Chapter 6

"It seems you two are not on good terms." His hands that, used to rub between his toes are now crossed in front of his chest.

San chose not to answer.

"Ah, that's bad, it turns out."

"Sir," San called. After receiving permission to continue, he asked, "Is life in prison that bad?"

"That's what you mean?"

"The worst of all bad things in this life."

"Hm... maybe yes, maybe not." Pause for a moment. "Look, son. Our being in prison is a punishment. What kind of punishment do you think is fine?"

But San is not being punished. What mistake did he make to have to live in prison? Was it because he was an orphan?

"Life is... choice, right?" San said again after a long silence.

"Not all. Some things happen in this world because they have to happen. Without any natural choice from humans." The person touched his chin and looked up. "Hm... like we were born to our parents. It wasn't a choice. It was destiny."

San chuckled lightly. This guy is pretty intelligent, too, he thought. He thought a villain like this man beside him couldn't talk much about life. He just remembered something. "Sir, are you here too because you were slandered?"

The person burst into laughter. "I'm a real criminal, son. Don't be fooled by what I say."

***

San doesn't know that the man in the same cell will conduct a trial tomorrow. The prison sentence has been set.

The man with the scars said goodbye to his journey to prison.

San didn't ask much about the case and how long the man's sentence was.

"Hopefully, if you're lucky, we won't meet again," said the man whose name San didn't even know until the breakup.

Then, the following day, San was brought to court.

The room was busier than he thought. Lots of journalists came. They sat down with cameras and laptops to write anything that could be used as news.

San looked at them all; none were relatives or friends. Gio was never included in the list as a friend.

Gio and their family attended the trial. Seeing the grin on my Gio's annoying face already made San sick.

He would have run and beaten the man if two officers didn't guard him.

The trial has started. San sat in the middle and faced the Judge. This was the first experience for the 20-year-old, though not the first time he had been in the courtroom.

Seven years ago, he and his uncle were in the courtroom and witnessed a bus driver who had killed his parents.

"Santiago Dermawan," said a prosecutor who didn't know how long he had been standing before him.

The owner of the name woke up from his daydream.

"Please prepare yourself for questioning."

The pleasantries that make San sick. Ready or not, will anything change?

The trial began with the Prosecutor asking several questions related to the case. Among them is the reason why San came to the poor girl's house.

San explains what happened between himself and Gio. Everything is related to their fight, and San intends to bring witnesses and victims.

"Abuse?" asked the Prosecutor to make sure. "Are you sure that Brother Gio and his friends did that?"

"I saw them, sir." There was no doubt in his tone.

"Did you know that the victim is the cousin of the person you are accusing?" The Prosecutor seemed reluctant to mention Gio's name. His gaze met with Anthony's.

"I... but, they are family, how could he do such a thing!" San was aware that he was being cornered.

Some of the witnesses who were watching started to get boisterous.

"Answer the question with yes or no." Prosecutors are back in action.

"No."

" Your statements are baseless, Santiago. There were no witnesses to the incident, right?" The Prosecutor turned to look at the Judge. "Your Honor, it is as the defendant said. We brought witnesses to the statement that another party had abused the victim before."

Two young men of San's age walked over to the witness table not far from his position. They are Gio's friends.

"That's a lie. We know Molly well. Gio used even to invite us to play together. At that time, we planned to hang out together like we usually do when we come home from college," explained one of them.

"That's right, Mister Prosecutor. We've never bothered Molly. Even Gio already considers Molly like his sister."

Sam fell silent. He was wrong because he had assumed that they would tell the truth. No one was on his side.

The two young men and two people of different gender also replaced the positions of Gio's two colleagues. They were the people San met to ask for Molly's address.

"He..." said the pretty girl. "Molly is a close friend of mine." Sobs began to be heard. "I didn't know the intention was to ask Molly's address to act as a jerk. If I had known, I wouldn't have given her that address."

San just listened silently, as did the prosecutors and the judges.

"This is all my fault. But, Judge, don't let that bastard off the hook!" She pointed at San and glared at him.

The Prosecutor showed some evidence at the crime scene and the investigators' results. They were starting from fingerprints in several places, such as tables, doors, and the side of the bed where the victim breathed his last.

"The victim's hands were tied so that he could not resist. There were several bruises on the victim's body," explained the Prosecutor, pointing to the screen showing photos of the victim's corpse. "Injuries caused by blows from a blunt object to the head, arms, and legs. This shows there was abuse before the suspect started his harassment action."

San wanted to laugh. This is all nonsense. How could he go that far? His memory only reached where he was in front of the main door of the girl's house. How could he be in Molly's room? What is she doing? No memory of that at all.

The Prosecutor took out a wooden bat wrapped in a transparent plastic bag, much like a baseball bat. "This is the weapon the perpetrator used to beat the victim. The perpetrator's fingerprints are here."

Seriously. What drama is he watching now? They are adorable.