Nindy and the group had safely landed. They were waiting for the ride that would take them to the site. Nindy inhaled the fresh air and slowly exhaled.
“Let’s start everything from here,” Nindy said to herself.
“Good afternoon,” said a member of the Indonesian military.
“Good afternoon, sir,” they replied in unison.
“Are you the volunteers sent from Indonesia?” the soldier asked.
“That’s right, sir,” Rafael replied.
“All right. I’ve been assigned to pick you up. Let’s head straight to the site,” said the soldier, whose name was Emil.
They all followed Emil to his car. No one spoke. They sat in silence, whether from exhaustion or because something was weighing on their minds.
They got into the car and sat quietly as it began moving at a moderate speed.
Nindy kept gazing out the window at the city of Papua. The site Nindy and her friends were heading to was quite far from the city center.
After a three-hour drive, the car carrying Nindy arrived at the site. As soon as they got out, their eyes went straight to the many tents where the residents were staying.
The military personnel were already waiting to welcome them. As their leader, Rafael saluted the military commander.
“All right, thank you all for coming here to help the residents. Let me introduce myself. I’m Vito Bramana, the commander here. We don’t know how long we’ll be staying because more victims will fall ill from this virus outbreak every day. I ask all of you to always prioritize your safety. While you’re here, you’ll also be our responsibility. If anything seems suspicious or you have an urgent need, let us know immediately,” Vito said in his welcome speech to the volunteers.
“It’s our duty to help our fellow human beings. Thank you for welcoming us, Commander,” Rafael said firmly.
“Your camp is on the right. Our military post is nearby. If anything happens, come straight to our post,” Vito said.
“All right, thank you,” Rafael replied.
They all dispersed and walked toward their camp. Before they went inside to rest for a while, Rafael called them together to divide them into two teams.
“All right, since there are eight of us, I’m going to form two teams,” Rafael said.
“I’ll lead the first team, with Aldi, Ridho, and Riko as members. The rest of you will be on the second team, led by Nindy. If anything happens, report it to your team leader,” Rafael continued.
“All right, Doctor,” they replied in unison.
“You can return to your camps and rest for a while,” Rafael said before leaving the women’s camp.
Nindy didn’t feel tired because she had slept soundly on the plane, so she decided to walk around the site.
“I’m going to look around first,” Nindy said to her friends as she excused herself.
“Where are you going? Aren’t you tired, Nin?” Vero asked.
“No. I already rested on the plane, so you guys can rest,” Nindy said with a smile.
“Hey, don’t smile. Your eyes are going to disappear even more,” Vero teased, unable to resist Nindy’s cuteness.
Her friends laughed at how fond Vero was of Nindy. Whenever Nindy laughed, her eyes really did seem to disappear even more. Hehe.
“Oh, whatever. I’m heading out for a bit,” Nindy said as she walked away from the camp.
The air here was cool, and the scenery was beautiful. Nindy walked around the site and saw many residents lying weakly on the ground. The small children had thin bodies and pale faces. It was truly heartbreaking.
Nindy stood there, lost in her thoughts. She honestly didn’t know where to begin.
“What are you doing here?” A man’s deep voice made Nindy jump in surprise.
“Oh—sorry. I didn’t mean to startle you,” the man said, looking uncomfortable.
“Whew, good thing I don’t have a history of heart problems. My heart’s still safe,” Nindy said, pouting.
Seeing that, Vito found the girl in front of him adorable. Her beautiful face, high nose, chubby cheeks, and narrow eyes made Vito’s heart flutter.
“I’m sorry,” Vito said.
“It’s okay,” Nindy replied.
“What’s your name?” Vito asked.
“You don’t have to be so formal. My name’s Nindy,” Nindy said.
“Oh, all right. I’m Vito,” Vito said, extending his hand for a handshake.
“Oh, hi, Vito,” Nindy said with a smile, making Vito’s heart race.
“Oh, God. I don’t think my heart’s safe anymore,” Vito thought.
“What are you doing here? Is there anything I can help with?” Vito asked.
“No, nothing. I’m just walking around and looking over the site. Will the number of residents affected by this outbreak keep increasing every day?” Nindy asked.
“Yes. Every day, residents are brought here—sometimes twenty people, sometimes as many as fifty in a single day,” Vito answered.
“Don’t the doctors here know what kind of disease is attacking the residents?” Nindy asked again.
“We don’t have adequate equipment here to conduct examinations. We’re hoping your arrival can help us identify what outbreak is affecting the residents here,” Vito said.
“We’ll do our best,” Nindy replied.
“Commander!” one of the soldiers shouted.
“What is it?” Vito asked.
“Reporting, Commander—a resident is having convulsions,” the soldier said between ragged breaths.
As soon as Nindy heard that, she ran over and asked to be shown where the resident’s post was. She also asked one of the soldiers to call her friends and bring the necessary equipment.
“Excuse me,” Emil said.
“Yes, what is it, sir?” Vero asked.
“Miss Nindy asked me to get medical equipment and call all of you to the post. A resident is having convulsions,” Emil said.
“All right, we’ll be there right away,” Vero replied, followed by the others.
Aldi, who had heard everything, also called Rafael. They all headed to the post where Nindy was. By the time they arrived, Nindy had already administered first aid to the resident. Vito watched everything without missing a thing. He was impressed by Nindy’s efficiency and calm as she cared for the residents.
“Doctor, can all of us get better?” one of the residents asked Nindy.
“Sorry, I’m not a doctor. Just call me Nindy so we can get to know each other better,” Nindy said with a smile.
“All of you, keep praying. Let’s leave everything to Allah. We’ll do everything we can to help all of you here. Don’t stop praying. Hard work won’t betray the results—accompany it with prayer, too. Most importantly, stay strong and hold on to the belief that every one of you can recover,” Nindy said with a smile.
“Yes, we’ll pray, Miss Nindy. We believe we’ll all be healthy again,” the resident said enthusiastically.
“That’s good. You have to stay strong, and don’t forget to eat, take the medicine you’ve been given, get plenty of rest, and drink lots of water,” Nindy added.
The residents were instantly encouraged by Nindy’s words. Their resolve was firm, and they believed they could recover. The military personnel were all impressed by how Nindy had rekindled the residents’ spirits. Nindy’s friends were impressed with her, too. Nindy always knew how to make the people around her feel comfortable in her presence.
“You truly are a pure-hearted girl, Nin,” Vito thought, having watched Nindy without blinking from the very beginning.