Page 12 of The Good, the Bad, and the Aunties

“Nobody! Why’s that always your first assumption?”

Second Aunt narrows her eyes. “Every time you call or you come into our room late at night, wearing that miserable face, is either someone die, or someone about to die. So, which one is it?”

I put my hands on my hips. “Well, you’ll be glad to know that for once, none of this is my fault. Abi’s downstairs, and he says he’s in trouble.”

Second Aunt shoots straight up like a meerkat. “Abi is in trouble?”

I blink, and she’s out of the bed, leaping out of it with the fluidity and speed of a ninja. Wow, I guess Tai Chi really does keep you young. She moves like a whirlwind across the room, tearing off the curlers from her hair. When she reaches the makeup table, she swipes on a lick of lipstick, slaps some rouge onto her cheeks, and steps back, glaring at the mirror. “Okay. Let’s go. Quick!”

Ma is still struggling out of bed. Second Aunt tuts at her. “Why you move so slowly? Cepat!”

“Iya, iya,” Ma sighs as she finds a robe and shrugs it on. “Okay, ready.”

Second Aunt side-eyes her. “You not even bothering to put on lipstick? Tsk. Don’t blame me if Abi thinks you are the older sister.” She primps her hair and slinks out of the room. Is it my imagination or do her hips sway more exaggeratedly than usual?

I exchange a glance with Ma, who smiles softly. “Been a while since I see Second Aunt act like this.”

I bite back my smile. I know so little about what Ma and the aunties were like when they were younger. There are onlya few faded photos retained from their youth, so every time I get a glimpse at what they must have been like back when they were still living in Jakarta, it’s a priceless moment that I like to savor. I can see Second Aunt in her teens, walking past Abi’s house on her way to school. I can see her giving him a half-shy, half-flirtatious side glance that would set his heart racing. She would’ve noticed the way his Adam’s apple bobbed up and down as he gulped at the sight of her, and she would’ve laughed a little and swayed her hips ever so slightly, feeling his eyes on her as she walked away. Oh, Second Aunt. Who would’ve thought?

But now, there are far more pressing issues at hand. I link arms with Ma and the two of us make our way out of the room, past Big Aunt and Fourth Aunt’s room. Their door is ajar, the room empty, so I guess they’ve gone downstairs as well. I grimace. Big Aunt is probably already deep into a lecture, telling Abi off for showing up so late at night. We hasten our step and hurry down.

As it turns out, they’re not in the living room but in the study, and all of them are looking very somber and worried. Immediately, my anxiety spikes. It’s okay, I tell myself. This time, it’s not my problem. I mean, of course it’s something I would help out with, but it’s not actually anything I’ve done. Or is it? No, there is no way that this could be related to me. I haven’t killed anyone, I haven’t hired anyone... I’m clean.

Ma joins Big Aunt and Fourth Aunt on the sofa, while Second Aunt is perched on the other sofa, next to Abi, her hand on his arm. Nathan leans against the back wall. I go up to him and he puts his arm around me. “It’ll be okay,” he whispers, as though he could sense just how anxious I am. I nod and try for a smile, but it feels heavy and forced.

Abi clears his throat before speaking in Indonesian. “I’m very sorry for disturbing all of you.”

“Eh, wait,” Ma says, waving her hand at Abi. “Can you speak English? So my son-in-law can understand.”

My heart swells. That’s so sweet and thoughtful of Ma.

“Ah, yes, of course,” Abi says in flawless English. His accent is vaguely British. “As I was saying, I’m so sorry for disturbing all of you. I wouldn’t have come here like this, in the middle of the night, if I had any other choice.”

Big Aunt shakes her head. “I knew it.” Her voice is sharp with disapproval. “I knew you are bad egg, Abi. Even when you are kid, I already know, very bad egg, always up to no good.”

I’m surprised her face doesn’t melt under the furious heat of Second Aunt’s glare. Second Aunt shifts, straightening up, her chest ballooning and her nostrils flaring. “Some people,” Second Aunt declares, “cannot help but jump to crazy conclusion. Is a bad habit. They are always wrong, but they think they so smart, keep on jumping to very embarrassing conclusion.”

Some terrified survival instinct kicks in and I blurt out, “Anyway. What’s the matter, Om Abi? Anything we can help you with?”

Abi nods vigorously, his face a mixture of gratefulness and fear. His gaze skitters to Big Aunt before dropping to his hands. “Ah, well, there has been an unfortunate mistake. The gift baskets that I brought over earlier today...”

“Aha!” Big Aunt barks. “I knew it. You want them back, right? You cannot have them back. You already give out the gifts, how you can ask for them back? So lose face.”

“No, not at all,” Abi says quickly, raising his palms in frontof him, as if to shield himself from Big Aunt’s wrath. “They are all meant for you and your family, of course.”

“Hmph,” Big Aunt snorts, deflating slightly.

“Ah, well, all of them, that is, except for one.” Abi wrings his hands, looking like he would die to have a hole to crawl into and hide. “One of the baskets, you see, was actually meant for somebody else.”

This time, it’s Second Aunt who snaps. “What?! You going after some other hussy? Hanh? You come here and give me all this gift, then you go to her house, give her more gifts?”

“What? No. It’s not like that at all, wait—”

“You tell me which hussy is it now. Aha, I know, must be that Halena, right? Ever since we young, she is always drooling after this boy and that boy. I haven’t seen her in over thirty years, but I bet you she is just as genit as before.”

Abi looks at the rest of us with panicked eyes. He’s so obviously out of his depth that I can’t help feeling sorry for him. “Second Aunt,” I call out, “maybe it’s worth letting Om Abi explain?”Before jumping to conclusions, I silently add.

Abi nods. “Yes, please, Enjelin, it really isn’t what you think.”

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