The coffee doesn’t seem to work on me anymore, that day. I was dozing on my desk with my palm on cheeks. I couldn’t help my eyes closing automatically yawning thrice within two minutes and decided to take a leave.
I mailed my project manager that I was sick and could not work that day. As I walked away from my cubicle, I yawned again and again. I wish I could hit the bed at once for a sleep. My hands and legs were imploring me to do a stretch and rest on bed.
I wondered how I could ride the way back to home. Somehow I managed to start the bike and was moving on slowly as I rode the bike with half closed eyes. As it was mid afternoon, there was not much traffic.
Last night, it was the last night with Nisha. I was talking with her all throughout the night. This time, she was really serious in breaking up with me. Unlike the previous times, I had no problems either. Though I was madly in love with her, she was quite sure that I am not interested in her and would not make her happy anymore in life.
She was living in Hyderabad with her parents. Me, in Chennai... She worked at night for an American firm. I worked in days and loved in nights. Cell phone… It is a treacherous device. Right then, I never bothered for breaking up with her, but was keen to fill in the bed with a heavy sleep. I could feel my tiring eyes sinking the ocean.
I bit my teeth hard as if it would help me staying awake riding the bike. I heard an auto rickshaw driver abusing me for riding on the wrong way of the road. As I drove past, I saw a nincompoop lying on the sides of the road. I didn’t bother whether he was a drunkard or had doped, but was very jealous on his freedom to sleep wherever he liked.
With the sun shone with his fullest strength at 2 in the afternoon, I somehow reached the home. I opened the door strode straight to the bedroom and fell on the bed.
I wanted to remove my shoes and change to pajamas, but nothing was in my control. I could hear my breath. It was as strong as a storm and went to the hibernation state immediately. I felt a sudden shock with my mobile buzzing inside the pocket of my pants.
I woke up with a jerk to see who it was. An unknown number was flashing and I shouldn’t have picked the call. But I did.
“Hello… Chakku?” It was a sweet voice. Most importantly, the person who owned the voice was a girl. I reckoned that if she had sung, it would have been better than Shreya Goshal. But, unfortunately these voices would only ask you to get credit cards and car loans.
“Yes…” I said tiredly.
“How are you?” She asked.
What should I say? Fine? Not fine? Or throw the phone away and hit the bed again?
“Ya…” I said. My voice neither had energy nor life in it.
“So early to home... huh?”
I was stunned. All the coffee I sipped that morning worked on my brain at once and my eyes were opened like butterflies.
“Don’t ride your bike sleeping. Okay? It is dangerous than drink n drive.” She said.
I was completely clueless. I was one hundred percent sure that it was not the voice of Nisha. I turned my head both the sides as if someone was there in the home. I got up the bed with the phone in my hand.
“Who is this?” I asked alarmingly.
“I know you. But you don’t know me.” She said as if she was a kidnapper calling for ransom.
“Oh…” I said and went on to lock the main door of the house.
“You look really cool in the black stripes…” she was mentioning the color of the shirt I wore that day.
I cut the phone and fell on the sofa. I could not sleep and could not stop thinking of the voice either. I was getting mad.
I thought she would call me back. She didn’t. I did.
“Hello…” I said.
“Hi… I know you would call me back.”
“Are you playing prank with me? I have lot of work to do. Just tell me who you are…” I sounded a bit harsh.
“Hmmm… This is Sowmya.” She said with her same sweet tone. I was cracking my head thinking who the hell was that Sowmya.
“Which… Which Sowmya?” I asked hesitantly.
“Even if I say you can’t figure me out.”
“So… What’s the matter?”
“I don’t want to beat around the bush. I work in your office and I’ve been seeing you for the past one month.”
“Me?” I asked doubtedly.
I could hear her laugh. It was like honey to my ears.
“Yes… You Chakku.” She said and laughed again.
“I’ve been following you everywhere. To the food court, to the restaurants, to the movies…. I even know exactly at what time you will take a coffee break.” She said.
I could visualize her smiling at the other end of the line.
“But, I haven’t seen you.”
“I know. I’d been trying to talk with you for the whole month and today I decided to meet you, so I was waiting for you to come to the food court. But, you left for the day.”
“Did you follow me?” I asked her teasingly.
She gave a peculiar laugh through the phone which meant yes and I too wanted to meet her and speak with her, looking into her eyes.
“Shall we meet today?” She asked.
“Okay? In office…” I blurted. I was like ‘idiotism personified’. It could be the ‘possibly’ first date with my ‘probably’ second girlfriend. I shouldn’t have made the choice as office.
“No no no… CCD near the office… 7 okay?” she said.
“Okay…” I said and hung up the call. I thanked God for giving me another girl the very next day after I broke up with my first one. I should be sleeping then, but couldn’t stop being excited. I looked up more than twice as if I was thanking God and was smiling to myself.
The phone rang again. Yes. It was her
“Hi… I forgot to tell you something?” She said.
“What?” I asked in a puzzled tone.
“I love you…”She said in a husky tone and gave a kiss.
“Hello…” I tried to speak but the phone was cut.
I switched on my laptop to check who that Sowmya was. I opened my company website and searched for her name in the internal login. There were thirteen Sowmyas and I had no chance of finding her since I did not know the exact spelling for her name.
I was skeptical what to do next. To go, to stay back, to secretly monitor who she was without meeting her… After all she had asked me to come to a public place and I was not being unsafe for that matter.
I ran across the room here and there. Looked at the mirror and checked whether how I looked. I wondered what had made a girl to fall for me. Even Nisha didn’t accept my proposal at the very beginning. She made me to ruin behind her like a kitten for several weeks before she said those awaited words, “I love you!”If I had known that I would break up with her or I would get the anonymous girl’s proposal who has the most beautiful voice that I have heard, I wouldn’t have stalked Nisha. After all, love happens whenever the hormones work more than its schedule.
Random thoughts of Nisha’s bad relationship and imaginations of how beautiful and sweet my ‘probably’ new girlfriend would be floated across my mind as the clock ticked faster. It became evening so fast.
I picked the best shirt from my shelf and scented me with one of the manliest perfumes. I checked my hair style quite a few times more than a normal day and started off to the coffee shop. Unlike in the afternoon, I rode the bike more briskly. I was happy that the evening was very pleasant with cool breeze kissing through my ears. It looked as if it was going to rain in some time.
It was quarter to seven and I was not hesitant to go inside the coffee shop early. I looked at the people who were seated in there. There were two girls seated on a couch. Except them all others were pairs or in groups. I took my seat quietly and skimmed through the menu.
The two girls who were seated looked at me continuously and were gossiping within them. They were dressed rich and looked as if they spend considerably extra time in make ups. I ignored them and waited for Sowmya. Time ticked on to half past seven and I was still sitting like an ass.
When I tried to call her, she dint pick the call. It could be because of various reasons. She could be travelling. So I kept on waiting. Few minutes later those two girls left, still chuckling and looked at me for no reason I knew.
Fifteen more minutes passed.
When I lost patience and was about to leave, someone closed my eyes from behind with their palm. The softness of the palm and the fragrance made my hormones to agitate.
“Guess who?”
I heard the same voice which I heard in the phone.
“Sowmya?” I said and my lips automatically smiled. In fact I was blushing, a little too much than I did in the afternoon.
“You are wrong…” She said in her own feminine tone and took the hands away. I was shocked to see the person who was standing in front of me. It literally shook me off and the smile in my face vanished off in no time. That was Nisha. From where the hell she came there after breaking up with me…?
I looked like a dumb idiot. I saw Nisha’s face turning red and she looked at me as if I was a piece of shit. Whether or not she looked at me like that, I felt like shit.
“Nisha…” I tried to speak, but had no idea what to tell her. By that time the two girls from behind came in front of me. They were those who sat beside me the whole time.
Nisha turned down. I thought something happened to her and I bent to see what was wrong.
Oops…
She removed her high heeled slippers and threw it on me. She removed the second one from her left leg and smashed it on my face. I thought at some point of time she would stop slippering me, but it seemed that she was waiting for that opportunity for a long time and was not in a mood to stop. Her slipper was torn and she slapped me hard twice then with her hand.
Everyone in that shop looked at me like a pig.
“I thought you were at least true to me…” She said and started crying.
‘Why the heck should I? You broke with me bitch…’ I thought of saying. But she was crying like hell and I tried to pacify her. I touched her shoulder and she pushed me off and started moving out of the shop hastily saying “Go to hell”. The two girls gave me a pitiful look and followed Nisha.
I followed them. It started to drizzle outside and when I was about to call her all the three flew off in a car. I touched my forehead. It was bleeding.
Suddenly from somewhere all the tiredness which went away in the afternoon stalled my eyes. I wanted to sleep so that I could get some freshness in mind and could think of what to do next.
I started to ride back home and the drizzle became a rain and the tears in my eyes wouldn’t have been visible to anyone. Persistent thunders were like Nisha hitting on my head with the sharp heels of her slipper and it made me to ride faster to home.
Nisha was a lovely girl and our life was as fascinating as any Romeo’s or Juliet’s. But in between for some reason or the other the distance between me and Nisha had grown bigger. Three years since I proposed her, we were happy and good except for the last six months.
The day when I first said ‘I love you’ to her flashed and went. I thought hard what had made us to separate. My conscience helped me in thinking ‘Her parents were happy with me and my parents happy with her for what she was. What had gone out of place then? It could be…’
‘HONK… HONK…’ I heard a heavy honk from the left side and I realized that I missed the red signal and a big truck was approaching me. It was so close to me and I could do nothing other than close my eyes tight.
BANG…
I could hear more honks and see crowds before my eyes. I realized I was lying amidst ocean of blood though it was washed away by the rain water. I felt the pain in the back portion of my head and could feel how badly I was bleeding.
The whole world was revolving. The sounds in the background faded slowly and the pain I felt on my head got reduced as my eyes automatically closed to see the darkness.
When I opened my eyes, no one was there. The roads were empty. The shops were closed and I was very fine. I neither felt the tiredness nor the pain.
My bike was not lying around. I couldn’t take a bus home. Nothing was there. I checked if any shop was open. I could explore nothing. I thought of walking on to home and moved away. I didn’t see any new place and I was still staying there.
“Where am I?” I said though there was no one to hear it.
“You are dying, friend.” A voice echoed.
“What? Where am I?” I asked again. There was no reply.
“Who are you?” I asked.
“I’m the GOD” came the reply.
“Are you crazy?” I asked and again there was no reply.
“Where is everyone?” I asked with puzzled look seeing on to the empty roads.
“My boy. I am the God in you. You are dead. Before you could be sent away to heaven or hell I am the one to make the final call.” The voice echoed again.
“Final call?” I was still blinking without knowing what is happening.
“Before you are sent away, I will state you what are the mistakes and sins you have committed and who had committed sins on you prior to your death…”
“What?” I said and there was no reply. I looked above and shouted.
“Don’t look up buddy. I am not above. I am inside you…” the voice said and continued.
“The girl Nisha and her friends had a bet. They wanted to know whether you are true to Nisha or not. So she acted as if she had broke with you and her friend called you to test whether you are ready for another relationship.” The voice finished.
“I know this bullshit…” I said with a cold face.
“Yes you know this. But you never know that Nisha is in relationship with her colleague even before breaking up with you.”
“What the f…” I tried to shout but the voice interrupted. “…and her friend has a crush on you…”
I had no clue whatsoever. I didn’t know whether to cry out in rage for my girl friend having a relationship with someone else before breaking up with me or to get excited that her friend who is more beautiful than her has a crush on me or to run mad for getting trapped in an empty world with a voice which identifies it as GOD.
“You have two choices now. To go back to the world you belong or to get ready for the evaluation to find out where would travel... Heaven or hell... Remember you can’t change your decision once you make it.” The voice spoke.
“I want to go back to my world.” I said straight away.
I felt rain drops on my face. I was riding on my bike and yes, I was back to my world immediately. I bit my teeth in anger for what had Nisha done to me. The day when I first said ‘I love you’ to her flashed and went. I thought hard what made her to separate from me. My conscience helped me in thinking ‘Her parents were happy with me and my parents happy with her. What had gone out of place then? What made her to be in a relationship with someone else…’
‘HONK… HONK…’ I heard a heavy honk from the left side and before I could see what was coming, BANG… A big truck ran over me.
I was bleeding all over and my body shook continuously in pain. People gathered around me and I heard hell a lot of sounds around. Slowly the sounds faded off and my eyes saw darkness but my body didn’t stop shaking.
I felt a vibration on my left pocket and I got up along with the shake. I was lying on my bed with the black striped shirt. My phone was making a buzz in vibration. I checked the time and it was five past two in the afternoon.
I saw an unknown number flashing on the mobile screen
I picked the call and said “Hello…” hesitantly.
“Hello… Chakku?” I heard the sweet voice of the girl again.
I smiled to myself discerning what was going to happen and said “ya…” happily!
