After Brian and Irwan entered and closed the door, they sat back down in the living room chairs.
"Brian, can that guy named Rahman be trusted?" Irwan asked.
"Relax, he can be trusted. When he gets back, we'll meet up with him," Brian replied.
"If you go to his house, you'll definitely believe it. I just told you, there's a head hanging on his hut wall," Riana added.
"Ugh... that's so creepy," Nadia retorted.
"We are indeed in a creepy place right now," Riana replied.
The four fell silent for a moment. Riana and Nadia went to the kitchen briefly to make coffee for all of them. After sitting back down,
"The four of us are planning to escape from here, right?" Nadia asked.
"Yeah, Brian and I are definitely escaping. You two have to escape too," Riana replied.
"Then, what about Felix and Lusi? Are we just going to leave them?" Nadia retorted.
Irwan, Brian, and Riana fell silent. Even for a short while, Felix and Lusi were also part of their group who came together with them.
"I tried to talk to Lusi once. I couldn't bear it, knowing the baby in her womb would be eaten by those monsters, but Lusi refused and now seems angry with me because I told her," Riana said.
"Is that so? Have you tried talking to Felix?" Irwan asked.
"Oh, don't even bother. He's more annoying than Lusi now that he doesn't stutter anymore. He talks a lot, and he'll just try to persuade us to join his side instead," Riana replied.
"Brian and I tried to approach them, but, you know, they're not aware, and they seem happy here," Brian said.
"Ugh... what should we do? I just don't want us to break up like this. We gathered together in that building, went together. It just doesn't feel right if we leave them behind," Nadia said, looking down.
"I understand what you mean, Nad, but Felix once told me this: if he left here and started stammering again, would I take responsibility? That's what he said," Riana said.
"Hmm, okay, we're immortal here, but what about outside? What if we go back to how we were before? Is that what Felix meant?" Irwan clarified.
"Yeah, something like that," Riana replied.
"Well, for Brian and me, we have nothing to lose. Even if we leave, we'll still be together, right, Ri?" Brian said.
"Hehe, that's right," Riana replied.
"Me too, I'll probably just get skinny again. It's no problem. I've been skinny for years," Irwan said.
"Same here, I don't mind either... but, I don't want to go back to my house. I'll go with you, Wan," Nadia said.
"Okay, I don't mind. I also need a friend and get bored alone, but there's no guarantee that if we manage to get out, we'll still be immortal," Irwan replied.
"That's true, but compared to being livestock and waiting to be slaughtered here, I choose to take a chance and leave," Brian replied.
"Whatever happens, I'll be with Brian, so I'm not scared at all," Riana said, wrapping her arm around Brian's.
"The important thing now is to focus on getting out of here first. What happens outside is a matter for later," Brian added.
"You're right. Nadia and I will follow," Irwan said.
"Yeah, we'll help as much as we can," Nadia added.
"Alright, come on, let's eat first, but there's only rice and chili paste," Riana said.
"We should be grateful for that. Usually, I only drink plain water," Irwan said.
The four stood up and moved to the dining table. Riana and Nadia went to the kitchen to get food and plates. Under the food cover, there was only a bowl of chili paste with no other side dishes, but for them, it was already a great blessing because they rarely ate outside.
"Oh, by the way, Felix and Lusi have been here for about a year, so Nadia and I slept for a whole year?" Irwan asked.
"Yeah, something like that. Brian and I slept for 10 months," Brian replied.
"Hmm, so it's already 2025 outside now, huh?" Irwan said.
"Yep, and it's almost over. Two more months until 2026, because it's already October," Riana replied.
"We lost a year outside, but if we had committed suicide, we would have lost forever," Nadia said.
"Do you all still want to commit suicide?" Irwan asked.
"After seeing this village and those creatures, and then a life like heaven but actually hell, I want to live," Brian replied.
"Me too, I want to live too, with Brian. I don't want to go back to my old life," Riana added.
"So, we all found a reason to live after realizing we're just livestock here, myself included," Irwan said.
"Yeah, I'm awake now and want to live. Even if I go back to being my addicted, skinny self when I get out, it's fine as long as I don't go home. That's why I want to go with you, Wan," Nadia said.
"Yeah, I understand. I don't have anywhere else to go but with you either," Irwan said.
"We'll definitely get out of here," Brian said, holding Riana's hand.
"Yes, definitely, together, without exception," Irwan added.
After eating, they began to arrange everything in the house to live together. Since there was only one bedroom, Irwan and Nadia made the living room their bedroom and the dining room their living room. After that, the four of them walked around the village to study the situation in the village. Brian and Riana also took Irwan and Nadia to peek at the Japanese man who committed suicide every day with tears in his eyes because he desperately wanted to go home. After seeing the man get up again and commit suicide once more,
"Let's go now," Irwan suggested.
"Yeah, I can't bear to watch," Nadia added.
"Okay, okay, let's go to Brother Rahman's hut first," Brian replied.
They walked through the bushes and through the forest. After a while, they arrived at a hut in the middle of the forest. Brian tried to open the hut, but it was tightly locked.
"He's not back yet," Brian said.
"He said a week, and now we just wanted to show Irwan and Nadia, right?" Riana said.
"Yes, you're right. (Turning to Irwan and Nadia) So? There's a head hanging on the wall inside, clearly visible when we open the door," Brian said.
"I believe it. Let's just go back," Irwan said.
"Yeah, it feels creepy here somehow," Nadia added.
"Okay, let's go," Brian replied.
They returned the way they came. After arriving back in the village, they went to the town square where the village hall was located. Many residents were also there in pairs. Finally, they decided to return home and stay there. That night, Brian and Riana were already in their room. Irwan and Nadia lay on the mattress in the living room. Irwan looked thoughtful, staring at the ceiling. He glanced briefly at Nadia's face, who was sleeping on her side facing him, then he looked at the ceiling again.
"Even after hearing Brian and Riana's story, and seeing that Japanese man earlier, for some reason, I don't feel entirely comfortable with this Rahman person. Is it really true that we can get out of here?" Irwan wondered to himself.