Bima fell silent at Mr. Surya's words.
“About me?”
His voice was soft, almost a whisper.
Mr. Surya nodded.
“Yes.”
Dika stepped forward slightly.
“Sorry, sir, but we've heard a lot of confusing things today. Could you just explain what you mean?”
Mr. Surya looked at Dika, then Rani, and finally back at Bima.
“You're Bima's friends?”
“Yes,” Rani answered.
“Then you have the right to know, too. You've already become involved in this matter.”
Bima grew even more curious.
“What matter, exactly?”
Mr. Surya walked into the living room of Arga's old house. He sat down in a dusty wooden chair. They all followed and sat around him.
Several seconds passed without anyone speaking.
It was as if Mr. Surya was choosing the right words.
“Bima, have you ever wondered why Arga left without saying a word?”
Bima nodded.
“I wondered about it for years.”
“The answer isn't simple.”
“Why not?”
“Because back then, Arga wasn't just leaving an old friend behind.”
Bima stared at him.
“What do you mean?”
Mr. Surya took a deep breath.
“Arga was leaving the only person who could help him face his problems.”
Bima understood immediately.
“He left me?”
Mr. Surya nodded.
“But not because he didn't need you.”
“Then why?”
“Because he needed you too much.”
Bima furrowed his brow.
“I don't understand.”
Mr. Surya looked at the black book in Bima's hands.
“Back when you were kids, you really did make a promise beneath that mango tree. But there's one part you don't remember.”
Bima tried to recall it.
“What?”
“Arga once said he wanted to protect you the way you had always protected him.”
Bima fell silent.
An old memory slowly surfaced.
That afternoon hadn't been only about promising not to forget each other. There had been another conversation afterward, but Bima had forgotten it.
Mr. Surya continued.
“A few months after you made that promise, Arga's family ran into serious trouble.”
“What kind of trouble?”
“The kind that forced Arga to move away and hide a lot of things.”
Bima looked at Farel.
“His family?”
Farel nodded slowly.
“Yes.”
Mr. Surya looked at Farel.
“Farel knows most of that story.”
Bima turned to Farel.
“Why didn't you ever tell me?”
Farel lowered his head.
“Because I made a promise to Arga, too.”
“What promise?”
“A promise to keep the secret until you found all the clues yourself.”
Bima sighed.
“Everyone made promises to him, but no one told me anything.”
The words came out tinged with disappointment.
Rani looked at Bima.
She knew her friend was trying to stay strong.
Mr. Surya spoke more gently.
“Bima, sometimes people keep secrets not because they don't trust someone, but because they're afraid of losing the people they care about.”
Bima stared at the floor.
“I still feel abandoned.”
“And that's a perfectly natural feeling.”
Mr. Surya didn't argue.
“Arga knew you'd feel that way.”
“He knew?”
“Yes.”
“Then why did he do it anyway?”
Mr. Surya opened the small bag he had brought with him.
He took out an envelope.
“Because he had no other choice.”
Bima accepted the envelope.
“Is this from Arga?”
“Yes.”
Bima opened it slowly.
Inside was a letter written in the same handwriting as before.
His hands trembled slightly as he read.
“Bim, if you're reading this letter, it means you've met Mr. Surya.”
Bima continued.
“I know you're probably angry. I know you may hate my decision. But I hope that someday you'll understand.”
Bima paused for a moment.
Dika and Rani listened in silence.
“I didn't leave because I wanted to abandon you. I left because someone wanted to use my family's weakness to hurt you.”
Bima immediately looked up.
“Hurt me?”
Mr. Surya nodded.
“Read to the end.”
Bima returned to the letter.
“Bim, you always thought I was the one who needed protecting. But the truth is, you have a side you've never known about.”
Bima furrowed his brow.
“What does that mean?”
The letter continued.
“Before I met you, I didn't have many friends. I always felt alone. But when you came along, I felt like I had a reason to smile.”
Bima held his breath.
“You were the first person to make me believe that someone could stay even after seeing my flaws.”
Tears began to well in Bima's eyes.
“That was why I didn't want you to be destroyed along with me.”
Bima turned the page.
“There has been someone searching for something my family kept hidden. If that person found out about our relationship, you would be the next target.”
Bima stopped reading.
“Something his family kept hidden?”
Mr. Surya nodded.
“That is why all of this happened.”
“What is it?”
Mr. Surya looked at Bima.
“Evidence.”
“Evidence of what?”
“Of the event that caused Arga's family to lose everything.”
The room fell silent.
Bima looked at the black book in his hands.
“And Arga kept that evidence?”
“Yes.”
“Where?”
Mr. Surya looked toward the window.
“In the last place anyone would look.”
Dika asked immediately,
“What place?”
Mr. Surya answered quietly.
“A place that means a great deal to Bima and Arga.”
Bima fell silent.
One place immediately came to mind.
“The city park?”
Mr. Surya shook his head.
“No.”
“Our old school?”
“No.”
Bima tried to remember again.
Then his eyes widened.
“The mango tree?”
Mr. Surya didn't answer.
But his expression was enough.
Bima stood up.
“That can't be.”
Farel looked at him.
“What?”
Bima looked at everyone.
“That tree was cut down years ago.”
Mr. Surya nodded.
“That's why Arga chose it.”
Bima grew even more confused.
“Why choose a place that no longer exists?”
“Because people only look for things that are still visible.”
Bima thought about those words.
If the tree was gone, then where had Arga hidden something?
Suddenly, Farel's phone rang.
Farel looked at the screen.
His expression changed at once.
“We have a problem.”
Dika stood up.
“What?”
Farel showed them the incoming message.
There was only one sentence.
“Bima knows too much. Stop him before he finds the last place.”
Bima's heart began beating faster.
Someone was still watching them.
Someone who knew their every move.
Mr. Surya stood up.
“We have to leave now.”
“Where?”
Mr. Surya looked at Bima.
“To where the mango tree once stood.”
Bima picked up the black book and Arga's letter.
For the first time in years, he felt closer to his old friend.
But at the same time, he also felt closer to danger.
Because now he knew one thing.
Arga had never forgotten their promise.
And someone was trying desperately to keep Bima from ever learning the truth.