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j-graysonlibrary · 7 months

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The Xiang Chronicles: Book Four Chapter 39

Title: The Xiang Chronicles: Book Four

Author: Jay Grayson

Word Count: 118k

Genres: Fantasy, adventure, drama, LGBT+

Available on: my website

Synopsis: In order to save the world from the continuous subjugation and potential annihilation at the hands of Tiandi, hard lines must be drawn. The Great Spirits that were imprisoned ages ago must be unsealed and awakened, no matter the consequences.

The players are divided—those who stand blindly with Tiandi, such as Xiang Merra and her disciples versus those who want to tear the system down and give the power back to the people. Even a few of the most religious Lords change their minds when they learn the truth of the world—that Tiandi is no more than a dictator with no love in his heart.

It is up to the last, real Xiang and the ill-fated Chaaya to put everything they have into tearing God from his throne and creating new possibilities for the future.

Full chapter 39 under the cut

Chapter XXXIX:

Several days passed in a blur—people coming and going through portals, more strategy meetings, and fine tuning details. The only downtime came at night but most were too exhausted from the chaotic day that they could not even enjoy it.

Pangu mustered the strength he did have. He knew how the battle would, ultimately, end if all went according to plan and he knew his time with his loved ones was limited. How he spent every night differed but he made sure each moment was memorable and had no room for regret.

He was sure Kira was doing much the same.

Although, when he saw his best friend with Baiya, speaking to him privately, he worried about what he would say. They had already promised to keep some things between them (to keep the morale of the group as high as possible) but when Baiya returned with a smile and a smug remark about winning Kira over and finally getting some genuine sentiment out of him, Pangu relaxed a little.

“Did he admit that he liked your company?” Viren asked, chuckling. The dark circles under his eyes had grown but he kept a smile on his face nearly all day.

“He told me he would be worried about me while we were split up. Told me to take care of myself.” Baiya held his chin up as if it were some major accomplishment.

“Are you sure he wasn’t making fun of you?” Kaz raised an eyebrow.

Baiya’s grin fell and he asked, “What do you mean?”

“That maybe he’s worried because he thinks you need to be worried about?”

Pangu could feel the argument brewing but he was just glad that there was no additional stress from Kira’s words. Ideally, he would have loved to talk about everything with everyone before it happened but he knew how tricky it could be. If even one person was not performing at their best, it could spell the end of everything they worked for.

He looked to his partners as they started to, inevitably, bicker and he sighed. They could be mad at him for withholding the truth later.

***

The final night before the big battle came upon them and, with everyone in the caves, the different groups said their goodbyes. Many of them would go through and wait with a Mistress until the following day but some people were staying.

Those like Phay had to return to their troops, however.

Kali stood by them, watching with her hands folded in front of her as Loa hugged Baiya around the neck and squeezed. May, Fujin, and Sunny were saying their farewells as well.

“We will see you tomorrow, at some point,” Fujin said, “I am sure you will be hard to miss whilst summoning a large flaming lizard.”

Phay smirked. “Let us hope.”

“And after we are done, we can come back here and celebrate.” May grinned from ear to ear.

Sunny, however, tugged on her sister’s sleeve. “I thought we were going home after?”

“Well…after that?” May cocked her head to the side.

Phay sighed. “I am sure, once all is said and done, you will be too tired to do much of anything. Once our strength is gathered again and the dust settles then we can see about this party.”

May’s spirits were immediately lifted. “And we can use the Mistresses’ miasma portals to hop between palaces and see each other!”

“I will be dead, remember?” Kali groaned.

“Oh…”

Loa cringed as she looked over at the exchange, hands still resting on her brother’s shoulders. She turned back to him and managed a small twitch of her lips—something of a smile. “Well, our family will be happy to see us once this is all over.”

Baiya gave her a curt nod. “Mom definitely needs something after all we have put her through.”

“One of us should get a baby,” she responded with a snicker, more sincerely smiling this time.

“Not me,” he beat her to the punch. “I would not know what to do with a kid. I would be nervous about giving Phay a baby as well. She might teach it to crawl over a bed of coals to try to toughen it up.”

Loa slapped him on the arm. “Stop. She would not.” Despite her words, she still let out a few, hushed laughs.

Baiya gave her a kiss on the side of her head. “Try and get some rest, okay? I will see you tomorrow.”

After she parted from him, she gave May and Fujin hugs as well and only a wave for Sunny so she did not overwhelm her. With a few promises to meet up after the battle and make rather superfluous but sweet peace treaties between the two nations, the Agni women departed. Kali would be back shortly, having more pressing matters to attend to, and Phay would take her army to their stakeout point on the field.

Parvati, however, intended to stay with May, Fujin, Sunny, and Gong in the Mythos castle. Because of the long distance they had to travel, miasma portals were vital and so the Mistress would keep by them.

Kaz joined them and watched as his sister and the two princesses he spent his life devoted to guarding, formed a rift between him. It was the first time he would ever be so far away from Fujin. Since he was born, she had always been hovering close by. Recently, they had spent less time together, sure, but they had always been in calling distance.

He would not show too much sentiment as he did not want to worry her or, worse, distract her. So he rested his hand on her shoulder and sighed. “Good luck tomorrow.”

“Is that it?” Parvati asked, laughing.

“What?” he glanced over at the Mistress with a scowl.

“Nothing I just…thought you would have more to say.”

“A wonder how he handles Pangu,” Gong said, as if in awe.

Kaz frowned and May cackled before grabbing a hold of him, circling her arms around his torso and rubbing her cheek against his chest plate. It was not the most comfortable thing to do but it did fluster him and that was what she was after.

“Get off,” he grumbled and attempted to free himself, shoving against her head while simultaneously unclasping her hands.

“Kaz, you’re staying?” Sunny asked in the meantime, a pout on her face.

“Yes,” he answered just as he pushed May away. With a huff, he continued, “I am going to Ultimos with the others…”

“He is staying to spend one last night with his boyfriends,” May corrected.

Kaz’s face flushed but he squared his shoulders and kept his chin up. “Yes. That too.”

Fujin smirked at his response. Even if his face was red, her brother was admitting his feelings with pride. She wondered which one of his new partners was responsible for that turnaround but she guessed it was probably something of a group effort.

“Have fun, Kaz.” Fujin teased anyway.

He cut his eyes at her and replied, “You too.”

“Oh, Fujin will have to wait to have any fun with me,” May responded and turned back to Sunny, “I have to talk with Raiden.”

Her sister’s face paled. “Be nice to my husband, May. He is scared of you, you know.”

Of course that only made her snicker. “Good. He should be.”

Fujin rolled her eyes and slapped her hands onto May’s back, pushing her along. They said their last goodbyes to Kaz and, in a line, moved through the portal. Parvati and Gong exited last, throwing one last look over their shoulder to Pangu.

The ex-Xiang stood close enough by the Terran group to overhear their conversation but not close enough to participate. He folded his arms over his chest and smiled as he listened to Ziyi trip over his words in front of Dio, Evie, and Alf.

“W-what I am trying to say is, and what I have been trying to say for the past few days, really…um…”

“Spit it out, you dusty nut sack,” Chandes urged him with something in her hand raised into the air, threatening to strike.

“Alright, alright,” the man took a more defensive tone and looked back to the lords of Meala, “I wanted to apologize for attacking Gnoma. I was just trying to lure Pangu into a trap but that is no justification. I am sorry.”

Alf blinked a few times, unsure of what to say. He checked with his lord for any hints but Dio just started to laugh, as boisterously as always.

“I…feel that is in the past?” Alf raised his shoulders. “Helping us in the fight tomorrow can be your penance if you are truly so sorry.”

Ziyi nodded. “I will! I will use the fallen soldiers on the field to add to our army.”

“That is a rather genius ploy,” Evie said with an approving smile, “All of Merra’s men become our men once they are dead.”

“And they cannot die again,” Ziyi pointed out.

“Well, unless they are immobilized or their heads are removed,” Chandes clarified and, when everyone looked at her she snapped, “What?! It’s my power that I gave him; I know the limitations!”

Oli and Viren glanced at one another before Oli slowly pushed his cousin to the side. They left Pangu’s view completely and he could not hear them either.

“Are you alright to do this tomorrow?” Oli asked his cousin, giving him a hard stare. He had been watching him over the past few days but he seemed to be getting worse, not better.

“I am fine,” Viren continued to try to convince him. “Once I summon Gnome, everything will be better. The tide of the battle will be swayed and we can focus on winning.”

Oli frowned as the realization sunk in. Even if something was wrong with his cousin, he was not going to force it out of him or trick him into admitting it.

He just had to deal with the information presented to him, though it was clearly a lie. “Alright,” he sighed, “Just let me know if there is anything I can do.”

Viren clapped a hand over his shoulder. “You are already doing everything you can. You will make a fine lord, Oli.”

Pangu only heard the last few words as he tried to walk over and join but he was soon grabbed and spun around. “Ah,” he vocalized, a little louder than intended.

Heidi laughed and, immediately, apologized. “Sorry. I did not mean to scare the life out of you.”

He shook his head, dismissing the idea. “So, are you going to leave as well? Or are you staying here?”

“Well Parvati and Gong already left with the ladies so…” Heidi gestured with her thumb over her shoulder. “I am kind of stuck.”

Pangu frowned. “I can ask someone else to take you home. You do not need to—”

She stopped him with a hand in the air. “I want to stay.” She laughed a little, mostly under her breath, and carried on, “I wanted to have a chance to talk to you, like this, for starters. Afterward, I plan on hanging around Ashoka. She still seems like she could reverse her decision at any moment and I want her to know that she is doing the right thing.”

He looked around the caves but he could not see Merra’s ex-disciple anywhere. There were still plenty of bodies blocking the way. He turned back to Heidi and sighed, “You are and always have been a huge help, Heidi. Thank you.”

To his surprise, his sister laughed. “Don’t lie.”

Pangu raised his brows. “What do you mean? I am not lying.”

“I was no help at all when I was with you as your disciple. And I barely did anything here—it was more of a situational thing. That isn’t to say I was entirely useless either but I probably dragged you down more often than not.”

He adamantly shook his head. “You did help. In a lot of small ways that you probably do not even realize. Or remember.”

Heidi gave him a sideways smile, struggling with the feeling his words gave her. He had said things just to make her feel better before (whether he would admit it or not) but, in that moment, everything he said hit as though it were the absolute truth. At least, in his mind, he believed every word.

“Thanks, Pangu.” She squeezed his arm. “You know, when I first joined up with you, I did not find your work very impressive.”

He laughed. “I know.”

“I am not finished,” Heidi chuckled and continued, “I…was not just clouded by jealousy back then, you know. Though, that was part of it. The other part…what I did not really realize until you were killed, was that I was forcing a distance between us so that when you, inevitably did die, I would not be so hurt. It didn’t work…at all…but I think that was what I was doing. It doesn’t make some of the cruel things I said any better but, you know, maybe it sheds a little light.”

“I never thought you were being cruel.” Pangu shook his head and took her hands into his. “Honestly, you were right about some of the things you said back then. I really wasn’t doing much as the Xiang.”

Heidi smiled and met his eyes. “I cannot say that now.” She tightened her grip on his hands. “I really am proud of you, you know? And I am really not ready to let you go again.”

Her words, mixed with her furrowed brow clued Pangu in on her startlingly accurate intuition. He frowned and broke their eye contact, looking instead at the ground. “I am sorry.”

She sniffed and let him go, all at once. “Yeah…anyway, where are your boyfriends? They should be spending tonight with you too.”

As they turned around, Baiya and Kaz were reuniting with Viren. The Terran group had been led away by Chandes though Oli had also opted to stay in the caves. He was chatting with Ziyi, however, so he did not join them.

“Hey there, fellas,” Heidi said as she practically pulled Pangu over. He was not dragging his feet but she was simply moving faster than he anticipated. “I expect you are all ready for tomorrow?”

“As ready as we can be,” Baiya answered first.

“That is a yes, Heidi,” Viren said, more sweetly.

Kaz nodded, adding his silent agreement. Heidi really could not pin him down but he did seem to, at least, be completely obsessed with her brother so she figured he was alright.

“Good. Now.” She pulled Pangu closer to her. “As you all know, this is my big brother who I am both proud of and very worried about. The three of you need to take his mind off of the battle tomorrow and make him feel loved and appreciated, got it?”

Pangu almost slapped his palm to his forehead but decided on laughing instead. Heidi could be embarrassing when she wanted to be—a quality he was foolish to have let slip his mind.

“Yes, ma’am,” Viren responded with a smile.

“Like we were not going to anyway?” Kaz arched an eyebrow.

“Yeah,” Baiya agreed, “Maybe now that we have been told, we don’t want to.”

“Do you want me to kick your ass, Baiya?” Heidi threatened.

Viren put his hands out, “They are kidding. They are both kidding.”

Heidi pointed a finger at Baiya. “You are on thin ice.”

“Aren’t I always?” he smirked and pulled Pangu closer.

She huffed and centered herself. “While I cannot fathom what my brother sees in you, I must accept his choice in men. Therefore, I am happy for you all. Have a good night. I am busy now.”

With a wink to Pangu, she hurried off and he was left to sigh and sit in the situation she left him in. He could not help but smile, however, as her intention was almost cloyingly sweet.

#the xiang chronicles #my novel #my writing

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ertanto · 7 years

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Pengalaman Tes IELTS: Satu Hari untuk Dua Tahun

Hello!

Udah lama ngga mampir ke sini. Dulu, gue suka mampir ke sini dan nulis banyak hal, mostly tentang kesedihan sih. Jadi, ngga heran kalau beberapa laman di dalamnya isinya hal-hal yang “gelap”. Kali ini, gue nulis satu hal yang berbeda: pengalaman pertama gue ngikutin tes IELTS internasional.

Sebelumnya, gue mau cerita latar belakang gue ikut tes IELTS. Awalnya, sekitar bulan Agustus atau September, gue mutusin untuk mencoba peruntungan di beasiswa Chevening. Personally, gue udah lama bermimpi bisa sekolah ke luar negeri. Alasan utamanya sih karena gue pengen memperluas cakrawala sudut pandang gue dalam melihat sesuatu. Kita tahu bahwa di dunia ini ada banyak manusia dengan beragam budaya, latar belakang, sejarah, dan pendidikan yang otomatis memengaruhi cara pandang terhadap suatu isu. Alasan lainnya sih klise: ingin menantang diri sendiri.

Baik Chevening sebagai pemberi beasiswa maupun universitas pilihan, keduanya mewajibkan kandidat untuk memiliki bukti kemampuan berbahasa Inggris, dalam hal ini adalah IELTS modul akademik. Kampus yang gue pilih sudah mengeluarkan LOA conditional dengan syarat skor keseluruhan IELTS adalah 6,5 dengan masing-masing skor minimum band adalah enam (6). Berbeda dengan universitas, pemberi beasiswa menetapkan skor minimum yang lebih rendah, yaitu 5,5 di masing-masing indikator. Jadi, tes IELTS adalah syarat mutlak yang harus gue penuhi kalau memang mau sekolah ke luar negeri, terlepas siapa negara pemberi beasiswa.

Okay, gue sempet deg-degan dan senewen banget knowing the fact that I have to take IELTS. Mengapa? Alasan utamanya adalah finansial. Kita tahu tes IELTS internasional tidak murah, setidaknya buat gue – karyawan biasa saja dengan pendapatan satu pos. Sebagai informasi, biaya registrasi yang gue keluarkan kurang lebih Rp.2.800.000. Kekhawatiran muncul kalau ternyata nanti skor gue di bawah 6,5 dan harus ngambil tes lagi. Artinya, gue harus ngeluarin duit segitu gede atau mungkin lebih karena harganya yang ngikutin kurs Rupiah terhadap Dollar. Alasan berikutnya adalah kemampuan bahasa Inggris gue yang biasa saja apalagi bahasa Inggris yang berkaitan dengan IELTS. Jujur saja, dari kecil, gue lebih familiar dengan TOEFL. Ketidaksiapan ini sempat memunculkan opsi untuk ikut preparation class IELTS yang mana mau ngga mau bikin gue harus menguras tabungan lagi. Akhirnya, setelah melalui perenungan mendalam, gue memutuskan tidak ikut kelas persiapan dan memilih untuk belajar secara mandiri.

Belajar mandiri itu tidak sulit sebenarnya – mengalahkan diri sendiri justru yang paling sulit. Sebagai karyawan dengan jam kerja 07.30 – 16.30, gue kadang udah capek banget waktu sampe rumah. Alhasil, belajar IELTS pun jadi ogah-ogahan dan tidak begitu bersemangat. Gue tahu kalau hal ini ga boleh gue biarin. Gue pun berpikir gimana caranya supaya bisa mengelola waktu secara efektif untuk belajar. Progres gue selama ini gue akuin cukup lambat. Ya, coba bayangkan ada empat sections yang harus dikuasai di tengah keterbatasan waktu sementara porsi waktu lo banyak dihabiskan untuk bekerja. Again, gue harus ngalahin diri sendiri dengan terus bilang “ngga masalah lo lambat, asal lo ngga berhenti”. You need to do this as well, folks!

Gue pun mulai nyusun strategi untuk menguasai IELTS. Strategi pertama adalah mencuri waktu saat jam kerja untuk belajar. Kadang, kalau ngga ada kerjaan atau deadline kerjaan ga deket, gue belajar gimana cara nulis ringkasan grafik atau diagram untuk Writing Task 1, nulis independent essay untuk Writing Task 2. Strategi kedua adalah menggunakan 30 – 60 menit saat di rumah untuk belajar Listening. Nah, ini juga bukan persoalan yang mudah. Kita tahu kalau Listening butuh fokus yang tinggi. Posisi rumah dan kamar gue tuh menghadap ke jalan raya. Berisiknya suara motor saat gue mulai belajar terdengar sangat jelas ke kamar. I was that frustrated you know, tapi gue ngga nyerah. Gue belajar Listening pake headset walaupun sebenarnya hal ini ga begitu gue sarankan. Alasannya adalah pada saat tes yang sebenarnya, media pengeras suara yang kita gunakan belum tentu kualitas suaranya sejelas dan sedekat dengan headset yang kita gunakan. Selain itu, pas actual test, kita tidak menggunakan headset kan? Jadi, kita harus mengantisipasi kemungkinan terburuk dan membiasakan diri.

Strategi ketiga adalah menetapkan satu periode waktu tertentu untuk satu materi. Ada empat materi dalam IELTS, artinya masing-masing materi membutuhkan satu periode waktu untuk kita pelajari. Sebagai ilustrasi, di minggu pertama Desember 2016, gue belajar Listening. Di minggu kedua, materi yang harus dipelajari adalah Reading, dan seterusnya. Hal ini cukup efektif untuk membuat kita familiar dengan tipe soal. Dalam konteks IELTS, familiarisasi terhadap tipe soal adalah hal yang penting karena kadang kala ada banyak jebakan di soal IELTS – hanya apabila kita tidak teliti. Ketidaktelitian itu banyak bentuknya dan utamanya adalah tidak membaca instruksi. Jadi, buat lo yang suka skip bagian instruksi soal, please get rid of this habit as soon as possible.

Strategi keempat adalah mempelajari tips dan trik IELTS dari video tutorial. This one really helped me a lot! Di internet, ada banyak banget video yang ngajarin materi IELTS dan ngasih tips and trick ngedapetin band tinggi. Beberapa di antaranya yang gue jadiin acuan adalah Liz (She is really nice and helpful. She makes a great tutor for everyone), Adam (He is good for your listening skill. Tempo bicaranya kalau ngejelasin sesuatu standar, berbeda dari Liz), Emma (Dia kasih banyak penjelasan mendalam di beberapa materi), Simon (I never watched his video, yet his writing on his site in regards of how to tackle Writing Task 2 did a great improvement for me). Nah, mereka inilah yang jadi guru virtual gue selama persiapan IELTS.

Empat strategi di atas udah gue lakuin, tapi ada satu materi yang ga begitu gue prioritaskan: Speaking. Alasannya bukan karena gue udah jago, sama sekali ngga, tapi lebih karena gue ingin fokus lebih dalam ke Reading dan Writing. Asli ya, Reading-nya IELTS tuh sakit jiwa, susah banget. Banyak kata baru yang ngga pernah gue tahu sebelumnya. Udah gitu, jenis pertanyaan “True, False, Not Given” termasuk ke dalam kategori susah untuk dipahami: kenapa kita pilih Not Given dan bukan False. Karena terlalu fokus ke Reading dan Writing, gue jadi lupa untuk belajar Speaking. Sampai dengan H-3 tes IELTS, gue hanya baca-baca sekilas tentang Speaking, termasuk Dos and Donts. I was a bit unsure with my performance on this band but I kept reassuring myself that English is my second language while working. So, Speaking wouldn’t be a big deal.

Sambil mempersiapkan diri, gue pun mulai mengkalkulasi kapan waktu terbaik untuk tes. Guna mengantisipasi kemungkinan terburuk, tes pun dipilih pada tanggal 21 Januari 2017. Setidaknya gue punya waktu cukup untuk mengevaluasi diri kalau ternyata hasilnya jelek. Tidak hanya itu, gue pun mempertimbangkan jumlah kursi yang terbatas karena pasti akan ada banyak orang yang juga mau tes. Ya mau gimana lagi. Dengan dipilihnya tanggal 21, artinya gue cuma punya waktu belajar dua bulan kurang. Akhirnya, Rp.2.800.000 pun berpindah rekening, tapi ternyata gue melupakan satu hal: kawinan abang gue tgl 20 Januari dan itu berlangsung di Medan.

Kita skip ke hari H. Jam 7.20, gue sudah sampe di IDP Bandung setelah bangun telat dan ngga sarapan sama sekali. Please good people don’t you ever try to do this. Get a breakfast cause you will have a really long day to go. Getting a good breakfast will ensure your brain to get a sufficient energy to focus during the test. Tes IELTS dimulai dengan sesi verifikasi identitas yang digunakan. Cukup ketat karena setiap peserta diminta untuk membawa identitas diri yang digunakan pada saat pendaftaran. Kalau waktu pendaftaran pakai KTP, lo harus bawa KTP. Selain itu, setelah ID dicek, lo akan difoto. Too bad I didn’t look good at that time. LOL. Saat semua peserta sudah diverifikasi, setiap peserta diingatkan untuk hanya membawa alat tulis dan kartu identitas diri ke dalam ruang tes. Minuman dalam kemasan diperbolehkan hanya apabila botolnya transparan. You need to get rid the brand. No bags are allowed inside the room and you are also prohibited to wear watch. Peraturannya juga super ketat. I ain’t gonna tell it all here since you have to experience it by yourself.

Section pertama adalah listening. Posisi duduk gue kebetulan ngga begitu jauh dari speaker which was good. Actually, kualitas speaker yang digunakan nampaknya baik. Jadi, dimana pun posisinya rasanya ngga masalah. Di bagian ini, persoalan terbesar gue adalah menarik jawaban dari hal-hal yang sifatnya implisit. Alhasil, beberapa nomer nebak dengan kans 50:50. Reading adalah section berikutnya. This was totally my scariest nightmare. Gue bahkan nervous pas ngerjain soalnya! Asli ya teksnya bikin bingung. Adam, Liz, and Emma bilang untuk skimming pertama kali to get the idea, tapi tetep aja gue ngga dapet. Di bagian ini, gue akui gue nembak banyak. Lebih baik nembak daripada ngasal cause there is no penalty for incorrect answers. Asli gue ngga puas banget sama bagian ini. Hal ini sempet bikin gue drop, tapi pasrah ajalah. Gue ngga mau section berikutnya – Writing dan Speaking – jadi ancur juga.

Section ketiga adalah Writing. Di bagian ini, gue sempet deg-degan banget. Gue ga begitu jago baca diagram, grafik, atau pie chart. Pun membuat summary yang keren. Kalau pun bisa ya biasa aja. Ngga heboh-heboh banget bagusnya. (Bagus yang heboh tuh kayak gimana ya?) Nah, pas gue buka lembar soalnya ternyata gampang bgt! Pie chart-nya gampanglah untuk dibaca. Selain itu, Task 2 nya juga soalnya ngga begitu susah. I think I was lucky at that time. Dalam mengerjakan Writing, lo harus pastikan ngerjain Task 2 dulu karena bobot penilaiannya lebih berat dibandingkan Task 1. That was how I did it. Hanya saja, karena keasikan dan kepanjangan bikin Task 2, tanpa gue sadari waktu sudah lebih dari 40 menit dan gue belum bikin simpulan. Means, I had less than 20 minutes to work on Task 1. Akhirnya, gue super ngebut ngerjain Task 1. Saat waktunya habis, di hati kecil gue ada sedikit harapan dan banyak kekhawatiran. Gue berharap semoga gue dapat skor yang memenuhi syarat kampus walaupun gue agak pesimis. Di satu sisi, gue khawatir karena kalau gue harus ngulang lagi, belum tentu gue dapat soal seperti tadi. Again, gue mendamaikan diri gue dengan meyakinkan bahwa I did well and nobody knows what the future holds.

Sesi terakhir adalah Speaking. Kebetulan, jadwal gue adalah di hari yang sama, dua jam setelah tes tulis. Lagi-lagi, gue nervous. Nama gue pun dipanggil sekitar jam 14.00. Di dalam ruangan sudah menunggu seorang native speaker. Obrolan diawali dengan perkenalan dan penguji menyampaikan bahwa percakapan akan direkam untuk keperluan penilaian. Pertanyaan pertama adalah apa yang dilakukan setiap hari: apakah mahasiswa atau sudah bekerja? Sampai akhirnya, penguji bertanya pertanyaan yang menurut gue random: lebih suka mana tulisan tangan atau diketik? Duh, gue bingung asli. Setelah itu, pertanyaannya berkisar tentang periklanan (another difficult topic since my vocabulary on this aspect is not good enough). Secara keseluruhan, gue banyak cakap di bagian ini. LOL. Entahlah.

Sesuai dengan informasi dari pihak IDP, hasil tes akan diumumkan 13 hari setelah hari tes. Selain itu, acuan waktu pun Australian Time, yakni 3 Februari 2017. Selama dua minggu nunggu, gue senewen banget. Rasanya ngga enak ngapa-ngapain dan salah satu hal yang gue lakukan adalah menyiapkan mental gue kalau hasilnya ternyata di bawah permintaan kampus. Agak nyesek sih apalagi kalau ternyata overall score nya tembus, tapi ada band yang di bawah 6.0. Nangis sih itu. Fix.

Sampai akhirnya, hari yang ditunggu-tunggu itu tiba. Saat itu hari Jumat, gue ngga ke kantor dan seharian senewen banget. Sampai akhirnya jam 13.30, seorang kawan kirim pesan di whatsapp, “mas Frank, hasilnya udah keluar”, jantung gue berdetak kencang. Duh, gimana nih. This was the same feeling when I checked SPMB announcement years ago. Gue pun memberanikan diri buat cek di internet.

Gue teriak. Asli keras banget. Skor gue melebihi ekspektasi untuk bagian overall dan sekaligus lega (asli lega banget ibarat lolos lubang jarum) karena salah satu band nilainya pas banget: 6.0. Sore itu gue seneng banget. Tapi, di balik kebahagian sore itu, ada satu rasa takut yang terselip. Apa jadinya kalau ternyata beasiswanya ngga dapet? Bukankah, skor IELTS ini akan terasa sia-sia nantinya? Karena alasan kuat untuk ikut tes ini dan mengorbankan banyak hal adalah beasiswa. Gue langsung tepis pikiran itu beberapa saat kemudian.

Semesta memang baik dan Tuhan Maha Melihat. Pun tidak ada keringat yang berkhianat. Semuanya terbayar sore itu. I got the ticket which I can utilize for the next two years. Satu lembar untuk dua tahun. Apabila memang bukan untuk beasiswa, toh gue bisa dengan sedikit bangga mencantumkannya di CV dan bikin future employer percaya sama kemampuan bahasa Inggris gue.

Well, that’s all, pengalaman pertama gue ikut tes IELTS. Rasanya senang bisa berbagi pengalaman dan semoga saja bermanfaat. Oh ya, tulisan ini sebenarnya lahir dari “nazar” gue ke diri sendiri: untuk menulis dan membagi pengalaman kalau skor IELTS memenuhi kualifikasi kampus dan pemberi beasiswa, semacam payback gitu. Gue paham dan sadar betul bahwa dalam persiapan gue menghadapi IELTS, ada banyak tulisan, baik itu pengalaman maupun tips dari banyak orang yang bener-bener membantu gue. Contohnya, pengalaman penerima beasiswa LPDP, pengalaman temen kuliah yang bahkan sampe ikut tiga kali tes IELTS. Their stories, tips and tricks, are really helpful. Mereka ini sangat membantu menyiapkan mental dan memberi pengetahuan dasar tentang seperti apa tes IELTS yang sesungguhnya itu. Nah, kalau mereka mau dengan rendah hati membagikan pengalamannya, kenapa gue ngga?

Selamat berjuang menghadapi tes IELTS. Remember, you can do it!

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