Mereka Bilang, Saya Monyet!

Adjeng lives alone in an apartment paid for by her rich businessman boyfriend. She writes children's stories and dreams of writing for adults, mentored by Asmoro, with whom she also has a sexual relationship. Her mother constantly calls and visits, managing many aspects of Adjeng's life.

Adjeng's mother routinely interferes, calling and visiting to control her daughter’s life. This overbearing presence irks Adjeng and becomes a running joke among her friends.

Adjeng goes clubbing with Venny and Andien and lets loose. She drinks too much, vomits, and eventually passes out in a toilet. The incident triggers a flood of memories that precede and shape her writing.

While lying afterward, she recalls a childhood memory of being forced to eat vegetables she had vomited. The memory underscores the trauma and the complex relationship she has with control and nourishment.

Andien uses Adjeng's apartment for a one-night stand, and Adjeng glimpses her mother having sex with her lover, a man who molested Adjeng. The explicit act is not shown, but the memory floods back, linking past abuse to present vulnerability.

These fragments—especially her teenage memories at her father's home—are woven into Adjeng's short story Lintah, giving it a strong autobiographical vibe. They provide material and tension that drive her narrative voice.

Asmoro reads Lintah and says the story is unrealistic and needs a climactic focal point. Adjeng counters that reality itself can be unreal, and that not all victims of abuse go to the police.

A few days later, Adjeng learns that Lintah has been published in Kompas. Her mother, aware of the autobiographical basis, becomes furious and blames Adjeng's father for abandoning the family.

Upset, Adjeng leaves with Venny and Andien, but the friends begin arguing about motherhood. She then goes to a café to drink with Asmoro, who offers comfort.

Back home, Adjeng checks her messages about the short story. Venny and Andien later reflect on the importance of children.

The next day, Asmoro spots Adjeng's boyfriend leaving her apartment, triggering a foul mood. He and Adjeng argue, and Asmoro almost smothers Adjeng with a pillow, declaring that their relationship is over.

Adjeng recalls the mother's lover's rape and the mother murdering him. When the phone rings, she watches people from her past moving through a residential complex, smiles, and returns to writing.