petrichor

Dinner Time

Natasha

"Alright class, for today, we'll be learning about the continents of the world." explained Mrs. Jensen. "Please open your book to page two hundred and fifty." the whole class including Natasha obligingly searched their bags for their social studies book and placed it on their desk.

Natasha opened her book and glanced at the clock. One more hour. she thought, one more hour until the final bell rings and everyone was allowed to go home. She rested her head on her hand. I'd rather sleep. she yawned.

"So as we know it, there are five continents in the world; America, Asia, Europe, Africa, and Australia. Now, the biggest continent is..." while trying her best to focus, Natasha tried hard to listen. She knew this subject already, but Natasha didn't want Mrs. Jensen to blacklist her as a difficult kid.

Isabel, the girl that sat next to her kept her eyes glued to the white board, attention unwavering. God, I wish I have that sheer willpower to focus in class. she fantasized. Natasha tried to imitate what Isabel was doing, but her eyes kept fluttering shut and her back won't straighten to support her.

"Now class, as I said, Asia is the largest continent in the world, and is divided into different areas: the south, east, southeast, west, and central. Can you name one country in Asia, everyone?" asked Mrs. Jensen. Zara, the girl in the back pointed out, "China!" she exclaimed.

"Yes, that's correct." replied Mrs. Jensen. "China is located in east Asia, anyone else?" instantly, the other students replied. "South Korea!" "Japan!" "Hongkong!" "Singapore!" they all called out, Natasha didn't even flinch when Isabel yelled "Uzbekistan!" right next to her ear. "Correct everyone!" Mrs. Jensen replied.

Natasha was about to say "to hell with this class" and just close her eyes, when suddenly Zara mentioned to the class. "Bali!" For a second, Mrs. Jensen looked stunned, she was about to deny the fact when- "No, Bali's not a country. It's a region, in Indonesia." Natasha interjected. Her back went straight up from slouching and her eyes looked alert.

This wasn't the first time she heard someone saying Bali was its own country. She was tired of people saying that. Yes, she knew that the island is a popular tourist site, but is Zara that stupid? Natasha thought. Lu tau Bali tapi gak tau Indonesia (you know Bali but not Indonesia)? What the hell? enough with the common misconceptions, Natasha wanted to end it.

Facing Natasha, Zara made a face. "Really, huh? Well I never know that." Natasha shrugged. "Well, now you know." she said, preparing to sit down because unexpectedly, her body decided to stand up because she was so surprised.

"So like, if Bali is located in Indonesia, does that mean it's a rich country? I thought it's poor though? I mean, the majority of their livelihood is farming right? That means they still use traditional yet medieval technologies right?" Zara asked almost innocently,

Natasha couldn't even tell the difference between the fact that Zara really didn't know or she was just trying to blow one of her fuses. Stupid, stupid, stupid! Natasha thought. She took a deep breath to calm her emotion that was gurgling in her chest.

"Uh no, they're not. What makes you think they're still using medieval technologies? I mean, this is the twenty first century after all." Natasha argued. "And plus, what makes you think farming makes our country poor?" she asked.

"My country is located in the tropical area where people have rice for every meal and is near the sea. Of course our go to option is farming and fishing." Natasha had to restrain herself from adding "How stupid are you?" at the end of her sentence.

"Okay, don't need to get all preachy with me, Nat." Zara rolled her eyes ignorantly, crossing her arms. "Lu nya yang tolol (yeah well, you're the one who's dumb)." Natasha muttered in Indonesian so nobody could understand her.