Gabriela looked at Hernia with a sharp look. The question came out firmly, almost like an ultimatum. 'Hernia, what exactly did you do to Arina? Why is her spirit bothering you like earlier?'
Hernia remained silent, her body trembling. Her face paled as if Gabriela's question had brought up a wound she had been harbouring.
'Hernia,' Gabriela continued, her voice lowered but filled with firmness, 'If you don't tell the truth, Arina's spirit will continue to haunt you. She won't leave until you reveal the truth.'
Finally, with a trembling voice, Hernia began to speak. 'I... I was told by Damian,' she said softly, almost in a whisper. 'He forced me to film Arina... changing into her tracksuit.'
Gabriela froze, her body tensing at the confession. 'What?' her voice trembled.
Hernia continued, tears welling up in her eyes. 'Damian from class 12-C. He said if I didn't do it, he would ruin my life. I was scared... I filmed Arina, and Damian used the video to force Arina... to serve his lust.'
Those words made Gabriela feel like she'd been struck by lightning. Her breathing felt heavy, and her anger peaked. Unconsciously, she snarled, 'Barbaric!' her voice breaking the silence of the room.
Hernia sobbed loudly, her head bowed deeply, while Gabriela tried to compose herself. After taking a deep breath, she asked, 'Hernia, is there any proof that Damian told you to do this? Where is the video now?'
Hernia pointed to her mobile phone lying on the table. 'I have a screenshot of the chat between me and Damian,' she said, her voice almost drowned out by her sobs. 'But the video... I don't have it anymore. Damian took it from me. I don't know if he still has it or if he deleted it.'
Gabriela reached carefully for Hernia's mobile phone. She opened the screen and started reading the conversation. The chat clearly showed how Damian was ordering Hernia around, pressuring her with threats.
Gabriela clenched her fists, holding back the anger that burned in her chest. In her heart, she vowed to deliver justice for Arina. However, she knew that the next step had to be taken, Gabriela had to report this incident to the authorities. Damian had to take responsibility for what he had done, but Gabriela needed hard evidence to do so other than the screenshot evidence.
At 11:30, after the break was over, the sports lesson for class 12-C began. Gabriela, who had prepared her plan carefully, asked permission from the teacher in her class on the grounds that she was not feeling well and wanted to rest in the health room. With permission granted, Gabriela stepped outside, but she didn't go to the health room. She waited for the right moment, when the class 12-C students were on the sports field.
When all the Year 12-C students were on the field, Gabriela immediately ran to the changing rooms. Her feelings were a mixture of nervousness and focus, but she was determined to find Damian's belongings. Quickly, she checked one by one the items in the changing room. When she found Damian's shirt and was about to examine it further, there was a stern voice from behind her.
'Hey, you're Gabriela, aren't you? What are you doing here?'
Gabriela was startled. Her heart almost stopped. She turned around and found Mr Dani standing there with a suspicious look.
Gabriela knew she had no choice but to tell him the truth. In a shaky but firm voice, she explained about Damian, what he had done to Arina, and why she had to go through Damian's things. Mr Dani, who heard the explanation, was shocked to learn that there was such an incident in his school. After thinking for a while, he decided to help Gabriela.
They went through Damian's things together and finally found his mobile phone. However, it was locked. Mr Dani, sensing that this was a serious problem, tried to remember a solution. He then called Pak Siwa, the school's computer teacher, to ask for help unlocking the locked mobile phone. After Pak Siwa gave some instructions, Pak Dani tried and finally managed to unlock Damian's phone.
Carefully, they checked the contents of the phone. In the video folder, there was no footage. However, when Gabriela checked the screenshots folder, she found inappropriate photos of Arina getting changed. Gabriela and Mr Dani were transfixed, feelings of anger and disgust mixed together.
Suddenly, Damian appeared out of nowhere and snatched her mobile phone out of Gabriela's hands. 'What are you doing with my phone?' he shouted.
Mr Dani immediately tried to block Damian. A fierce fight broke out between the two of them. Despite Mr Dani's best efforts, Damian, who was younger and more powerful, managed to break free. He ran out of the dressing room with his mobile phone in hand.
Gabriela, without thinking, shouted loudly, 'Murderer! Murderer!' as she chased after Damian. Her voice echoed down the corridor, attracting the attention of the students and teachers who were near the changing rooms. Some of them came out to see what was happening.
One of the teachers, who had heard the commotion, started chasing Damian. While running, she asked Gabriela, 'What happened?'
'He, Damian, he caused Arina's tragedy!' replied Gabriela breathlessly.
Things were getting more and more chaotic. Damian kept running, trying to escape, while Gabriela, Mr Dani, and several other teachers and students chased him down the hallway. The truth was starting to come closer, but Gabriela knew that her fight wasn't over yet.
As Damian runs towards the school gate, Gabriela's screams echo through the air, catching the attention of Sugiono, a school security guard who happens to be standing guard in the courtyard. Sugiono saw Damian running frantically, his face tense, clutching his mobile phone tightly. Realising something was wrong, Sugiono immediately took action.
With all his strength, Sugiono ran after Damian. Within seconds, he caught up to him and, with a powerful kick, sent Damian crashing to the ground. Damian's mobile phone was knocked from his grasp, and he tried to crawl to retrieve it, but Sugiono swiftly caught it and restricted his movement.
Some teachers and students who had joined the chase arrived at the scene. Gabriela, breathing heavily, immediately picked up Damian's fallen mobile phone. Damian is taken by Sugiono and several teachers to the teachers' room to await the arrival of the police.
In the teachers' room, the atmosphere is tense. Damian sits with an angry face, but can't move because Sugiono is standing nearby, keeping him from running away. Gabriela, though still shaken, tries to explain to the teachers what really happened.
'Damian told Hernia, Arina's friend, to film Arina while she was changing,' Gabriela said in a firm, yet shaky tone. 'He used the video to blackmail and force Arina to fulfil his depraved desires.'
The teachers who heard Gabriela's explanation looked shocked and angry. One of the teachers, Ibu Lestari, who teaches chemistry, immediately stood up from her chair. Her face turned red, and without being able to contain her emotions, she walked up to Damian.
'How could you do such a cruel thing to your own friend?' she asked in a voice full of emotion.
Damian just looked down, not daring to look at anyone. However, when Ibu Lestari saw Damian's unrepentant face, she could not contain her anger and slapped Damian hard. The sound of the slap echoed in the teacher's room, making everyone there fall silent.
Not long after, the police arrived at the school. After hearing explanations from Gabriela, Sugiono, and the teachers, the police immediately took Damian into custody. Handcuffed, Damian was taken out of the school, witnessed by the students gathered in the courtyard.
The students whispered, trying to understand what had happened, while Gabriela stood silently, feeling a mixture of relief and sadness. Her struggle to uncover the truth has finally paid off, but she knows this is only the beginning of a long process to get justice for Arina.
While the police took Damian away, Ibu Lestari approached Gabriela and placed a hand on her shoulder. 'You've done a wonderful thing today, Gabriela. Arina must be grateful for your courage.'
Gabriela simply nodded, trying to hold back the tears that were about to fall. In her heart, she promised that she would continue to fight so that no one else would suffer the fate of Arina.
Damian was found guilty of extortion, rape and torture that caused his victim to end her life. He was sentenced to 15 years in prison for his crimes.
Over a month after Damian's arrest, today was the 49th day of Arina's death, Gabriela and Lisa were walking to the canteen... the school was quiet again... but suddenly... 'Gabriela... thank you...'.
Gabriela paused for a moment... then smiled... she knew that it was Arina's voice... her spirit was at peace... and maybe it was Arina's goodbye...