Death is not merely the end of life. It is also the beginning of misery of the loved ones, of the family that is left behind and that of the perpetrator.
Her body was mangled and in a pool of blood. I couldn’t look away nor could I breathe for a long time. Though I was technically not the perpetrator, I was the one who had pushed her.
The lady was in a pool of blood. The bus was speeding through the red light. Next moment she slipped from the median. In the effort to grab the hand I had actually pushed the poor soul. I tried to balance on the median when someone held out a hand. I could barely reach the median managing my way through the traffic. I reached the main road and tried to cross it. Exhausted from all the running, my muscles were starting to give way. They were close at my heel. I had to save myself. Those goons chased me out of the bar and all over the place for so long. My hand was bleeding from all the scratches in my fight with them. I was shocked but shoved the hand hard. One hand grabbed my right breast. The man then locked Varun in the washroom. Then one of them held out a knife and moved dangerously towards Varun. Varun tried to protest but they pushed him away. One was trying to pull down my jeans. And the teasing started from when they spotted me at the bar. It was seven when we had entered the bar. Varun and I had started around six from home.
10:00 pm? What time was it? Was Varun okay? My thoughts were all getting tangled up.
***
Roshni was determined to get Sethu back on track. Every night she would follow him when he went out with his drunkard friends, pleading with him to come back. Her efforts were returned with blows and abuses from both Sethu and his friends. But her efforts continued. She loved him.
That night she was little late in finishing up her work at the tailor shop and was hurrying to the bar Sethu frequented. Even at 10 in the night, the road was full of cars. As she reached the median she noticed the dishevelled girl running towards her.
***
As we reached the main road, we sensed something was wrong.
I looked at Sethu, “Looks like an accident.”
Sethu replied, “Look for that girl, don’t get distracted. After a long time, Roshni is not around to spoil the mood. Look around.”
Rajen spotted her standing on the median near the commotion. “There! There she is!” He pointed.
We crossed over. She was not running anymore but looking at the accident victim. I turned to look as well. It was Roshni on the road! I looked at Sethu, he had just noticed the body and stopped mid-stride in his attempt to grab the girl.
