The hum of the train's engine and the constant rocking over the rails slowly lulled most of the passengers in Car 3 to sleep. The main lights had been turned off, leaving only dim incandescent bulbs along the lower corridor. Outside the windows, the darkness of the night in Jawa Tengah was illuminated only occasionally by flashes from crossing signals or the sparse lights of quiet settlements.
Kiara pulled the thin train-provided blanket up to her chest. Beside her, Bumi appeared to be sleeping soundly, his head resting against the wall of the car. His peaceful expression made him look much younger, erasing the rugged air of the field photographer that had clung to him since the beginning of their meeting. His camera was safely stowed inside the bag he held tightly against his chest.
But that calm did not last long.
Just as the train was passing through a deserted hilly area in Banyumas, a loud boom sounded beneath the floor of the car, followed by an ear-splitting screech of metal. The train suddenly slowed! The violent jolt threw Kiara forward, and she almost slammed into the seat in front of her if Bumi's hand had not quickly caught her shoulder.
"Are you okay?!" Bumi shouted instinctively, his eyes flying fully open as his awareness returned within seconds.
"I... I'm okay," Kiara whispered haltingly, her heart pounding from the shock.
The dim lights inside the car suddenly went out completely, leaving behind pitch darkness. Panicked screams from several other passengers began to ring out around them. The air conditioning stopped, allowing the damp night air to slowly seep in and fill the space.
"Stay in your seat," Bumi whispered, firm but reassuring. He reached into his jacket pocket and turned on his phone's flashlight. White light cut through the darkness.
"What's going on, Bumi? Did the train derail?" Kiara asked, trying to master her fear as she watched several train employees hurry down the aisle with flashlights in hand.
"It looks like there's a problem with the braking system, or the track ahead is blocked," Bumi replied, peering out the window. Outside, there was nothing but dense forest beneath the last of the drizzle. No station, no settlement.
A few minutes later, the conductor delivered an emergency announcement in person as he walked through the cars: the train had been forced to make an emergency stop in the middle of the hilly route because a fallen tree had blocked the tracks during the storm, and clearing it would take at least three to four hours in the middle of the night.
Disappointed sighs and panic filled the car. Yet in the midst of all that uncertainty, Bumi turned to Kiara and gave her a faint smile.
"Remember what I said earlier?" Bumi whispered, his humorous tone successfully breaking through Kiara's tension. "The best views and stories are always found on roads that aren't on the map. Looks like we got a bonus adventure tonight."
Kiara let out a soft giggle, her anxiety slowly ebbing away and being replaced by a strange warmth. Being trapped in the middle of a forest at two in the morning with a man she'd met only a few hours earlier should have made anyone feel threatened—but as she looked into Bumi's brown irises in the dim phone light, Kiara realized she'd never felt safer.
Bumi held out his stainless-steel water bottle to Kiara. "Drink first. The air in here is going to get stuffy fast now that the air conditioning's out."
Kiara accepted the bottle, their fingers brushing again by accident. The brief touch no longer made Kiara feel awkward. Instead, it stirred a strange sensation in her chest that was becoming increasingly familiar. After taking a sip of the cold water, Kiara handed it back.
"Thank you," Kiara murmured. She leaned her back against the seat and stared at the dark ceiling of the car. "So... this is what you meant by a 'bonus adventure'? Being stuck in the middle of some deserted hills at two in the morning?"
"You could say that," Bumi replied casually. He rested his elbow on the armrest and looked at Kiara from the side. The dim light from the phone screen, deliberately turned face down on his lap, cast soft highlights across his strong features. "This ride is a bonus from the universe so we don't rush to our destination."
"Where are you headed, Bumi?" Kiara asked curiously. Until now, she'd been so busy talking about her own despair that she'd forgotten to ask about the direction of the man's life beside her.