Soothing light at the end of the tunnel

Sitting there in the dark room
Damp and stale air circulating in his lungs
Tired, dried and painful eyes
Adjusting to the solitary beam of light in the room

Bound by ropes since eternity
He had stopped struggling against them
But the light reminded him of what he could be
The light was where he wanted to get to

The flimsy ropes gave way under his gentle tug
He was free from all that was holding him from his destiny
His weak limbs carried him to the door
His face partially illuminated by the sunlight

He rushed into the thin wooden door
The cool breeze running through his hair reminding him what it meant to be free
His feet missing the familiarity of the damp ground
His mind scared of the uncertainty

The wind started hitting his face harder and faster
He was where he always wished to be
Only to realize he had been waiting for his end
He was found washed up on a beach a few kilometers from his light tower.

P.S. the title is from a Metallica song - "No Leaf Clover" - The soothing light at the end of the tunnel, is just a freight train coming your way.....

Demon Barber

Sitting there with your life your barber’s hands, you wince when he says “Oh Shit”. You can feel the warm fluid drip from the back of your ear. You will have to live with it for the rest of your life. Your favorite white shirt will forever be tainted with the purple hair color!

:P what did you think happened?

Quick Tales

Got to know about the quick tales contest from Cynic. The following was my entry. Post is longer than usual...lemme know what you think...The theme given for the entry was Journal.

-38-

He couldn’t see much in the dark room. The eight year old wanted to play with the big boys. They wanted him to prove his worth. Now, he was stuck in this damp, uninhabited supposedly haunted cottage in the middle of the night for 3 hours. He could see a solitary bulb hanging from the ceiling. He felt the wall for a semblance of a switch. After 10 minutes of frantic search, the room was lit, albeit only partially. The room was barren. An old tattered journal was lying on the floor. Strangely enough it was nailed to the floor.

He tried to make himself comfortable on the floor. The light was just about enough to read the brittle yellow pages. The cover had 38 written on it. The texture however was lumpy and looked like the paint had dried long time ago. It was impossible to lift the diary off the floor. He could not fathom why anyone would nail a diary to the floor. The diary had a single entry. “Oh well” he thought, “The diary would help him kill some time at least”.

5 Aug, 1938:
I can see this short, stout boy entering my room. The townsfolk still think my ghost haunts this place. Ignorant fools. I wonder why someone in their right mind will even look at this shattered place let alone enter it. I am sick and tired of these people. They have no right to barge into my space! I am going to teach them a lesson they are never going to forget. This kid is getting on my nerves now. He is planning to sleep on the floor of MY room. I can’t let this happen. He will pay for this…

The kid broke into a cold sweat. His knew it was just a prank by the older guys. He could hear the wind blow through the hollow walls of this godforsaken place. He thought he heard the wooden floor creak. It sounded like a rusted wheelchair. He turned around but the light went out. He could feel someone’s eyes on him. The last thing he felt was cold metal on his face…

The old crippled man moved his wheelchair next to the journal. He tore the cover off the book and replaced it with a new one. It had 39 written on it…In blood.

waiting to bloom

They were sitting there in knee deep water, the latest addition to her room. Hoping her next breath won’t be her last. Hoping someone relieves her of the plastic tubes sticking into her. Her body was carried out of her room. They were dumped into a dustbin. Neither of them got a chance to bloom

Flight to freedom

His life is in her hands now. No one is ready to bear him anymore. It is going to be a fall to his end. She lets him go into the thin air. The ground is heading towards him fast. His skin is fluttering in the air…FLOP!! into the bin! Good shot Kanta bai!!

P.S. – Kindly do NAT litter! :)

For what it is worth...

The 12 year old, gazes out of his mud hut. Waiting for the constable to come visit the boy's neighbor. She is the pretties girl of the village. Ever since the drought the cop has used his connections to help get her some food.

The constable arrives on his bicycle with some rice and dal. He waits outside his sweetheart's home. No body answers. He can see the figure of a hungry 12 year old standing in the shadows. The boy tells the cop "Sahab ji, Didi bol ke gayi thi ki raat ko der ho jayegi." The boy doesn't know where has she gone. The constable starts to head back but he can feel a pair of eyes staring into his back. He turns around and gives the food to the boy.

The boy can't see the constable leaving. The kids vision is blurred by his own tears. He goes back inside to feed his 2 year old sister. He eats as much as he can. He will need all his strength to bury Didi's body lying in the backyard.

UPDATE - based on some comments I figure you think I have lost my mind....well I think the post is self explanatory if you consider it is based on this photograph.

The glass house

He is stuck there between the glass walls, watching the world go by. He longs for the walls to slide down so that he can fly away into oblivion. Hoping he doesn’t suffer the same fate as his brothers, hoping he never hears the sound of death.

CLAP! Another mosquito killed in the car.

Helping Hand

For some reason he can't swim anymore. The waves are pounding him into submission. His head is under water. He can see the distorted figure of a man on the beach. He hopes the lone figure can see his hand. He hopes he could gather enough strength to scream. All he can muster is a muffled whimper. The sun is setting. The water is getting colder and darker. His last hope is the stranger with the sunglasses.

He is standing on the beach. It is time for the sun to set. He has been here innumerable times. Wishing and hoping. Wishing he could see the sunset. Wishing he wasn't blind.


....Well almost 55 :D

No Regrets

He sat there in the dark room, lit by the solitary beam of sunlight sneaking through between the heavy curtains. There it was, the small box covered in shiny pink wrapping paper. He knew it was from her. She loved that color.

He wanted to open it, but needed a pair of scissors. The only pair in his sparse apartment was with her. He did not want to ask her for it. Not after the fight they had 2 days ago. Maybe this was her way of saying sorry.

She was sitting there, leaning on the dining table. Her face impassive, hair falling over her eyes. Palms of her hands pressed on the table. He had tried talking to her yesterday, but that turned into another fight.

The curiosity got better of him. He walked towards her, placed his hand on her shoulder, pulled the pair of scissors out of her back and opened the gift. It was a box set of CDs by his favourite band..."The scissor sisters"

Finding yourself...again

You are at the eye of the storm
You chose to be here, ignoring the destruction in the wake of your storm.
You enjoy the dark peace.
You deserve the peace and the rest of them had it coming

And then the light shines through,
pulling you towards it.
You follow the light,
Ignoring the pleas of the storm that defined you.

After a few short lived moments, moments of pure ecstasy you think THIS is you.
You decide to leave the storm behind.
Then the truth hits you, and the light fades away forever.
You promise yourself that you will stay out of the storm, you have found yourself.

You stick to the planes of redundant and repetitive shit that is your life.
You will keep your promise to the light.
And then you slip back, back down the muddy slope to the eye of the storm.
Ah there is no place like home...the place where you do not have to struggle to be YOU.

So what if everything you touch will be destroyed?
So what if you failed to keep your promise?
This is who you are.
This is who you were meant to be.


Inspired NOT copied from the movie Unforgiven

Eye in the sky

I always knew there was some one watching over me.
I knew he was always there.

The kind of presence you feel from the corner of your eye.
The presence you are never able to spot when looking directly at it.

He was waiting for me to acknowledge him.
All he wanted to see was recognition in my eyes

That night ,I felt the cold metal of his bullet
That night I felt the warmth of my blood

He WAS watching over me.
And so was his gun.

Taking Lives

He hits her across her face.

A tear rolls down her eye.She wants to run away but doesn't

He has all the hate in his eyes, the blood on her lip reflecting in them

She doesn't know him anymore, he is not the same guy.

He throws her on the bed, twists her arm till he can see her wince...

Her tears feel salty, and his grip on her arms...cold

He throws her against the wall, and pours the sugarless, boiling coffee over her. That'll teach her how to make coffee.

She hopes she can remember he takes 3 cubes of sugar not two...like he did before.

He wonders if he can get rid of her.

She wonders if she can ever leave...

She found his gun took it with her when she gave him another cup of coffee. Points it straight at his temple. The same cold eyes...she puts the gun in her mouth and leaves him.....forever.

Disclaimer: Nobody can condone domestic violence, neither do I....part of the above is fiction part is not....

Of death by life...

You slide into the water, the hair on your body stick to you like a baby sticks to his mother.

The water tries it's best to push you out. You are violating it's space. You push against the walls to stick to stay "grounded".

You block the source and the water is calmer now. You slide in further, out of choice. It is up to your neck now.

The water covers your ears, impairs your hearing of the outside world. You can no longer hear the radio, the TV, the room service, the phone.

You can hear yourself as clearly as you ever could. Your heartbeat, Your hands sticking to the walls, the sound of you gulping.

The water hasn't reached your mouth yet. Somehow you can taste it at the base of your tongue.

You are completely immersed now, all you can feel is you. All you can see is the stagnation.

It is surprising that water can burn your lungs so bad, when it is supposed to put out the fire.

You don't scream, just lay there, lay there and wait.

The only thing outside of you that you are still aware of is this ray of light, from somewhere above you... but there was no light here .....

And you stare into the light, and sleep with your eyes open...

Well almost I - Taking Lives...

He is a "soldier" for his country. Chasing a "terrorist". The Fog is thick. The visibility poor. He notices a glint of metal to his left from the corner of his eye. Unlatches the safety on his automatic and 1 shot takes care of the "insurgent". That is That. Did what he was supposed to...

He is a "freedom fighter". Being chased by an "infidel". The Fog is thick. The visibility poor. He
can hear the rustling of dried leaved and twigs to his right. That bastard can't be this close. He turns around and shoots towards the source. The noise stops. He is safe now. That is That. Did what he was supposed to...

She is 6 years old. Babysitting her 4 year old brother. For some reason he loves playing with spoons. She holds out the spoon in the sun, just to make sure it is clean. She feels the warmth of her blood on her ear. For some reason it is dripping from her head on to her face....

He is just 4. Waiting for his sister to get him his toys. Well what he thinks are toys anyway. Till she returns the kid continues to wrestle, the dried leaves. He doesn't feel the stab of pain. He doesn't have time. He just lies there for eternity...

That is that. Every body did what they were supposed to...WELL ALMOST!

...of love, and things meant to be

It is 3:30 in the morning and she is sitting there staring at me and won't let me go to sleep till I tell you her story...

They were people of the mountains. Had known each other since they were kids. They were neighbours. It was getting late and the storm was almost at their doorstep. He had to leave for his home. Her mother didn't want the two of them to be in the same house till they were married, she believed it will bring bad luck. They never said goodbye to each other. They had decided long ago. They'll never say it. Their eyes met for that brief moment and all that could be said was rendered worthless.

Although, the basic structure of their homes was made of bricks and stones a part of it was put together with temporary things such as sheets of tarpaulin. He had to fasten it to the ground before the storm hit. Tourists always wondered how can these locals live at such treacherous locations with the blind corner of the road on one side and the deep gorge on the other. He had been walking this edge for time immemorial. And never thought two ways about it. It was dark and he had to feel his way to the large stone the kept as a weight to fasten the tarp to the ground.

The raindrops were mixing with the earth. His foot slipped. all he could think about was the smile in her eyes when he last saw her. The words he longed to hear. The words he knew that were about to escape her lips. They had never actually told each other about it. They had known. How he wished he had told her. Just once.

They found his body a kilometer downstream. She didn't cry. She knew they were meant to be. She knew he couldn't leave her without at least telling her what everyone knew. You might see her the next time you go there. She is the pretty one. The one who seems to be waiting. Waiting for what was meant to be...

Cubicle ke us paar - Ek dard bhari prem katha

Cast:

Apna Hero - K.V.R.M chatopadhyay (Dad was from UP so southindian mom wanted some credit in the name her Dad's, village's, her best friend's and her name make up K.V.R.M) Pyar se known as chat

Apni Laila(well kind of) - Simran ghosh (All the good things about chandigarh and bengal ;)) Sim

Direction - jahan google le jaye

Script - ha ha good one!

ACTION!

Chat has been workin in this company for 3 months and 13 days. After 3.5 job switches (0.5 for the intra company change). Our experienced Hero is shocked and ashamed of the sex ratio of his team. "Chi yaar, EK ladki nai apni team main" he quibbles to his sutta partners. Will take care of it in the next recruitment cycle.

If it was up to chat, the company would hav recruited women from IIFT for creating Dot NET applications, but his HR is a lady so she doesn't understand what such a recruit will do to the team productivity.

Finaly, he got his chance to go recruit hunting to one of Jamshedpur's engineering colleges. (Calcutta main strike thi so the other college was closed ;)) Another HR blunder - the interview panel needed 2 people and he was stuck with a senior tech consultant WHO WAS A LADY (GHOR ANYAAY BHAGWAAN!) She was somehow hung upon teh candidate's technical capabilities. Arre main sikha dunga na thought chat. Finaly a compromise was reached - Simran Ghosh.

After the initial team lunch, paid for by all the other team members (yup guys) to show their eternal gratitute to Chat. Chat who used to amble into office at 11:00 am usually, but since Sim was an early morning person (who liked Bangalore ki coffee) Chat sacrificed hi sleep to get in early. At about 15 minutes past 9:30 a.m. he would stand next to her cubicle, diagonally opposite to his. Somehow she was always talking on the phone when he got there. "Must be talkin to her mom" he thought. He was always proud of the fact that she never said no to him, she didn't wana miss the oppertunity of free coffee service. Also, there was nobody else in at such an early hour.

Well after about 3months and 22 days of coffe service ( the shouts of KAAAAAAAAPPPII - 2 missing) he got the dreaded mail, with scanned attachments. He couldn't read it, he didn't have to. The last statement said it all "Please consider this our personal invitation". "Why ME god??" thought Chat. She was the one for me!! He obviously didn't attend the wedding, he had to meet the deadline for the next release, 10 months after her wedding day.

She returned after her one month break. Due to some inexplicable reason chat had started coming in late to the office. And then his mail "Thanks for all your support in building my carrer (for 7 months), I am pursuing my career interest elsewhere". The elsewhere was in a company with a better hit rate with the LADIES and good looking HRs but his reason for a swith was better career prospects OBVIOUSLY.

Well, Chat soon got married to Mandira Singh, A bengali girl settled in Delhi..JACKPOT.
Sim, lived happily ever after, She is a senior Tech consultant who often goes to conduct interviews. And the software industry braced for the next Sim-Chat pair!!

KAAAAAAAAAAAAPI KAAAAAAAAAAAAAAPI

The RIGHT thing to do

They were amongst the last remaining Hindus in the newly spawned country.

He was standing in the middle of the only road leading out of their village towards what was supposed to be THEIR country now. It was also the path to certain death. Their Muslim bretheren were ready for them. Just like he was when his Muslims neighbours had fled their homes while he burnt them.

He could see his own house burning although he was facing away from it with his back to the boundry wall. He could see the flames in his 12 year old sister's eyes. He had blanked out everything. Even the low consistent moan of his mother sitting next to his fathers bleeding lifeless body. Then he heard her say....Son, kill us both, don't let them take us.

He took out the country pistol from underneath his kurta. His sister's eyes were dripping tears from the flames that were burning his house. He put the gun in her mouth, he wanted it to be quick.

She could feel the cold metal in her mouth. She could smell and taste of the gunpowder that was going to be her last memory. This was not right. Her baba had told her taking a life was not right in any circumstance. His brother was 18. He was taking the easy way out she tought. This was not the right thing to do. he was supposed to take care of her, protect her. He HAD to honour the rakhi she tied on his wrist. The burning sensation lasted for a second, as her lifeless body colapsed to the ground.

She had borne great pains to get her kids to the world. This was not what she had hoped for their future. But she couldn't imagine whatr the mob would do with them once they get hold of women. Their young son can take care of himself. Atleast the seed of their family will survive. That is all she wanted. She commanded her son to kill her. This was the right thing to do , atleast the family will continue....the gunshot was drowned by the sound of their grandfathers home buckling under the flames.

WHAT HAS HE DONE?? His father had succumbed to his wounds. The lifeless bodies of his family were in front of him. He had just killed his defenseless mom and sister. He didn't deserve a life. There was nothing to live for any more. He closed his eyes and pulled the trigger. That was the only thing left to do, the right thing to do....

fiction..............

THE GIRL OF MY DREAMS

Hi, I am Rahul. I am studying in the final year of my B.Com. course in Mumbai. Unlike most of my friends I stay with my parents.....
However, there is one part of my routine i really do enjoy. The college not being too far away from home i usually take the 8:30 am
bus instead of the usually preffered local train. Most of the people at the bus stop are regulars and are quite friendly to each other.
This morning was a bit special though, as i was waiting for the bus we had a new addition to the morning travellers.
This really pretty girl joined us at the stop. The attention of all the men was obviously now solely devoted towards her. Surprisingly,
the few women there were also looking at her. I thought of this as a great chance to make a new friend, and then my luck kicks in,
my bus arrives at the stop. On time for the first time in 3 months!!! Thanks a lot god. Anyway I shrug the disappointment and get on
the bus. As the bus starts to move I realise our new visitor did not join us. Now with nothing else to do I switch on my walkman and
retreat back to my own world, forgeting her.
The bus stops at church gate, about two stops before my college. I look up for a second and THIS IS NOT
POSSIBLE she just climbed on to the bus. But how could she???? I just left her back at that stop. I muster enough courage to go
up to her and talk to her. As soon as i get up the bus comes to a screeching halt. What now?? I ask my self. I must have been
thinking out loud because someone replied the battery is dead. Everybody starts to get off and in the commotion I lose sight of her.
So it will remain as another unsolved mystery.
Back to business, i have to get to the college or will be kicked out of the class. The only option to reach on time
will be to go by an autorikshaw. I wave to the first one in sight, but it already has someone in it. As the autorikshaw passes by i get
a glance of the passenger WHAT?? IT IS HER AGAIN!!!! This is it I start running behind the auto not seeing where I am going and before
I realise this gigantic bus is heading towards me. Over the sound of the traffic i hear a familiar voice......it is my mom. HUH?? " Rahul
get up or you will be late for college...." I get up bathed in sweat and out of breath....
I think of telling my mom about it over breakfast but decide not to and start reading the newspaper. On the page
which has local news there is an article on a college girl who was run over by a bus near church gate. The article also has a picture
and it seems familliar.........