Fleeting, lasting, deep, light, amusing, thought-provoking... All that I encounter.
Sunday, May 8, 2016
One Earth: No Clean Slate: A Short Story
One Earth: No Clean Slate: A Short Story: Gods pondered, looking at the earth. They were dismayed at the non-destructible debris that could be seen everywhere. Their calculations w...
Thursday, April 28, 2016
Tuesday, April 26, 2016
A Different Plane
We waited for all eight of us to assemble for practice. The youngest two of the dancers called in sick. The rest of us looked at each other in dismay as the program was just a week away, and we had learnt this item just two days back. But, well, we assured ourselves, there was at least a week. So we had hope.
As we finished the rehearsal for the day and chatted up, the topic of the girls being unwell came up. We wondered if they would get better by the program date, and someone suddenly said, “Oh come! You have done it. I am sure they can too!”
Friday, April 22, 2016
Dobie and Me: Chapter 20
Read the previous chapter here
My head reeled. He pulled me up and took me in his arms. “She
thinks that you will never take this…relationship forward.”
I pushed him away. “Are we to marry to prove her wrong?” I asked,
feeling a stirring of a slow rage within me.
Saturday, April 16, 2016
Dobie and Me: Chapter 19
For the previous chapter, click here
I sat puzzling over his last words. Had he said Shivani? Had he
meant Vandana?
I took my car out and drove to his house. I couldn’t stand the
suspense.
He was surprised to see me there but let me in. I quickly glanced
around to see her presence, or the evidence of her presence. It looked every
inch a male bastion. It should have been reassuring, but it was not. I turned
to look at him. “What did you say?”
Saturday, April 9, 2016
Dobie and Me: Chapter 18
For the previous chapter, click here
Gautam was as if he had been released from prison. There was no
holding him back.
Enjoying his new found freedom and making up for lost time, he
started travelling often. I saw less and less of him. He had plans for every
weekend, and he was busy reviving contact with his friends. He asked me to join
him sometimes, but not always, and never hard enough for me to accept. I was
relieved, in a way. Dobie was a big reason, but, I could have done something
about it.
Thursday, April 7, 2016
The Bucket List
A fancy house.
A luxury car.
Expensive jewellery. Well, make that just jewellery.
Fancy holidays to exotic destinations.
Best education for children.
Latest fashion.
Fun all life.
A luxury car.
Expensive jewellery. Well, make that just jewellery.
Fancy holidays to exotic destinations.
Best education for children.
Latest fashion.
Fun all life.
Saturday, April 2, 2016
Dobie and Me: Chapter 17
Read Chapter 16 here
What stopped me from contacting him? Pride, of course! Every time
my fingers lingered over his number, I withdrew them quickly. I did not want to
sound desperate, all the more because I was
desperate.
And, then the glance they exchanged, the emotions they revealed!
That moment, those two faces… I shook my head to dislodge the memory. But it
wouldn’t go away. I couldn’t forget the way the two had looked at each other –
her eyes… That expression! That eagerness!
I swallowed, my heart fluttering.
Tuesday, March 29, 2016
Who Is She?
He loves her, for in
her womb was he carried
He ravages her, when threatened
by her mind free
He disdains her when
there is no more life to be seen
From birth to death so is she seen
As the mother or the
mother-to-be
Her boon and bane it
shall be
For her womb defines her
identity.
Friday, March 25, 2016
Dobie and Me: Chapter 16
Click here for the previous chapter
Gautam left at around 10. We were chatting on Whatsapp, reviewing
the dinner, when he suddenly vanished for a long while. Just as I went to bed
at 11.30, he messaged, “Mother unwell. Taking her to hospital.”
She passed away later that night. The funeral was to be the next
day, by afternoon after his uncles reached from different cities.
Tuesday, March 22, 2016
The 'Un-Holi' Crime
The concrete jungle in
the desert city of Abu Dhabi sprang to life as the lights came on. Sabina,
nearly at the end of her shift, reached Room No. 724 in the hotel she worked,
pushing her trolley ahead of her. She quickly and efficiently pulled out the
cleaning liquid, new set of bedsheets and pillow covers and opened the door.
The room was dark and stuffy. She smelled something, but could not say what it
was. It made her uncomfortable. She inserted the key in the slot and entered
the bathroom. She saw red spots on the floor and paused, feeling tensed.
She stepped back and
noticed the floor. The stains led up to the bed. She saw the prone figure,
swathed in blood. She let out a scream and ran out, not stopping till she was
in the manager’s cabin. She was inconsolable, and the effort of keeping herself
together seemed to have exerted her beyond her capacity at that moment. She
fainted.
Friday, March 18, 2016
Dobie and Me: Chapter 15
Click here to begin at the beginning
Click here for previous chapter
Shiv was out before I woke up the next morning and returned late in
the night. Before I could ask him if he had had dinner, he banged his room door
shut. Amit followed soon after and was gentler. He even sat with me and told me
about his day. Taking Gautam’s advice, I tried hard not to think of this
difficult matter and maintain a calm front. Dobie seemed to sense the anger in
the air and was sulking, not responding to Amit’s invitation to sit by him.
“What’s with him?” Amit asked edgily.
“Dobie,” I called out softly. He turned his face to the wall. “He
is behaving like the two of you,” I couldn’t help commenting.
Friday, March 11, 2016
Dobie and Me: Chapter 14
For those who came in late, the short serial Dobie and Me begins here
Click here For Chapter 13
“How did it go?” Gautam asked me on the phone later in the
evening.
I started crying. “Bad,” I whispered.
“Do you want me to come over?” he asked softly. But I knew his
mother was not doing well and he had to be home. Also, I didn’t want my sons to
see him right now. They were out, but I expected them back anytime.
“No,” I said hoarsely.
Saturday, March 5, 2016
Dobie and Me: Chapter 13
Read Chapter 12 here, if you missed it
Telling my sons was not easy. Shiva looked dazed and Amit… Oh my poor boy! He couldn’t speak. I felt miserable as I watched them struggle with the news. “How, what? What are you saying?” Amit asked.
Telling my sons was not easy. Shiva looked dazed and Amit… Oh my poor boy! He couldn’t speak. I felt miserable as I watched them struggle with the news. “How, what? What are you saying?” Amit asked.
“I know it is not easy for you, Amit, Shiv…”
“It is our age to have girlfriends, not yours to have a
boyfriend!” Shiv burst out, leaving me baffled. “You have us! Aren’t we
enough?” he asked and started crying.
Friday, February 26, 2016
Dobie and Me: Chapter 12
Read Chapter 11, if you haven't yet
Dobie was snoozing. He barely opened his eyes when we entered, and
went back to his beauty nap.
I cleaned his dish and put some fresh food in it. Gautam joined me
in the kitchen and I started making coffee without asking. He placed the cups on
the counter and added sugar. I brewed coffee. The silence hung between us. I
was immensely disappointed at this transformed man, and uncomfortable when I
caught him staring at me.
Finally, I turned to face him, though uncertainly.
Friday, February 19, 2016
Dobie and Me: Chapter 11
(Click here for Chapter 10)
“Who is he, ma?” Amit asked when Shiv, he and I sat down for
dinner that night.
I knew who he meant, of course, but I stalled. “Who?”
“Gautam, the man who was here this morning…”
“Who was here this morning?” Shiv asked, not taking his eyes off
his phone.
Friday, February 12, 2016
Dobie and Me - Chapter 10
Read Chapter 9 here
The house seemed fuller, and emptier, when my sons visited me. There
was much noise when they were around, much laughter, teasing and fights. Much
love.
And then, when they went off to meet their friends, I felt the
silence pressing against me.
Their timings were uncertain, as usual, putting me in a bind. I
had to accept that they were adults and had to have a life of their own. I
tried to resume mine, but a sort of lethargy set in and I stayed in the limbo –
neither able to work nor meet friends, nor enjoy the holidays completely.
Sunday, February 7, 2016
Dobie and Me: Chapter 9
Read Chapter 8
When I met him a month later, he laughed on hearing of my exploits.
“Is that your idea of life?” he asked snidely. “Ok, for the first month it is
okay… Let’s see how you fare the coming month…”
“What do you want from me!” I asked exasperated. “You mocked me
for not going to a movie or shopping! And now that I tell you I did, you still
mock me!”
“Me? It is not what I want from you! It is what you want from you,
from your life!” He leaned forward. “Tell me, did you enjoy yourself?”
Saturday, January 30, 2016
Dobie and Me: Chapter 8
Read Chapter 7 here
The carefree college days, where all that mattered was bunking
classes, the hours spent in canteen, going to movies, shopping… Shankar and I
drifted close. Soon we drifted away from others, I a shadow of him, he leading
me to new worlds.
One world he led me into was that of college elections. He
campaigned for Pratyush, our senior. We were sophomores and Pratyush was doing
his first year post graduation. Pratyush and I rarely spoke to each other,
except when he wanted to give me some instruction. But he never failed to greet
me, even after he won the elections and became the president. Shankar, though,
became Pratyush’s understudy and spent much time with the ‘men in power’. I
complained, but it fell on deaf ears.
Wednesday, January 27, 2016
A Joyous Journey
Life is not a bed of roses
Thorns often poke their noses
Petals wither, thorns dry up
Fragrance dissipates, but we never give up
Thorns often poke their noses
Petals wither, thorns dry up
Fragrance dissipates, but we never give up
Some laughter, some tears
A bit of anger, sometimes fears
Holding hands, walking our separate ways
We have moved forward despite the sways
A bit of anger, sometimes fears
Holding hands, walking our separate ways
We have moved forward despite the sways
Is this the first or maybe the second?
Fifth, could even be the seventh.
How many births, we know not for sureBut let the love flow forever pure.
Fifth, could even be the seventh.
How many births, we know not for sureBut let the love flow forever pure.
In this one life with each other
Let’s live with wisdom together
Let’s share wonderful hours
Let there be joy around us.
On our 16th Wedding Anniversary, Jan 27, 2016
Let’s live with wisdom together
Let’s share wonderful hours
Let there be joy around us.
On our 16th Wedding Anniversary, Jan 27, 2016
Saturday, January 23, 2016
Dobie and Me: Chapter 7
Read Chapter 6 here
A heavy silence hung between us. He caressed Dobie, who rubbed
himself against Gautam’s leg. Realising how affected he was despite the years
that had lapsed, I got up on the pretext of making some more coffee, giving him
time to recover his composure.
When I returned with two cups, he still seemed to be lost in his
past.
“How is your mother now?”
“Well, she has her days. Is under treatment… but it will worsen…”
he shrugged. After a brief pause, he looked up at me and said, “Never hurt your
parents, Mahek. You can never live in peace after that. I wish I had been more
sensitive and paid more attention. But I made the mistake of thinking it was
the usual mother-in-law daughter-in-law problem. I was ashamed of my mother!”
He lowered his and covered his eyes with his hand.
Saturday, January 16, 2016
Dobie and Me - Chapter 6
Click here for Chapter 5
The service guys took a couple of days to get the car cleaned, and
at a hefty cost. I offered to share a part of the payment at least, but Gautam wouldn’t
hear of it, thankfully. With Dobie’s treatment and two sons in college, it
wasn’t easy though I was not hard up.
Gautam dropped in once in a while to see Dobie, and normally
stayed back for breakfast – if he came before leaving for work - or had dinner
if he came after work. We mostly discussed books – I had a big shelf with books
- and travel. But I also gathered that he was divorced, he was in his early
forties, he liked to travel but couldn’t because his mother was unwell.
Friday, January 8, 2016
Dobie and Me: Chapter 5
The day saw me busy cancelling all my plans for the next few days.
I didn’t think I could enjoy when Dobie looked so miserable. A few friends who
also loved Dobie dropped in and cheered him immensely. And me, of course. It
hurt, I could see that. And he moaned a bit. It was with great difficulty he
had even liquids. His face between his paws, he was a picture of misery. Oh my
poor baby!
Tuesday, January 5, 2016
Some Old and New Memories
It was with great apprehension we planned a trip to Delhi and neighbouring cities. Having got used to the hot, hotter and hottest weather of Chennai, having not enough warm clothes even to face the colder temperature, we debated hotly on the need to make the trip. But two school reunions seemed compelling enough to take the risk.
Reunions
Had I continued to live in Delhi, studied in the same school till the end, would I have felt the same way as I did now, about meeting my friends from '86?
I don't know and this line of thought has to be abandoned as speculation that cannot be proved
conclusively. I did leave the first school I studied in half way, and I was immensely thrilled to be reconnecting with my old friends - and even those I had never met in school for they joined later, or our paths seldom crossed even when they were there.
Saturday, January 2, 2016
Dobie and Me: Chapter 4
(Read Chapter 3 here)
I was ready and waiting by nine. I didn’t have Gautam’s number or
else I would have told him to meet me at the clinic, or not bother to come at
all.
I was glad I did not have his number for that very reason.
Saturday, December 26, 2015
Dobie and Me: Chapter 3
For previous chapter: Click here
Reluctantly I left the clinic cum home of the vet and followed the man, Gautam, to his car. I realised that the car needed cleaning. “I am sorry about the mess… And thank you for the timely help,” I said finally, showing some decency.
Reluctantly I left the clinic cum home of the vet and followed the man, Gautam, to his car. I realised that the car needed cleaning. “I am sorry about the mess… And thank you for the timely help,” I said finally, showing some decency.
“It’s okay… I shall have it cleaned. I am glad it was nothing
serious,” he said.
Saturday, December 19, 2015
Dobie and Me: Chapter 2
(To read Chapter 1, click here)
To make up for it, I took him out for a walk. It was late, almost
11. I let him lose, since the traffic was less. The joy he felt as he bounded
down the road was a treat to watch.
But it was short-lived. A car turned the corner, and before Dobie
could move out of the way, it hit him. The yelp pierced the night and rendered my heart in two as I watched him roll helplessly. The car screeched to
a halt and the driver got out hurriedly.
He and I reached Dobie at the same time. Dobie straightened up but
was unable to stand. He was whimpering.
Friday, December 11, 2015
Dobie and Me: - A Short Serial
Chapter I
I
He nuzzled me persistently, licked my face, forcing me to open my
eyes. “No! Not now! It’s too early!” I complained and looked at the clock.
5.30. Damn! It wasn’t all that early!
I sat up and stared at him with a pout. It had no effect on him as
he ran out of the room and ran back, his tongue lolling. I shook my head and
got up with a sigh. I opened the door and let him out then went back in to
freshen up.
Monday, December 7, 2015
One Earth: For a Rainy Day
One Earth: For a Rainy Day: I am just an element, I was in my elements. I know nothing of joy and anger, Nor indeed of safety and danger. I fall from heavens...
Friday, December 4, 2015
A Brush with Bushsh: Chapter 7 - Meeting the Monsters
Read Chapter 6
She
picked up the fallen bat and saw that, as she had suspected, it was not a real bat but
a mechanical one. She handed it to Param, who had followed her. He shook it and
then dismantled it. It had electronic parts. They went out and approached the
monsters. One of them bent and boomed. Though she knew it was Udit playing
pranks, still it was scary. She went near slowly and touched the monster. She
felt something wet and solid. She looked at her hand. Because of the
floodlights, the visibility was better. She saw her hand was white and foamy.
She smelt it, and was pleasantly surprised to smell detergent. She touched the
monster again and realised that the smell of detergent was quite overpowering.
Rain Train
In the year 1986, one of my cousins was getting married. I was in Calcutta that time, studying in school. The wedding was in August, when school had started. My father was on tour, brothers in different cities and it was only my mom and I were to travel. I fell sick the first week, when I had anyway been denied permission to take leave. 104 at night, 102 during the day... But my mother was keen and so we started. Reaching the station itself was an adventure because we got delayed starting, got caught in the famous Howrah jam, but the govt. vehicle took us just in time to see the train starting. The driver and the inspector somehow got us in into some compartment, and the luggage in another.
Anyway, adventure had just begun.
Anyway, adventure had just begun.
Friday, November 27, 2015
A Brush with Bushsh - Chapter 6: Gagged and Locked Up
Read Chapter 5
Now
that she was away from the prying eyes of the monsters, she pulled out her
phone and passed
Illustration: M Rithika |
Friday, November 20, 2015
A Brush with Bushsh - Chapter 5: The Monster Seeks them Out
Read Chapter 4
And
most importantly, she was scared. She could sense that her children were scared
too. She
wanted to leave before either of them came to harm.
Illustration by 13-year-old Rithika Murugan |
But
she could not. Not without Udit.
The
bat blocking that entrance seemed significant. Even injured, it looked scary, and
add to that the monsters staring at her. She looked back at the monsters and
counted five. But one of them had become smaller, another was shrinking. She
frowned thoughtfully and turned to face them fully.
“Go!
What are you waiting for?” the tallest one shouted and the shrinking monsters
again swelled up with a bushsh sound. Sulekha recoiled in fear and nodded,
wondering if the gesture would even be visible in the dark.
Friday, November 13, 2015
A Brush with Bushsh - Chapter 4: The Warning
Read Chapter 3
Any
way she turned, she felt she was being watched, but could detect no one. She
even turned rapidly, hoping to catch the prying eyes unawares, but met with no
success.
Her
children whispered to her, “Mommy, where is daddy?”
She
covered her eyes with a hand and sighed. Why hadn’t he come down yet? Where was
he? Was he alright? Were there other monsters nearby?
By
now, Sulekha was fairly sure that these ‘monsters’ were not going to run them
down and tear them to pieces. If they had not done so till now, they were definitely
not waiting for an auspicious moment to start.
Though
she could detect no soul around her, she knew she was being watched. She stared
at the stationary bat steadily. It stared back. She knew it was no ordinary
bat. She stepped closer. It moved back and then plunged towards her. She
squealed and ducked. Her children scampered, shouting in fear.
The
bat hovered at a distance. She felt it was watching her warily. She glanced at
the stairway from which it had come. She wondered if there were more there.
Normally they lived in colonies, or whatever a group of bats was called. She
had no interest in exploring the social life of bats. And she assumed that Udit
was not up there.
She
went back to the first block near the gate and slowly made her way up. She
could smell bats here too and a couple whizzed over her head. Her children
cried out. “Mama, please, let’s go to the car and wait for daddy!”
She
climbed down, only to try the next one. She went through each of the blocks and
realised that the bat smell was missing in block three, the block from which
this current, watchful bat had emerged. Her children glanced here and there as
they followed her up and down in her frenzied search, not understanding what this
was all about.
“What
are you doing?” Param asked her. They had stopped bothering to whisper now. The
bat was right behind, hovering, but not attacking.
“We
are going up block 3. Come,” Sulekha said headed back to the third block.
She
explained her guess as they walked hurriedly. The bat whizzed past and hovered
in front of them. It seemed to block her way, confirming her suspicion that
that was where she should go. She looked around, and finding nothing hard,
removed her shoe and flung it at the bat. The bat moved, but the shoe caught
it’s right wing and it rotated at the impact, hit a nearby wall before it
righted itself. Something fell, apart from her shoe, that is. She sent Param to
get her shoe as she bent to examine what it was. The bat seemed unsteady. She
picked up the piece and noticed it was black and felt like the part of a
gadget.
She
looked at the bat thoughtfully. It was unsteady but still in the air. She took
the shoe from her son and was about to throw it at the bat again.
The
big monster boomed, “Nnnnoooo!!! Stop that, woman!”
The
sudden sound after much silence startled the three of them.
“If
you want to leave this place in one piece, stand still!”
Sulekha
was stunned. She was drawn towards the one that had bent to speak to her when
the voice boomed again. “Stop! Don’t move and drop that weapon!”
She
stared at her hand before she realised the monster meant the shoe. She dropped
it and wore it discreetly.
“Vacate
this place if you value your life.”
The
monster sounded menacing and as if it meant business. She trembled. Her
children huddled around her. One monster straightened and stood tall against
the dark sky.
She
felt small and insignificant in front of it.
Friday, November 6, 2015
A Brush with Bushsh - Chapter 3: Missing Husband
She
turned to run, dragging her children with her, and bumped against something
hard. A pillar... She grabbed her children, pressed her body against the pillar
and pulled the children close to her. She saw the form bending and flailing, as
if looking for them. She used the cover of the pillars and the darkness in the
parking lot – for she realised this is what it was – to stealthily make it to
their car at the entrance.
The
car stood with the bonnet closed. Standing on its own, with no Udit in sight. Where
was he! She looked here and there and went around the car. But there was no
sign of him. Worried, she turned back to look at the building. She saw the
giant forms looming large, but the original one seemed shrunk in size. In fact,
it was shrinking fast! Her heart beat raced. What if the shrunk form came
running towards them? Where was Udit when you needed him!
Had
he run away? Had he come looking for them? She looked towards the building, her
heart sinking. She could find no clue and the dark made it difficult to make
out anything. She took her mobile phone out and dialled his number. She heard
the phone ringing, and the sound seemed to be coming from inside the car. She
looked at the complex again, wondering where he was. She felt certain that he
had gone into the complex but the two had missed each other.
Now
what should she do? She decided to wait, hoping he would come back. The
monsters were still swaying, but she realised that the shrinking one had not followed
her. Had that caught Udit?
As
the seconds dragged to minutes, it seemed like hours to her. If she were alone,
the question would have been easier to answer. With two preteens on her hand,
her dilemma deepened. Obviously leaving them behind was out of the question.
Not looing for Udit was out of the question. What was she waiting for? She
turned to her children and said softly, “Your papa is in. We have to go back
and look for him. You have to come with me… Be quiet, okay?”
The
children nodded gravely.
She
turned to face the colony gate and braced herself for the worst. She could still
see the monsters swaying. It sent a shiver down her spine. They looked eerie.
She determinedly ignored them and hoped they would ignore her too.
She
glanced around and could find no trace of any movement. Where should she look
for Udit?
There
seemed to be at least 70 apartments in the complex. She ran a quick eye and
noted that there were 8 blocks; each block had three floors; each floor seemed
to have three houses, though it was hard to be sure of that.
Was
he climbing up and down each block looking for them? But they all seemed abandoned
and dark. Even the prospect of meeting him in one of the blocks could not
motivate her to step into any of them. She decided to wait. He was bound to
come down.
She
was exposed, in case someone was watching. But that also meant Udit would be
able to spot them from any of the floors if he cared to peep out. Only, there
seemed no chance of that.
It
was eerie and she felt scared, she reluctantly admitted to herself. But she
didn’t let it show, for the sake of her children. “What are we waiting for?”
Manya whispered.
“Where
do you think daddy is?” she whispered back.
“Shall
we split and search?” Param, the devourer of detective novels, asked.
Sulekha
shook her head firmly.
She
glanced behind her. It was dark and impenetrable. The complex was at least
visible to her in starlight, and the monsters etched obviously against the dark
sky – darker than the sky.
She
observed them, to see which direction they would move in. It dawned on her that
they were rooted to one place. They bent forward, backward, swung their arms…
But they did not move from the spot they stood in. Even the one that had shrunk
had not budged an inch.
She
frowned, wondering if she was overreacting. Maybe they were harmless. But why
were they there? She moved forward slowly, egged on by curiosity, forgetting
Udit for a second. Forgetting even her fears. She ducked into the shadows,
forgetting to be visible when Udit came down. She entered the parking space,
glad that it was at ground level and not underground. The cover of the
apartments above protected her from the prying eyes of the monsters. But what
else lurked in this place, who could tell?
She
looked at the stairway entrances on this side. Something whizzed suddenly,
brushing against her, and she squealed before she could stop herself. She
turned and was relieved to see it was just a bat. Just a bat, she thought and
smiled wryly at the irony. Once upon a time, that would have freaked her out.
She kept an eye open for more bats when she thought she heard a humming sound.
The
bat hovered around her and the sound was coming from the bat. Her heart
stopped. She stared at it. Bats tend to circle, she knew. But this one hovered
above her. She did not know much about bats, except that there was a vampire
bat that sucked blood. She wished she had paid closer attention to the
photographs. Right now, in this darkness, she couldn’t make much out.
She
reached out for her children and told them to keep an eye on the bat. Gingerly
she sought for some weapon to chase the bat away.
It
was then that she realised that though the bike was mostly empty, there was one
truck standing near the compound wall, outside the parking area.
She
started moving towards that but stopped because the bat seemed to follow. She
turned to look at it squarely. She remembered Udit, and that he had not come
down yet. She realised the monsters were still swishing but had made no move.
Chapter 4
Friday, October 30, 2015
A Brush with Bushsh: Chapter 2 – Spooked Out
Sulekha
looked at the surroundings. Unkempt fields with tall grass made her wonder what
lurked within. She quelled her trembling heart and entered the colony. She looked
around and felt butterflies in her stomach. She had to admit that the place
looked a bit spooky. She had expected to see some activity, some children
maybe, mothers, men, servants… Someone, anyone… But there didn’t seem to be a
soul around. No security, no random resident, no visitor... Except them. She
looked back. She could make out their car and Udit still puzzling it out.
"Mom,
I want to use the bathroom," Param whispered as they moved through the
passage between two buildings. Sulu's heart was beating fast. In the near dark,
she saw a drain, partly covered. "Quick, do it there and let's get
back," she urged.
A
sudden 'bushsh' sound startled them. They stood frozen. The sound didn’t stop.
White foam rose from the gap. It started small and fluffy. It was so
incongruous, so unexpected that the three chuckled involuntarily. But they
stared fascinated as the foam grew bigger and bigger. Suddenly, it was not so
funny. The bushsh sound had amplified and it filled their ears. They saw two
foamy limbs pushing itself up from the drain even as it kept growing in size. A
scream froze in their throats as the foam became their size and then grew
bigger, towering over them menacingly. They stepped back instinctively.
Mother's
instinct kicked in. Sulekha reached out, pulling her children to her. The foam
bent towards them as if examining them. Sulekha felt suffocated. She felt her
children clutch her back and she felt hemmed in from all sides. "Mommy,
mommy!" Param and Manya cried out. The foamy monster straightened and
seemed to touch the sky.
“HHooo
arrrre youuu?” asked a metallic voice. Sulu realised that it was coming from
the monster, though it didn’t have a mouth. It was creepy. She looked around, to
see if she could slip away with her children.
She
stepped to a side. “Aaaa minnnnutttteeee lady,” the monster said, looking down,
as if peering at her.
Sulu
felt her throat go dry. Her hands were damp. She clenched it. The gesture
reminded her of the mobile phone and she wondered if she could reach for it in
her pocket without the monster noticing. She was paralysed with fear.
She
put her hand into the pocket slowly.
“Nnoooo…
Nnnnoooo guns pleeeeaaaassseee…” the monster said. Then it cackled. “OOOOr
mobbbbile phonesssss.” She realised it was laughing. That did not reassure her.
She
caught the sound of another hiss that was growing larger on a side. She glanced
up and saw another monster. It was dark now, but still, the monster seemed
carved against the sky, darker than the night.
For Chapter 3
For Chapter 3
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)