"The Elevator to Realms" Act 8 The Wedding
"The Elevator to Realms" Act 8 The Wedding
Vaibhav
I looked at my watch, It was almost 5:30 PM and the skies were clear. I went to my room to check for anything I'd be missing. There, I thought of calling up Pooja before leaving. It was late February so it was neither too hot nor too cold. I went to open my window and sat there for a while listening to the chirping of the birds, all returning to their nests for the dawn.
"Damn. This view never gets old.", I said to myself while remembering the childhood I had. Like seriously, kids nowadays would never get to know the value of nature. They seem to be all busy with cellphones and smart TVs. In our time, we only had keypad phones so no endless reels and shorts. Just some nostalgic games and texting to friends.
In fact, also meeting my cousins after a long time would definitely feel good.
The thought of cell phones and texting reminded me of Pooja. Yet again. I opened my WhatsApp and video-called her.
"Hey, Vaibhav..."
"Hey um, I was just about to leave. I'll be back in a few days. And khyaal rakhna. Okay? No need to stress out over exams.", I said.
"Okay, Mister. I would. Enjoy and also, Don't forget to study for your papers because you have your papers too, right?" She said and smiled.
"Hmm. Yeah... I will find some time to study."
"Someone really forgot about Organic preparation...", she said, teasing me.
I really wanted to tell her how much I wanted to stay back and study with her. I told her so.
"No worries. I'll be back soon, and we'll be preparing for it together. Okay?
"Dekhti hu..", she said in a sarcastic tone. She looked a bit tense and serious. After hearing this, I thought she might be unsure. "Happy Journey Vaibhav. Take care. Drive well" she added. I felt an awkward increasing distance between us.
"What happened, Pooja? I can sense that something's wrong.", I asked because it was obvious.
"Nothing. It's just due to exams.", she said.
"Yar, why are you so tense about exams? I'm sure it's going to be okay. Just stay calm, and let's keep going. Okay?", I replied. She nodded and then she hung up the call. I let out a sigh and started heading out. I gave one last look through my room's window picked up my car keys and locked the door and went down.
"Hey Mom! Dad, let's go.", I announced. Dad asked if I had locked everything up upstairs. Mom and Dad went inside and I started driving. We left the home at around 6.
***
My Nani's home wasn't that far away. After driving for a while, We stopped at a local Dhaba for a tea break where me and my Dad had a chit-chat.
I got us a table.
"Hmm. Batao bhai kya chahiye?" said Papa.
"Papa aap decide kariye, I'll have a tea and I'll be back. Need to make a call...", I said. My mom started looking at me, so I fled the scene. Damn. It was awkward. She already knew whom I was gonna call up. The sun had already set, and the sky of the dawn was calming...
I pulled out my phone and called up Pooja.
"Hey..." I said.
Pooja: Hi Vaibhav, Everything good and well? Kaha tak pohoche ho?.
Vaibhav: We just reached a dhaba for a tea break, Pooja...
Pooja: Hmm.. Vaibhav? I wanted to ask you about something.
Vaibhav: Yes, sure. Why not. You can ask anything you want.
Pooja: Have I ... hurt you in any way? Please, answer this. I really want this to be known.
Vaibhav: What? No! Not at all... Why would you hurt me? I am not hurt at all, Pooja. What made you think this? What's the matter. You can always tell me, right?
Pooja: No it's just, maybe it's just my mind. You seem a little changed to me... Vaibhav. You always pretend that everything is fine and you don't tell me what's bothering you.
Vaibhav: No. There's seriously nothing. Chill. Don't overthink.
Pooja: Okay. Text me when you reach.
"Beta? Come up! Chai thanda ho jayega!", said Papa.
..
Well, She hung up the call after saying that.
Damn. The end-call tone beeping right in your ear hurts the most after an argument with your loved ones, doesn't it? Yes, trust me. I know. I let out a sigh and came back and sat on my chair. Maybe, the problem is, I wanted to spend a little bit more time with Pooja. Just a little bit more. Maybe, after exams, she'd be free enough.
"All okay?", asked Mom. "Yes Mom, all okay. It was Pooja".
"It's okay to be insecure at times... Don't worry, have a sip of your Chai.", whispered Mom. While Dad slowly forwarded me the biscuits. This made me less worried about everything. I am really glad to have parents like them. We all enjoyed our evening and sat back in the car to continue our journey.
We reached at around 8'o clock and were welcomed by everyone. Everyone in the family was really happy to meet each other after a while.
"Hey Vaibhav! How are you bro?", said Bihaan.
Bihaan is my cousin. He is currently pursuing an MBBS. He is one of the smartest of all my cousins I have seen. He is of the same height as me, 6 feet tall, and fit. He is the one I like the most to hang out with. Seems a cool guy! His elder brother Dhruv is getting married.
"Bihaan! Bhai how have you been. It's been a while. How are studies going on?", I asked.
"Everything's cool! How about you? What have you thought of pursuing after your 12th?"
Damn. Is he really asking this? or am I too tired and tripping off all the driving.
"Hahaha! Joking! Of course, you want to be something in technical-field.", he said jokingly.
"Of course." I smiled. I took the blessings of all elders, Nani-jee and Nana-jee too. The chaos was as usual. Shaadi-ka-ghar vibes everywhere. The next day, we had ring ceremony planned. So we all talked for a while and had dinner. We had a hotel booked for all our relatives, so we went there to take some rest.
"Time for some good night's sleep.", I said to myself as I plunged myself to bed. Let out a sigh of relief. I unlocked my phone and noticed no calls or messages from Pooja. I felt a little lazed out, so I left my room's window open and switched off my phone. Soon, I dozed off to sleep.
..
..
*THUD!*
..
I heard a loud bang inside the room and I tried to open my eyes...
..
I couldn't! I tried harder and harder... Finally, I got up instantly. I could see someone jumping off my room's window. I threw myself towards the window but I couldn't see anyone fleeing the scene!
"Who is there?!", I shouted out loud. "Who is it!!". No Reply.
I heard my phone buzzing. Intermittently. As if, the phone's vibration motor was broken. I picked it up and I saw Pooja's message.
"Vaibhav? Please help me! I tried calling you so many times!! Some guys are chasing me. I am hiding inside a society's security room."
She also shared a location. I was shocked. I was not able to process what happened in such a quick succession. I tried to rub my eyes and saw the wall clock, it was 2 AM. Quickly, I grabbed my car keys and rushed towards the basement, and in no time, the car's all four wheels started to spin wild! throwing the car forward. I picked up my phone and tried calling her cell phone. "Please pick up Pooja, please!". Still confused, I was really unable to grasp the situation. I don't know if whatever I am doing is right or wrong. Should I really be so much worried?
I had already covered 40 km or so in just 15 minutes. Slammed the brakes and the tires squealed! I reached the location she shared and approached the security room from the outside. Apparantly the society was kind of secluded and silent. Everyone was asleep. To my surprise, there were no guards in there. Not even Pooja.
I stood here.
..
Finally, she picked up the phone...
She said in a sleepy voice, "Hello, Vaibhav?..."
"Where the hell are you!! Why didn't you pick up my calls?" I said frighteningly. "Who are those guys are you safe?!".
"Vaibhav, I was sleeping... What's the matter? Why are you so scared? Is everything alright?", she said.
"Wait. I'll send you a screenshot of the message you just sent." After saying this, I quickly put her on speaker and then...
..
..
The text message was gone! It disappeared right in front of my eyes with a phone glitch. And then, the phone stopped responding. It got switched off. Silly me, in the heat of the moment I totally forgot that I had switched off the phone right before going to sleep.
A chilled gust of wind crossed through me making me look towards the road. For a split second, I could see a female standing across me with the same glowy blue thing that I and Pooja found inside the elevator. She was wearing a mask so it was really tough to identify who she was. Before I could even comprehend anything, she disappeared into thin air...
I froze. I could not say anything. I just stared and stared, and stared... at the black phone screen.
"Vaibhav?... Vaibhav, are you there? All okay?.."
"Vaibhav... hello?"
..
..
***
Comments
Post a Comment