Two warm months had passed. The results
of the engineering exams had been out and Mannu was to leave for his graduation
studies very soon. In talks with Mrs. K he sounded unsure whether he would be
able to carry himself or not.
Would the new real world give me some good buddies like the old ones? He kept on asking God in his prayers.
Sitting calmly near the window of his room, he
pitied the empty playground. All the kids had almost grown up, suddenly got
busy with books. The open field too, silently watched the opera of Mannu’s
life. The non playful days, only one or two in a month were going to be
replaced by the playful ones. This was the first change evident and visible,
even to his myopic eyes.
‘Oooh...Oooh...Sweet Child O’ Mine...’ For the past hour this song had
hammered Mannu’s head. The confusion was giving birth to a pile of tension and
he needed to talk to Pia, but ‘insufficient balance’ mostly acted as a vaccine
against his happiness and calmness.
“Mannu...Come down beta. Have something
to eat.”Mrs. K’s voice, dull by the upcoming events, called Mannu. With a heavy heart and an empty mind he reached
the dining and fresh aroma of delicacies entered his nostrils. Ultimately, a
smile rested on his frowned face.
“Where were you?” She questioned, with
her hands busy in serving the pakora’s
and chutney.
“Uh, I was... uh, not far.” Replied Mannu,
scratching his forehead.
“Don’t you know?” She spoke, looking at
the calendar.
“What?”
“That you’ll be leaving for your college
in a week?” She continued.
“I know, Mum.” replied Mannu with a deep
sigh.
“Then please stay with us for longer.
Stop wandering about just for a week. After that I won’t be there to stop you.”
She said, looking straight into Mannu’s eyes.
She had a pain in her heart, more intense
than Mannu could perceive. She shared it with him, partly, , cried too, but he
kept silent. Speaking about his fears, anxieties would weaken them more.
Silence was the best form of aspirin, but all bonds of courage and silence
broke before Pia. He shared everything to her. The two month old love had given
him new strength, enough to accept and face the inexorable realities of the
real world.
“I
love you Pia... I love you Pia.” He said to her, probably to himself.
After the snack retreat Mannu sat in his
room, holding the guitar. ‘Oooh...Oooh...Sweet Child O’ Mine...’ It still continued. The room was empty.
Channu was busy with the phone. It was the first time Mannu saw him doing so.
Mrs. K was busy cleaning the tables and Mannu was searching for something to
kill my emptiness. The room reminded him of childhood memories. He developed a
strange fascination for everything that lay. The unoccupied side of the double
bed whispered a truth in his ears. It was time to change the room partner! The
mischievous talks with Channu, quarrels, one on one fight, gun fights, pillow
fights, GI Joe fights were some
reminiscences that had their marks on these walls. Those old crazy days were
gone, not be found again in any corner. Mannu thanked Channu by kissing his
portrait. Truly, the world is so small and our lives so big.
The square shaped clock showed 10.30 pm. It
was the new time to sleep. They three were to sleep in Mrs. K’s bedroom. Mrs. K
was unwilling to leave him alone for the whole night. Pia had sacrificed her
desire of talking to Mannu at nights. Thoughts were but passed through messages.
Channu had a question that could be seen in his eyes, but he never asked, so
Mannu never answered.
Channu had started showing love and care.
They shared the same pillow and the whole night Mannu used to tell him Buddha
stories and tales from Zen books, one he liked the most,
“The moon may be
appearing half or full, yet it is a complete moon. If it is not dark to begin
with, why wait for it to brighten?”
He
was badly annoyed by the phone light, which glowed with every new message from
Pia and forced him to close his eyes. So, Mannu didn’t dare to tell him about
Pia. They had conversations on the ways Channu would support Mrs. K, take care
of every homely matter, including his studies. He pinched Mannu on the point he
liked.
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