I had just finished swimming in a swimming pool in Kuningan area that afternoon, after which just like the usual I decided to take the Busway to get to Sudirman. A friend had asked me to accompany him watch a (childish) cartoon movie despite the fact that I’d watched it several days before. This was the price I had to pay to be one’s good friend (I dare not say ‘best’ friend since he’d just got back in relationship again with his ex and didn’t tell me!)

Anyway. I was still hooked up with my new BB at that time (super important fact). So there I was, trying to cram into the unusually crowded busway, got into the bus middle alley so my ass wouldn’t be sandwiched by irresponsible crotches, and started to text on the soft beloved BB keyboard.

Now you who are familiar with Busway’s Ragunan-Kuningan and Blok M-Kota routes should proceed to CONVERSATION section. For you who don’t understand a damn, you can refer to DUMMY KNOWLEDGE section for anything you don’t understand about the line.

DUMMY KNOWLEDGE section

Here’s the Ragunan line:

… Kuningan Madya - Setiabudi Utara - Latuharhari - Halimun (Pulogadung line exchange) - Dukuh Atas II (terminus station, all passengers without continuing ticket should disembark, also Pulogadung line exchange, BlokM-Kota line exchange) - Setiabudi Utara - Kuningan Madya … (back to the loop)

Here’s the Blok M - Kota line:

… Karet (my place, baby) - Setiabudi - Dukuh atas I (exchange to Ragunan and Pulogadung line, not terminus) - Tosari - Bunderan HI - Sarinah - to far far away

CONVERSATION section

This happened in the Ragunan line, heading to Dukuh Atas II. We were somewhere in Setiabudi Utara busway stop.

A BIG girl sat on the bus seat just behind me. She asked for direction to the man beside him.

BIG girl: “dfuabsofajnsdiuewnd iasdwpf23uu09e3208wuefoi” (this was distorted because I was fully attending my BB messenger)

man: “fausfaeaofeif apdsi SARINAH foiasdunfaiodncpawiea” (it’s not the BB messenger, it’s the YM for BB this time)

big GIRL: “okay”

That’s when I looked at both of them. The man was typical Javanese. The shy type. Probably nerd.

The big GIRL was really big. LOL. She had to sit a little bit to the front so her shoulders didn’t press against the persons sitting beside her. And her tummy.. unbelievable! Thankfully the beep in my BB shifted my attention or she would have noticed my gaping mouth while I stared at her stomach and my pretty face would have been battered into Rujak Thailand.

As the bus left the Setiabudi Utara and headed to the quite distant next stop of Latuharhary, this big girl phoned someone.

Big GIRL: “Mas, I was to stop at Sarinah right?”
………….. (she listened closely) “Yes, so I have to disembark at dukuh atas and then change corridor and head for Kota” (this must have come from the man sitting beside her, which is true if she wanted to go to Sarinah)……………”What?” (this was probably because my BB rang and she couldn’t catch the voice from her cell)

……… “What? So where should I disembark?” (oow ooh, I thought, so the Sarinah is not the destination. Interesting. BB messenger could wait a few minutes. The driver had just closed the door to the Latuharhary stop)… (she listened quite a long time and then she began to get panicked) “So I’d better disembark now?” (We were in the middle of the road, what did she mean by “disembark NOW”?)

“Yes yes, I’ll disembark. So it’s not Sarinah?” ….. “I’ll disembark. I’d just passed it. HARIHARI, right?” (OH MY GOD, what is HARIHARI. It’s Latuharhary. Where did she catch HARIHARI bus stop?) “Yes, I’d just go out at the next stop and head back, right?” (STUPID!) “okay then” (and she hung up the phone smiling)

‘OKAY THEN?’ The one she was talking to definitely had no idea that she COULD NOT just head back the other direction to get to HARIHARI…. er Latuharhary. Latuharhary was one way station, it could not be reached like usual busway station simply by taking the oposite lane and heading back!

I looked at the man who sat beside her. He must have listened to her conversation the whole time and he should know that it’s wrong for her to get out at Halimun. Once she exited Halimun, she had two choices: taking the opposite lane would make her change corridor to Pulogadung line, and she’d be lost even farther. Second choice: if she’s smart and asked around first before taking decision, she would take back the same line she dropped off and continued to Dukuh Atas.

But she didn’t ask the man sitting beside her nor the man gave any suggestions that her idea of taking the opposite lane at Halimun was wrong. He just stared straight at nothing and let out a little hint of dull smile. Either he had no idea or he was not smart enough to figure how to get back to HARIHARI or he just didn’t care or he just liked to see one’s travel got screwed up.

The operator announced “Halimun Halimun, transit to Pulogadung”

I wanted to tell her that she’d better not get off here. The right way to do it was to continue to Dukuh Atas, got out, queued for the same line back to Setiabudi Utara (she had to get out since she didn’t have a ticket to continue), took the opposite lane at Setiabudi Utara and got off at HariHari. Quite a pain in the ass, but it’s better than taking the bus to Pulogadung which would be damn far away from HariHari.

I wanted to tell her despite her big belly…

BUT ALAS, my beloved friend texted me to my BB’s YM. When I was to choose saving a lady or get an opportunity to touch the incredible keyboard of my BB again, what would I choose? OF COURSE you know my answer!

So I shifted my attention back to my BB, smiled at the response from my friend, and acted like nothing happened. Oh well, something happened. She did exit at Halimun, confidently.

See you at Pulogadung then, tummy lady! Blame BB and my friend who texted me. If someone said the keyword is “location, location, location”, maybe i could perfect it to “timing, timing, timing”.