Zen Hae menulis puisi, cerita, dan kritik sastra. Telah menghasilkan dua buku: kumpulan cerita pendek Rumah Kawin (KataKita, 2004) dan buku puisi Paus Merah Jambu (Akar Indonesia, 2007) – yang terakhir ini masuk lima besar Khatulistiwa Literary Award 2008 dan mendapatkan predikat “Karya Sastra Terbaik 2007” dari majalah Tempo. Menamatkan pendidikan di Jurusan Bahasa dan Sastra Indonesia IKIP Jakarta (kini Universitas Negeri Jakarta) pada 1994. Pernah menjadi wartawan, pekerja LSM, penulis naskah infotainmen dan dosen paruh waktu. Anggota Komite Sastra Dewan Kesenian Jakarta (2006-2012) dan Ketua Komite Sastra DKJ (2006-2009) dan Ketua Bidang Kajian dan Kritik DKJ (2011-2012). Sejak Februari 2012 ia adalah Manajer Penerbitan di Komunitas Salihara.

“Rumah Kawin” terbit pertama kali di Kompas (4 Juni 2003). Edisi perubahan Hak Cipta © 2014 oleh Zen Hae. Terbit atas ijin dari penulis. Hak Cipta terjemahan © 2014 oleh Indah Lestari.

***

 

Rumah Kawin

Lagu “Malam Terakhir” baru saja berakhir dari mulut Gwat Nio dan Karna Suling. Para wayang cokek sudah mengosongkan kalangan, bersiap-siap untuk pulang. Para panjak membereskan alat musik mereka. Tetapi Mamat Jago masih saja berdiri sambil memeluk Sarti di tengah kalangan.Tangannya terus meremasi pantat Sarti dan menyorongkan mulutnya ke mulut wayang bermata burung hantu itu.

Bau anggur kolesom kembali menerpa hidung Sarti. Ia melengos dan berusaha mendorong tubuh Mamat Jago sekuat tenaga, tetapi dengan cepat Mamat Jago meraih tangan Sarti dan melipatkannya ke pinggangnya.

Kali ini Mamat Jago menggoyang-goyangkan pinggangnya sambil terus menekan pantat Sarti. Batang zakar Mamat Jago terasa seperti ikan gabus, menekan selangkangan Sarti.

Wayang cokek itu meringis, mencoba menggeser pantatnya.

“Aih jangan tinggalkan Abang, Manis. Jangan biarkan pancuran ini ngucur sendirian. Aaaghh.”

“Heh, Minan, gesekin gua lagu ‘Ayam Jago’. Gua mau ngibing lagi,” teriak Mamat Jago, tiba-tiba.

Minan Balok, si tukang teh yan, celingukan. Balo si tukang gambang menggelengkan kepalanya. Pemain musik lainnya menangguk. Tak mungkin lagi mereka main. Ini sudah pukul dua pagi. Sudah waktunya rombongan Gambang Kromong Mustika Tanjung pimpinan Tan Eng Djin dari Teluk Naga berhenti main.

Sahibul hajat, keluarga Lie Ban Hoa dari Salembaran dan keluarga Fai Koen Atmadja dari Kapuk, sudah meminta mereka berhenti sejak setengah jam lalu. Sebab izin keramaian yang mereka dapatkan dari aparat keamanan setempat hanya sampai pukul satu.

“Heh, budek lu. Gua masih banyak duit. Kalo perlu pala lu semua gua beli. Gua mau nyawer lagi. Ayo,” teriak Mamat Jago sambil menuding-nuding para panjak yang masih bersambut pandang.

Sarti kembali mengibaskan tangannya. Menarik tubuhnya dari pelukan Mamat Jago yang kian sempoyongan. Terlepas.

Sebagai gantinya satu tamparan tangan kanan Mamat Jago mendarat di pipinya. “Sundel lu!” maki Mamat Jago sambil melempar cukin merah hati ke wajah Sarti.

Sarti meringis dan memegangi pipinya, berlari ke arah wayang lain yang sejak tadi hanya bisa memandanginya dengan cemas.

Ini sudah kelewatan, pikir Eng Djin. Anak buahnya memang boleh dipeluk, dicium, atau dibawa ke mana saja, tetapi pantang disakiti. Ia pun keluar dari sela-sela gong dan menghampiri pengibing mabuk itu. Merendengnya. “Maaf, kita harus berhenti, Bang. Kalau tidak cokek kita bakal ditubruk polisi.”

“Jangan takut, Koh. Mereka semua teman saya. Ayo, main lagi.

Bang Minan mulai menggesek teh yan-nya, tetapi segera Eng Djin menggoyang-goyangkan tangan kirinya. “Mendingan Abang pulang saja. Nanti kita-kita juga yang repot.”

“Sial dangkalan lu,” maki Mamat Jago. Dengan sisa tenaganya disodoknya perut Eng Djin, tetapi ia menepiskan tangan itu. Mamat Jago balas menyerang dengan pukulan siku yang diruncingkan—gentus tubruk.

Eng Djin jatuh terduduk.

“Engkoh jangan bikin saya malu ya. Saya jawara kampung. Jago berantem. Semua orang bisa saya bikin jatoh deprok.”

Eng Djin bangkit dan mundur selangkah. Bersandar pada tiang. Dipandanginya kepalan tangan Mamat Jago yang padat berisi. Empat belas jurus ilmu pukul memang masih dikuasainya, tetapi ia sadar, tidak mungkin menandingi kemahiran pukulan jawara kampung Bulak Petir ini. Namun, ia akan melawan sebisanya kalau Mamat Jago menyerang lagi. Itulah cara ia mempertahankan harga dirinya di depan anak buahnya.

Ternyata, tidak. Mamat Jago hanya memasang jurus. Kuda-kudanya kelihatan goyah. Tubuhnya goyang seperti orang-orangan sawah.

Tiba-tiba, dua orang berjaket kulit hitam, si Gondrong dan si Cepak, masuk ke kalangan. Eiiitt, Mamat Jago mengalihkan kuda-kudanya ke arah dua orang asing itu. Mencoba lebih awas, ia kibas-kibaskan kepalanya.

Si Gondrong lantas mencabut revolver dari balik jaketnya dan mengacungkannya ke udara.

Orang-orang terkesiap. Ada juga yang menjerit.

“Bapak-ibu saya minta berhenti. Bubar!” Si Gondrong memerintah.

Dengan sigap Si Cepak mencekal tangan Mamat Jago, memitingnya, memborgolnya, dan menyeretnya seperti sekarung tahi ayam.

***

Entah sudah berapa lebaran lewat setelah penangkapan itu. Mamat Jago tersenyum. “Sudah lama sekali,” gumamnya. Saat itu dengan mudah ia masuk-keluar sel. Ditangkap malam, keluar pagi; dibekuk pagi, dilepas sore; masuk sore, keluar malam. Anak-anak buahnya akan mengantarkan uang tebusan, tak lama setelah ia digelandang polisi. “Polisi teman Abang,” katanya berkali-kali kepada anak buahnya. Setelah itu ia akan dengan leluasa datang lagi ke rumah kawin, ngibing dan minum, membuat keributan bila perlu.

Tetapi, itu dulu. Ketika kekayaan dan kehormatan didekapnya dengan dua tangan. Ketika jual-beli tanah kebun dan sawah di kampungnya sedang ramai-ramainya. Setiap saat orang datang dan pergi dari rumahnya. Membawa dan mengambil uang. Pekerjaannya sebagai calo tanah sangat sibuk kala itu. Pernah suatu ketika anak buahnya harus memanggul berkarung-karung uang ke rumahnya untuk membebaskan berhektar-hektar sawah yang kini menjadi bandar udara itu. Orang-orang kampungnya pernah berkata, ia tidur bukan di atas kasur kapuk, tetapi di atas kasur uang.

Sekarang ini semuanya sudah lain. Kekayaan dan kehormatannya rontok sudah, seperti pohon kelapa disambar petir. Meranggas dan mati. Tanahnya yang dulu hektaran kini hanya tinggal sepekarangan saja, menciut bagai kelaras terbakar. Di atasnya berdiri rumah yang dulu pernah menjadi rumah termegah dan termahal di kampungnya—kini sudah menjadi sarang kumbang, ngengat, dan laba-laba. Kosong, kusam, sepi. Mobil dan motornya entah di tangan siapa.

Puluhan kerbaunya tak berjejak lagi. Kambing dan ayam hanya tinggal sekandang. Anak buahnya yang berjumlah puluhan sudah pergi meninggalkannya, mencari majikan baru begitu ia bangkrut.

Masroh, istri yang tak pernah lagi disentuhnya sejak diserang TBC, wafat dua tahun lalu. Tiga anak perempuannya sudah dibawa suami mereka ke kota lain. Menjadi orang rantau. Satu anak lelakinya menjadi pengojek untuk menghidupi istri dan empat anaknya. Hanya ia dan si bungsu yang tinggal di situ.

Ah, betapa perihnya kehilangan ini. Mamat Jago batuk satu-dua. “Apa ada obatnya?” ia bergumam.

Pekerjaan sebagai calo tanah sudah tidak dilakoninya lagi. Tidak ada lagi orang yang mau menjual kebun dan sawahnya. Tanah warisan mereka sudah habis terjual, tinggal yang kini mereka tempati. Dan itu tak mungkin mereka jual, kecuali kalau mereka mau menjadi gelandangan di kampung sendiri. Lahan-lahan yang tadinya menjadi sumber penghidupan mereka kini sudah berubah kegunaannya.

Ratusan hektar sawah itu sudah dibikin rata tanpa pematang dan diberi pagar besi setinggi dua meter di tepinya. Di tengahnya membujur dua jalur landasan beton, dari barat ke timur. Ia dan orang kampungnya hanya bisa memandangi pesawat terbang yang lepas landas dan mendarat. Hanya mereka yang pernah naik haji mampu menaikinya. Di malam hari pesawat-pesawat itu berubah menjadi kunang-kunang raksasa yang tubuhnya tetap berkelap-kelip meski melayang di batas langit terjauh.

Pabrik-pabrik juga sudah berjalan siang dan malam. Siapa pun orang terkaya di kampungnya tidak mungkin membangun dan memiliki pabrik-pabrik itu. Mereka hanya petani penggarap dan pedagang kecil, tidak mungkin menguasai modal dan teknologi perpabrikan secanggih itu. Tapi, anak-anak mereka, lelaki dan perempuan, si bungsu juga, senantiasa berbondong-bondong, keluar masuk pabrik, dengan seragam. Mereka sudah menjadi manusia pabrik yang mau tidak mau dibayar murah oleh tauke-tauke dari Korea, Jepang, dan Taiwan.

Rumah-rumah mewah juga sudah dibangun dan ditempati orang-orang yang tidak pernah mereka kenal sebelumnya. Orang-orang kampung memang tidak mampu membeli dan menempati rumah mahal itu, tetapi mereka masih bisa menjadi pengojek di perumahan itu dengan motor yang dibeli dari hasil menjual tanah warisan mereka. Mereka masih bisa menikmati jalan-jalan aspal yang lurus-menyiku, sungai kecil yang jernih dan dibeton tepinya, taman yang indah, sambil memandangi rumah-rumah besar dengan pintu dan jendela yang melengkung. Rumah-rumah yang dahulu mereka saksikan di layar-layar lenong. Di tambah gonggongan anjing, tentu saja.

Mamat Jago menarik napas dalam-dalam sebagaimana ia menarik kenangan-kenangan yang terkubur dalam liang gelap masa lalunya. “Aku butuh obat,” ia bergumam sembari menelan ludah.

Aroma tanah basah dibawa angin selatan melintasi padang ilalang setinggi pinggang. Hujan akan segera turun. Musim penghujan sudah tiba dan akan makin tinggi curahnya menjelang Lebaran Cina atau Tahun Baru Imlek. Musim kawin akan tiba juga. Rumah-rumah kawin di Kampung Melayu, Kosambi, Salembaran, dan Sewan akan ramai lagi. Ia rindukan semua itu.

***

Dalam mimpinya sore itu, Mamat Jago mendatangi lagi rumah kawin Teratai Putih. Orang-orang menyingkir begitu ia memasuki pintu utamanya. Ia memasang langkah tegap seorang jawara kampung. Hanya di sinilah aku bisa menikmati lagi seluruh kesenangan dan kehormatan hidupku, pikirnya sembari tersenyum. Bukankah sudah bertahun-tahun belakangan ini ia tidak menikmati dua hal itu lagi. Ya, di sinilah orang akan memuji kelihaiannya ngibing yang dipadu dengan keindahan jurus-jurus pukulnya, kekuatannya menenggak berbotol-botol bir bercampur anggur kolesom, keroyalannya nyawer. Dan tubuh wayang yang panas dan memabukkan! Liukan dan goyangan yang membangkitkan syahwat! Aih, lelaki mana yang bisa tahan.

Nyai Sirah, si tukang cuking, menyambut Mamat Jago dengan selendang merah hati, seperti dulu. Perempuan bersusur sebesar telur puyuh itu kemudian mengalungkan selendang itu di leher Mamat Jago, tanda ia harus turun ke kalangan, memilih wayang mana yang ia suka.

Tapi hanya Sarti yang ia tuju. Ditatapnya Sarti yang duduk di pojok, bersebelahan dengan Minan Balok. Kali ini Sarti memakai kaus hijau daun pisang bergambar naga merah jambu yang melintas dari bawah ke atas dan celana capri krem. Dengan pakaian itu ia tampak lebih muda dari usianya yang sebenarnya. Sedikit gemuk membuat lekukan-lekukan tubuhnya tampak nyata dibalut pakaian yang serba ketat itu.

Darahnya berdesir. Ditariknya tangan wayang cokek kecintaannya itu. Sarti tersenyum dan mengikuti Mamat Jago dengan langkah merpati. Pengibing dan wayang lain sengaja mengosongkan kalangan, memberi penghormatan atas kembalinya si raja ngibing dari Bulak Petir itu.

Dengan dagu yang sedikit mendongak Mamat Jago menebar pandangan ke seluruh ruang. Tak lupa ia mengangkat kedua tangan yang dikepalkan, tanda hormat kepada sahibul hajat, kedua mempelai, dan Tan Eng Djin.

Bang Minan menjawab salam Mamat Jago dengan menggesek teh yan-nya.

“Ayo, Minan, gesekin gua lagu ‘Ayam Jago’. Gua mau ngibing lagi.”

Teh yan digesek, disusul gambang, kecrek, gong, suling, dan kempul. Susul-menyusul. Jalin-menjalin. Gwat Nio sudah melantunkan suaranya yang garing-melengking seperti suara burung titutit.

“Ayam jago jangan diadu, kalau diadu jenggernya merah.
Ayam jago jangan diadu, kalau diadu jenggernya merah.
Baju ijo jangan diganggu, kalau diganggu yang punya marah.
Baju ijo jangan diganggu, kalau diganggung yang punya marah.”

Tapi Sarti tidak juga menggoyangkan tubuhnya. Tangannya dibiarkan terkulai.

Mamat Jago meraihnya, melipatkannya ke pinggangnya, merapatkan pelukannya. Tubuh perempuan itu terasa dingin, seperti daun dadap pengusir demam anak-anak. Ia menatap paras Sarti; bibirnya terkatup, matanya terpejam. “Ayo, Sarti, jangan kau goda Abang seperti malam-malam dulu!” kata Mamat Jago sambil menggoyang-goyangkannya tubuh Sarti. Ditepuk-tepuknya pipinya, tak ada gerakan sedikit pun. Dipandanginya para panjak. Semuanya berhenti main. Tak ada yang bergerak. Semua dingin dan biru. Seperti keramik Cina.

Mamat Jago membopong Sarti keluar. Penonton yang semulai menyesaki kalangan dan halaman rumah kawin sudah tak ada lagi. Dengan was-was ia menjejaki halaman, menerobos hujan senja yang turun bagaikan lapis-lapis kelambu. Sepanjang jalan pohon-pohon meliuk-mabuk, rumah-rumah bisu-merunduk. Nyala lampu listrik dan patromaks tampak setengah hidup setengah mati. Ia susuri jalan aspal, memotong sungai, membelah padang ilalang.

“Kau tidak boleh mati, Sayang. Hiduplah bersama Abang. Di rumahku kau akan hangat.” Dikecupnya bibir Sarti. Air liur nya yang bercampur air hujan masuk ke mulut Sarti.

Si mata burung hantu itu tersedak. Tubuhnya menggeliat. Tangannya meraih leher Mamat Jago.

Ia tersenyum dan mempercepat langkahnya.

Malam dan hujan pertama benar-benar telah mengepung kampung Bulak Petir. Dari kejauhan rumah Mamat Jago yang terletak di tepi sawah bera dengan jalan yang lurus memotong pematang tampak bagaikan lukisan luntur. Satu-dua lampunya menyala.

Ah, anak yang baik, pikir Mamat Jago. Pasti Si Bungsu menyalakan lampu-lampu itu sebelum berangkat ke pabrik untuk kerja malam.

Cahaya lampu-lampu itu senantiasa membangkitkan keriangan masa mudanya. Bukankah dulu ketika masih berpacaran, bahkan setelah menikah dan anak-anaknya belum lahir dan menyesaki rumah, ia dan Masroh selalu berlarian di atas pematang sawah begitu hujan pertama turun. Setelah basah kuyup oleh air hujan barulah mereka mandi di sumur senggot yang airnya terasa lebih hangat daripada air hujan. Buatnya, laku itu semacam perayaan untuk datangnya musim hujan.

Pintu rumahnya tidak terkunci. Dasar anak ceroboh, maki Mamat dalam hati, pasti Si Bungsu lupa menguncinya. Ia mendorong pintu dengan punggungnya dan langsung menuju kamar tidur. Ia membaringkan Sarti di ranjang. Di situlah dulu Masroh mengembuskan napas terakhirnya dengan tubuh kurus kering dan sepasang payudara yang serupa jeruk busuk.

Mamat melucuti seluruh pakaian basah dari tubuh Sarti dan menyelimuti tubuh itu dengan kain batik yang dulu pernah dipakai untuk menyelimuti mayat istrinya. Ia pandangi wajah Sarti yang tertidur pulas. Dalam keremangan wajah itu berganti-ganti dengan wajah istrinya.

“Pacarku, biniku.”

Mamat Jago mengecup bibir Sarti. Bibir itu terasa bergerak. Balas melumat.

Tangan Sarti perlahan mendekap Mamat Jago. Ia mulai bernapas satu-dua. Hangat, panas, gemuruh.

Mamat Jago balas mendekapnya lebih erat lagi. Kini kehangatan menjalari tubuh mereka berdua.

Sarti mengerang sambil mencengkeram punggung Mamat Jago. Dalam sekejap mereka telah bergumul di atas kasur ringsek. Mereka saling memagut-mematuk-mengecup-merenggut- mencakar-mengular, terbakar.

Tiba-tiba, brak! Mamat Jago kaget dan melepaskan pelukannya.

Eng Djin, si Gondrong, dan si Cepak sudah berdiri di pelangkahan pintu. Buru-buru Mamat Jago meraih dan mengenakan celana kolornya.

“Sadarlah, Bang. Sarti sudah mati,” kata Eng Djin.

Mamat Jago menoleh.

Sarti terbaring telanjang kaku dengan sisa-sisa keringat yang meleleh di sela-sela payudaranya.

Tak percaya Mamat Jago menepuk-nepuk pipi Sarti. “Ayo, manis, bangun. Ada Koh Eng Djin dan teman Abang datang,” bisiknya ke telinga Sarti.

“Relakan kepergiannya, Bang. Nyebut, Bang.”

Mamat Jago masih tak percaya. Ia mengguncang-guncangkan tubuh Sarti. Kaku, dingin, biru. Tangisan pilu kemudian meledak dari mulutnya. Tangis yang sudah lama sekali baru terdengar lagi. Ketika Masroh mati pun ia tidak terbujuk untuk menangis.

Eng Djin hanya menarik napas menyaksikan lelaki malang itu. Tanpa aba-aba Si Gondrong dan Si Cepak langsung membekuk Mamat Jago. Mereka menggelandang Mamat Jago dan memasukkannya ke mobil jip.

Sepanjang jalan kedua polisi yang diakui sebagai temannya itu tidak mengajak Mamat Jago bicara. Si Cepak sibuk menyetir, Si Gondrong asyik merokok.

Mamat Jago mengamati borgol di tangannya yang kadang berkilatan oleh cahaya yang menembus kaca mobil. Baja antikarat ini benar-benar membuatnya tidak berkutik.

Terutama ketika mobil terguncang-guncang di jalan berlubang, tubuhnya terpental dan membentur pintu belakang mobil. Ia mengaduh dan Si Gondrong hanya menoleh dengan rokok yang tetap terjepit di bibirnya.

Akhirnya Mamat Jago menyandarkan tubuhnya ke jok dan membuang pandangannya ke kaca pintu belakang. Ia menyaksikan cahaya lampu-lampu rumah yang meleleh dan membentuk garis panjang bergelombang. Tapi ia juga melihat tubuh Sarti yang telanjang berkeringat mengikuti mobil yang entah menuju ke mana. Tubuh Sarti melayang seperti ikan terbang. Benarkah Sarti sudah mati? Mungkinkah aku menyenggamai mayat, Mamat Jago membatin. Bukankah di atas ranjang Sarti balas membalas kecupan dan pelukannya dan mereka bergumul hebat seperti di malam-malam dulu.

Tiba-tiba mobil berhenti. Pintu belakangnya dibuka paksa. “Keluar lu!” Bentakan Si Gondrong membuatnya ternganga. Mamat Jago tak punya lagi kuasa untuk menolak. Ia melompat. Telapak kakinya amblas di hamparan pasir.

Si Gondrong dan Si Cepak menggiringnya ke sebuah tempat gelap. Ada debur ombak. Kersik daun. Serbuk garam yang menempeli bibirnya. Ia menduga-duga pantai apa ini. Mungkin Tanjung Kait, Rawa Saban, Kamal, atau pantai yang belum pernah ia kunjungi. Dorongan keras membuatnya tersandung karang dan tersungkur. Butiran pasir asin memenuhi mulutnya.

“Kami tidak pernah benar-benar berteman denganmu. Kami berteman untuk bisa membekuk bajingan macam kau. Malam ini hidupmu tamat,” suara Si Cepak mengalahkan deru ombak.

Dor! Dor! Dor!

Darah meleleh dari tiga lubang di pelipis dan dahi Mamat Jago. Diserap pasir, dijilat ombak, larut di air.

***

Dor! Dor! Dor!

Mamat Jago terjaga. Ia bangkit, seperti ada yang mengusap wajahnya. “Sarti!” ia memanggil. Tak ada jawaban. Ia kemudian mengusap dahi dan pelipisnya. Tak ada darah. Hanya air hujan dari genting bocor! “Mimpi apa lagi ini?” katanya, heran. Ia duduk di tepi ranjang. Ditajamkan pendengarannya, rentetan tembakan itu masih terdengar. Aih, ia tersenyum, rupanya hanya suara petasan dari rumah kawin! Ia berjalan menuju jendela dan menguakkannya. Hujan sudah berhenti, tetapi air masih menggenang di pelataran rumahnya. Begitu juga kenangannya pada Sarti, Eng Djin, Si Cepak, dan Si Gondrong. Dan Sarti! Mengapa kau muncul dalam mimpiku dengan cara seaneh itu, ia membatin lagi.

Tanpa membuang waktu ia membuka lemari dan mengambil pakaian terbaiknya. Baju safari dan celana panjang krem, topi laken coklat tua, sandal kulit hitam, tongkat kayu dengan gagang berukir kepala naga membuat ia merasa gagah kembali. Tapi cermin buram di depannya tak bisa menyembunyikan pipinya yang mulai keriput dan kantung matanya yang bergantung. Lama ia tatap wajah tuanya sehingga ia terbatuk. Tubuhnya terguncang-guncang, bayangnya terkekeh-kekeh. “Dasar bini sialan!”

“Aku harus kembali ke rumah kawin itu.” Mamat Jago mengetuk-ngetukkan ujung tongkatnya ke lantai teraso. Tiga kali. Hatinya mantap.

Rumah kawin Teratai Putih masih seperti dulu. Orang-orang masih menyingkir begitu Mamat Jago masuk kalangan. Ia kembali memberi hormat kepada sahibul hajat, kedua mempelai, Tan Eng Djin, panjak, dan wayang cokek yang secara bergantian membalas salamnya.

Tapi Sarti hanya memonyongkan mulutnya dan mengembuskan asap rokoknya ke arah Mamat Jago.

Si Tua itu hanya tersenyum dan membalas Sarti dengan lagak serupa.

Sarti langsung menggilas puntung rokok dengan kelom geulisnya. “Sudah lama Abang gak ke sini. Sarti kangen,” kata Sarti sambil mengalungkan cukin merah hati ke leher Mamat Jago.

“Abang banyak urusan, Neng,” kata Mamat Jago sambil mendekap pinggang Sarti.

Tanpa diminta, Minan menggesek teh yan-nya.

Bunyinya yang lirih membuat Mamat Jago mendekap Sarti lebih mesra lagi. Seperti ada lubang hitam di dada Mamat Jago yang hanya bisa tertutup jika ia mendekap wayang cokek kecintaannya itu. Bait pertama lagu “Stambul Siliwangi” kemudian mengalun dari mulut Gwat Nio.

“Ya jika begini, kalo begini, Karna, nagalah ya naganya.
Aih, kayulah ya biduk, kayulah biduk ya dimakan api.
Ya kalo begini, kalo begini, Sayang, apa rasanya.
Aih, badanlah hidup, ya badan hidup, ya rasanya mati.”

Karna menyusul dengan suara bergelombang. Sesekali Mamat Jago mengikuti,

“Ya bunga mawar, Manis, bunga mawar, Jiwa Manis, dari Kahyangan.
Ya indung-indung, ya jeruk purut, Nona.
Ya jeruk purut, Jiwa Manis, harum baunya.
Ya belajar kenal, Nio, belajar kenal, Jiwa Manis, tidak halangan.
Aih. . .indung-indung, ya cuma awan.
Ya cuma awan, Jiwa Manis, ada yang punya.”

Para pengibing dan pasangannya turut melingkari Mamat Jago dan Sarti. Tapi tak ada yang sanggup menari. Semuanya hanya berdekapan. Tiba-tiba Mamat Jago terbatuk. Suaranya kisut, napasnya turun naik.

Sarti mengusap-usap punggung Mamat Jago. “Abang sakit.”

“Abang sakit cinta.”

“Berobat dong.”

“Enggak ah. Abang kepingin ke rumah kawin aja. Ke dokter Sarti.” “Ah, Sarti banyak pasen.”

“Rawatlah Abang, Bu Dokter. Jadiin saya satu-satunya pasen.”

“Tong ah.”

“Tadi Abang mimpiin Sarti dan semua orang di rumah kawin ini.”

“Masak? Apa ceritanya.”

“Ah, malu nyeritainnya.”

“Apaan?” Sarti mencubit paha Mamat Jago.

“Kita main dokter-dokteran.”

“Ih, jorok.” Sarti meremas selangkangan Mamat Jago.

Mamat Jago mengerang dan menekan pantat Sarti.

Kali ini Sarti membiarkan Mamat Jago meremas dan menekan pantatnya. Ada api yang meletup dari bekas lubang hitam itu. Suhu badan Mamat Jago merambat hangat dan menjalar ke tubuh Sarti.

Api menjalar ke tubuh pengibing dan wayang cokek lainnya. Semuanya terbakar.

Para penonton menelan ludah. Seorang anak kecil, sembari berjongkok, meremas selangkangannya.

“Pulang yuk sama Abang.”

“Pulang ke mana.”

“Pulang.”

Batuk Mamat Jago meletus lagi, bertanding dengan suara gambang. Napasnya seperti bunyi perahu ngadat. Hingga pada satu pukulan gong, napasnya mereda.

Sarti menjerit.

Orang-orang menoleh.

Tubuh Mamat Jago bertumpu di tubuh Sarti.

“Terus main. Gua bakal mati kalo gambang berhenti,” kata Mamat Jago dalam dua kali jeda. Setengah berbisik, setengah menjerit.

Para panjak tetap diam. Pelan-pelan tubuh Mamat Jago merosot ke lantai.

Sarti meletakkan kepala Mamat Jago di pangkuannya. Ia tersenyum, hanya bisa tersenyum, sambil mengusap-usap wajah Mamat Jago.

Dalam hitungan detik Mamat Jago masih bisa menyaksikan wajah Sarti berubah menjadi wajah seorang perempuan muda. Itulah perempuan yang pernah mengajak Mamat Jago tamasya ke sebuah pulau kecil di pantai utara. Saat itu Mamat Jago baru khatam membaca Quran. Sebagai hadiah perempuan itu mengajaknya tamasya. Mereka berdua saja ke pulau penuh pohon kelingkit, elang bondol, burung camar, ganggang, rajungan itu. Masa tamasya paling indah itu mungkin hanya beberapa menit, satu dua jam, seharian, berkali bulan. Mamat Jago tak bisa mengingatnya lagi. Tapi ia hafal betul senyum perempuan itu. Dan ia merasa bahagia.

***

Indah Lestari lahir di Singapura dan tinggal di Jakarta, Indonesia. Dia menyelesaikan S1 jurusan Sastra Inggris dari Universitas Padjadjaran dan S2 jurusan English Studies dari Jawaharlal Nehru University, India. Dia menerjemahkan novel JM Coetzee Disgrace (Aib) dan sebuah novel lain (dalam tahap penyuntingan) ke Bahasa Indonesia. Selain menjadi penerjemah lepas, dia meluangkan waktu untuk menulis puisi, yang beberapa di antaranya diterbitkan di Bacopa, Revival dan The White Elephant Quarterly pada 2013.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

***

 

The Wedding House

Gwat Nio and Karna Suling had just finished the song, “The Last Night,” and the dancers emptied the arena. The musicians were putting their instruments back into their cases as Mamat Jago still stood embracing Sarti amid the crowd. He pinched Sarti’s behind and tried to kiss the big-eyed dancer on the mouth.

The odor of cheap Chinese wine stung Sarti’s nose. She turned her head away and tried to shove Mamat Jago with all her might, but he seized her hand and pulled it around his waist. Gyrating his hips, he continued to squeeze Sarti’s buttocks and press his penis, swollen like a snakehead fish, against Sarti’s groin.

The dancer grinned and tried to pull away.

“Please don’t leave me, sweetheart. Don’t let this downspout spill on the ground.”

People started to watch them. Some smiled while others started to worry.

“Hey, Minan, play ‘Ayam Jago (The Cock).’ I want to dance again,” Mamat Jago yelled.

The teh yan player, Minan Balok, looked around him. Balo, the xylophone player, caught his look and shook his head. The other musicians nodded in agreement with him. Playing another song was impossible. It was already two in the morning, and time for the Gambang Kromong Mustika Tanjung Band, led by Tan Eng Djin from Teluk Naga, to stop playing.

The hosts, the Lie Ban Hoa family from Salembaran and Fai Koen Atmadja from Kapuk, Jakarta, had asked them to stop half an hour ago. The permit they had obtained from the local authorities was only valid until one o’clock.

“Hey, are you deaf? I’m still loaded. If needed, I can pay for the lot of you. I want to dance again and tip the dancers big. Come on!” Mamat Jago shouted, signaling the band players who were still unsure of what to do.

Mamat Jago wobbled more and more.

Satri broke loose from him. As a result, a slap landed on her cheek. “You bitch!” he scolded, and tossed a maroon scarf at her face.

She grimaced and touched her cheek, then ran to the other dancers who had been watching worriedly from a distance.

This is too much, Eng Djin thought. One could hug, kiss, or take his dancers anywhere, but hurting them was not allowed. He walked between the gongs to the drunken dancer and pulled him aside. “I’m sorry, we have to stop. Otherwise the police will arrest us.”

“Don’t worry. All of the police officers are my friends. Let’s start again. Let the orchestra play.”

Minan started to play the teh yan, but Eng Djin waved his hand, suggesting that he stop. “You better go home. If we continue, we’ll get in trouble.”

“Damn you!” Mamat Jago tried to punch Eng Djin in his stomach, and the man warded him off. Mamat Jago attacked again by shoving his elbow straight into his opponent. The elbow strike landed Eng Djin on his behind. “Don’t embarrass me. I’m the champion of this village, a fighter champion. I can beat up anyone.”

Eng Djin rose and took a step back. He leaned on a pole and looked at Mamat Jago’s bulky fist. While he had mastered fourteen martial art movements, he knew he would not be able to beat the Bulak Petir village champion. However, he would fight his best if Mamat Jago attacked again. That was how he would save face in front of his men. Swaying like a scarecrow, Mamat Jago only glared at him.

Two men wearing black leather jackets, one with long hair and the other a crew cut, entered the arena.

Whoosh. Mamat Jago turned to the two intruders. Trying to be more alert, he shook his head.

Longhair pulled a revolver from inside his jacket and pointed it up.

The crowd gasped.

Crewcut grabbed and locked Mamat Jago’s arms, and dragged him along like a sack of chicken manure.

***

Many years had passed since that arrest.

Mamat Jago smiled and mumbled, “That was a long time ago.” In those days he could be jailed as easily as he was released. Arrested at night, he was free in the morning; or admitted in the morning, free in the evening, and so on. His men always bailed him out not long after the police took him in. “The police are my friends,” he repeatedly told his men. As soon as he was free, he would return to the wedding house whenever he liked, to dance and drink and make a scene if necessary.

But that was when he held wealth and respect in both hands, and the real estate business of selling rice field plots in his village was booming. Everyone who came to his house brought and took money. His job as a land broker kept him very busy. Once, one of his men had to carry sacks of money to his house for acquisition of the land where the airport is now. The villagers used to say that he slept on a bed of money instead of kapok.

Now everything was different. His wealth and respect had dried up like a coconut tree struck by lightning. The hectares of land he use to own had shrunk like scorched banana leaves to the size of a lawn. Mamat Jago’s house was once the most luxurious and expensive house in the village. Today it was empty, dingy, and silent, and home to moths, beetles, and spiders. Who knows who owned his cars or bikes. There was no trace of his water buffaloes. Only a herd of goats and a coop of chickens were left. His men, there had been about ten or twenty, had left him, looking for new employers after he went bankrupt.

Masroh, his wife whom he did not touch after she contracted tuberculosis, had died two years ago. Their respective husbands moved his three daughters out of town. One of his sons worked as a motorcycle transport driver to support his wife and four children. Only his youngest son and he lived in the house.

“Oh, this deprivation is agonizing.” Mamat Jago coughed a bit. “Is there a cure for this?” he mumbled.

He no longer worked as a land broker. No one wanted to sell his plantation or paddy field. The locals had sold all of their inherited land until only the land their houses stood on was left. They could not sell unless they wanted to be homeless in their own village. The use of the land that provided their livelihoods had changed. Hundreds of hectares were leveled, the dikes were gone, and a two-meter high iron bar fence enclosed everything. Two concrete platforms stretching from west to east lay through the middle of the area.

The locals, including Mamat Jago, just watched the airplanes landing and taking off. Only those on a pilgrimage could afford to board them. At night the planes changed into giant fireflies, blinking as they flew to the farthest horizon.

There were also factories operating day and night. It was impossible for the village’s richest people to build and own a factory. They were only sharecroppers and petty traders, and could not run a business or master the sophisticated technology used in the factories. Yet, their children, boys and girls, even the youngest child, always flocked to and from the factories in uniform. They became involuntary underpaid factory workers, employed by Korean, Japanese, and Taiwanese tycoons.

Luxurious houses were built and occupied by people they did not know. The locals could not afford the houses and had to work as motorcycle taxi drivers in the neighborhood. The bikes were bought with the money from the sale of their inherited land. They still could enjoy the straight and zigzag asphalt road, the clear creek with a concrete sidewalk, and beautiful parks, while looking at the arched doors and windows of the mansions. They used to see them on the open-air movie screens, for which there was no longer space. To complete the scene there were also barking dogs, of course.

Mamat Jago inhaled deeply as if pulling the memories buried deep in the dark hole of his past. “I need my medication,” he mumbled and swallowed.

The smell of wet soil brought by the southern wind crossed the meadow with hip-high pampas grass. It would rain soon. The monsoon had come and the rainfall would be heavier approaching the Chinese New Year. Then the wedding season began. Wedding houses in Kampung Melayu, Kosambi, Salembaran, and Sewan in Jakarta would be crowded again. He missed all of that.

***

That afternoon during his siesta, Mamat Jago dreamed he visited the White Lotus Wedding House.

People gave way as soon as he entered through the main door. He walked with the confidence of a village champion. Only here can I enjoy the pleasure and honor again, he thought, smiling.

It had been two years since he experienced any of it. Yes, here people praised his dancing and fighting skills, his ability to drink bottles of beer and Chinese wine, and his generous tipping.

Mamat Jago imagined the dancers’ sexy and arousing bodies, their lustful movement, and writhing. Oh, what man was able to hold up to such temptation?

Nyai Sirah, the hostess, welcomed Mamat Jago, carrying a maroon shawl like she used to. The woman with breasts as small as quail’s eggs wrapped the shawl around his neck, an invitation to enter the arena and choose a partner.

Mamat Jago only looked at Sarti, sitting in the corner next to Minan Balok. She wore a yellow green T-shirt with a picture of a pink dragon going up, and cream capri pants. Dressed in that outfit, she looked younger than she was. Being a bit plump, her curves were visible under the tight clothes.

Mamat Jago’s blood flowed like a torrent. He pulled his favorite dancer’s hand.

Sarti smiled and followed him with small, skipping steps. The other dancers emptied the arena, honoring the return of the dancing king from Bulak Petir.

His chin tilted, Mamat Jago glanced across the room. He raised his two fists, honoring the hosts and orchestra director, and Tan Eng Djin.

Minan Balok responded by raking his teh yan.

“Come on Minan, play ‘Ayam Jago.’ I want to dance again.”

The xylophone, percussion, gong, and flute followed one after another. The tones mingled. Gwat Nio’s soprano began,

“Don’t spur a cock to fight, because the cock’s comb will turn red
Don’t spur a cock to fight, because the cock’s comb will turn red
Don’t tease the woman in green, or else her boyfriend will get mad
Don’t tease the woman in green, or else her boyfriend will get mad.”

Sarti did not budge. Her hands hung loose by her side.

Mamat Jago took her hands, placed them around his waist, and tightened his embrace. She felt cold, like the dadap leaves used to bring down a child’s fever. Her lips were sealed, her eyes shut. “Come on, Sarti, don’t tease me like you used to during those nights long ago.” Mamat Jago shook Sarti. He tapped her cheeks, but there was not the slightest reaction. He looked at the musicians. Everyone had stopped playing. No one moved. Everything seemed as cold and blue as Chinese porcelain.

Mamat Jago carried Sarti out of the room. The spectators who had packed the arena and the wedding house lawn earlier were gone. Worried, he walked through the garden where the evening rain came down like layers of mosquito netting. Along the street the trees swayed drunkenly and the houses seemed struck dumb. The electric and kerosin lamplights had dimmed. He walked along the asphalt road, crossed the river parting the tall grasses in the fields.

“You can’t die, dear. Live with me. In my house you will be warm.” He kissed Sarti’s lips. His saliva, mixed with the rainwater, entered Sarti’s mouth. The owl-eyed girl choked. She wriggled and put her arms around Mamat Jago’s neck. He smiled and walked faster.

The night and the first rain of the season enveloped the Bulak Petir village. From a distance, Mamat Jago’s house on the edge of a fallow rice field by the road looked like a faded painting.

A few lights were on. Ah, good boy, Mamat Jago thought. His youngest son must have switched on the lights before going to work on the factory night shift. The light from the lamps always brought memories of the bright days of his youth.

During their courting days and even after they were married, before the children were born and filled the house, Masroh and he would run across the dikes of the rice fields as soon as the first rain fell. Soaking wet, they showered at the well where the water always seemed warmer than the rainwater. This was how they celebrated the arrival of the monsoon.

The front door was unlocked.

“How careless!” Mamat Jago cursed under his breath. He was certain his youngest son had forgotten to turn the lock.

He pushed the door open with his back and went straight to the bedroom. He lay Sarti on the bed. It was the same spot where Masroh exhaled her last breath. Emaciated, her breasts were like rotten oranges. Mamat Jago took off Satri’s wet clothes and blanketed her with the batik cloth used to cover his late wife’s remains. He looked at Sarti, who appeared to be sound asleep.

“My lover, my wife.” Mamat Jago kissed Sarti’s lips. He felt her lips moving, kissing him back. Her hands gently pulled him against her. She started breathing slowly, then heavily, warm, hot, and boisterous. He hugged her tighter. Heat crept through their bodies. Sarti moaned, scratching Mamat Jago’s back. In no time they were wrestling on the worn-out mattress. On fire, they kissed, nipped, and writhed while clinging to each other.

Suddenly, bam! Startled, Mamat Jago released his embrace.

Eng Djin, Longhair, and Crewcut stood by the door.

Mamat Jago grabbed his underwear and put it on.

“Come to your senses, Sarti is dead,” Eng Djin said.

Mamat Jago turned his head. Sarti lay naked and stiff, driblets of sweat between her breasts. Not believing what they said, he tapped on Sarti’s cheek repeatedly. “Come on, sweetie, wake up. Koh Eng Djin and my friends are here,” he whispered into her ear.

“Let her go.”

Mamat Jago shook Sarti’s bluish body in disbelief. She was cold and stiff. He released a bitter cry. It had been a very long time since he cried. Even when Masroh passed away he had not felt the urge to cry.

Watching, Eng Djin sighed. Longhair and Crewcut locked Mamat Jago’s arms and walked him to a jeep.

On the way, the two policemen whom Mamat Jago claimed to be his friends did not bother talking to him. Crewcut drove and Longhair smoked.

Mamat Jago looked at the handcuffs around his wrists that glistened in the sunlight falling through the car windows. The stainless steel device immobilized him completely. The car bounced across the potholes in the road and he was flung against the door. When he cried out, Longhair only turned his head with his cigarette between his lips.

Mamat Jago laid back and looked through the rear door’s window. He watched the house lights dissolve into long wavy lines. He also saw Sarti’s naked, perspiring body following the car that was driving him to only God knew where. Had Sarti truly died? Was it possible he had sex with a dead body? Mamat Jago wondered. Didn’t Sarti kiss and hug him back when they were having heavy sex like in the old days?

The car stopped and the rear door opened. “Get out!” Longhair yelled.

Mamat Jago’s jaw dropped. He was unable to resist. When he jumped out, his feet sunk into the sand.

Longhair and Crewcut herded him into a dark place. He heard the roaring waves and rustling leaves. Salt dust stuck to his lips.

He tried guessing which beach. Maybe Tanjung Kait, Rawa Saban, Kamal, or one he never visited before. A strong push made him stumble on a coral and fall. His mouth filled with salty sand.

“We’re not really your friends. We made friends only to be able to catch bad guys like you. Tonight you’re finished.” Crewcut’s voice was louder than the waves.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Blood oozed from the holes in his temples and forehead. The sand absorbed it, and the waves wiped it and made it disappear in the water.

***

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Mamat Jago awakened. Feeling someone wiping his face, he rose. “Sarti!” he called.

No one answered.

He wiped his forehead and temples. No blood, only rainwater from the leaking roof. “What kind of a dream was that?” he asked, confused. He sat on the edge of the bed. He listened carefully, the incessant shooting was still audible. “Oh my,” he smiled, it was only firecrackers from the wedding house.

He walked to the window and opened it. The rain had stopped, but the lawn was muddied. So was his memory of Eng Djin, Longhair, and Crewcut. And Sarti. “Why did something so strange happen to you in my dream?” he wondered.

Without wasting time, he opened the closet and took out his best clothes: a safari shirt and khaki trousers, dark brown felt hat, black leather sandals, and a wooden cane with a dragon head-shaped handle, all of it making him feel debonair again. But the murky mirror in front of him could not hide the wrinkles on his cheeks and the dark swelling under his eyes. He stared at his reflection until he coughed. His body jerked and he chuckled, “Damn wife!”

Mamat Jago tapped the terrazzo floor with his cane, three times. “I have to go back to the wedding house.” He had made up his mind.

The White Lotus Wedding House had remained like it used to be. People gave way as Mamat Jago entered the arena. As always, he bowed before the hosts, the bride and the groom, Tan Eng Djin, the musicians and the dancers as a sign of respect. They returned his greeting, except for Sarti, who only pursed her lips and blew cigarette smoke at Mamat Jago. The old man smiled and did the same to her.

Sarti crushed the cigarette butt with her beautiful wooden clog. “You haven’t come here for so long. I missed you.” Sarti draped a maroon shawl around his neck.

“I had to take care of a lot of business, toots.” Mamat Jago put his arm around Sarti’s waist.

Without any prompting, Minan Balok played his teh yan. The soft melody made Mamat Jago pull Sarti in a tighter embrace. He felt as if there was a black hole in his chest that could only be filled by hugging his favorite dancer.

The first stanza of “Stambul Siliwangi” flowed from Gwat Nio’s lips.

“So this is the way it is, Karna, the dragon is the dragon.
Oh, the wooden paddle, the wooden paddle would be burnt away by fire.
So if this is the way it is, darling, what do I feel?
Oh, the body is alive, but I feel dead.”

Karna joined her with an undulating voice. Once in a while Mamat Jago sang along,

“My rose, sweetheart, my rose, Sweet Soul from Heaven.
Oh the mothers, oh the kaffir lime,
Oh the kaffir lime, sweetheart, has a nice fragrance.
Oh let’s get acquainted, Nio, let’s get acquainted, sweetheart, there are no hindrances
Ahh, the mothers are only clouds.
The mothers are only clouds, but my sweetheart belongs to someone else.”

The dancers and their partners encircled Mamat Jago and Sarti. But no one was able to dance. Everyone linked arms.

Suddenly, Mamat Jago coughed. His voice broke, his breath labored.

Sarti stroked his back. “You are ill.”

“I’m love sick.”

“Please see the doctor.”

“Oh no. I just want to go to the wedding house. To see doctor Sarti.”

“Ah, Sarti has lots of patients.”

“Please, treat me, doctor. Make me your only patient.”

“Stop it.”

“I dreamed of Sarti and everyone in this wedding house.”

“Oh really? How did the story go?”

“Ah, I’m embarrassed to tell.”

“How was it?” Sarti pinched Mamat Jago’s thigh.

“We were playing doctor and patient.”

“Ugh, that’s dirty.” Sarti squeezed his groin.

He moaned and pinched her buttocks. This time she let him do it. A fire sparked in what once was a black hole. His body temperature slowly increased and the heat crept to Sarti’s body.

The spectators became anxious. A boy fondled himself while squatting.

“Come home with me.”

“Where is home?”

“Home.”

A coughing spell overtook Mamat Jago. It was as if the coughs were competing against the xylophone. His breathing sounded like a broken boat engine. At one in the morning, when the gong struck as a closing sign, his breathing dwindled.

Sarti screamed.

People turned their heads.

Mamat Jago leaned heavily on Sarti. “Keep playing. I’ll die if the band stops,” he gasped during the next two pauses.

The musicians remained still.

Mamat Jago slumped to the floor.

Sarti put his head on her lap. She only smiled and stroked Mamat Jago’s face.

Within seconds, Mamat Jago saw Sarti’s face change into that of a young woman who had once taken him for an outing to a small island near the northern coast. He had just finished reciting the Koran, and the excursion had been his reward.

Just the two of them visited the island that was full of kelingkit trees, eagles, seagulls, and blue crabs. That most wonderful excursion might have only lasted for a few minutes, perhaps a couple of hours, the whole day, or several months. Mamat Jago no longer remembered. But he knew the woman’s smile very well. And he was happy.

***