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- 05/25/2013
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Note: While authors are asked to place warnings on their stories for some moderated content, everyone has different thresholds, and it is your responsibility as a reader to avoid stories or stop reading if something bothers you.
Murder At Lake Mohank - 3. Chapter 3. Unarmed And Dangerous
A late summer evening, a clear sky; to Lake Mohank, the famous hiking trail we set off.
Barring a few pit stops, the journey was uneventful, and pretty soon we reached our destination. It was my first visit there. and I was struck by the sheer beauty of the place. The time was just before twilight. The sun almost below the horizon, was casting rays on the lake surface that glittered in a thousand sparkles, like a jewel bag containing numerous diamonds was being emptied. I had never imagined such a place to exist.
The place where we were to put up for the night - the actual hiking was supposed to start only early next morning - was nothing to write home about. Dark dank rooms with no electricity. Just good old fashioned village style Charpaayi-beds, Faanas- kerosene lanterns and little else. it dint really fit into the idea of an exciting adventure trip, which is what it was supposed to be.
The rooms were to be shared of course, and in all the wranglings of who would be with whom, I ended up with him as my room partner. No, not room partner, my suffering-sojourn-mate, is perhaps a better term. Anyways, that was that, I didnt object. I didnt really have any choice in the matter. I prepared myself for a silent uneventful night, I am pretty good at putting up what I like to call my 'snob and snub' mask. Not really sure why I like to behave in such a manner, but it usually helps get me through situations easily and with little hassle.
"Hi", he said, smiling, when we arrived inside our little 'paradise'.
"Hi" I grumbled in an outwardly neutral tone.
I was relived to get that out of the way. It was just unavoidable, I knew. Perhaps he got the hint, and got busy putting up the bed and stuff. Great, now I could put away my mask and enjoy some quietude.
"You reside near the Old Post Office building, right?" My hope turned out to be majorly premature. I dint even bother to ask him how he knew that.
"Hmm...." I gave him my most favorite reply in the whole of English language.
'Hmm'- certainly better than a NO, which is likely to incite questions galore. YES is good. affirmative. but then it tends to indicate some sort of an enthusiasm, an urge to keep the conversation going. 'Hmm' is the best, if the other person is sensible enough to take the hint, and leave you alone -
"Its strange. We stay so close to each other, How come we never run into each other?"
- yes, i mean hmm, it confirmed my suspicion, things were going to go from bad to worse. Lets do a round of rapid-fire questions on each other, if you want, I almost asked him.
" Hmmmm...." A second one, slightly longer. This was supposed to work 99% of the times.
"Whats the matter?" he turned out to be dumber than I had thought. That, or I needed to start looking for some alternatives that would work better than my beloved "hmmmm". Everyone and everything grows old with time.
He was earnest and well-meaning of course, they all are, friendly and amicable, and all of that. But like the rest, he had no idea ---- And I had neither the inclination nor any immediate requirements to enlighten his soul. To bother him with stuff that he might not necessarily be interested in; though to be honest, he was doing the same to me.
Didnt really know, if it were my mono-syllabic replies that finally did the trick, or he was simply exhausted; but eventually he stopped his incessant nattering. My mood already spoilt, I couldnt go to sleep. I decided I better go out. For a walk may be, or just to watch the sky. I like to watch the stars and the moon.
I headed out. Everything was so quiet, seemed everyone had settled down in their respective rooms. It was a perfect full moon night. Hardly any clouds, and the unpolluted atmosphere of the region added up to the brightest moonlight I had ever seen. Every leaf, every branch was glistening in the soft silvery light. I headed straight to the little observation deck sort of an area, towards the edge of the semi-plateau, where our habitat was located. It was a little steel-railed, roundish area, with cement benches, of the kind you see in old style gardens. From the vantage point, one could look out over the entire valley below, which looked so beautiful and intriguing in the moonlight.
I settled down on one of the three benches, the one which seemed to be affording the best angle to enjoy the view. It was very relaxing, I lay with my arms stretched out, and my legs extended casually forward. With my head reclined, I was looking straight up at the moon, almost vertically up above. The sky was glittering with a so many stars, all bright and twinkling; but there was one particular star that caught my attention. It was so close to the moon, and all alone. I wondered what it was called, I couldnt recall having seen it before, or having been taught anything about it in school or anywhere else. I closed my eyes as I felt a wave of nostalgia and relaxation surfing to the shore of my thoughts.
"Hey, there. Be careful. Dont fall off the ledge in your sleep. Wouldnt want to be looking for you in that valley in the dark."
It was him, again. Smiling. I half stifled the groan that surged up in reaction to seeing him come and spoil my little private rendezvous with the celestial beings.
"So Balbhadra, what do you intend to do?" I tried to counter nosiness with nosiness, as he started to settle down.
"Just, was having no sleep, saw you here, so came to join you ---"
"No, I mean, what do you intend to do in life, after you finish your studies. I mean, career, etc"
"Oh, I dont know, havent thought about anything yet."
"Figures" I said to myself. going by what I have seen so far, "thinking" doesnt really seem to be your forte. I morphed my chuckle into a vague little smile or at least I hoped he would interpret it as such.
He smiled back in reply. The same cute charming smile, somehow it appeared irresistible in the moonlight. For a fleeting moment, I couldnt hold on to my self. He had beautiful hair, looking all the more lustrous in the soft light, his face even more fairer, his eyes deeper. He had settled down right besides me on the bench. In fact too close to me. It wasnt a huge bench, but there was enough room for him to not be in body contact.
With "Uncalled-for Obnoxiousness" not working, I called upon the next in my line of defenses "Casual Ignorance". My best hope, under the circumstances.
I would have to admit, he hadnt done anything to upset me. He hadnt been rude to me, in fact he had been too polite. But that was the thing. Its easy to dislike unfriendliness, so tough to counter open arms. He was irritating me by being so nice. It seemed he had bundles and bundles of good spirit, an unending supply of positivity, an aura of effervescence. All the qualities that I dint particularly endorse, or at least, they were certainly not a part of my personality.
"Tell me one thing, why are you always so quiet and lost in yourself?"
I wasnt quite prepared for this question. There hadnt been yet, anyone audacious enough to ask me about it so bluntly, in such a matter of fact way.
"Thats just the way I am. I dont like to trust anyone easily. And let me warn you, it will be the same between you and me. Dont expect me to change due to your sweet talks." I struck at him hard. too hard, I knew. But it was just a reflex reaction, not at all intentional.
"Why do you take everything so seriously. Try to enjoy life, enjoy the moment."
"You are so stupid, so dumb, I dont know why I am even having this conversation with you here. What would it take for you to leave me alone?" I had hoped this bit of insult would be too much for him. But it had almost the reverse effect. He started smiling, "Wont let you go so easy, my friend."
"What do you want?" Well, since it had come down to the no-holds-barred rules, no point in being subtle, or mannerly, I decided.
"Just that you explain to me the reason for your extreme antagonistic attitude and why do you like to imprison yourself in your own shell." he continued "You want to know why I m trying to be your friend?"
Before I had to start facing the dilemna of how to answer that, he himself continued,
"Well, anyways, lets let that go ---- for the moment." He changed tracks abruptly, "I have been observing you. You always seem so worked up, is there something that's bothering you. I mean if you like to share. I am here for you my friend"
He said that with such earnestness in his eyes, it struck some string deep in my heart. For once I had no answer, no thought, no counter, no defense. He had a wry smile on his face. Of course, I wouldnt let him win so easily, or let such a minor triumph go unchallenged. But for the moment, in the name of fairness, I had to concede.
Suddenly, there was nothing left to say, nothing to question. And a deep silence fell upon us, - tranquil and meaningful. Without anything being said, I felt him sharing my anxiety, my concerns. It was not that I wasnt aware of all the possibilities. But there was this little voice inside of me, telling me constantly, to believe him, to trust him.
The moon at its shiniest best- lucid and effervescent, was playing jovial juvenile games with a lone silvery cloud in the sky; unfurling enough light to let me see perfectly well, his brilliantly chiseled face, in spite of the best efforts of the pursuing prankster. At times, the prankster would succeed in blanketing my bliss, but not for long. The moon, as curious and as keen, for a glance perhaps, escaping its clutches quickly, over and over again.
The breeze, cold and blustery at times, if anything, only enhancing the warmth I felt emanating from his arms. A thousand sparkling stars, all at an arms length, twinkling delightfully as if in a smile the sky couldnt conceal. A look of carefree affection, a tranquilizing bliss emanating from his dulcet, hazel eyes. It was like.., time had stopped passing; like I had clenched in my fist, the neck of the eternal hourglass.
On this secluded cliff, far far away from anywhere, we lay still; His hand in mine, staring into the invisible, infinite horizon.
It was truly a beautiful moment, and like all beautiful moments, it had to pass, eventually. I didnt want him to be the one to suggest. He did have me under his spell, I would have to admit, but no so much so as to let that happen.
"Lets go back" I more or less announced it. He didnt object. The rest of the night went uneventful, though I couldnt go to sleep for a long time, dwelling on the fact that, there was this almost-a-stranger guy, having so much command over my self.
It was too much to tolerate. The egoistical, the untouchable, the imperious facet of my persona simply wouldnt accept it. And in the process, hurled at me questions galore. Most important of those questions to my mind was, was he for real, or just pretending for whatever his intentions might have been.
He was fast asleep right beside me, his face appearing so serene, so demure, as handsome as an angle in the soft glow of the moonlight that had somehow managed to filter its way into our room.
There were hundreds of questions twirling around in my heart. Like aftershocks to a major earthquake, each one had its own repercussions, but I felt something had been changed, and irreversibly so. And there was nothing I could do or think, to change that. Lost in such thoughts, I dint realize when I drifted off to sleep.
If how he looked in the moonlight could be surmised as mellifluous, or divine, or angelic, he appeared even more alluring in the golden early morning rays. Mild sunlight drifted in through his silky locks directly into my eyes, his hair appearing ever more luscious, ever more splendid. Wish I could run my fingers through the soft undulating locks that the gentle breeze was blowing through. His lips, as red as maple leaves in autumn, as supple as heleconia buds. Slightly wet, like early morning dew had settled on crimson blooming rose petals. His wrists so fair, so unblemished, just the tinge of green in them, that the veins carried. Could feel the slow rhythmic beating of his heart as he lay sleeping, appearing as adorable as a statue carved of the finest carrera marble might have suddenly come alive.
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