#nvel

Pada tahun 1980-an, di Indonesia belum ada internet atau telepon genggam. Film-film pendek yang agak cabul juga belum banyak. Jadi, bagaimana remaja zaman itu tahu soal seks? Mereka belajar dari novel-novel yang agak nakal, seperti yang ditulis oleh Enny Arrow. Biasanya, novel-novel ini dijual secara sembunyi-sembunyi di antara koran, kios buku bekas, atau penjual buku pinggir jalan. Baca juga:…

The witch took Alexis by the hand and led her through the open door into her hut. In the light, Alexis could see the woman wasn't at all what she was expecting. She was young. Younger than Alexis. Her skin was smooth and tanned a colour that made her green eyes shine. The only thing that was remotely witch-like about her was the bend in her nose and the small bump on one side.

A set of stairs made from stacked stones bridged the distance from the doorway to the recessed floor that had been dug through the pavement and down four feet into the dirt. Alexis tried to imagine how long it took the Witch to dig it all out, or did she have to? Was this place already here, like the Beach House? The floor itself had been covered with pine branches that had, from whatever passed as time Here, been worn into a flat hard surface. They reminded Alexis of neurons. Light came from a single source in the center of the ceiling. It appeared to be a cracked headlight hanging from its wires like a pendant.

The witch went to a red and white plastic cooler in the corner of the shack and opened it.

“Sit,” she told Alexis.

From the cooler, the Witch removed bread and cheese. Figs and apples. She placed these on a counter next to it, which appeared to be made from the dented hood of the car.

“I used to forage for my food,” The Witch said. “Then someone gave me the cooler. It's much more convenient.”

“Are there many others?” Alexis asked.

The Witch shrugged as she sliced bread and fruit. “It depends. They seem to come in waves.” She stopped cutting for a moment and laughed at her pun. “You two are the first I've seen in a while though. Not that that means much.”

Alexis fidgeted with her hands. “Can I help?”

The Witch turned and smiled, as she did, her hood slid off the top of her head. Quickly she grabbed at it and pulled it back up. “You can chop for me, I'll get things for tea,” she said. The smile was still there, though it was forced. She knew what Alexis had seen.

Alexis did as she was told, and cut the apples. Each time, the knife dinged against the metal counter like a funeral bell.

“So where do you live?” The Witch asked.

“The house on the beach,” Alexis said.

“Oh,” The Witch said. She handed Alexis a chipped white plate.

“What do you mean, 'oh'?”

“I'm sorry.”

“For?”

“I'm going to start the water for tea. I'll meet you outside.”

Mohinder tossed another slice of bread onto the grate over the fire and waited for it to brown. They had mostly eaten and drank their tea in silence, mesmerized by the flames and their primordial power. Something that seemed to call to the deepest part of their hearts. The parts that said take what you want. Destroy the rest.

Alexis rested her head against the back of the plastic lawn chair and watched the dark clouds shifting against the night sky. The mug of tea in her hands was comforting and made her long for home. Not the Beach House, but whatever home she had before she came Here. She glanced over at Mohinder, who in the flickering light seemed to be lost in similar thoughts. She had tried to subtly draw his attention to the back of the Witch's head, but he didn't seem to get the hint.

“Thank you,” he said to the Witch.

She smiled at him. The smile of a kind and beautiful grandmother, which made Alexis, for a moment wonder if she had really seen what she thought, or had it been another trick of the light like the blood on Mohinder's chest. “Its always nice to have company. Its quite lonely here.”

There was a pause as the three of them contemplated exactly what it meant to be alone.

“How did you know we were coming?” Mohinder asked.

“I woke up this morning and there were three chairs by the fire. I figured I would be having company soon. I'm just glad it was two such lovely people.”

Then Alexis asked the question she'd wanted an answer for since she washed ashore Here: “What is this place?”

The Witch prodded the fire with a long piece of twisted metal. “I wish I had an answer for you.”

“Is this Purgatory?” Alexis said.

“I don't know.”

“Hell?”

“Its a gateway,” the Witch said.

Mohinder leaned forward and snagged another small piece of cheese, his attention piqued. “A gateway to where?”

“Elsewhere,” she said. “Heaven and Hell maybe. Other Places. I tend to meet people just before they leave Here. Its a bit sad really.”

“Why haven't you left?” Mohinder asked.

“I'm waiting for someone.”

“Who?”

“Someone special.”

“How do you get to these Other Places?” Mohinder asked.

The Witch chuckled. “You're mighty curious. There are doorways all over the Island, though I don't know where any of the lead. Some are easier to find than others.”

“Do you know where any of them are?”

“There's one at the top of the mountain. Another in the forest, in a cabin.”

Alexis and Mohinder stared at each other across the fire. They knew that cabin.

“Now that's enough for the night. You'll talk a woman's ears right off,” said the Witch. She finished the last of her tea and rose from her seat. “You should stay the rest of the night here, I'll make you two up a bed. That is, if one bed is enough.”

Mohinder thanked the Witch and watched as she went inside. When she was gone, Alexis moved her chair next to Mohinder's. She linked her arm with his.

“I saw something,” she said.

“Saw what?” Mohinder asked.

“The back of her head. Its missing.”

Mohinder woke up first, shivering in the chilly morning. His clothes were damp with dew. They had fallen asleep on their chairs. Quietly, he got up and gathered some wood and relit the fire from the previous evening. Then, he went into the shack to thank the Witch. He told her he would be back in a few hours.

He smiled at Alexis. He was going to miss her.

He walked back to their camp.

Alexis woke later to the crackle of the fire and the smell of bacon frying. The Witch had put a blanket over her and was sitting opposite her tending to breakfast.

“Where's Mohinder?” Alexis asked.

“He'll be back shortly.”

“That smells delicious. I'm starving.”

Mohinder returned just as breakfast was ready. He carried what remained of their belongings in his arms. Their blankets were blackened and full of holes, like they'd been burned. Their backpacks torn apart and their maps piles of ash.

“What happened?” Alexis asked, utterly shocked.