Protiksha Ukil
Four twinkling eyes stared into the infinite night sky, counting stars and making shapes by joining them. “Mon, do you think that bright red star over there will last forever?” Mona gurgled with laughter and answered, “Of course, silly! But do you know what will outlast that star’s life?” Vishal’s head moved from right to left. “Haha, its our friendship! Don’t u think so too?” Vishal’s eyes dropped, and his starlit face clearly showed signs of gloom. A voice from the little hut situated slightly away drowned the silence, “MONAAA, come home, dinner is ready” She picked up her slippers which was put beside her and ran towards the hut barefoot.
Mona and Vishal were born on the same day in adjacent houses. Their parents were good friends and this little man and woman grew up to develop a bond of friendship which was beyond words. Throughout the day they kept playing together, flying kites, climbing trees, pranking the villagers and what not. It was the perfect life for these kids. But, isn’t it the law of nature that something good doesn’t last for a long time, let alone ‘perfect’. Mona’s father, the village postmaster had been transferred to the district headquarters and had to report to his new office in another ten days. The day for her departure had come and Vishal was in denial that it indeed had.
Vishal wouldn’t get out of his bed that morning. He was too angry and sad at the same time. The sunlight was pouring into his room through the open window and while he was overcome by grief a shadow fell over his face. It was her; her pigtails hanging behind her ears and her hands waving vigorously. “Vishu, come outside, I have something to tell you......Come on Vishu we don’t have a lot of time!” It was the last chance to see his Mon. Picking up his body from the bed, he pulled up the shirt lying beside him, slid into it and leapt out of the window.
The cold breeze from the pond hit their faces. It was a bright morning, dragonflies kept hovering around. Mona was going to miss this place and Vishal was going to miss spending time with her here: their favourite spot, under the peepal tree, by the pond. Neither spoke for a while. She finally said, “Look I have a game for us. It is a game that will test the strength of our friendship. Are you ready?” Vishal blinked at her while she continued, “We will not be able to meet for a long time, both of us understand that. So let’s make this wait a game. Neither of us will write to each other and try to enquire about each other for the duration of this game. It is a game of patience but let’s put ourselves to the test.” Vishal blurted, “Stop beating around the bush, come to the point!” “At this rate how will you play this game Vishu? Patience!......So let us decide a time period, say twenty years from now......we will be back here, at this very spot, at the same time and will reconcile”. Vishal looked irritated and angry “Why do you have to leave me in the first place Mon? I don’t like this idea at all.” She said, “I cannot change what’s written in my fate, but yes...twenty years from now, we will be adults, INDEPENDENT adults! Imagine our reconciliation, we would be twenty-eight and would have so much to share, so much to talk about, imagine how happy we would be Vishu”. Vishal looked at the horizon and there was a single large tear drop on his lower eye lid. “So be it Mon, so we meet on the 10th of November, twenty years from now”. She was already standing with her slippers in her hand, her back turned towards him. “Goodbyee Vish.........” she screamed as she was running away with a little pearl drop rolling down her left cheek.
Vishal’s parents received occasional letters from Mona’s family, but the frequency dropped as days passed by. However, Vishal didn’t dare to enquire about Mona’s whereabouts, after all how could he break the promise he had made. As years passed by, Vishal displayed extraordinary talent and excelled in his studies. Soon he was sent to the capital city to continue his course of higher education and gradually the memory of Mona’s pigtails and her running away from him barefoot fade away. Vishal had finally tasted the city’s busy life where no one had time for anything, where everyone kept running after money, where the vehicles filled the city with noise; how then, could we expect Vishal to remember Mona’s gurgling laughter in this hustle and bustle?
“VISHAL, DID YOU MAKE THE PAYMENT FOR THE CABLE CONNECTION? THEY SAID THE LAST DAY IS 10th NOVEMBER!!” Vishal’s wife shouted from the kitchen. Vishal had forgotten to make the payment as usual. He quietly picked up the newspaper from the table and tiptoed back into his room. He had just taken out his laptop when something gave him a jolt. It was the “tenth of November 2018”, exactly twenty years from the day he had parted with Mon. How could he have forgotten it all this time? Was he too late? “ No, no, no, she will wait for me, I know she will, I will start immediately!” he thought to himself. He picked up his backpack, stuffed two shirts and a pant, rushed into the kitchen, snatched the packet of bread from his wife and hastily said “I have to go to the village, can’t explain anything now, will be back in a couple of days, take care”.
As the train proceeded towards his destination, memories flashed past him like a movie reel. He wondered “What would she be like? What would she look like? Will she recognize me? Will she come at all?” His train of thoughts were interrupted by the engine’s whistle as it was entering his destination. Vishal stepped down into the platform. The village had turned into a town. It was not as he remembered it to be, there was noise, there were more people, fewer trees, clearly the effects of urbanisation were showing up everywhere. Vishal walked with long steps; Did he still remember the way to that spot? Of course he did! These things were embedded deep in his heart, they were like old books: you stack new ones over them, but one fine day while cleaning up that bookshelf, you discover them, and their stories come rushing back to you.
It was past four in the evening, when Vishal reached there. Surprisingly, the place by the pond hadn’t changed at all, there was no sign of urbanisation here. The peepal had grown taller and had spread its branches even more. One branch drooped over the pond and touched the water to create a constant ripple. However, there was not a soul in sight and a deafening silence spread over the place. Dusk was approaching with all its grace and the temperature was falling rapidly. Vishal removed another shirt from his backpack and wore it, he had decided to stay at the spot reminiscing the old days, the starlit nights and Mona. Had she really forgotten or was he too late? He started humming a little song and gently fell asleep.
A gurgling laughter woke him from his slumber. It was a young girl standing behind him. She had a pale pink saree draped on and her slippers were in her hand. “Umm, Mon, is that you? Is that really you?” “Haha, Vishu, how have you been all these years?” He couldn’t believe his eyes, a beautiful young maiden with long hair and pale complexion was standing right in front of him. Where had the pigtails gone? “ Mon!!! You came! I had begun to think you wouldn’t come”. “Vishu, I was here long before you! You are late!!” He looked at her large eyes and was lost in thought. “Come on Vishu, we have all the time in the world now. Tell me how you have been all this while without your Mon” He was ashamed of having forgotten all about her. Their conversation from twenty years ago kept ringing in his ears: “a game that will test the strength of their friendship”.
The youngsters sat down and looked at the starlit sky, just as they used to. “Mon you look a lot younger than I do. Have you married someone?” She giggled, “Take a guess...” “How would I know Mon?” “Hmmm Vishu, let’s not talk about all that, adult life is not as interesting as I thought it to be, let’s talk about old times.” “But I want to know Mon!” She said “Let’s just say I had a tragic story and I don’t want to burden you with it after all these years on this happy occasion. How about you? Are you married?” “As a matter of fact, I am.” “Wow!!! Keep her happy, don’t be the snob that you have always been”....................................................
Their conversation continued till the end of the night. The morning sun peeped through the peepal leaves on Vishal’s eyes and woke him up. His throat felt sore, probably he had caught a cold. She was nowhere to be seen. Vishal got up and walked towards his old house. As he approached his house, he could see some smoke emanating from the house that belonged to Mona. His curiosity was aroused, he walked with quickened steps towards the hut and looked in through the open door. An old man was lying on the bed while a pot of water was boiling beside him. He looked familiar, no, could it be? It was Mona’s father! Had Mona returned there?
“Hello uncle, remember me?” The old man got up slowly, coughed a little, put his glasses on and stared at the young man for a while. “Errr, son I couldn’t recognise you; who are you?” “It’s me, Vishal, uncle. I used to live next door when I was a little boy” “Ah, yes, I do remember now, you were my dear Mona’s little friend” as he was talking, Vishal noticed how lifeless uncle had become. To cheer him up Vishal said, “Uncle I met Mona yesterday, she has become very pretty!”
The old man looked up with startled eyes, “ So it is true!!” His eyes were filled with horror. Vishal was surprised at this expression but before he could ask anything, the old man slowly spoke, “Mona died nine years ago, son. She had fallen in love with a man twice her age. He cheated her and she couldn’t take the blow, she killed herself. Some people say they see a lady in a pink saree who looks like her by the pond at night. It’s a haunted place, they say and no one dares to wander close to it”
She had kept her promise, the friendship would indeed outlast that bright red star in the sky.