Away and alone.......

I kept running. Sweats were oozing out. My forehead was wet. I had never been in life so desperate. My eyes were burning and my brain had no sense of what I was doing. My legs disobeyed me. I fell, I fell lethally.

Sudden burst of rain got me conscious. The moon was absent and darkness in the sky seemed to tease me. My legs were aching and I just managed to sit and look around. The lights of far off street lamps were still visible but they now didn't pull me. Nor did the long TV tower red light that I often saw and wondered why the light had been placed. I was wet to bottom but felt no need to rise. Rain stopped soon and I was left in a pool. I cared not to stand, lied down again and slept. The chirrups got me up quite early .It was still night for the city to begin. And I knew I had to make my way away. I searched my pockets, looked here and there and gave a big sigh. It was cut from inside. In fact it was with almost my every shorts. I cursed myself and much more I blamed my mom for it. I cursed my mom not because she didn't care for my shorts, but because she bought it from the same shop again and again. I didn't like that shopkeeper for many reasons. I hated him for all his habits. He had a big moustache and hair all over his body. And of course, he resembled RAWANA, the dangerous character my grandma told in a story. Once he had lifted me up in his arms. And he did not let me down till I started to weep. I don't why I wept but then he let me down hurriedly and I ran to my mom. I thought his shop's shorts didn't have good pockets. The last time when we went to his shop, I complained his shorts were loose. But he pulled my shorts down in front of everybody to prove...... God knows what he was with me up to!!!!!!!

It was still late night for the city. The barricades were opened for the heavy vehicles to enter the city. Near the bridge on highway was a temple, where nearly all the vehicles stopped and took the blessings from the lord for safe journey. I remembered this place very well. We too had often passed by here and my mom had said about the holiness of this place. I liked it much because this place had got a lot of bells, in fact I never could count them all. My father would help me to reach those bells and I just waved them with both of my hands I remembered, way back at home, when all of us got early in morning and went to our puja room. All my family sung the vandana in chorus however I never could completely sing with them. I wanted the puja to be finished very quickly. Yes, I did wait for the Prasad which tasted very sweet and I always wondered why mom couldn't mix my chocolates to it.

I wanted to touch the bell. I jumped but couldn't make to it. I tried again, took few steps back and ran to jump. I again failed and was about fall........

I got jerked and woke up in the dead of night. I tossed over and slept again. The morning was fine as we had a holiday. We all got up at our usual and at breakfast time, Dad asked whether we wanted to go somewhere. I replied... "Yes" and I played the bells again.