SIX
Nimesh can't be dead.
This was not the first time Maya had experienced such a close brush to death. However, this was not going to be the same. Since the time she heard the news a piece inside her was crumbling slowly, bit by bit. He was too innocent, too young to die.
She walked to the mirror. It was like, a vacuum staring at her eyes from the mirror, smiling dismissively.
She got ready and went to her workplace. Some things are unavoidable, no matter who lives or dies, she thought to herself. It's strange how helpless life makes us feel at times. Everyone needs to fight their own battle. No one can borrow your hurt and no one can feel your pain. That's the way things are! One thing that even death can't stop is the flow of life. Whatever happens, there's always a new morning.
Somehow she went through the day's work. It looked as if it was just another day at the office, yet inside her were a bundle of emotions trying to hit her walls and break open.
“Hey Maya, how's work going?” asked Rahul. He was her teammate.
He jolted her out of her thoughts as she stood lost near the vending machine, overlooking an empty space. “Hey!” she smiled.
“You look little dull today.”
-“Nothing, was just watching those birds feeding her babies.” She pointed at the tree outside the window.
“Are you coming for the party tomorrow?”
“No, I won't be able to. I have some chores to deal with.”
“Anyways, there will be nothing in the party except some drunken monkeys jumping around, dancing!”
Few people desperately trying to network with seniors and some seniors casually trying to exploit their position would attend the party. Beginning of some casual flings maybe and some artificial conversations by pseudo intellectuals over alcohol! She thought to herself.
The window near the coffee vending machine overlooked a huge tree. She hadn't previously noticed the nest hanging on one of the branches. The mother bird was vigorously feeding the little ones. The baby birds looked ugly. Perhaps they hatched recently. They had no feathers. They fought with each other to grab what the mother bird was giving.
She thought how similar life is, though it was a corny comparison. We keep struggling for opportunities thinking that it will make us happier. Does that really help? The day ended with her going through her mundane job sheet mechanically. She picked up her black string bag, oblivious of her surroundings, she mechanically drove back home. The house was still and silent. She switched on the lights and opened the windows. Her apartment overlooked a large playground where children would play. The road that led to the apartment was rather narrow with potholes. Yet the playground was a relief.
In a city where homes stick to each other the playground brought a little open space for her. She saw toddlers jumping up and down in the sand pit. Some guys were playing football. There was a small group of women who were chitchatting in a corner. A few health conscious men and women were walking as usual. Maya recognised many of the faces, though she knew none of them. She wondered how similar each day seemed to be.
It would be different in Nimesh's house. His mother would not be chit chatting. She trembled as she thought about the woman who had already lost her husband. And now her son. What could be more unfair than this? The silence cannot be broken by any laughter.
It will rest heavy on the heart and on the walls.