story.”
“Why is it stupid?”
She paused for second.
“Love for many times made people stupid.” She answered as she open the window. “I was stupid.”
“You want to tell me about it?” I asked her. I join her at the wide window. We watched the dark night at the outside. Feel so silence, there were sounds of wave at the distance, but above all the place was really quite.
“I guess it was my faith to be a writer, so I could inspire people not to do the same stupidity,” said Nicole.
I answered her. “I guess you had a very sad past.”
She answered vaguely. “Maybe.”
I feel awkward, did I just seduce her?
She walked to the mirror, sat on the chair in front of it.
“You are not going to change?” I asked her.
She looked at me; her eyes reach inside of me, as if she was watching the dark side of the moon. “Would you like to help me to get… change?” she asked.

The sun wasn’t rising yet. I walked fast in a narrow and silence road. At the east, the sky was preparing to have the sun rising. It was beautiful morning to enjoy sunrise, but I kind of feel tired, I need to get some sleep.
I entered the magnetic card to unlock the door. I found Arya waking up as I entered the room. He looked at me vigilantly, he woke up and step closer at me. Then, he put his nose on my cheek. “What the hell you’re doing?” I asked him as I pushed him to the bed.
He smiled widely. “Finally you get laid!”
“What the fuck you are talking about?”
“I knew it.” He answered. “I still could smell the girl’s perfume on your body.”
I shut my mouth, put my glasses on the table, and lie down on the bed.
“No need to be ashamed. I fucked a girl too last night and it was so nice!”
I started to close my eyes, feel my body relaxed.
“Ricky, I am so damned proud of you,” he said.
“You evil,” I answered while I was closing my eyes.
“So, tell me, who was the lucky girl you fucked all night long?”
I sighed.


Jakarta

I starred at the mirror in the restroom, touch my long blonde hair and feel so weird. I guess I was having a bad hair day now. I hate every time this happens. But there’s nothing I can’t do. Hate it. Hate it. I exit the restroom as I said to myself, “I still am a beautiful girl.”
And I couldn’t call anybody because I my cell phone is dead. Oh, the day is complete. Where the hell is Gina? I can’t see her anywhere in this mall.
So, I sat a sofa, near the stairs. It still a morning at 10.00 pm, there are only few people around. The shop, the cafes, begins their day. I saw some waiter put menus on a table, the others turn on the payment machine, I kind of like the café which sells pancake. Now, that I am hungry, but I still have to wait for Gina. I can’t go inside the pancake café, she will difficult to find me. But there’s another café, beside the pancake café. Typical café with coffee and muffin, I don’t really like it though it more open and Gina will easily find me there.
I shook my head. The music started to play. It was Jason Mraz’s. I didn’t like him, but Gina did. So, I guess I will sit in this couch, where people could see me. Sitting, alone, and they are always staring at me. I hate coffee, caffeine will make me die. I hate people who staring at me. I know this is because I am a beautiful, but when the saw the way they was me, it was like, “you have to pay to look at me like that”.
Call me snob, but I don’t want to be seen by someone I don’t want to see!

So, I grab my bag, fetch the novel I brought, oh where was I? I continue reading it, and it was like I can feel Reiko’s feeling about the piano, about the man. He sad that he didn’t care, that he didn’t just want to sleep with me. He wanted to marry me.
I continue reading; my face almost touches the book. But I couldn’t maintain my concentration, there were so many distractions. Arggg! Where’s Gina? She was 15 minutes late. I took a magazine from my bag, and found an article “My Name Is Sally, and My Brand isn’t Built Mediocrily”. I love the title—in fact I could only understand the title. The article, however related to campus assignment, that’s why I need Gina for. She is always helpful.
When I feel very confuse about Gina, a man walking to the café in front of me. I could smell his perfume vaguely. I think it was Hugo’s, very typical, and he wore a blue shirt, with black trousers, a typical uniform for worker in Jakarta. You could find man with blue shirt and black trousers anywhere in Jakarta.
However, as the man sat on the couch, facing to outside and I could see his face, he looked ok to me. I believe he’s in the middle of thirty. And he wears glasses. It was a good point; I always love man with glasses. They are always smarter, smells good. Oh what the hell I am thinking about? Gina!
But this is not even lunch hour. What is he doing in the café? He looks sad, though. He turns on his net book, full concentration on it. I kind of feel free to enjoy his expression, without any interrupting. He’s not bad, he’s cute, and he didn’t aware that I was staring at him by this 5 meters distance. Oh, I love man in glasses!
As I enjoying him, someone called my name, and it was Gina. She smiled very wide and hugged me. “Sorry to be late, but I got this task done for us.”
“Ohya?”
She nodded. “Why don’t we go to the pancake café and discuss about it.”
I saw the man. “No, I think this café will be all right.
Gina saw to my direction.
“They have better view,” I added.
So, we enter the café, I sit on a chair near the man, smile on my heart. Gina order some drinks for us, as I stare at the man just beside me. How does he have to be so cute, so serious? And didn’t aware on me? The beautiful, indo girl sat beside him?
Gina caught me staring at him. She whispered, “You slut.”
I smiled.
I got my book and pen, write on it. “He wears glasses.”
Gina read it, and looked at the man.
“So?”
I didn’t explain anything. She must have known that I always falling in love with man in glasses.
Gina put the magazine on the table, we start to discuss about the task. Waiter come and put our drinks.
“You know what? I just met the writer of this article. He explains anything about the branding strategy.”
“Oh ya?”
“Ya. He is such a very nice guy, and you are going to like him.”
“Cause he wore glasses?”
“Cause he wore glasses.
“Perfect.”
Gina wrote the answer on her apple. For minutes, the man in glasses is kind of forgotten. However, when I was really into the task with Gina, the man knocked our table with his fingers.
“Excuse me,” he said. He is standing with her laptop case.
“Yes?” I asked him. I feel very excited, thinking that he might want to know my name. “My name is Tracy,” I said to him.
He grabbed my hand, and Gina’s.
“My name is Ricky.”
He smiled. “I am over 30.”
“We didn’t care as long as you single,” added Gina.
“No,” I said. “We are just joking”.
He smiled wider, and still standing, he was ready to go.
“Yes, Pak Ricky. Since I have indo friend like Tracy, I get used to moments when guys come into her, and even ask for her phone.” Gina gave a jealous tone on her voice.
“So, Tracy, you’re indo?”
I nodded. He looked at me profoundly; I feel he tried to recall some thing.
“What?” I asked him.
He shook his head. “No, you just remind me to some lady, but never mind.”
“Great,” I said.
“Anyway, I wasn’t going to ask your name. But I just want to ask about the photograph you might be dropped,” he said.
“What photograph?” I asked.
“Under the table, Tracy.” He said.
And he walked out of the café.
I looked at under the table and found the photograph on the floor. It was a mess. I want to thank Pak Ricky but he already disappears.
Gina helped me to take the old photograph.
“Oh, I am really careless today.”
Gina took one photograph, and examines it. “Who is she?”
I look at the pic. She grabbed picture of lady wearing blue gown in the beach.
“She is very beautiful,” Gina added.
“She is my mom,” I said.