That night, Bima could barely close his eyes. Arga's notebook was still lying on his bedroom table. He tried to sleep again and again, but his thoughts kept returning to everything that had happened since he received the letter.
Back then, he had only thought that Arga had left without a reason.
Now everything had changed.
There was something someone had deliberately hidden.
There was a secret that had made Arga choose to distance himself.
And the one thing that made Bima most curious was this:
Why had Arga felt the need to protect him?
Bima picked up the notebook again.
He opened the first page and read Arga's handwriting once more.
“I never chose to leave you.”
The sentence kept repeating in his mind.
Bima touched the black-and-blue bracelet still wrapped around his wrist.
“Why didn't you just tell me, Ga?”
There was no answer.
Only the sounds of the night drifted in from outside the window.
The next morning, Bima arrived at school early. He usually got there before the bell rang, but that day he arrived while the school grounds were still fairly quiet.
Dika, who had just arrived, came straight over to him.
“Did you even sleep last night?”
Bima turned toward him.
“How do you know?”
“You look like someone who just finished arguing with his own thoughts.”
Bima let out a small laugh.
“That obvious?”
Dika sat down beside him.
“Still thinking about Arga?”
“Yeah.”
“Fair enough.”
Bima looked across the school grounds.
“I feel weird.”
“Weird how?”
“All this time, I thought I was grieving the loss of my friend. But now I realize I may never have really known what happened to him.”
Dika was quiet for a moment.
“Sometimes the people closest to us are the ones who hide things we'll never know about.”
Bima turned to him.
“Since when did you get so wise?”
Dika immediately laughed.
“Don't underestimate me. I have a mature side.”
“News to me.”
“Don't insult me.”
A short while later, Rani arrived carrying several books.
“You guys are already here?”
Dika pointed at Bima.
“He's been spacing out this whole time.”
Rani looked at Bima.
“Are you still thinking about Arga's house?”
Bima nodded.
“Yeah.”
“I looked into it a little.”
Bima immediately focused on her.
“Looked into what?”
“Arga's old house is still standing. But it's been empty for a long time.”
Dika raised an eyebrow.
“How did you find that out?”
“My dad drove through that area a while ago.”
Bima nodded slowly.
“Then we can go today.”
Rani glanced at the clock.
“After school?”
“Yeah.”
Dika stood up.
“All right. Mission: uncover Arga's secrets starts now.”
Bima shook his head with a smile.
“You always make everything sound like an adventure.”
“Because if we take it too seriously, we'll get stressed.”
The three of them laughed softly.
But beneath that laughter, Bima still felt that something was waiting for him.
Something that might change the way he saw Arga.
After school, they met Farel near the gate.
Farel was already waiting with a small bag.
“You brought something?” Bima asked.
Farel nodded.
“A few things we might need.”
Dika looked at the bag.
“Don't tell me we're going to break into an empty house like in a horror movie.”
Farel only gave him a faint smile.
“The house isn't scary.”
“Then why are you smiling like that?”
“I just know what happened there.”
Farel's words immediately caught Bima's attention.
“What happened?”
Farel fell silent.
“You'll find out later.”
Dika sighed.
“Another half-answer.”
They finally set off for Arga's old house.
The trip took about thirty minutes. The closer they got to their destination, the more uneasy Bima felt.
The road they traveled began to feel familiar.
Several small shops were still standing just as they had before.
The walls of the elementary school where Bima and Arga had studied were still visible in the distance.
Old memories surfaced out of nowhere.
“I used to take this road all the time,” Bima said.
Rani smiled.
“Sounds like this place holds a lot of stories for you.”
“Yeah.”
Dika looked ahead.
“Sometimes I wonder what it's like to have a friend you've known since childhood.”
Bima looked at him.
“You don't have a friend like that?”
Dika shook his head.
“No. We moved around a lot when I was little.”
Bima fell silent.
“I'm sorry.”
“It's okay.”
Dika smiled.
“Besides, I have you guys now.”
His words warmed the mood.
A short while later, they arrived at an old house.
The paint on its walls had faded. Weeds filled the yard. The iron fence out front was visibly rusted.
Bima stood still.
He knew this place.
The house he used to visit almost every day.
The house where he and Arga had spent so much time together.
“This is it.”
Farel nodded.
Bima approached the fence.
His hand touched the cold iron.
Suddenly, a memory surfaced.
A young Arga stood in front of the house, smiling.
“Bim, come again tomorrow, okay?”
Young Bima laughed.
“Yeah. Every day, if you want.”
The memory brought a sad smile to Bima's face.
They went inside after Farel opened a small door beside the house.
“How do you have a key?” Rani asked.
Farel didn't answer.
Dika immediately whispered to Bima,
“He's getting more suspicious by the second.”
Bima only nodded.
The inside of the house still looked the same.
Some of the old furniture was still there. Dust covered the tables and chairs. Old photographs hung on the walls.
Bima walked slowly.
His eyes stopped on a family photograph.
Arga was in it as a child, standing with his parents.
But someone else stood beside them.
A boy.
Bima moved closer.
“Is that you?”
He looked at Farel.
Farel remained silent.
Bima picked up the photograph.
“You used to live here?”
Farel let out a sigh.
“Yeah.”
Bima was stunned.
“Why did Arga never tell me?”
“Because back then, I wasn't someone he wanted to talk about.”
“What does that mean?”
Farel looked at the photograph.
“Arga and I went through something that changed everything.”
Bima wanted to ask more.
But suddenly, the sound of something falling came from upstairs.
They all fell silent.
Dika immediately looked toward the stairs.
“You heard that, right?”
Rani nodded.
“Yeah.”
Bima looked at Farel.
“Is there someone else in this house?”
For the first time, Farel looked panicked.
“I don't know.”
They slowly made their way toward the stairs.
Footsteps sounded from upstairs.
Someone was up there.
Dika picked up a small wooden stick lying near the door.
“If it's a bad guy, I'll go first.”
Bima looked at him.
“You sure?”
“No.”
Dika answered quickly.
“But I already said it.”
They were almost at the top when someone suddenly ran past the end of the hallway.
Bima only caught a glimpse of the person's shadow.
“Stop!”
Dika took off after them.
They ran down the narrow hallway.
But the person managed to escape through the back window.
By the time Bima reached it, the person had disappeared.
Something lay on the floor near the window.
An envelope.
Bima picked it up.
A single sentence was written on the front.
“For Bima, from someone who knows why Arga left.”
Bima's hands began to tremble.
He opened the envelope.
Inside was only one sheet of paper.
The writing on it changed Bima's expression.
Because the first sentence he read was:
“Bima, don't trust Farel.”
Bima slowly lowered the paper.
He looked at Farel.
For the first time, doubt surfaced in his heart.
Who was actually telling the truth?
Farel, who had led them toward the truth?
Or someone who had secretly warned him?
And as he searched for answers about Arga, Bima began to realize one thing.
Maybe the biggest secret wasn't why Arga had left.
Maybe it was about who had truly been by Arga's side all along.