Dairy...V'Day Special :)

If we look back at the journey of our lives recollecting the incidents of our past, college life would remain the best. The very thought of them makes us feel younger. Those sweet memories are etched our heart forever. The following is a humourous real life incident excerpted from a personal diary.

Who let the dogs out?


“The cup of life…………” screamed my mobile. I picked it up lying on the bed.
“Good Morning”, she said.
“Good Morning”, I replied slowly opening my eyes.
“I am not feeling well. I won’t be coming to college today”, she said.
“Why? What happened?” I asked her.
“Fever!” she replied faintly.
“Ok. Take care. I miss you sweetheart”
“I miss you too dear”.
I covered myself with a blanket and went back to sleep. I don’t know for how long I slept until somebody shook me vigorously holding my shoulders. I opened my eyes. It was Deepak.
“Get up! Aren’t you coming to college today?” he asked me.
“Neha said she won’t come today. So college would be very boring”, I said sleepily. “I won’t come. You carry on!”
But Deep was very obstinate. He compelled me to accompany him and I finally ended up going to college after a lot of huffs and puffs.
“What periods do we have today?” I asked Deep.
“Operating Systems, Communication Theory and DBMS in the morning and C++ lab session in the afternoon”, he replied.
“Shall we go for a movie?” Dileep asked me.
“At what time is the show?”
“11 A.M”
“Done! Inform our group”, I said elatedly.
Our group consisted of three girls and four boys. We watched the movie, had lunch at a nearby restaurant and reached home by 4 P.M. I had a short nap and woke up around 6 P.M in the evening.
I felt a strong urge to see her. I changed my dress and drove my bike to her apartment. The sky was overcast with dark clouds. I prayed that it should not rain for the next one or two hours.
Deep and Neha resided in the same apartment. His flat was in the second floor and she was in the fourth floor. I parked my bike outside his apartment and called her on mobile.
“I am inside your apartment. I want to see you now”, I said.
“Hey!” she was surprised.
“I will meet Deep first and then come to the terrace. Be there!”, I said.
“Hey! Listen!” she muttered. “My mom will kill me if she…”
“Then shall I go back?” I asked her.
She was silent.
“Ok! My mom asked me to get dried clothes from the terrace”, she paused for a few seconds. “But only 5 minutes! Ok” she said.
“Sure!”
I rang the doorbell of Deep’s flat. He opened the door.
“Come! Let’s go to the terrace”, I said.
“Why?” he asked me curiously.
“I’ll tell you a secret about your girl friend”, I said. He was puzzled.
Little Pinky was weeping at the entrance of her flat.
“Why is Pinky crying?” I asked him.
“Her pet dog was missing since morning. It has run away”, said Deep.
“Nowadays, dogs cost a lot and thieves aren’t sparing them either”, I said. “Just recently, my neighbour took his dog for a stroll in the morning. Two young men followed him on a bike, manhandled him and carried the dog away”
“Who let the dogs out”, Deep hummed the famous song shaking his head back and forth as we climbed the stairs leading to the balcony.
She was waiting for me in the terrace carrying a heap of dried clothes. Deep turned and looked at me. “You idiot!” he said biting his teeth angrily. “Her mother had already warned her against talking to you. Come! Let’s go back”
“Please! Please! Just give me five minutes. I will just see her and come back. You keep guard here”, I pleaded him.
“What are you going to see for five minutes?” he asked me irately. “This is not your apartment. If somebody notices you both romancing here, I will be one accused for bringing you here. My mother will batter me to death. Please!”
“Deep! Just remember, how much I helped you in the past. Have you forgotten all that? Am I not your best friend?” I said emotionally adding a chunk of sentiment. He took a huge gasp of breath and looked at me.
“OK! Only five minutes. See her and come back as fast as possible. I will stand here and make sure nobody is coming”
I felt very happy and walked towards her swiftly. She smiled on seeing me. It was very dark. Cold breeze blew past us making the conditions perfect for romance. We held your hands together and my fingers moved into hers. We talked about how we missed each other. I moved closer to her looking into her eyes. Suddenly Deep called out my name. I turned back to see my friend running towards me.
“Neha’s mother and my mom are coming here. Come fast, let’s go”, he said anxiously.
“Oh No! If my mother sees you, she will kill me. Go and hide somewhere”, she grew tensed. “Hide somewhere, fast”, she pushed my shoulder.
“Where can we hide here?” I asked her. “It looks like you want me to jump from this terrace”
“Hide below that water tank”, she said. I saw the huge cemented water tank. There was a gap of almost three feet between the floor and the bottom of the tank. I ran with towards the tank with Deep and crawled under it.
“What are you doing here?” I heard her mother scream.
“My dress is missing. I was searching for it”, Neha replied.
We heard their conversation silently sneaking into the place below the tank.
“People might mistake us if they find us both in this position here. It altogether conveys a different meaning that we are…” Deep whispered
“You idiot!” I was enraged. I felt a strong urge to slap him hard on his face but controlled myself.
“There would be some valves hanging here. Make sure you don’t bang your head against them”, he said.
“Ouch!” I heard him scream with pain. He banged his head against one of them.
The place was stinking with a foul odour. I held my breath feeling a vomiting sensation.
“Is this a water tank or a se…..” I stopped my words on noticing something.
There a heavy object lying before us. It was hindering the passage of air but we could not see it clearly in the darkness. He switched on the light of his mobile we had a look at the strange object. For a moment, my heart missed a beat. A strange chill ran down my spine. A huge dog was lying there. It was of the size of a Doberman. He instantly switched off the light and stared me in fear. I could feel his hands and legs trembling like a patient affected with fits. I was not sure whether the dog was dead or sleeping. I wanted to put my fingers near its nose and check whether it was inhaling oxygen, but I had no guts to do so. Then there was a sound of a low moan. Deep crawled closer to me.
“What’s that sound?” he whispered.
“The dog is snoring”, I said maintaining my voice as low as possible. “It’s in a good sleep. Unless we wake it up, there will not be any problem”, I solaced him. There was a sound of thunder followed by lightning.
Neha’s mother and Deep’s mother were conversing something loudly a few meters away from us. I was afraid whether the dog would wake up on hearing their voices, but it did not.
I was damn angry on Neha. She could have taken her mother downstairs. It looked that she was intentionally making me suffer and enjoying very moment of it.
Suddenly it started raining heavily. The conversations diminished. It appeared that they were moving away from us. We knew that the rain water would flow into the area where we were hiding.
“I will go out and see whether they have gone”, I said.
“You idiot! You wanted to leave me alone with the dog here”, Deep grumbled angrily.
“Then! Do you want us to permanently stay here” I asked him furiously.
“I will go and check. You wait here”, he said.
“Ok!” I nodded my head.
He found it difficult to crawl backwards. So he crawled forward tardily making sure not to touch the sleeping creature. First, his head came out from the hiding area. Then his hands followed and he crawled further. He did not notice that the dog’s tail was spread before him and dragged his knees onto it.
“Bow-wow”, there was deafening sound. I was not sure whether it was the sound of pain or anger, but I knew that my days were over. I closed my eyes and bent my face on the ground in fright. But Deep ran away from the tank on hearing the barks. On seeing him running, the dog chased him instead of attacking me. There were sounds of loud thuds, yells, barks and screams as the dog pursued him all over the balcony in darkness. I was afraid whether he would trip over something and fall from the terrace. Suddenly, everything was silent. I laid there still for another half-an-hour wondering what to do. The rain showed no signs of abating. Water flowed under me wetting the front portion of my shirt and pant. I quietly crawled out of the hiding place and dusted my clothes. I got down the stairs as passed through Deep’s house. Little Pinky was smiling. She had found her dog.
I made sure nobody noticed me and walked out of the apartment. I started my bike and zipped across the road in the gushing rain. I reached home and called Neha.
“I am really sorry for what has happened. Actually…..”
“Did he mention our names?” I interrupted her.
“No! But the dog bit him hard. They carried him to the hospital”
The next morning, I met Deep at his home. He lay on the sofa watching television wearing a sleeveless vest and shorts. There were some bandages on his hands and left thigh.
“What happened aunty?” I asked his mother.
“Somebody called him over phone yesterday. Fearing that I would overhear his conversation, he went to the terrace and continued his call”, explained his mother. “He doesn’t know what he’s doing when is over the phone. He stamped the neighbour’s dog that was sleeping there and it bit him all over his body”.
Deep glared at me with anger largely writ on his face. I narrowed my eyes pleading him mercy. After spending some time with him, I walked out of the apartment and started my bike. I felt that somebody was watching me. I looked up. Neha was staring at me from her bedroom balcony. She made sure nobody was watching her and gave me a flying kiss. I looked all around the deserted road. There was nobody at sight. I raised my hand in the air, accepted it and kissed my palm.

Heresy-3

Note: Please read Heresy Part -2 before this one
Part 3

The Food court was usually crowded in the mornings. Employees hustled in all possible directions carrying their plates of breakfast.

“Tell me, how did Vinesh die?” Shyam asked Deep with extreme curiosity.

“Today, Shankar met his ex-project mate in the train”, said Deep. “That guy witnessed Vinesh’s death.”

“What did that guy see? What did he say?” asked Shyam with his eyes wide open. He was unable to control his anxiety.

“He says Vinesh’s death was accidental”, replied Deep. “It was not suicide”

Shyam leaned forward on the table and narrowed his eyes at Deep.

“What are you saying!” he remarked.

“I will ask Shankar to arrange a meeting with him sometime later in the evening”, said Deep swallowing his last spoon of salad. “We shall discuss this matter in detail”.

Shyam nodded his head. They completed their breakfast and strode along the pathway heading to their block. As Shyam neared his cube, he found someone sitting on his chair. It was Suhani. She turned her head and looked at him. There had been no communication between them for the last ten days. She called him several times on his mobile, but he neither answered her calls nor bothered to call her back. The guilt-consciousness in him prevented him from talking to her. But after seeing her face and her beautiful eyes staring at him, he felt a pain, a strange pain in his heart.

Both of them remained speechless looking at each other’s faces.

“How are you?”, he broke the silence. Tears welled up in her eyes.

“I am sorry”, he said. She suddenly broke down and covered her eyes with her fingers.

Shyam held her hands and consoled her. As he soothed her, he felt that somebody was around. He could feel some eyes watching him. He turned back and looked all around. There was nobody around. The large room wore a deserted look. The other team mates in his project usually stretched their work in the nights and arrived late in the mornings.

The sun travelled lethargically from east to west.

The bus stopped at the end of the road. A group of employees got down and walked towards the station. Shyam and Suhani walked together followed by Kavitha, Shankar and Deep. Even though Deep listened to Kavitha’s conversation, his eyes were fixed on Sarya who was walking a few metres ahead of him. Shyam reached the stairway that led to the platform and stopped for a moment. A strange chill crept down his spine.

“Because of you, I am now feeling afraid to come to this haunted station”, Deep murmured in Shyam’s ear as they walked on the overbridge.

The climbed down the steps and reached the platform where the suburban train arrived.

“Shall we sit here?”, Suhani asked them standing on the last stair.

Shyam sat beside her. The other three friends sat behind them on the upper stair.

“Why are you silent?”, she asked him. There was no response.

The station was crowded with employees working in different software companies in that part of the city. Some people were discussing in groups, some were talking on their mobiles, some were listening to music on their iPods and some stood alone staring at others. Shyam’s eyes searched everywhere for Vinesh. And they finally spotted him. He stood alone in the centre of the platform. His dress was tattered and his face was bruised.

Shyam’s hands and legs started trembling. He turned his face and gazed somewhere else trying best to divert his attention.

“What’s wrong with you? Are you Ok”, Suhani asked him. He nodded his head.

“Why are you sweating a lot?”, she asked him.

“It’s very hot”, he replied wiping the sweat drops on his forehead with his kerchief. He did not want to disclose his strange problem to her fearing the aftermaths it might have on their relationship.

“Why is he killing me like this?”, Shyam wondered. Even though he loved his friend, he did not want to see him after he was dead.

“Shyam…”, called a voice from behind. Shyam turned his head backward.

“This is Rahul”, Shankar introduced a person. The guy was tall and dark in appearance. Shyam introduced himself to the stranger.

“I am sorry mate. I understand your pain in losing a friend”, said Rahul climbing down a few steps.

“At the time of his death, were you beside him”, Shyam asked him. Rahul nodded his head.

“Can you tell me what happened that day?”.

Suhani, Shankar and Kavitha looked at Rahul with keen interest. He appeared nervous as he began his version.

“Vinesh was standing a few feet away from me talking to somebody over his mobile. He frequently leant over the tracks to check whether the train was coming”, Rahul paused for a moment and heaved a breath of air.

“When the train arrived on the platform, our guy wasn’t aware of it as he was in a deep conversation. He was initially a little distance away from the tracks but he suddenly moved forward and leant over the tracks to check whether the train was coming. Then he slipped and fell down uttering a huge cry”, said Rahul shaking his head. “I was shocked. I couldn’t prevent it from happening. It was a terrible accident. I’ve never witnessed this sort of thing in my entire life.”

“Was it an accident……”, wondered Shyam. He moved his head and looked at the place where he last spotted Vinesh. He wasn’t there. Shyam stood up and looked all around. Vinesh was nowhere at sight. He had gone. Had he gone forever?

The train arrived on the platform. The employees who were standing on the platform thronged into it pushing each other at the door. Some hurriedly sat on the vacant seats and placed their hands and bags on either side reserving the seats for their friends who were getting inside the train.

“Look at those professionals fighting for window seats in the train”, commented Deep. The station grew deserted in a couple of seconds. A horn sounded and the train started moving. Shyam had one last look at the platform hoping to have a glance of his dead friend, but he never appeared again.

Kavitha and Shankar exchanged stolen glances at each other in the train.

“I don’t understand why he’s calling her a ‘princess’”, Deep whispered to Shyam.

‘Aatma Hathya Maha aparaadh’ said a sacred verse. Killing oneself is termed as a heinous act according to the religious doctrines and deserves the highest punishment. I still remember my father’s words, ‘We belong to the race of the great sage. We are born to serve the society. But as we commit sins, we are reborn. Reborn and reborn till our desires are fulfilled and sins are cleansed. But my son, tell this to your sons and grandsons. Refrain from killing yourself. Because your soul neither takes a rebirth nor attains salvation. You have to wander mercilessly witnessing the happenings of the world. You will be able see your loved ones, friends and relatives spending every moment of their lives. You will experience a strong urge to live among them and share their joys and sorrows. But you cannot! All you can do is to watch and suffer silently. Because you are dead. This is the worst of all punishments inflicted to a sinner.’

‘For how long should we suffer like this father?’, I innocently asked him.

‘Till the tenure of your birth in this world comes to an end’, he replied. ‘And you will be reborn again’

‘Then! Is there is no means to attain salvation’, I asked him.

‘There is only one way’, he replied. ‘The sacred verses show the path to eternal salvation. But if you misuse them, you will be cursed. A deadly curse………...”. The hair raised on my hands and legs after I heard the ill-effects of the curse.

He was no more but his words still lingered in my mind.

I picked up a broken mirror lying on the ground and looked my face into it. I screamed in disbelief and dropped it. This was not my face. But…But I have to be patient. I will get back my face. I will get back my body.

The brightness of the full moon lightened the road. I kept ‘ it’ safely in my pouch and touched it often to check whether it was safe. I neared the palace holding my sword firmly. I hid behind the bushes and thought of ways to get inside her room. The palace was heavily guarded and it was difficult to sneak past them. I walked stealthily towards the rear end of the palace. There was a dilapidated temple present there. It held a secret that very few know. It contained a tunnel that paved way to a secret entrance to the palace under the ground. It was constructed as a safety measure to protect the king and his family in case of a sudden attack by the enemies. I neared the temple. The guards were sleeping. But one of them was awake. I approached him from behind, closed his mouth tightly and ran my sword across his neck. He lay dead on the floor. I went inside the temple and sneaked into the large dark tunnel. I crawled inside it for a long time until I could see the bright moonlight again. I came out of the tunnel and stood at the backyard of the palace. I tip-toed into her room. She was sleeping on her bed. I moved closer to her. The maid servants were nowhere at sight. A gentle breeze blew and she slightly moved herself in deep sleep. I slowly leaned on her and stared at her beautiful face. At last, I had an opportunity…..

Shyam woke up suddenly and rubbed his eyes. It was a nightmare. They were haunting him repeatedly for the past several nights. He looked at the clock. It was four in the morning. He stayed awake till his mother offered him bed-coffee. He felt some strange pain in his body. He wanted to take leave from office, but he had an important delivery. He bathed, dressed up and left to office by the company bus.

After a lacklustre day at office, he accompanied Suhani to her friend’s place near their office. They walked on a dusty, narrow road until they reached a hut.

“Who is staying here?”, Shyam asked her but she did not pay heed to him.

He followed her inside the hut. A small boy was lying on a cot. A middle aged woman was serving him food.

“What happened to him?”, Suhani asked the woman who appeared to be the boy’s mother.

“He felt well until ten days ago when he developed fever, cough and chills”, replied his mother.

Shyam learnt that the boy’s father passed away in an accident a few months ago. His mother earned money by working as a house-keeper in their company and the boy sold peanuts in the train during the evenings. Since then Suhani had been financially assisting the family in continuing the boy’s education. She gave his mother some money for purchasing medicines and wished him a speedy recovery.

Somebody called out his mother’s name and she went out of the hut.

“What happened Ram?”, Suhani asked him in a low voice. His face turned insipid and his lips trembled.

“I witnessed a murder”, he replied.

Shyam moved closer to him. “When, where?”, he asked.

“My mom threatened me not to tell this to anyone. She is afraid that police will come to our house and question us”, said Ram looking at the entrance afraid of his mother.

“Tell me! I won’t ask your mother anything regarding this. What did you see?”, Suhani persuaded him.

“Last Friday evening, I was standing in the station carrying a basket of peanuts. T…then, then…”, Ram stammered.

“Don’t be afraid. Come on, your mother is coming inside. Tell me fast”, said Shyam.

“Then, as the train was arriving on the platform, a person was pushed from the platform onto the tracks”

Shyam and Suhani were dumbfounded.

To be continued....

Disclaimer: All events and characters in this story are fictitious. If it resembles any real-life incident or any person, either living or dead I am not responsible for that :-):-):-) .