After work, I stopped a bus to Carrefour first before went home. It was almost six in the afternoon and with thestriking late afternoon sun, dustful road, sweaty back, and a growling stomach made me sat limp and low besides the driver, a middle-aged man with worried face and thick untrimmed mustache who drew deep breaths the whole time.
I looked at his way ocassionally, unable to bring up a conversation because he either looked far ahead or to sideways to spot a possible passenger along the way. Looking on my back, behind my seat, the car was completely empty except for both of us. We absorbed the moments and for me it was one of the longest bus trip hom, ever, especially because almost all the way home, he hardly got any passengers, except on the big junction close to home--the moment when I decided instead of going home, I'd stop by at the evening market to buy potatos, tomatos, and stuffs.
Reached the front door, I saw the back of Green playing the games on computer and Al was standing straight up under the running ceiling fan, in his cream pants, both were shirtless--as usual. Seeing me came home with a bulging plastic bag, Al said, "The fridges are full." I smiled at him, "It's OK."
Foods Al's had cooked earlier that day were displayed neatly on the kicthen table, plates, glasses, small glass bowls for dessert were ready in the front room's Green Wooden Table and candles were nicely lid and put on the corner of the rooms. I was impressed at how good Al as a host, seriously.
"If I knew you would be home, I should've prepared another set of plate," he said, I didnt know whether it was joke or for real.
"I'm a very versatile person, " I said and smiled at him, "ah yes, you are!!" Green shot back and we laughed.
In standing position, I we kept on talking, "What time they're coming?" I asked Al who now stood on my right, I was in the middle while Green was still on his quest to score big at the game.
"6ish," Al replied.
I noticed there was something new in him, couldnt figure it out until I looked at his face real long and carefully, "Are they new?" I asked referring to the white reading glasses he rore that day.
"No, i've broken everything so I'm using this old one," he said. And soon we heard a car pulled over, "They're here," he said and went outside to welcome them: His boss at scholl (British) and his wife, Indonesian, (Al's good friend) and a sixth-grader super shy daughter who is into magic tricks and stuffs and talked when she was asked with inadequate answers--but she's cute and well-behaved.
After a short handshakes and hellos, Al guided them all to the TV room, sat down in the green rattan seats, the first few minutes was spent with conversation about Movies, then the parents asked their daughter to show her magic tricks, card tricks and a chain tricks. She had her dad as her assistant who did all the speaking which is oddly funny, she hardly spoke one long complete sentence in audible voice.
We gave her applauds and then Al showed her his card tricks and later showed her how to do it, "Who's the Master now?" her parents asked comically.
But, there were minutes of gap and silence where everyone looked up or down to find what else to say, but Al successfully managed it well.
The food was nice, the Dad ate alot, the Mom wasnt that Shy, and the Daughter, she was did her best to be invisible.
Here's the scene:
the Mom and Green were engaged in their own conversation about traveling, clothes, labels, boutiques, while I followed Al and the Dad's chat which was more suitable for me because they talked about comedy, literature, British Shows, and stuffs. The Dauighter sat in the middle of the Mom and Green, lost in boredom and agony--and she didnt want to miss her favorite TV progam.
They're gone when it was almost ten, after more minutes stood and talked at the gate. I felt sorry for the Daughter when she spoke to the Mother under her breath to call it a day and go home, then Mother said, "I'm not Babysitting you," and kept on talking the night away.
Everyone loved the food, made it less awkward the whole nite eventhough it was a bit stiff and nauseatingly a bit boring--for me.
When they're gone, Green and I cleaned and washed the dishes. I sat down lazily in front of the TV with the lights off for some minutes before went to bed.
