"Yes, I can, sir," I reiterated.
"Hmm... I appreciate your persistence, son. It's rare to see someone your age willing to work like this. I actually feel bad because you're still in school, but after hearing your story, I'll let you work here," the middle-aged man said with an admiring smile.
"Thank you, sir. But can I only work half a day, since I have to go to school first? If I come in in the morning, I'll come straight here after school, and if I come in in the afternoon, I'll come here in the morning to work." I said happily, but first I wanted to make sure the middle-aged man who owned the ice cream shop would accept me for a half-day.
"Yes, you can work half a day, and you do have to go to school first. If you miss school because you're too busy working, I'll fire you!" said the man who owned the shophouse and ice cream shop.
"Thank you, sir. Thank you," I was very pleased to hear the middle-aged man's wise words.
"Don't call me, sir. Just call me Ko Aheng, the workers here call me that too," he requested.
"Okay, Ko, I'll change first and then I'll start work right now," I said enthusiastically.
"Yes, please, change over there!" Ko Aheng said, pointing to a small room at the end of his shophouse, where his workers usually changed.
The room was a bathroom, but it didn't have a toilet for defecation, only for urinating, showering, and changing. The room was quite small. A toilet would probably be difficult to find, as the back of the shophouse was adjacent to other shophouses.
After changing into the clothes I'd brought from my boarding house because I was looking for work in the central market area, before starting work, Ko Aheng called me back to the chair I'd been sitting in.
"What's wrong, Ko?" I asked.
"Just so you know, I pay my workers here Rp 8,000 for a full day. If you work half a day, that means I'll only pay you Rp 4,000," Ko Aheng said.
"Wow, that's more than enough for me, Ko," I said happily.
"Yes, your job is to carry the crushed ice wrapped in plastic bags upstairs to the meat and fish sellers. They'll use the crushed ice to freshen the meat and fish they sell," Ko Aheng explained.
"After you deliver these plastic bags of crushed ice, they'll give you Rp 1,000 per bag. You'll hand the money over to me here. Do you understand, Ryan?" Ko Aheng continued.
"Yes, Ko, I understand how you're going to work," I replied.
"Good, now join them!" I nodded and joined the workers in the shophouse.
My first task was carrying broken ice in plastic bags on my shoulder. It was quite heavy, as there were three bags containing broken ice. The weight, coupled with the cold, made me carry the broken ice from the ground floor to the upper floor of the central market.
The distance wasn't far, but carrying the load up the stairs to the upper floor was not easy. Despite the hardship, I didn't want to disappoint Ko Aheng, who had accepted my work. The long, wide market stalls were lined with dozens of meat and fish vendors, and every 15 minutes, one of them ordered broken ice from Ko Aheng's shop.
I walked back and forth dozens of times, carrying the three plastic bags of broken ice lined up on my shoulder. I did this because I was short on money and wanted to save up to pay my rent. I deliberately skipped rice for lunch, but instead ate four fried snacks for Rp. 25 each. Ko Aheng only provided mineral water for his workers.
The struggle I experienced at that time was indeed bitter, but I didn't want to disappoint my parents in the village, who had worked so hard to earn money for my education in City P. It was safe to say I was the only student in the city who worked outside of school hours as a porter at the market.
The work ended at 5:30 PM WIB. After washing my face in the bathroom, I was called by Ko Aheng.
"Well, here's your pay for half a day's work," Ko Aheng said, handing me 4,000 Rupiah from his pocket.
"Thank you, Ko. I'll come back to work tomorrow after school," I said, overjoyed to receive my first paycheck at the middle-aged Chinese man's business.
"Yes, you can come in anytime as long as you go to school and don't skip class. If you come in the morning, you can come here in the afternoon, and if you come in the afternoon, you have to come here very early," said Ko Aheng, pleased to see my diligence.
With damp clothes, I left Ko Aheng's shophouse and headed for the main road in front of the market to take a public minibus to my boarding house. Inside, I was elated to receive my hard-earned wages, though the work was admittedly quite strenuous, requiring me to be careful not to drop anything, and to avoid falling on myself as I climbed the dozens of stairs.
Upon arriving at my boarding house, I quickly showered and changed. I counted my money: Rp 13,700, still Rp 7,000 short of my monthly rent.
I scratched my head, which wasn't itchy; it was just a reflex, remembering that I still didn't have enough money to pay for my boarding house.
"What should I do? Should I borrow money from Uncle Ramlan if I don't have enough money to pay for my boarding house?"
"Ah..."