The Silent Room

“Excuse me,but I believe I already booked this room from 8 PM till late.” I asked the few people who have begun setting up for a big meeting in that lecture room.

“Err, yeah. I know, I checked in the online booking page, but the room we booked still has a class going on. But we’d like to start our meeting early…” said one of the guys. Seeing how he was handling a bunch of documents, I quickly assumed that he must be the club chairman or something. “..so, do you think we can swap rooms? Please?”

Some five pairs of eyes were looking at me, some of them with a begging look, some with a ‘buzz off, loser!‘ stare. I took a deep breath, and leaned at the door to think for while. Ten seconds later, I sighed and reluctantly agreed. Everyone immediately shot off with their thanks and apologies, even though I’m not even sure if half of them actually mean it. I just waved my palm and shook my head lightly in a ‘don’t sweat it‘ fashion. I looked at my wrist watch. It’s only 7.30 PM, and I usually come in early to do checks on the AV equipment, but it looks like things have taken a different turn this time around.

Whatever it was that they’re meeting about, I was sure that they needed an AV equipped lecture room more than I do. From the sense of urgency, and the number of people streaming into the room, it was easy to tell.

The chairman came out of the room with some blank papers, a marker and some tape. “The room we booked is just next door. We’re going to paste a notice saying that our meeting venue has changed. Would you like to put up a notice for your club, too?” he said, handing me the paper and marker. “Sure, that helps.” I replied with a tired smile. He’s a nice guy after all, I thought.

After we were done pasting the papers, I looked through the glass window on the door. The class formed a circle, and two students, each with some paper in hand, arguing with each other. They were looking at the paper, and then looking at each other. Suddenly, when one of them turnsd his back, the other person quickly pulled out an invisible knife and stabbed him behind the waist. Ah, its a theater class, I thought quietly to myself.

Knife Dude drops his dead partner to the floor, lying in an imaginary pool of blood, tossing the invisible knife aside, and began laughing maniacally. The class was silent, as he dropped to his knees. He took one more look at the script, and buried his face in hands, and began sobbing. He picked up his dead partner, said something through his regretful cries, and held Dead Dude’s head close to his heart as he continued crying. A beautiful woman, probably in her early 30′s, seated somewhere in the back corner, stood up and began clapping as she nodded her head and smiled in approval. This cue was quickly followed by a roaring applause from the rest of the class.

She made her way to the center of the circle, showing the two actors back to their seats, and began to explain something to the class. Everyone paid attention to her, as her hands waved around, her face alternating between serious and humourous gestures until she picks up another script, and picks out another random pair of students, this time a guy and girl.

I was getting tired of standing up, and luckily for me, there was a chair right outside that room. It’s only 7.45 PM. It’s only going to be some 15 minutes or so, but somehow it feels like the wait is going to last forever. I quietly took my seat, and the chair legs made a creaking noise under my weight. Shut up, goddamit, I muttered under my breath.

I sat there alone, as I hum to the songs that came to mind. DJ Benassi’s Light. Sakamoto’s Hemisphere. Frou Frou’s Must Be Dreaming. Reza Salleh’s Ocean Spinning Sorrow. I was still pissed at the fact that my car’s CD player is broken. Don’t worry, the warranty has expired and I already sent it for repairs, thanks for asking.

It was a quiet night in the chilled hallway of the FOE building. Slowly, noises began to appear around me, like bubbles slowly rising to the surface as you boil a cup of water. People began appearing in the hallway, at first there was one. Then came a pair, followed by a trio.

My humming stopped halfway through Ben’s Bitches’ Pantat di Indonesia. Vulgar lyrics, but with a very merry sing-along melody.

Lots of people passed me by. Carrying books, and testpads and bags. Making small talk about what to have for dinner, how much sleep is lacking lately, desperation to meet an assignment’s deadline. Suddenly, I felt so… strange. Being away from campus life has indeed taken quite a bit of a toll on me, it seems. There’s a strange familiarity with the small talks, and the bustling crowd. Yet, somehow, it feels so surreal. Before long, it dawned on me.

I miss being a student. I miss attending classes. I miss the pressure of exams, assignments and lab reports. I miss sharing the burden with people around me. I miss being able to say “Man, today’s classes were so tiring, I can sleep a whole day!”.

The lecture room I was swapped with then opened its doors. People flowed out, and more small talk ensued. The time was 8.05 PM and there I was doing something that nobody else would, just because I think of it as a duty to the club, which was the one thing that currently attaches me to this campus. I sigh to myself once more, and began to work on the AV equipments.

I can’t wait for my classes to start again.