Bima stood frozen inside the old warehouse.
His eyes stayed fixed on the figure standing in the doorway.
His mother.
For several seconds, no one spoke.
Dika stared at Bima in confusion.
“Bim… is that your mom?”
Bima only nodded slowly.
He didn’t understand.
Why was his mother here?
How did she know about Arga’s warehouse?
And what threw his thoughts into the greatest turmoil was why she had never said anything all this time.
His mother stepped inside slowly.
She looked tired, like someone who had been carrying a burden for a long time.
“Bima.”
Her voice brought Bima back to himself.
“Mom?”
His mother looked at the black box on the table.
“You’ve found everything.”
Bima stood up at once.
“What do you mean?”
There was no answer.
Bima began to feel disappointed.
“Mom, don’t tell me you knew about all this too.”
His mother lowered her head.
“Yes.”
That brief answer made Bima’s chest tighten.
All this time, he had thought only Arga, Farel, and Mr. Surya were keeping secrets.
It turned out his mother knew something too.
“Why?”
Bima’s voice began to tremble.
“Why does everyone know, but no one wants to tell me?”
His mother looked at Bima’s face.
“I only wanted to protect you.”
Bima let out a humorless laugh.
“Protect me?”
He gestured around them.
“Everyone says the same thing.”
The room fell silent.
Bima held back his emotions.
“But no one asked whether I wanted to be protected.”
His mother looked sad.
“You’re right.”
Bima fell silent.
He hadn’t expected his mother to admit it.
“I should have explained everything from the beginning.”
Bima stared at her.
“Then why didn’t you?”
His mother walked closer.
“Because Arga asked me not to say anything back then.”
Bima froze.
“Arga?”
His mother nodded.
“A few days before he left, he came to the house.”
Bima’s attention sharpened.
“He came to the house?”
“Yes.”
“Why didn’t I know?”
“Because he came when you weren’t home.”
Bima lowered his head.
“What did he say?”
His mother drew a long breath.
“He apologized.”
Bima fell silent.
“He said he knew you’d be disappointed. He knew you’d think he’d abandoned you.”
Tears began to fill Bima’s eyes.
“Then?”
“He said one thing.”
His mother paused for a moment.
“He said, ‘Please look after Bima until he finds the answer himself.’”
Bima closed his eyes.
Those words brought his memories of Arga rushing back.
Arga had always been like that.
Always thinking of other people before himself.
Dika moved a little closer.
“Bim.”
But Bima raised a hand.
He wanted to hear everything.
“What else did Arga say?”
His mother looked toward the black box.
“He said that one day you would find this place.”
“And?”
“He asked me to give you something when you were ready.”
Bima looked at his mother.
“What?”
His mother pulled a small envelope from her bag.
The envelope looked very old.
Bima immediately recognized the handwriting on the front.
His name.
“This is from Arga?”
His mother nodded.
Bima accepted it slowly.
This time, he didn’t open it right away.
He was afraid.
Afraid of reading something that might make it even harder to accept reality.
Farel watched him.
“Open it.”
Bima looked at him.
“You know what’s inside?”
Farel shook his head.
“No.”
“Then why are you so sure?”
“Because Arga always believed you’d be strong.”
Bima drew a breath.
He opened the envelope.
Inside was a single sheet of paper.
Arga’s handwriting was clear.
“Bim, if this letter has reached you, then you’ve found the last place I prepared.”
Bima read slowly.
“I want to apologize for making you search for all the answers on your own.”
Bima paused for a moment.
“If you’re angry with me, I understand.”
His grip on the letter tightened.
“But I hope you won’t hate yourself for feeling like you failed to be my friend.”
Bima fell completely silent.
The words struck deep.
Because for years, he had often thought he should have been able to do something.
“I never thought you failed me, Bim.”
Bima continued reading.
“You’re the person who was always there whenever I needed someone.”
“Even when I left, I still felt lucky to have had a friend like you.”
Bima’s tears finally fell.
Dika and Rani remained silent.
They didn’t want to interrupt.
The letter continued.
“But there’s one thing you need to know.”
Bima wiped away his tears.
“No matter what other people say about me, don’t stop looking for the truth.”
He turned the page.
“Because this problem isn’t only about me.”
Bima furrowed his brow.
“This is about someone who has been keeping the biggest secret of all this time.”
He read the next sentence.
“And that person is the one closest to you.”
Bima stopped.
His heart began to beat faster.
He looked around.
His mother.
Farel.
Mr. Surya.
Who was Arga talking about?
The letter continued.
“I can’t write his name here.”
Bima grew even more confused.
“But you’ll know when the time comes.”
Dika took a breath.
“Why does Arga love making riddles so much?”
Rani looked at the letter.
“Maybe he was afraid the wrong person would find it.”
Bima continued reading.
“Bim, before you continue this journey, I want you to remember one thing.”
The final line made Bima stop.
“Don’t look for who’s at fault. Look for the reason everything happened.”
The letter ended.
Bima lowered the paper.
There were no answers he had hoped for.
Instead, even more questions had appeared.
His mother stepped closer.
“Bima.”
“Yes, Mom?”
“There’s one more thing I need to tell you.”
Bima looked at her.
“What?”
His mother looked at Farel.
“Arga didn’t leave alone.”
Farel immediately stiffened.
Bima noticed the change in their faces.
“What do you mean?”
His mother answered quietly.
“Someone helped Arga leave.”
“Who?”
His mother fell silent.
Then she said,
“The person you’ve all been looking for.”
Bima furrowed his brow.
“Galang?”
His mother nodded.
But before Bima could ask anything else, footsteps sounded outside the warehouse.
Everyone turned at once.
Someone stood in the doorway.
The light from outside made his face difficult to see clearly.
Then the person spoke.
“Looks like you know too much already.”
Bima immediately recognized the voice.
Galang.
He stood there with a serious expression.
But this time, he didn’t look like someone who wanted to threaten them.
Rather, he looked like someone who had come bearing answers.
“I’ve tried to stop you.”
Galang looked at Bima.
“But now I realize maybe it’s time you knew everything.”
Bima straightened.
“What really happened, Galang?”
Galang was silent for a few moments.
Then he answered,
“Arga didn’t leave to run away.”
He looked at the black box in Bima’s hand.
“Arga left because he was trying to save someone.”
Bima held his breath.
“Who?”
Galang looked straight into his eyes.
“You.”