FaceTime pukul 8 memang niat dia selalu innocent.
“Call kejap? Nak catch up.”
Bestie.
Kejap tu myth.
Pukul 8 malam, kau baru settle dinner. Muka dah separuh skincare. Rambut clip macam makcik pasar tapi cute. One eye dah sleepy, one eye masih curious sebab kawan kau punya tone macam ada trailer drama.
Kau tekan accept.
Screen buka.
Dia punya first sentence:
“Okay so jangan marah aku…”
Ha. Meeting rasmi telah bermula.
Video call bestie ni bukan call. Dia emergency room.
Ada agenda. Ada evidence. Ada timeline. Ada satu lelaki yang “sebenarnya okay je” tapi somehow dah makan 47 minit discussion.
Kau ingat nak sembang pasal weekend. Sekali kena review screenshot, decode story, audit reply time, and decide sama ada dia red flag or cuma socially awkward.
FaceTime ni lagi dangerous daripada voice note sebab kau boleh nampak muka bestie kau bila dia cakap,
“Aku chill je.”
Padahal muka dia jelas bukan chill.
Eyebrow dah naik. Mulut dah senget. Dia tengah pegang air kosong macam peguam bela dalam drama mahkamah.
And kau pun sama. Konon nak dengar sambil baring. Tiba-tiba duduk tegak, pause makan, buka calculator emotional logic.
Tapi honestly, ini part girlhood yang sweet gila.
Kita hidup masing-masing busy. Kerja. Class. Commute. Family. Duit. Skin breakout. Laundry yang tak habis-habis macam subscription.
Kadang friendship bukan keluar brunch lawa every weekend.
Kadang friendship is kau angkat call pukul 8 dengan muka bare, lampu bilik kuning, and dengar kawan kau repeat cerita yang sama sebab hati dia belum settle.
Itu love juga.
Bukan semua benda perlukan perfect advice. Sometimes bestie cuma perlukan someone cakap,
“Girl, kau tak gila. Itu memang pelik.”
Powerful sentence. Healing sikit.
Tapi jangan sampai semua call jadi shift unpaid therapist.
Sayang kawan bukan bermaksud kau kena available macam customer service 24 jam.
Kalau kau penat, cakap.
“Bestie aku sayang kau, tapi otak aku low battery. Esok kita sambung?”
Itu bukan jahat. Itu boundary.
Kita kena normalise friendship yang tak punish orang sebab ada life. Kalau every call kau habis rasa drained, pening, and macam kau baru settle crisis company orang lain, maybe dynamic tu kena audit sikit.
Bestie should be safe space, not emotional call centre.
Jadi FaceTime pukul 8 tu cute, as long dua-dua masih manusia.
Boleh spill. Boleh gelak. Boleh judge sikit. Boleh pause sebab nak ambil charger. Boleh suddenly cakap, “Wait, aku nak cuci muka dulu tapi jangan disconnect.”
That is intimacy. Chaotic, oily, honest.
Cuma letak limit sebelum call tu bertukar jadi three-hour crisis management meeting with no snacks and no conclusion.
Kalau drama dia berat, maybe schedule proper time. Kalau kau sleepy, say sleepy. Kalau kau cuma nak tengok muka kawan and laugh about nonsense, boleh juga.
Friendship tak semestinya kena intense baru meaningful.
Kadang call paling healing is dua-dua senyap sambil buat skincare, then tiba-tiba salah seorang cakap,
“Eh, kau rasa aku patut potong bangs tak?”
And just like that, new crisis unlocked.