Akriti

1

Akriti was at her aunt's home for semester holidays, waiting to step into her third semester in college. Her aunt’s home is the only safe haven she had where she always spent her holidays. Her cousin Deepthi is the main reason and of course, the comfy bed and nice aroma of morning coffee her aunt prepared.

It was a Friday morning. Akriti and Deepthi had planned to watch their favorite actor’s First day First show movie. She was not sure if she had a nightmare or a pleasant dream. Though she had a broken sleep the previous night, she woke up with a smile. Deepthi barged in with her morning coffee.

Akriti exclaimed, “Deep, You got ready so early in the morning!!?”

“We are already late for the movie. Come on. Get ready soon !!”, Deepthi hurried her.

While combing her hair, Akriti suddenly fell out of balance and pressed her palms gently against the almirah mirror for support and balanced herself. She was surprised that instead of her reflection, she saw a small child's reflection pressing his palms with tiny little fingers against hers. It was not just a reflection. She was able to feel the touch. The kid was looking at her with loving eyes. Akriti called her aunt and Deepthi inside. But neither of them believed what she experienced a moment before as Akriti had a very good reputation for playing pranks.

2

Akriti began her third semester college. They had planned to give a Welcome Party to juniors. After having soul satisfying food, she realized that she has spilled food on her favorite dress. She wanted to clean the food stain immediately. None of the hostel rooms was available. She had no other option than to choose the last room down the corridor which was not allotted to anyone in the last few years for no specific reason.

She was checking herself in the mirror and was surprised to see the same kid in the mirror reflection again. The kid pressed his hands against the mirror from the other side. Guided by her instincts she pressed her palm against the mirror and was quite shocked to feel his touch.

She discussed about these incidents with her best friend Ayan. First, he laughed it off thinking it’s just another prank. But sensing her restlessness, he comforted her with his words.

3

She visited her aunt's home again for Deepthi’s birthday. Deepthi had planned a night-out with her friends. Akriti stayed back at home since she was not interested much in night-outs and parties. After Deepthi and her friends have left, it was only Akriti and her aunt at home. It was too cold outside, and she covered herself with a thick blanket from head to toe. In the mid of the night, suddenly she got up from sleep out of the blue and felt some additional weight on her. She slowly removed the blanket a little and saw it was the same kid peacefully sleeping on top of her with a smiling face. Surprisingly, she didn't panic. She drifted into sleep again with a smile.

In the morning she told her aunt of what happened the previous night. To her surprise, her aunt believed her words without any further question.

4

The kid was almost always around her and became a part of her life. Sometimes she talked to him forgetting her surroundings. This made people around her to question her sanity at times.

The kid always wore the same worn out clothes and rugged unclean hair. She miserably failed in all her attempts to make him take a shower. And she didn't even know his name or whereabouts. He never spoke a language that she could understand. But they both shared a launguage which was not verbal and they both could talk fluently in that language without having to make sound or move their lips. The language of the heart it is.

5

Years rolled by a little. She had a decent job. She married her best friend Ayan. She was not yet aware that she was going to pull a new life out of her.

One summer afternoon they were playing in a ground to despite the heat of the sun. Suddenly, the landscape changed. She found herself in a grassland. People around her disappeared into nowhere. Wind was so cold that she regretted forgetting to take a jacket or shawl with her. There was a very tall wall which separated them from the other side of the grassland. The kid asked her to help him climb the wall and jump to the other side. But the wall was too high. She tried her best. On other side of the wall, there stood a man with a small kid in his hands. Both the man and the kid in his hand wore similar worn out clothes and had rugged unclean hair. These three had something in common which confused her. The man raised his hands into a high-five. The kid was uncomfortably sitting on top of the wall, balanced only by her. With difficulty, he tried to give high-five to that man. She lost her balance and fell down to the ground making the kid also fall back next to her after he had gently rubbed his pinky little finger against the man's hand.

6

Akriti had a feeling that life was not as easy and smooth as it was before. Her dad was in town. They both went to an Art Exhibition and were on their way back home. Public transportation was the easiest mode of transport to reach her home. To their surprise, all the services that had operated to her place had been discontinued since that morning and they were not getting any cabs or autos. Finally they managed to find an auto and were bargaining with the driver. Her intuition warned her not to take this auto and that something was fishy. They decided to walk all the way to a nearby junction and then take bus from there to reach home.

7

Many other things happened which made her think something is terribly wrong around her. She expressed her concerns to her aunt, the only person who believed in what she said. They planned to meet a priest who was an expert in identifying and warding off evil energies. Her entire family went there and the room was completely filled. The priest had asked how everyone in the room felt after he was done with some rituals. Others did not feel any difference. But she felt serenely calm. For a moment she doubted herself if whatever happening was a prank which her mind played on herself. Then, she saw an internal door of the room open(which she did not observe all this while) and the same kid was standing there with a terrified look. The kid started running outside without listening to her warning. Akriti got tensed initially but was completely relaxed to see Ayan standing outside the premise and talking to the kid. Out of nowhere there was a cement bench. Though it resembled the kind of thing usually seen in parks, this one was very peculiar. The kid suddenly lied down on the bench and started weeping. The kid saw few tomatoes nearby and starting throwing them on Ayan. The impression made on his shirt depicted a lady being burnt alive.

Though Ayan never believed in super natural things, he realized this has some important message that needs to be conveyed to Akriti. The moment Ayan went inside, the entire environment was shaken. The priest understood what had happened. He explained to Akriti and Ayan that, once upon a time there was a wealthy man who had a caring wife and two lovely kids. Out of greed, he burnt them alive. The cement bench on which the kid was seen crying is the place where their mortal remains had been buried.

Akriti started getting constrictions and had labor pain. She delivered a baby girl prematurely and instinctively wanted to protect her newly born daughter from the evil spirit but she couldn't move an inch. The kid came forward and held the baby girl in his arms. Akriti’s baby girl started talking immediately and greeted him in a strange language which which Akriti couldn’t make sense of. The priest continued with his rituals trying his best to take control of the situation. Ayan went through a life-or-death situation and Akriti’s love and prayers brought him back to life.

8

A few years down the line, Akriti was travelling in a bus with her daughter, enjoying the morning sun and the cool breeze on her face. Suddenly her duaghter was giggling seeing an angel like figure from the bus window. It was the same kid, but now with clean, shiny clothes and neatly combed hair. He was flying in the air with angel like wings. Her daughter wanted to give a high-five to him and was greeting him in a strange language. Akriti playfully hit her daughter's hand not to stretch hands outside the window. She was surprised to see the kid flying towards them. She saw her daughter giving a high-five to her angelic brother with a smile and carried on with her journey.

9

Akriti suddenly got up from sleep. She found herself in her aunt’s home where she usually spent her holidays. She woke up with a smile even though she had a broken sleep the previous night and couldn't tell whether she had a nightmare or a pleasant dream. Deepthi barged in with her morning coffee and informed her that they were already late for the First Day First Show movie they had planned to watch. With a racing heart, Akriti slowly turned her head towards the almirah mirror and stood froze in terror.