It was still early in the morning when the roadway was bathed in light of the sun from the east. The ride to the school went smoothly from the moment the car rolled down the streets, since we headed out early from home.
Well, that was Father's habit. Being early than anyone else.
Little did he know that he was already beaten by somebody when it came to being early.
The classroom was still empty the moment I arrived. As I was standing on the doorframe, my sight was locked at a figure who was sweeping the floor at that moment.
All the tables were arranged neatly and no dust was visible on the floor.
"Wow, so neat." I was impressed.
Then, my eyes met the figure's, and I realised.
It was Iru, doing all the cleaning alone.
"He came early just to clean before the class begin. How noble~." I thought to myself.
Thus, I made my way to the seat and greeted Iru, who kept the broom in its supposed place.
"Good morning, Iru."
"Morning." he said flatly.
"Have you done the homework Madam Hana gave us yesterday?"
Iru leaned against his seat, one arm rested on the table.
"Yes."
Truly a man of few words.
So, I shifted to a question that had been intrigued my mind after a long time.
"Hey, do you still remember the day you saved me from those delinquents? Your skills were impressive."
"I believe it is the second time you say that."
Really? I didn't recall the first time.
"Well, I was wondering whether you have learned any martial arts before, because that kind of feats that you have performed just extraordinary."
"Just a few techniques I randomly picked from somebody."
That wasn't convincing at all.
"That is something a humble martial artist would say."
"Have you met one?" His tired gaze met mine.
"Yes, a few times. Even my sensei always act like that the moment someone praises him."
"So, you are also a practicioner of martial arts."
I believed I had piqued his interest.
"Yes, karate black belt at 14 years old. A challenging time to be honest."
"I see... "
What a dry reply from him.
"Actually, I was interested in silat for a long time. Do you know anyone who can teach me silat here?"
His body shifted a little from the seat.
"You can find them anywhere here, especially in the villages area. There are lots of masters there."
Thus, I nodded my head a little.
"I see... I really want to join the tournament, by the way."
"If that is the case, then you have to ask the PE teacher." Iru pulled out his smartphone, clicking on the screen.
"PE teacher?" I tilted my head.
"Yes." he said, eyes locked on the phone screen.
"Ohhhhhh.... Where can I meet him?"
"8.10 am. We have PE today, Fujisawa."
Ohhh right, we were supposed to have PE before recess.
Luckily, I had my PE shirt prepared inside my bag. I will just switch to it later.
Then, somehow my curiousity got the best of me at that moment, leading me to ask Iru another question.
"By the way, do you play any sports, Iru?"
His finger stopped scrolling the screen.
"I rarely play sports nowadays, too busy with life." he said with his monotone voice. Then, he continued scrolling.
"Of course, if you are always out there saving lives." I thought to myself, unaware that I was smirking at the moment.
"Why are you smirking?" Iru glared at me.
"Ehh, nothing..." I tried to brush it off even though I was flustered.
I believed that my assumption was true. It was just, there was no concrete evidence about it.
*Sigh.
***
7.45 am, English class.
The teacher was Madam Reen, a woman whom I believed was in her 40s, standing at least below 160 cm, was writing the notes on how to write the best essay for exam.
"Alright, that is all you need to write a good essay. Do you get that?" she subtly corrected her glasses, which rested on the bridge of her nose.
"Yes ma'am!" said everyone, except for one guy.
Yeah, Iru.
He was sleeping for almost the entire class, his head rested on the table, eyes fully closed.
Even though the class was anything but silence, it wasn't enough to disturb his deep slumber.
"Wow, he must be extremely tired or something."
All of a sudden, I could feel that something came in contact with my shoe.
So, I looked under the table, only to find a pencil rolled on the floor.
"Whose pencil is this?"
"It is mine." said a voice from behind me.
The moment I turned to my back, it was Ken already standing behind me.
I couldn't help but startled a little. "Woahhhhh."
"Can I take it?" he said with a smile carved on his face.
"Yeah, sure."
"Sorry to interrupt you. By the way, I am Ken."
"Amane." I replied with a smile.
Then, he suddenly leaned closer towards my ears, as if wanting to whisper something.
"And one more thing, if the guy right next to you is snoring so loud that it disturb you, you are allowed to hit him so hard on his back. Trust me, he will stop snoring. I know he is quite disturbing."
"Really? Should I try that?" I chuckled a little.
"Yes, of course! See you!" he giggled, before walking away back to his seat.
He seemed friendly, and even funnier in person.
I wondered if anyone have the guts to actually tease Iru, though. His death stare was just enough to cast people away.
***
It was time for PE class.
All of us gathered at the outdoor basketball court right next to PE teacher's room.
As I gazed at the left side of the court, eight of the boys were taking their own shots by turn, while the girls were playing volleyball among themselves.
And the PE teacher was in his room, setting a few bussiness, he said.
However, Iru was nowhere to be seen.
"Maybe he is with the teacher." I assumed.
Thus, I made my way to the teacher's room.
*KNOCK *KNOCK
Then, a voice from inside the room told me to come in.
So, I pushed the door inside, and there was the teacher, sitting on his desk, facing the computer.
"Ohhh, the new student. Fujisawa, am I right? What brings you here?" the teacher asked.
Our eyes met each other.
Then, I remembered Iru's words.
"If that is the case, then you have to ask the PE teacher."
So, it was time to let out my curiousity.
"Excuse me, Sir. I heard that there is a silat tournament at school. Is that true?"
The teacher put his coffee cup on the table.
"Well, not at school, actually. It is between schools, which will be held two months from now."
"I see... By the way, can I join it?"
The teacher stared at me for a few seconds before he continued to speak.
"Do you have any martial arts background?"
"Yes, Sir. I was the champion of my prefecture's karate tournament. Besides, I once received a formal silat lesson during an event in Japan."
"Then, how about you give the punching bag a hit? Let's see how strong your punch."
The teacher then brought me to a corner where a red punching bag was hung up on the ceiling.
"You may start now." said the teacher, pointing at the punching bag.
Once I stared at the bag, my legs instinctively formed the rear-horse stance before my body entered the punching stance.
And after a deep breath...
*KNACK!
*KNACK!
*KNACK!
The teacher stared at me, arms folded in front, for a moment, faces unreadable.
"Is that not good enough?" I assumed.
Then, he spoke.
"I see that you have the skills, the technique and the form. However, I think we could work on your power, and maybe I would like to see you perform kicks later on."
"So, is that a yes?" I tilted my head.
"Yeah... You are allowed to compete. However,... " the teacher paused for a moment.
"However?"
"The one who is supposed to train you is not here at this moment, and he will return three months later. So I think it will be best to call him."
"Him?"
"Yes, him. Don't worry. He will give you a call later."
I wondered who was the him the teacher mentioned, and if he was about to call me, how did he get my number?
Then, I decided to excuse myself from the teacher's room.
"If there is nothing else, may I excuse myself, sir?"
"Yes, you may go now." he nodded.
Thus, I walked out of the room, still intrigued with the man the teacher mentioned before.
Who might it be?
***
9.00 am, PE class had ended, and everyone was already made their way to the classroom.
Unlike them, I was a few steps closer to the classroom, and the moment I stood at the doorframe, a deep voice called upon me from inside.
"So you have met the PE teacher, huh."
I was startled, as why would anyone know about my meeting with the teacher.
Then, I saw him, leaning against his seat, lollipop on his hand which I almost mistook as a cigarette,
Iru.
"Iru? You didn't go to basketball court just now, did you?"
"Yes." he said flat.
Then he had the lollipop at the end of his mouth.
"He had told me everything."
Everything? What was that everything?
So, I walked to my seat, eyes were still in contact with him.
"What everything?"
"You know what it is... "
After a moment, only the stick left, which he put between his two fingers.
"Saturday afternoon. Meet me at Bubul School. We will start the training."
"Training? What training?" I tilted my head.
"And one more thing, make sure you are well prepared." he said before walking out.
At first, I could barely understand what was he talking about,
Until it finally made sense to me.
"Wait, you are the trainer?!"
I didn't expect for him to become my trainer.
Thus, I followed him to have him confirmed to me everything.
"Iru, WAIT!!!"