Hujung minggu lepas, aku ke...

... Plaza Low Yat.

My ancient desktop computer needed an ethernet card to support Streamyx (or so it said during the troubleshoot), and Safura needed to fixed her virus-disabled CPU. Being the overly lazy person that I was lately, I chose to drive to the place. I found out very soon after that this would be the worst idea..

Pendek cerita, aku tersekat dalam trafik dekat nak dua jam. Nasib baik radio sangat best. If not for the music, I'd have annihilated the entire street.. can you say road rage? ^^Anyway, don't get me wrong. Kak Sofie's worst day out wouldn't be the gist of this entry. Though, after you read this, you might think otherwise...

To be honest, I was afraid of the place.

Have you ever been somewhere that made you feel completely uncomfortable? Like you don't belong. I know Lowyat and Sungei Wang and BB Park are all common shopping destinations maybe, but... for me, I wouldn't go there if I absolutely didn't have to. And if I have to, definitely not alone.

What makes me uncomfortable? The place is a ghetto! like a nest of all things evil. There are strange people in strange clothing and even stranger behavior walking around aimless. Teenagers in large groups that sit around waiting for God knows what, and eyeing passerby like they were the biggest sins alive. Old people trying to revive their glorious past by attempting to dress young, look young, act young.

I mean, imagine your mom in short shorts, tube tops and wedges parading the crowded streets... Enuff said.

Point is, don't these people have family? don't they have a purpose? what is life without purpose? Bukan apa, bila lihat mereka, selain takut aku juga rasa sangat kasihan. Aku pun ada keluarga. Ada adik-adik yang harus aku bangunkan supaya jadi insan. Aku tak sanggup tengok darah daging aku bertempiaran sana sini, buang masa, buang duit. Selama kami berjalan di Low Yat, Safura sentiasa aku letakkan di depan mata. Walaupun dah besar panjang, aku dan abang-abangnya sentiasa awasi supaya dia selamat.

Aku akui, ibubapa zaman ini agak sibuk. My parents aren't all that perfect. Tapi dalam situasi begini di manakah abang dan kakak? Macam tak ada yang kisah. Don't they feel protective? Ramai berhujah remaja perlukan kebebasan. Biar mereka tentukan haluan masing-masing. Betulkah? Atau alasan untuk lepas dari tanggungjawab?

Alangkah malangnya bila kita hanya mampu fikirkan diri sendiri.

But then again, that's life, isn't it? Sometimes all we could do is think of ourselves. Aku ingat lagi waktu meredah trafik keluar dari plaza. Hari dah pun senja dan azan berkumandang di radio. Dalam memikirkan kesempatan untuk solat magrib, mata aku melayang kepada mamat-mamat dan awek-awek yang masih bertempiaran di sekeliling; betapa ramai antara mereka yang hala tujunya pasti saja bukan ke surau atau masjid.

Di saat itu, aku hanya mampu memikirkan Safura yang sedang berseloroh dengan abangnya, dan bersyukur bahawa dia berada di dalam kereta, dia gembira, dan aku akan bawa dia pulang. Jauh di dalam, hati aku kata:

Biarlah mereka. Tanggunganku ada di sisi. Asalkan dia tidak jatuh, the world can go to hell.