LET THE CAT OUT OF THE BAG (COMPLETED)

[19] Get Your Act Together

"A man will make a woman lose her mind and tell everyone she's crazy."

― Carlos Wallace

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It is important to note that the paragraph in italics is part of a past memory.

***

Escape Abroads Office, Gurney Tower—Persiaran Gurney, Penang, Malaysia.

"Something is still missing, in my opinion. If you want to write an essay about a holiday like this—which you gave me—it would be more fitting to call it a final project for a school holiday because your writing lacks interest. Your writing appears to me to be like that of a schoolboy who is too sluggish to finish his homework." Kumala meletakkan iPadnya di atas meja, menatap seluruh penulis di redaksi Escape Abroads yang pagi ini ada di ruang meeting.

Samuel—penulis yang dikomentari Kumala—sempat melirik ke arah rekan-rekannya yang lain sebelum menganggukan kepalanya pasrah, "I will make every effort to improve—"

"That is exactly what you said one month ago." Kumala menimpali, memotong ucapan Samuel. "But your abilities haven't entirely emerged from last month's magazine into this month's new edition. So, how much longer must we wait?" Kumala menumpu dagu dengan salah satu tangannya, menoleh ke Samuel dengan tatapan tajamnya.

"Actually, I've worked hard, even for the piece that I'm writing now—"

Alis Kumala menyatu, "You said this a month ago, and the outcome remains the same, correct?" Satu helaan napas berat Kumala keluarkan. "Actually, if you truly mean it, I may be able to appreciate your efforts. But, based on what I've seen thus far, you don't seem to value the opportunity I've given you."

Semua orang di dalam ruangan meeting terdiam, tahu benar apa yang dimaksudkan Kumala barusan dengan menyinggung bagaimana selama ini Samuel bekerja.

Sementara itu di mejanya, Samuel tidak berani mengangkat kepalanya. "What kind of opportunity should I give you if this is the case? Isn't this exhausting?" tanyanya sambil melemparkan tatapan satu per satu ke rekan-rekan kerjanya. "Have you ever seen someone who wants to be 'looked at' yet makes no attempt to do so? Don't you feel annoyed when you try to give someone a chance but they don't appear to take advantage of it while he continues to whine in front of many people about his troubles at work when he himself can't perform well?" ucap Kumala dalam satu tarikan napas, membuat semua orang di dalam ruang meeting ikut menahan napas mereka selama mendengar perkataan Kumala.

Kumala sendiri heran karena di setiap meeting awal bulan, dia harus dibuat marah-marah karena mendapatkan laporan dari editor lain mengenai pekerjaan penulis Escape Abroads yang dikatakan kinerjanya semakin menurun. Do they think Kumala isn't sick of being irritable all the time? Kumala juga ingin dikenal lemah lembut seperti Farah, atau humoris seperti Mariyah, tapi semua orang di Escape Abroads sepertinya mendukung Kumala untuk memiliki sifat marah-marah, bermulut kejam seperti yang sudah mereka kenal.

"Kalau kata Pak Sugeng—" Tatapan heran dan kebingungan langsung Kumala dapatkan setelah menyebut nama yang tak dikenal oleh penulis-penulis Escape Abroads. "—pengin aku uwel-uwel kalian semua!" ucap wanita itu, menunjukkan kegemasannya pada sikap rekan-rekan kerjanya itu.

Melihat ekspresi yang dibuat Kumala, Samuel semakin merasa tersudut—apalagi beberapa temannya juga ikut menatap ke arahnya tajam. Kalau saja tatapan mereka bisa bicara, mungkin mereka akan mengatakan, "We all got scolded because of you!"