Chapter 11: 11. Independence Day (2)

Shakira showed from among the crowds into the field, along with other entrees. The student council members came to the field with Krupuks in their hands tied on a string and started to tie it above the heads of the participants. Each participant was accompanied by 1 student council member holding a stopwatch to keep track of the participant’s time to finish eating.

“Ready... START!” The announcer shouted into their microphone. The contestants started jumping toward their snacks, along with the judges clicking on their stopwatch.

The supporters cheered on their favorites, hoping that it would boost the entrée’s chewing speed.

Despite being in a deafening crowd, I stayed there with Indah, because we wanted to cheer on our favorite person as well. My eyes were attached to Shakira’s struggle to bite the crunchy snack above her, then I moved my gaze to other participants to see how well she did in comparison, and it seemed that Shakira was among the faster ones. She was already halfway through, despite the snack swaying around, avoiding her teeth.

A few moments later, Shakira finished her snack first among the other contestants. I raised my hand and clapped. “Uoooo—“ I cheered before my body was abruptly shaken by Indah.

“Look at that! She’s first!” Indah said energetically.

Because of the excitement, we lost track of time, and the contestants finished the race one by one. “Finished!” The announcement was made, and the participants left the field. Shakira’s friends approached her and formed a group hug around her.

It was such cute scenery. The girls surrounding Shakira were way shorter than her, so they seemed much like kittens surrounding their mother. Looking at them made a smile find its way to my face.

“Ah, thank you. But please, I’m still dizzy...” She said weakly.

Seeing that this side was finished, I decided to return to the tug-of-war venue and see how it goes. So I spoke to Indah, “I’ll be returning over there.”

“Yeah, sure. See you later.” Indah said, still focused on Shakira.

After hearing her approval, I smoothly went past the crowds towards where my team was. When I got there, another round had just ended.

Curious about our next turn, I asked Kevin, “How much time is left until our next round?”

Kevin pointed at the portable whiteboard near the announcer, and spoke, “That one just now was 3-A-C versus 1-B-D, so there would be two more rounds before our next match.”

“I see. So it’s nearing.” I said.

 

****

 

When the long-awaited time for our next round came, we once again went towards the center of the crowd and faced the 2nd year team from class 2-B-D. As expected, the power level of boys one year older is different, but we still found our way toward victory.

At the same time, The Krupuk-eating race concluded its competition and was replaced by the marble-in-spoon race. The competitor from our class, Azka, didn’t do well in comparison to participating students from another class. He wasn’t slow in any case, because even if I compete in that race, I would surely do worse than him. This race requires a great sense of balance after all, and Azka has it lacking compared to some other students.

Back to the tug-of-war, our team advanced once again after beating class 3-A-D, and now we finally found ourselves among the top 3. To determine the rank, our class has to compete with two other classes. Our first opponent was once again the 3rd-year class team from class 3-B-C.

The vanguard from that team, surprisingly, was Bob from the student council. He was the one big intimidating guy back in the orientation.

‘Wait, I thought student council members are banned from participating.’ I pondered.

My classmates and I were not in any way small, but Bob’s team was larger in build. Perhaps they were the bulkiest entrees in the tug of war. That was why, to bolster the morale of our team, we decided to yell, “WIN! WIN! WIN! FIRST PLACE!”

Not wanting to lose, the opposing team also shouted a battle cry in a similar manner to ours.

“OOO—look at this spectacle, people! The field started to burn brighter with passion!” The announcer said, adding fuel to the fire. The audience was provoked by him and started to cheer louder.

The cheers suddenly ended when the announcer stretched his hand between me and Bob, much like the calm before a storm. “Ready ... START!”

Just in a fraction of seconds, the rope we were holding on to stretched to the maximum due to two opposing pulling forces. However, the power of Bob’s team was stronger and in an instant, our team was almost halfway to losing this battle.

In response to that, we put more strength on our pivot leg, and it has proven to give us extra force, albeit not much.

My feet stopped several centimeters away from the mark of defeat, and from then our team started to gain favor. Or so was our hope. It was all only a ploy. Our opponent deliberately lost a bit of power to destroy us in a single pull, and they did it perfectly.

The sudden surge of power from Bob’s team made me unable to hold the rope any longer and reflectively let go of it, and my hardened pivot leg was unable to prevent the pull.

‘Thud’

Along with the falling sound, my face is now flat on the ground.

“Yeowch...” I grumbled in response to the pain I felt in my forehead.

I stayed there for a few seconds and could hear a peal of laughter mixed in between the cheering crowd. ‘Not that I care.’ I thought to myself as I rolled my body, and suddenly Bob was squatting near me.

“Hey, are you alright?” He asked, stretching his hand to help me get up.

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“Huh? No, I’m not.”

I took his hand and slowly got back up. To my surprise, the buzzing sound from the crowd turned into a hand clap.

“Let’s get into the infirmary. You’re bleeding.” Bob said, as he quickly wrapped my arm around his neck and began to walk-assist me.

However, I felt kind of embarrassed, so I stopped him before we started walking and said, “It’s okay. I can walk by myself.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes, thank you for your concern,” I said to him and immediately went towards the infirmary on the back of the school’s right wing with my other classmates.

It surprises me that when I entered the infirmary, Sasa was inside, sitting on a cushioned stool.

“Uril!? What happened to your forehead!?” She exclaimed.

Instead of me, Kevin answered, “He fell flat on his face.”

Hearing his answer, Sasa shifted her dumbfounded look towards me for confirmation, so I nodded lightly.

“Goodness! Wash your face in the sink, please.” She instructed me while taking out the first aid kit from the infirmary’s cabinet.

The infirmary suddenly became cramped now that there are six people inside. Being sensible, Kevin spoke to me, “So, um, we’re returning to the field.” He said, asking permission to leave with the boys.

“Ah, yes. I’ll be there in a while.”

When the boys were finally out of the infirmary, Sasa spoke to me, “Alright. Sit still.”

She seemed like she wanted to treat me, but it felt awkward to me. “Ah, um, I can do it just fine.”

Sasa gave me a dubious stare and asked, “Are you sure?”

“Yeah. I’ve learned how to do it, so...”

Upon hearing my reluctance, she seemed a bit dejected. Then, Sasa immediately reached for a small mirror and directed it to me so I could apply first aid.

“Thanks,” I said to her.

I could feel Sasa’s observing gaze while I treated my small wound, probably waiting for a mistake to happen in my conduct. Since I had learned how to do first aid, the chance for it to happen is quite unlikely.

“You’re on duty today?” I asked her to pass time. Since Sasa belonged to the school’s Red Cross Youth, she would take turns with the members to stay in the infirmary.

“Yes.”

“I see.”

It wasn’t long before I finished doing first aid. My wound wasn’t that threatening, to begin with. “Thanks, Sasa. I’ll be returning to the crowd.”

“Are you sure you don’t want to leave early?” Sasa asked with a concerned look on her face.

“Nope. I think I’m going to watch the rest of the competitions.”

“Alright. Be careful, then.”

I left Sasa in the infirmary room and joined the boys once again. We discussed a bit for our last match for 2nd place and decided to forfeit the game, considering my condition. Thus, the tug of war concluded earlier and our team automatically placed third.

The last competition, the sack race, went on smoothly. Much like the Krupuk-eating race and marble in spoon race, the sack race was an individual competition and was done in three sessions, each with eight entrees. The comedic nature of the game made the crowd keep their eyes peeled, and the merry vibe of the event went on until the end of the event.

And then, when every competition had concluded, everyone returned to their home with joy still lingering on their face.

On the next day, August 17th, students returned once again to the school early in the morning to celebrate Independence Day through the Flag Ceremony. We were reminded of our national heroes fighting for their independence, and we, as the next generation, inherit their will.

When the ceremony ended, the winners from yesterday’s competitions were given the promised rewards. Our class found its way among the winners of two competitions. Shakira got first place in the Krupuk-eating race, while me and the boys won third place in the tug-of-war. To celebrate it, the entire class took a commemorative photo with our homeroom teacher, Ms. Atika.

“Everyone! At the same time!” Indah shouted to everyone.

The cameraman started counting down. When the count reached number one, we exclaimed in unison.

“Merdeka!”

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