PART 5
NARRATOR
6 Days after
“How dare you touch my son!” She grabbed Salim by the collar and slapped him across the face. “You ruined your life and now you want to ruin my son's life as well!!”
“Maryam! Please calm down" said her husband. “We'll let the authorities take care of him.”
“It's okay Ma'am. We'll handle this, please be with your son,” said the detective.
Bilal escorted his wife away from Salim.
Meanwhile, Marwan lay on his bed with an ice pack on his face.
“Did he really do it Marwan?” said Hiba.
“I don’t know Hiba. I don’t know what’s going on here. I don't even remember the last time I was happy.”
“I do" said Hiba. “You should've seen yourself during Aarav's birthday party. You and Shreya were giving off this vibe and it felt extremely awkward to stand near you guys. You were a completely different person with her.”
“What birthday party?”
“Yeah right. You guys were talking all night until you blacked out. Such a fragile creature you are," she smirked.
“I don’t remember.”
“You never remember anything nowadays! Relax dude,” she chuckled. “You should take some rest.”
“Relax!?” smirked Marwan. “I survived a plane crash with the girl I was crushing on. Later, when things start getting better, people start dying and to top it all off, my uncle gave me a concussion; and relax you say.”
“Fine, then be in misery.” Hiba rolled her eyes. “But technically you hit him first yeah?” she chuckled.
“This is serious Hiba. I don’t know; it could be Jacob or Salim. It has to be one of them!”
“Salim is so nice to us! I can't imagine him doing this.”
“He has a lot of secrets. He hid this from almost everyone. I don’t trust him anymore Hiba.”
“Well, he is being taken off this case. If it makes you feel any better, he too is now a suspect.”
Marwan didn't respond. “Something just doesn't add up,” He thought.
“Look at it from this perspective,” said Hiba. “What if Shreya's uncle Jacob found out about Salim? What if he wanted to exact revenge or perhaps hurt her? Isn't there a possibility where he has committed this murder?”
“Yes” said Marwan. “I just don't understand why Anu had to cheat on her husband. Shreya once told me that she'd overheard her aunt talk to her lover on the phone. She was planning to abandon Jacob soon.”
“Yeah she told me that; I just couldn't believe it was Salim she was cheating with.”
“You can't really blame them,” said Marwan as he silently felt the pain throb against his forehead.
“I don't understand how Shreya's prints were found on the corpse. I wonder how she got mixed up in all this.” He said.
“How is she now?” asked Hiba. “She hasn't spoken to me or Aarav in a long time. I'm really worried about her. I feel so helpless right now.”
“She is still in shock,” he said.
Marwan and Hiba sat in silence for a few minutes.
“I think she knows something Marwan. I mean, she is the strongest person I've met. She has never lost patience, even after all the things she had to go through” she said.
“We are human beings Hiba,” said Marwan. “All of us have a threshold. Once things go beyond that threshold, we may never be the same person again,” he said. “Trust me, I know exactly what she is going through.”
“What if something drastic happened that night? What if she is hiding something? She did complain that her aunt slandered behind her back. She spoke ill of Shreya all the time; sometimes even to her face. What if that got to her?”
“Are you saying that Shreya isn't innocent?” his face became grim.
“No! That's not what I meant. Maybe she knows something that could help us put an end to this,” she said. “You never know who is innocent Marwan. She went through severe stress in the past few months; it could have triggered something. You of all people should understand that.”
“I cant believe you just said that. She is your best friend.”
“I'm not accusing her of anything. But you never know what is what. I have faith in her.”
They heard a knock on the door.
“Who needs a cheese burger?” smiled Aarav.
***
1530 Hours
Hiba wrapped a scarf over her hair. She looked at herself in the mirror as fairy lights in the background lit up the doodles on her walls. Her gaze shifted upon a couple of polaroid snapshots from her early school years.
“How the times have changed,” she thought.
She looked at a teenage version of herself posing with Shreya in their school uniform.
Beside the picture, she had posters of her favourite football team and music band.
She heard a knock on the door as she applied mascara along the contours of her eyelids.
“Come in.” she said after giving herself a brief check.
“Well if it isn't my angel," grinned Salim. “How are you dear?”
“Oh" Hiba was surprised. “What brings you here uncle?”
“I came by to visit your father. Bhai had some things he wanted to discuss.”
“I see. Is it about Marwan?”
“Maybe.”
He went around exploring the room.
“Nice room you have here.” He paused as he saw the polaroid. “Poor girl, fate has been so cruel to her,” he sighed.
“Okay. So umm, do you need something?”
“Well, come to talk about it, yes I do!” he smiled. “I'm sure that you're aware of the things happening around. Too much drama no?” he chuckled.
Hiba didn't respond.
“You see darling, I haven't been myself lately.” He said. “I'm sure Marwan might have revealed some delicate information. Although, I never meant to harm him; not one bit.”
“Why didn't you apologize to him then?”
“Because he struck me where it hurt!”
Salim's expression darkened as rage filled his face.
“I do not know if you can understand dear, I loved Anu. We had our falling out every now and then, but I would never do something as hideous as this.”
“What's to say that you aren't lying right now?" she smirked. “She was married, uncle. She had kids! Do you have no shame in doing what you did?”
“Why would I be ashamed of something our parents made us do!?! Others have to suffer for what they did.”
“That is such flawed logic uncle!” she looked in disgust. “I suggest you leave. I have somewhere I should be going.”
“Anger doesn't suit you, my angel,” he gave a shallow smile. His eyes penetrated deep into Hiba's, making her feel uneasy. “I didn't come here to argue or justify what I did. I came here because I needed a favour. My favourite nephew HAD to knock me off this case; therefore now, I am helpless.”
“What if I don't want to help you?”
“What if I tell you, that there is a way to catch the killer?”
“I see. Now why exactly am I supposed to trust you?”
“Why wouldn't you trust me? I am still your uncle Salim. Don't let a few flaws belittle me. You are and have been my little angel for all these years.
Hiba paused for a minute.
“Do you know who the killer is?”
“I have every reason to believe that it was Shreya herself. She is a troubled kid; she must have done something unknowingly.”
“What makes you say that?”
“I raided her room to find a bunch of sleeping pills. It wasn't a prescription drug; these things were of extremely high dosage. The ones that you get in stores are of small doses.”
“So?”
“So, if she has someone who can get her these pills from the black market, what is to say, that she hasn't done anything else that is illegal. What is to say that she HAS changed because of her PTSD.”
“PTSD doesn't turn people into murderers, uncle.”
“Yes, but it can change people. Maybe make them do things that they wouldn't normally do. What if she was forced to do it? What if something triggered the chaos in her mind?” he said. “Because the last time she talked, Anu made a fuss that Shreya wouldn't give her the inheritance money.”
“What if she were to use that money for something else? Doesn't that sound fishy?” he continued.
After a brief pause, Hiba said, “How do I fit into this equation?”
“You fit perfectly, my dear,” he said. “Here's what you have to do.”
***
1800 Hours
Shreya lay on her bed with her arms covering her eyes. Scruffy lay beside her as it fed on a bottle of milk. He whined every now and then as he looked at Shreya.
“Shreya!” knocked someone. “It's Hiba. Can you please open the door?”
Letting out a slight groan, she opened her eyes and pushed herself up. After tying her hair in one place, she grabbed her walking stick and limped towards the door.
“Why don't we buy you a new one?” her uncle had asked.
“I want the one my mother used to have,” she had responded.
After a brief paint job, the steel walking stick became a part of her life. She could feel the touch of her mother as she grabbed onto it for support.
Scruffy leapt up in excitement and scooted towards the door. He began jumping with joy as he scratched it.
“Calm down boy,” Shreya murmured.
As soon as she opened the door, Scruffy pounced upon Hiba and began licking her. Hiba let out a loud scream as she fell on her back.
“Get it off me!!”
“Scruffy, calm down. Sit.” said Shreya.
Being the good boy that he is, he leapt off Hiba and sat patiently awaiting for Shreya to speak.
“Come in,” she said.
Holding onto a side table, Hiba pulled herself up, brushed her clothes and walked into the room.
“I see you have bonded with Marwan's gift.” She smiled.
Shreya didn't respond.
“Could you maybe tie it somewhere?” said Hiba sheepishly. “I am sort of scared of dogs.”
“He won't do anything. Come sit.” She said blankly.
Hiba fidgeted for a while, not knowing how to start the conversation. The girl beside her didn't seem like the Shreya she had seen in the photograph before.
“Are you okay?” said Hiba as she looked into her eyes. Shreya’s gaze was fixed upon the floor. “Do you feel better now?”
“Is that why you came here? To check upon me?” she said with a stern voice. “I am okay, I'm not a child. I can take care of myself.”
“Of course that's why I came. You are my friend, I care about you! Push me away all you want, I am not going to leave.”
Shreya’s expression hardened as she clenched her jaw.
“Shreya, look at me. Talk to me. Please,” she held her palm. Shreya began whimpering; her body began to tremble.
"I don't think you should be here," she said.
"But Shreya-"
"You are wasting your time."
"Shreya, you cant keep your feelings bottled up. Talk to me! I can't see you like this."
“I don’t want t-to…,” she sobbed.
Hiba grabbed Shreya and hugged her as tight as she could. Scruffy let out a whine as he licked Shreya's hand.
“Talk to me Shreya, tell me what happened. You shouldn't suffocate yourself. Let your heart breathe.”
“I can't tell this to anyone Hiba. I wish I could, but I really can't.”
“Fine,” she said. “Then listen to what I have to tell you. I don't know if you are aware; your uncle Jacob has confessed to the crime. You are free now; nobody is going to trouble you anymore.”
Shreya let go of Hiba.
“What!?! What do you mean he confessed?”
“He went to the detective and told him everything. He says he did this out of frustration.”
“That's not true!”
“Of course it is! He says he already knew about Salim and Anu. They seem to have been fighting; unfortunately in the end, he ended up doing what he did.”
“It’s a lie! He's lying!”
“Since when did you start caring for him so much?”
“Since the day I knew that he was the one who cared for me and not Anu! He used to beat my aunt, just because she wanted to get a hold of my inheritance money and leave me to rot. He used to beat her because she used to hurt me behind my back.”
“That doesn't give him the right to beat his wife.”
“I know it doesn't; I hated him for that. But he wasn't in the house at the night of the murder.”
“Then why did he confess?”
“I DON'T KNOW!” she yelled. “Hiba, you have to stop him!”
“Shreya, he deserves to be punished for hitting his wife!”
“Yes, but think of the children Hiba! They will lose both their parents! Please, lets go. Right now!”
“Shreya, tell me the truth. What happened that night?”
“I-I can't!”
“Then your uncle will be going to jail for a crime he didn't commit. His children will grow up as orphans.”
“I cant believe this! Are you blackmailing me Hiba!?”
“No Shreya. I am your best friend. I deserve to know what's bothering you.”
“I hate you!” Shreya burst into tears.
“Wait Shreya don’t-”
She pushed herself away as Hiba tried to comfort her.
“Leave me alone!”
Hiba sat in a corner as Shreya screamed in pain. She bit her lip and pressed her temples as she tried to stop herself from crying.
Scruffy sat on the floor as his eyes began to droop. He let out a small whine and hid himself behind a desk.
They sat there for an hour without saying a word to each other. Hiba sat scrunched up in a corner worried about the things that were happening.
“What have I done?” she thought to herself.
She put her head between her arms and began crying as she sat silently on the floor, regretting every word that she said.
***
1930 Hours
There was ghostly silence in the room. Only the sound of the television could be heard from the living room.
“Hiba?” Shreya held onto her walking stick with one hand while she extended the other out to Hiba. She caught her arm and eased herself up without hurting Shreya.
“Could you please fetch my laptop?” she said.
“Umm, okay?” Hiba was surprised. What was going on?
Hiba fetched the laptop from the desk and placed it beside Shreya.
“I'm sorry Shreya, I didn't mean to hurt you. I was being a fool-”
“Hiba, it's fine. Don't blame yourself for every single thing that happens to me. I hate people who do that.”
“I'm sorry-”
“Stop apologizing!”
“Yes. Okay.”
“I don't know what's going to happen after this. I feel horrible; like I'm making a mistake. But, if this is going to save the children from being orphans, then so be it.”
Hiba looked perplexed; she didn't utter a word while Shreya fished for something inside her bag.
“I swear, it was right here.”
“What are you looking for?” Hiba asked.
“Found it.”
Shreya pulled out a gold plated fountain pen from within her bag. She wiped it's tip with the end of her top. She pulled the laptop closer to her as she typed something into it.
She then swiftly twisted the fountain pen open to reveal a USB drive.
“This is a spy camera” she said. “Aunt Anu was planning to use this to capture her husband abusing her.”
Hiba nodded.
“This drive has a clear recording of the murder.”
“What!?” exclaimed Hiba. “Why in seven hells haven't you shown this to me or anyone else? Why haven't you said a word to the authorities? Why did you risk ruining your life forever!?”
“You'll see why.”
She plugged the USB drive into her PC. Hiba waited anxiously to see what was going to happen.
A black and white footage popped open to show Shreya's living room. The curtains were fresh, the floor was clean and the kids sat in front of the TV playing video games.
Shreya clicked on the screen as the footage moved forward.
Anu came on the screen. She wiped the lens with a piece of cloth and placed the pen onto a shelf. The camera shook as she tried to place it within a pen holder. There was a clear view of the living room now.
She forwarded further into the present to show Jacob grabbing Anu by her neck. Anu grabbed his other arm and placed it on her stomach.
“Think of the baby,” she said.
In the corner, two heads popped out of the dark.
“The kids!” she gasped. “I thought they were asleep.”
Never wanting to relive this again, she moved the cursor forward and clicked again.
The sun had set in the footage; it was dusk. Somebody rang the door bell. Shreya limped towards the door and opened it.
“Wait what!?!” gasped Hiba. “This can't be real.”
“Why not?” she said. “I thought you already knew.”
“Salim can't know about this!”
***
2010 Hours
Marwan opened the door to find the worried faces of Shreya and Hiba.
“Go to your room,” said Hiba. “Now!”
“Yes ma'am,” he said spontaneously.
After locking the door behind him, he turned around with a look of perplexion.
“What's going on? Why is Shreya out of her cocoon?”
“No time for jokes douche. Sit down, let me show you something.”
“Okay,” he said as he raised both his palms in submission.
“This is serious Marwan. Watch,” she said as she opened the laptop and played the footage.
“What is this? Why are you guys acting weird?”
“Just watch!”
Shreya seemed worried. She never spoke a word during the whole conversation.
Somebody rang the doorbell. Shreya limped towards the door and opened it.
“Hey,” said the person.
“Come in, I was just watching a movie.”
After settling down on the couch the person asked, “Where are your uncle and kids?”
“They are at their ancestral home. Aunt Anu is still here, she is unwell.”
“Yeah, I've been meaning to ask you that. Is she still after your money?”
“Yes she is. I don't intend to give her a penny of it.”
“But you said that you would give her the money anyway.”
“Lately, it has come to light that she has really bad plans for me.”
“But won't Jacob support you?”
“Oh she's already planned to send him to jail. Do you see the pen over there? That is a state of the art spy camera. Apparently, she is going to catch him red handed.”
Both of them looked at the pen for a few seconds.
“You're bluffing!”
“I'm serious!” Shreya waved at the camera.
“Uh-huh, by the way, I had to tell you something,” said the visitor.
Aunt Anu comes into the living room.
“Shreya, can you help me out in the kitchen for a minute?”
“What is it aunty?”
Anu held a neatly folded piece of paper behind her back. She was clearly hiding it from their visitor.
“I need you to help me with something.” She said. “Oh I'm sorry, I didn't see you there.”
“Hey,” waved the visitor.
“Make yourself comfortable, I'll be back in a jiffy!” she chirped. “Now, Shreya dear?”
Shreya followed her aunt into the kitchen, whilst the visitor read the newspaper. There was idle silence for the next few minutes. The visitor switched on the television and surfed through, to kill boredom.
Moonlight glistened through the window to create a shallow glow in the room.
Shreya fast forwarded the footage and clicked play.
There were loud bangs and a scampering of feet. Plates were being smashed and vessels were being hurled.
The visitor put the newspaper away and walked towards the kitchen door.
“Hey, is everything okay?”
There were screams and shouts. Abuses were being hurled at each other. The kitchen door burst open as Shreya came out sobbing. A bruise had caused blood to ooze out of her burnt cheek.
“Don't create such a scene! Its just blood,” followed Anu behind her.
The bleeding never stopped as large droplets gradually stained the carpet, creating an eerie dark patch.
“Stop crying or I'll hit you in your other cheek!”
“Shreya! Are you okay!?”
“Oh she'll be fine. She just likes to play the victim sometimes. She doesn't take into consideration all the sacrifices I've made for her.”
Shreya grabbed a piece of cloth and held it against her cheek. The cloth changed its colour as blood soaked it in entirety; it dripped onto her fingers.
“Shreya, lets take you to the hospital!”
“No, its fine,” she said. “I'll be okay.”
“It's NOT fine. Your aunt must have broken some delicate tissue; we need to get you to a hospital.”
“I said it's fine.”
“Why do you have to pretend to care??” said Anu. “I think its best if you don't stay here much longer; It's getting late.”
Shreya crouched down to clean the blood on the floor; the visitor sat beside, trying to help her.
“This isn't fair,” the visitor began trembling. “You can't let her control you like this!”
Immediately, something odd began to happen.
The visitor rolled up a fist and punched the floor. He pushed himself upright and stared directly at Anu as he began roaring with animalistic rage. His body quivered under the light.
“What have you done!?!” He became an embodiment of fierce rage.
Shreya never shifted her focus off the blood. She seemed to be suspended in trance.
“What are you doing?” said Anu.
“What Shreya ought to have done a long time ago. What your husband ought to have done a long time ago.”
The visitor pulled Shreya's walking stick from beneath her arms and steadily trudged towards Anu.
“Who do you think you are!?!” shouted Anu.
“That's exactly what I've been wanting to ask you,” said the visitor.
“I suggest you move away from me. My husband will be home any time soon.”
“Go lock yourself up in a room before I do something,” the visitor said. “Leave Shreya alone.”
“You have the audacity to come to MY house and talk to me like this?? You don't scare me, neither does she.”
Grasping the steel walking stick, the visitor moved forward. His chest rose up and down as he breathed in rage.
“Go! Now!” he shouted.
“She should've died that night. She isn't supposed to be alive! She has only been a burden to me, my children and our family.”
“You talk about family while you go behind your husband's back?”
Anu froze. She stood in shock not knowing what to say.
“You have no right to interfere in my business. I want you to leave. And as for you Shreya dear, I'm not going to spare you for telling him about this.”
“You're not going to lay a finger on her.”
“Watch me,” she said as she grabbed Shreya by her neck and slapped her on the bruised cheek.
The visitor lost control of himself; he flew at Anu and landed a punch on her. Before Anu could claw at his face, he twisted her fingers and broke her wrist. Anu tripped on something and lost control of her footing; she pulled the visitor down with her. The visitor hit his forehead as the walking stick clattered away from his grasp.
“STOP!” yelled Shreya.
The visitor kicked the walking stick closer to him and tried to reach for it with the tip of his fingers. Anu kneed him in the groin as he fell onto his side and breathed heavily, trying to suppress the pain.
“PLEASE STOP!!” yelled Shreya.
As Anu tried to push herself upright, the visitor grabbed the walking stick and rammed it onto her forehead. Anu fell down in shock as her head hit the floor. The visitor grabbed the walking stick and thwacked her multiple times in the head.
A few droplets of blood splashed onto the adjacent wall. He used the walking stick to give a sharp blow between the eyes. A pool of blood emerged from beneath her cracked skull. A lifeless Anu lay scrunched up on the tiled floor and gawked at the visitor.
Shreya paused the video as everyone sat in silence. The video froze on the raging face of the murderer as he clasped the walking stick in his fist.
“I don't believe this,” Marwan trembled. “That can't be me? I KILLED ANU!?!”
“What do you mean?” said Shreya. “Of course you did! I put my life on the line for you!!”
“But I don't remember any of this happening!”
“You weren't yourself that night. After murdering my aunt, you blacked out. I had no idea what I was supposed to do.”
“But- But this cant be real.”
“Why are you messing with me Marwan!?! You woke up after sometime and left without saying a word, while I had to clean up your mess; I had to clean the blood off my walking stick.”
Marwan felt frightened. His hands were shaking as he took in quick breaths. He pulled out his inhaler and inhaled deeply.
“And after all this, you came to see me the next day with a puppy, as if nothing had happened. Was this some sort of a joke to you!?! Did you not care about me, even when I protected you??”
Marwan remembered Shreya asking him what he was doing there when he brought over Scruffy.
“Anu was still alive. I tried to lift her, but couldn't. So I pulled her to the corner while we waited for the ambulance to arrive. Unfortunately, she couldn't last that long” she said. “I went into shock Marwan! I felt alone and you weren't there to support me; even after all of this was YOUR doing!!”
“I don't know what to say,” he looked petrified. “I-I don't know what to do.”
“Both of you calm down,” said Hiba. “I think I know what is going on here.”
They shifted their gaze to Hiba.
“I think Marwan is telling the truth. He doesn't remember a lot of things; especially if he blacks out. His PTSD has caused severe trauma to his brain. I think he may remember bits and pieces of such events as dreams or hallucinations.”
Marwan remembered the dream where he met Shreya on the eve of her birthday. He remembered meeting her on the night of the murder.
“The dream,” he muttered. “It was real.”
"I started noticing slight changes in Marwan after the accident. I presumed that it was 'just a phase' and that 'it will pass'. But then, his blackouts kept increasing. I wonder how I overlooked the facts, thinking that he was just the same," said Hiba
“We have learnt about PTSD; I've met patients like these before,” she continued. “Sometimes, in rare cases, they tend to dissociate. Here, in Marwan's case, he tends to have different sets of personalities which come into play when some trauma or memory triggers it.”
Marwan trembled in fear. “Who are you? What have you become?” he remembered muttering to himself in front of the mirror.
“He uses anger as a means of self defense. But if it goes out of hand, you know what could happen,” she shifted her gaze towards Marwan.
“So every time I blackout,” said Marwan. “Am I actually awake?”
“Not necessarily; not all the time,” she said. “You are awake sometimes, but you may not be aware. You may not remember what you did, once you wake up the next day.”
“So, when the trigger happens, he isn't himself??” said Shreya.
“He maybe something else. But as I said, he wouldn't be aware that he is something else. He needs proper therapy to overcome this; it takes time.”
“So what do we do?” said Shreya.
Both of them looked at Marwan.
“I think I should talk to Salim,” he said.
******************************************
PART 6
MARWAN
7 Days after
I can neither eat nor sleep. I lay awake till 4 in the morning while my bedsheet gets drenched in sweat. My thoughts are perpetual; I couldn't focus on anything. Nightmarish memories keep flashing as I close my eyes, gradually increasing my anxiety.
The panic that lay beneath the ruins of my past emerged out of its depths. I was re-living the pain and agony as I sat up on the edge of my bed and cried silently.
***
0930 Hours
Salim was expressionless. He watched the video without uttering a word.
“I know there is nothing I can do that would ever bring her back. I'm sorry uncle; I - I never meant to do it.”
“But you did,” said Salim as he closed the laptop and pocketed the USB drive. “And now she's gone.”
I felt a shortness in breath as the world started to spin around me.
“And after doing all this, you tried to pin the blame on me and Jacob. You accused me of killing the love of my life!?!”
“I didn't know,” I said.
“Bullshit!” he shouted. “Listen to me very carefully, I'll only give you time till noon; if you don't surrender till then, I shall have to come and arrest you.”
“And remember, I'm only doing this because you are my nephew; else I would have taken you into custody right away,” he continued. “If I were you, I'd choose the more dignified option and surrender.”
Uncle Salim slammed the door behind him leaving me with a tight chest. I took out my inhaler and breathed.
“My life is ruined,” I thought to myself. “Even Shreya wouldn't want to see me or be with me again.”
As I threw the inhaler into the trash can, my eyes fell upon a scrunched up roll of paper safely tucked between two books on my shelf. I limped towards it as I snatched it. I could feel the pills rolled up in a bunch.
“My parents would want to disown me. I am a loon! I murdered someone!”
I removed the string that secured the roll and opened it to find the three dozen sleeping pills Shreya had given me, sealed inside a plastic envelope.
“I should have died that night! Why was I alive??”
“Or was it fate?”
I remembered the Arabic word scribbled in Anu's diary – ‘Maktub’
“It is written.”
I opened the envelope and emptied its contents onto my palm. “This is it. I don't have to be a burden to anyone; there is no point in living anymore.”
I grabbed a bottle of water and gulped down its entirety. I then swallowed the whole of the pills.
I began to choke. My heart thumped against my chest as I felt dizzy; I felt disconnected. My eyes were beginning to blur out and my muscles felt relaxed. I plopped onto my bed and lay still as my body began feeling numb. All my pain gradually seemed to disappear.
My head felt heavy as my eyes gradually began to shut down. I saw darkness again; just like I had seen on that rainy night in the runway. A thick black smoke fogged my senses and blinded my vision.
I saw a light; a tiny light shining in the dark. It fell with a pale green light, like a shooting star; just like I did.
Every once in a while, stars fall broken from the skies, bestowing hopes of silent glimmer, into the eyes of ebullient dreamers and stargazers.
Maybe we are all spirits wandering in the gloaming, in hopes of finding another star in the lone sky.
Maybe we were hurled out of the skies to find each other. We were the shooting stars that shimmered in the gloaming. We were the tiny splinters left in the glow.
My mind closed onto itself like two dark walls colliding against each other, sending ripples into space.
And thus, I drifted into eternal sleep.
******************************************
PART 7
NARRATOR
“Sir, would you prefer veg or non veg?”
Marwan woke up with a jolt. The flight attendant smiled at him; her eyes conveying a sense of hurry.
“Non-veg" he mumbled.
He turned to his side to see Shreya reading her Kane and Abel.
“What the –” he trailed off. Her unburnt cheeks and smooth wavy hair looked exactly like the first time he'd seen her.
He looked around the cabin with awe. “What is happening?” he thought. He touched his neck and his legs to find that they were perfectly fine.
He looked in front, to find the mother singing a slow lullaby to her baby. The middle aged man who had supposedly died, sat in his seat reading a newspaper.
“Aren't you going to eat anything?” Shreya asked.
Marwan stared at Shreya for a whole minute. He gazed into her piercing brown eyes.
“Is there something on my face?”
“No,” he smiled. “It's perfect.”
“Okay,” she said. “Weirdo.”
Marwan couldn't understand how this was happening. Had the accident been a dream? He eased himself into his seat and waited anxiously to see what was about to happen.
“We've hit a rough patch of weather. Cabin crew please make sure that everyone has fastened their seatbelts.”
“Oh no,” he muttered.
The flight shuddered every now and then, sending chills down Marwan's spine. After an hour, the shuddering and shaking seemed to have stopped.
“Cabin crew, prepare for landing,” spoke the captain.
Marwan closed his eyes waiting for the inevitable to happen. To his surprise, the flight landed smoothly onto the runway without any hindrance; It decelerated and moved towards taxi.
“What's wrong?” said Shreya.
“Nothing,” he smiled.
***
The busy airport saw many people bustling about with their bags and trolleys. Marwan spotted the baby smiling at him as he and Shreya waited to claim their baggage. She had a toothless grin as she gently bit the toy in her hand. Marwan made a funny face and waved back at her.
“This is going to take forever,” groaned Shreya. “I think my parents are waiting outside. They must have reached by now.”
“Your parents?” Marwan’s eyes grew wide.
“Yeah?”
“But they’re -”
“They're what?”
“Nothing. I think I should sit down.”
“Why are you acting so weird?”
“Because all of this is weird!”
“What is?”
Marwan spotted his bag on the conveyor belt.
“There's my bag,” he said.
“Great, I found mine too.”
As they pushed their trolleys and ambled towards the exit, Shreya said,
“So Friday night it is then?”
“What?” Marwan felt perplexed.
“You are taking me out on Friday night? We discussed this about two hours ago?”
“Uh yes. Friday night. I umm just remembered.”
As they walked out through the exit, Shreya found her parents waiting for her near the arrival gates.
“It's nice to have met you,” she shook his hand. “Tell Hiba I said Hi!”
She strolled away and disappeared into the depth of the crowd. Marwan looked around to find people hugging each other as they said their final goodbyes. Some hugged and smiled in reunion.
“All of this seems wonderful,” he thought. “It seems too good to be true.”
“Maktub?” he thought.
Meanwhile, Marwan's lifeless body lay on the bed in peace. There was a smile on his face.
Fin.
******************************************
AUTHOR'S NOTE
And so, the journey has ended.
It has been an amazing experience writing this short novel! But before I start with the gratitudes, let me take a second to talk about depression. The story talks alot about PTSD. Here I've tried to be as accurate as possible, to let the readers understand how REAL depression is. It is an unexplainable feeling of pain and emptiness.
The truth is, everyone takes it for granted. Nobody wants to give importance to mental health as they do to physical health.
It is a plague that slowly consumes us, till we are nothing but living, breathing flesh.
If you ever know someone going through something of this sort, be there for them. Help them vent out.
If you are going through this; know that you are not alone. You will always have someone to talk to. You can even talk to me whenever you feel like you would want to.
There are people out there who care about you.
I hope the people who are reading this, take the initiative to help those in need.
Now, let me first thank Jenna Morecci - Author of 'Eve: The Awakening', for her YouTube Vlogs. Thank you for your amazing writing tips!
I thank authors Sarah J Maas for inspiring me with the abstract ideas of starfall - spirits journeying through the infinite night sky, Paulo Coelho for 'Maktub' and Jeffrey Archer for Kane & Abel.
I thank God for giving me the skills and oppurtunities to write this story.
I also thank my friends Vishnu and Amal for helping with the promos.
Last but not the least, I am immensely grateful to my beta readers - Adarsh, Hannah and Mehjuba, without whom this story would have still been stuck with its flaws. I am grateful to all the people who have read, shared and supported my venture. You made this awesome!
I am looking forward to the reviews of this story. Do give me your honest opinion. I have only grown through criticism and I intend to grow further.
Thank you, Take care.
Yours,
ABDUL MALIK
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