MISTERI KANTUNG MACAN (13)

 

BLOG NURLAELI UMAR- Ning kecil diburu penasaran. Ketika rasa itu bertambah dan membuatnya jengkel sosok itu akhirnya seperti terkena magnet, dia berani berjalan sampai ke ujung terdekat dengan halaman. Sepertinya sosok itu memang sengaja meledek, dia kembali berbalik mundur dan berjalan ke jalan raya lagi. Itu dilakukan berulangkali. Membuat Ning lebih lama berdiri dan enggan pergi ke kamarnya.

Little Ning was driven by curiosity. As that feeling grew stronger and began to irritate her, the figure finally seemed as if it were pulled by a magnet—it dared to walk all the way to the end closest to the yard. It felt as though the figure was deliberately teasing her; it turned back again and walked toward the road once more. This happened repeatedly, making Ning stand there longer and more reluctant to go to her room.

 

Diam-diam Ning kecil menyimpulkan jika sosok itu takut ketahuan bapak atau ibunya. Dia berucap dalam hati semoga bapak atau ibunya tidak memanggilnya, sehingga dia bisa memberi kesempatan sosok itu mendekat, saat itu dia akan berteriak keras, lalu mereka akan percaya kalau dia tidak berbohong.

Quietly, little Ning concluded that the figure was afraid of being discovered by her father or mother. She whispered to herself, hoping that neither her father nor her mother would call her, so she could give the figure a chance to come closer. At that moment, she would scream loudly, and then they would believe that she was not lying.

 

Sosok itu sekarang benar-benar ada di halaman tetapi masih terlalu jauh untuk dilihat jelas.

Dia seperti tertantang amarah Ning kecil, tidak lagi kembali ke jalan raya, tetapi berjalan ke kanan dan ke kiri di halaman rumahnya. Satu, dua, tiga, tetap seperti itu. Ning kecil berharap sosok itu bisa lebih mendekat ke arahnya. Tetapi sepertinya tidak ada respon. “Ayolah mendekat, mengapa kamu, dan siapa kamu?” bisiknya.

The figure was now truly in the yard, but still too far away to be seen clearly. It seemed challenged by little Ning’s anger; it no longer returned to the road, but walked back and forth across the yard. One step, two, three—still the same. Little Ning hoped the figure would come closer to her, but there was no response.

“Come on, come closer. Why are you here, and who are you?” she whispered.

 

Kali ini sosok itu benar-benar menoleh. Deg! Jantung Ning terasa seperti berhenti mendadadak. Kaget bukan kepalang, Ning kecil langsung lari ke kamar. Dia melompat ke atas ranjang berkasur, menutupkan selimut dan bantal ke muka kecilnya. Dag-dug-dag-dug! Jantungnya berdetak keras sekali.

This time the figure truly turned around. Thump! Ning’s heart felt as if it suddenly stopped. Terrified beyond measure, little Ning immediately ran to her room. She jumped onto the bed, pulled the blanket and pillow over her small face. Thump-thump-thump! Her heart was pounding violently.

 

Tiba-tiba badannya terasa panas dingin. Dia menggigil dan keluar butiran besar keringat. Sosok itu belum pernah dia temui di mana meski dia kerap bepergian dalam jauh ke rumah saudaranya di kota lain . Ketakutan yang dirasakan tidak pernah datang seperti kali ini, bahkan, saat daun-daun pisang seperti jari raksasa yang siap mengambilnya dari punggung bapaknya saat digendong itu menakutinya.

Suddenly her body felt both hot and cold at the same time. She was shivering, and large beads of sweat broke out. She had never encountered that figure anywhere before, even though she often traveled far to visit relatives in other towns. The fear she felt had never come like this before—not even when banana leaves, like giant fingers ready to snatch her from her father’s back as he carried her, had once frightened her.

 

Ditutupi mukanya dengan bantal satu lagi yang diraihnya tanpa melihat, wajah sosok itu tidak bisa hilang dari pelupuk matanya. Ning tidak menyangka sama sekali sosok itu ternyata berambut panjang, dan mukanya waktu menoleh tertutupi rambut semua.

Saat itu dia baru menyadari sesuatu, sosok yang dilihatnya bukan sesuatu yang baik, tetapi sesuatu yang jahat.

She covered her face with another pillow she grabbed without looking, yet the figure’s face would not disappear from her mind. Ning had never imagined that the figure would have long hair, and when it turned around, its face was completely hidden by that hair.

At that moment, she realized something: the figure she had seen was not something good, but something evil.

Dia berjanji dalam hati, itu adalah pengalaman terakhirnya dan tidak akan lagi-lagi melakukan hal serupa tadi. Bisa jadi sosok itu akan datang lagi menemuinya!

She made a silent promise to herself that this would be her last experience like that, and that she would never do such a thing again. It was possible that the figure would come back to visit her again!

Masih dengan sisa ketakutan yang teramat sangat, dia tertidur. Tidak ada yang bisa dilakukan, apalagi berteriak dan berlari ke arah bapaknya, karena dalam prasangkanya dia akan dianggap berbohong dan mengganggu kerja bapaknya. Belum lagi ibunyaakan marah karena semua itu kesalahannya yang tidak mau disuruh tidur.

Still gripped by overwhelming fear, she eventually fell asleep. There was nothing she could do—let alone scream and run to her father—because in her mind she would be accused of lying and of disturbing her father’s work. And her mother would surely be angry as well, blaming her for everything because she had refused to go to sleep.

Hujan turun lagi. Sore menjadi cepat menua. Sebentar lagi gelap akan merenggut cahaya. Ning tahu benar itu. Hujan yang turun di siang hari tidak akan membawa sosok itu datang menemuinya. Tapi tidak dengan berdiri di depan kaca, bahkan meski kodok-kodok kecil berhamburan setelah menetas dari telurnya. Apalagi membuka pintu depan menikmati angin yang sesekali menerbangkan titik-titik air, atau turun ke bawah menadahi air yang menetes dari lajur-lajur genteng rumahnya seperti biasanya. Dia tidak lagi menyukai hujan, apalagi berlomba menghitung angka-angka antara tetesan dengan matanya yang selalu mengaku kalah cepat pada akhirnya. Tetesan hujan itu terlalu banyak sampai matanya lelah sendiri mengamati.

The rain fell again. Afternoon quickly grew old, and soon darkness would snatch away the light. Ning knew that well. Rain that fell during the day would not bring that figure back to visit her—but even so, she no longer stood by the window, not even when little frogs scattered after hatching from their eggs. She no longer opened the front door to enjoy the breeze that occasionally carried flying droplets of water, nor did she go down to catch the water dripping from the rows of roof tiles of her house as she used to.

 

She no longer liked the rain, let alone racing to count the drops with her eyes, which always admitted defeat in the end. There were simply too many raindrops, until her eyes grew tired just from watching them.

“Kamu tidak bermain di depan kaca lagi, Ning? Di luar hujan.”

“Tidak, Pak, aku mau main di kamar saja!”

“Kenapa, bukannya kamu paling suka dengan hujan? Atau kamu ingin mandi hujan? Tidak sekarang Sayang, nanti saja ketika tubuhmu sudah sedikit besar. Mak hanya takut kau sakit lagi. Tubuhmu sekarang ini masih terlalu ringkih untuk udara dingin.”

“You’re not playing in front of the window anymore, Ning? It’s raining outside.”

“No, Dad, I just want to play in my room!”

“Why? Aren’t you the one who likes the rain the most? Or do you want to play in the rain? Not now, dear—later, when you’re a bit bigger. Your mother is just afraid you’ll get sick again. Your body is still too fragile right now for the cold air.”

Ning kecil terdiam, dia tidak menyukai pertanyaan itu. Belum lagi nanti akan dianggap berbohong jika berbicara tentang sosok itu. Sosok yang enggan muncul ketika bapaknya mendekatinya. Hawa takut peristiwa kemarin yang coba ditepisnya tetap datang.

Bagaimanapun, dia tidak bisa lupa wajah dengan rambut yang menutupi seluruh mukanya itu. Sosok itu seperti membuatnya terlempar ke sebuah negeri yang penuh dengan perasaan takut sekaligus ngeri.

Little Ning fell silent; she did not like that question. And if she talked about the figure, she would be accused of lying—especially since the figure never appeared when her father came near. The lingering fear from yesterday’s incident, which she tried to push away, still returned.

No matter what, she could not forget that face with hair covering it entirely. The figure made her feel as if she had been thrown into a land filled with fear and dread at the same time.

“Ning, ada apa dengamu? Mengapa semalam kamu tidur masih menggunakan sandal?” tanya mamaknya yang datang menghampiri dengan semangkuk nasi dicampur sup. Tangannya menyendok nasi itu dan menatap anaknya. Ning kecil tidak menyahut, dia terus memainkan mainan yang dibelinya tadi di pasar bersama bapaknya. Mulutnya terbuka ketika suapan itu sampai di depan mulutnya.

“Ning, what’s wrong with you? Why did you sleep wearing your sandals last night?” her mother asked as she came over carrying a bowl of rice mixed with soup. She spooned the rice and looked at her child. Little Ning did not answer; she kept playing with the toy her father had bought for her earlier at the market. Her mouth opened when the spoonful reached in front of her lips.

“Ning, kenapa?” tanya mamaknya mencoba bersikap lebih ramah.

“Aku mau mainan boneka di kamar saja. Bapak sama Mamak bikin kue saja, nanti kalau maupipis aku akan bilang.” Ning bangun dari duduknya sambil memeluk mainannya.

Tangan mamaknya mencegah dengan lembut, didudukannya kembali tubuh anaknya itu. “Makan dulu, dan habiskan nasi ini! Bukan itu, kamu kenapa semalam?” (21)

“Ning, what is it?” her mother asked, trying to sound gentler.

“I just want to play with my doll in my room. You and Dad can keep making cakes. If I need to pee, I’ll tell you,” Ning said as she stood up, hugging her toy.

Her mother gently stopped her and sat her back down. “Eat first and finish this rice! That’s not it—what was wrong with you last night?” (21)