LETHAL CONFESSIONS

Onkar Surve||Yogesh Pai

“Ugh! Can't breath!” Neha screamed after Ajay gave her the tightest hug of her life. “I missed you sooooo much” Ajay said happily after releasing her and stretching his ‘so’ long enough to express how much he had really missed her. “Jadya nai aaya…?” ‘Jadya’ was referred to the third bandit of their gang, Rishi who was fat enough to make himself a comfortable couch to sit upon.

“Oh my, my, now these are some familiar faces!” a well known and cheerful voice echoed right behind them. “RISHI!! You are so late you were supposed to be here....” Neha cut short as she stared at him, completely awestruck. “What! Gimme a hug!” saying so the huge guy hugged both of them together, one in each arm. Rishi had changed, rather transformed. They could no longer see his loose tummy, his chubby cheeks and his boyish face. Instead, here was a man who had grown a broad chest with huge arms and had a personality of a role model, and a rather hardened face with a French beard. They could see that he had taken the best out of his gym. “Abhi aise dekhte hi rahoge ya andar bhi chaloge?” Rishi chuckled. They were still staring at him in shock. This was not the Rishi  they knew. He was no longer their old ‘Jadya’.

The old, rusted gate gave out a quirky cry as Rishi pushed it. It was a cool summer night with clear and starlit sky. The place was almost lifeless and an eerie void seemed to encase the atmosphere around. The ominous silence of midnight was interrupted only by the subtle breeze hushing through the leaves of the trees which crowded the compound. The land below was completely covered with dry leaves and rugged grass. This abandoned compound was at a time a beautiful front porch to the wreck of the fallen bungalow. They settled down on a huge rock below the Gulmohor tree. The trio had spent very beautiful times below that very tree when they used to work together at a call centre.

Everything around had a nostalgic touch. This was their smoking adda, their gossip corner, their boozing spot; it was a place where they would find peace after graveyard night shifts and working their ass off to reach targets. It was a place which took away their weariness as they would look upon the breaking dawn after been over worked and treated like machines. Tonight, after six years, they had planned to spend time and hangout together for a whole night.

“Looks like this place could use a sweeper. Rishi what do  you say? Interested?” Neha chuckled and laughed her squeaky laugh. Ajay and Rishi too joined in, they all had missed the quality time they used to spent on their adda.

“Light de,” Neha leaned in and Ajay lit her cigarette. 

“Rush, since when?” He asked apprehensively as he kept the black polythene bags containing liquor on the small rock.

“My friend… Davidoff is a rare privilege where I stay these days. Hyderabad, it did change a lot of things about me.”

“But you’re still the same notorious bitch, that’s something I can blindly bet upon.” Rishi complemented her, blowing out a deep puff, as they burst in laughter. It felt just like yesterday’s thing when they used to sit here and empty cigarette boxes while bitching about their boss.

“Saale Rishi body-shody bana liya…? Ladkiyon ko maar dalneka ka irada hai kya?” Ajay said grinning at Neha. Neha sensed the sarcasm in his words and had to save the situation. “Guys could you please not do this now?”

Rishi, Neha and Ajay had been great friends seven years ago after which a fourth girl ‘Rashmi’ entered the trio and messed up. Rishi  had successfully hooked up with Rashmi who was his dream-girl as he used to say, having no idea that Ajay had secretly loved her for over 6 months. He and Rishi broke up after Rashmi remained loyal to Rishi. Rishi & Neha tried convincing him but in vain. He had firmly decided amidst his depression that his friends, his love, his parents and the world was against him and no-one really cared for him. This created the grudge between them and he had refused to keep any contact with Rishi.

Neha, being the only mutual friend, could not do much. She felt uncomfortable talking to both of them, as now even Rishi had started hating Ajay. Finally, Neha, after 6 years, now that all three were in Mumbai, had arranged a conference call and laid her condition to both of them, its either all three or none. She had made them promise that there would be no cold war and they would be close buddies just like they were in the past. Now, she had to assure that they both maintained their promises. Till then, things seemed to be just fine. It was only their ego which had stopped them from contacting each other. Ajay had moved on. Rishi was soon to be engaged with Rashmi.

Things were back to normal now.

 Almost after an hour of exchanging pleasantries they began to explore each other’s lives as beer came along. They talked about everything and nothing. They were best of the friends yet strangers and now they were making up for the void in their lives.

“Life just moved on swiftly after you took up the Hyderabad offer. A month later even I got relocated,” Ajay looked away from Neha as he let the cigarette smoke whirl around for a while, “But Rishi, he remained loyal toTelemax, to Mumbai.”

“So still stuck up in the IP sector huh?” Neha asked Rishi as they all finished their second beer bottles.

“Nahi re…. couple of year ago Mehta became the director and a pain in my ass too. So, right now I’m working as a customer service representative for Speedconnect, a US-based telecommunication company.”

“Wow that sounds cool huh?” Ajay coxed him further as another round of beer bottles was followed by vodka. He seemed to be cool with Rishi now.

“It’s fucking hell man! I’ve become a US dog,  catering to the needs of our consumers who want to activate their phones, add services to their postpaid accounts, billing inquiries and what not. I’m fed up of being nice to the people who just yell at me no matter how good I am! You know last week....Oooohh shitt...!” Rishi had spilled his vodka on Ajay's briefcase and on his trousers. “I am so sorry. I indulged myself in this conversation so much and the glass tilted coz.-”

“Its all right,” Ajay wiped off his trousers. “Happens,” he winked.

“Sorry,”this time there was mellowness in Rishi's voice. The trio had switched their moods just like any random person switches his car gears.

“It’s alright dude,” Neha placed a hand around his shoulder wanting to make him feel comfortable,“Hum sab ki lagi padi hai…. Chill out.”

“Hmm…life was beautiful,” Rishi lit another cigarette as his impassive eyes were fixed at something beyond his two friends, “It’s all a wreck now. The chutiyagiri we did before was way better than what we are facing now,” Rishi murmured  to himself. “To Life...And apne adde k liye” Rishi raised his first toast. There was an obscure silence after their drink.

“You can’t live in the past. We all have something that haunts us. Everyone has a past….” Neha spoke up after ten minutes as her voice trailed off midway. She settled down beside Ajay, sheathing herself in her own cocoon. Rishi poured in the 5th peg for the trio hoping to cheer up the environment. Ajay had remained silent throughout and had finally decided to speak up.

“Yeah,” he closed his eyes for a while after taking a sip and allowed the alcohol to drown him away. “That's a bitchy truth.” Ajay's voice had started to crack.

“Hey, you alright…?” Neha held his hand. He looked at Rishi who stood a few feet away, his inquisitive eyes fixed upon him. A faint breeze blew off his tears as if whispering at him and asking him to let go.

“I never knew it would be so bad…. Each waking moment of my life….you know...it hurts...I dunno why...i mean it was wrong...” Ajay was now fumbling for words. Tears welled up his eyes as he clutched his briefcase. Whatever he had done, he surely was feeling sorry for it.

“You Okay dude…?” Rishi asked with a worried tone gesturing Neha from the corner of his eye.

Ajay remained silent. Alcohol had taken the better of him. He had let too much slip out which had silently lain within since that dark fateful night five years ago.

“Neha,” He looked straight into her eyes with a numb expression.

“Yes,” she smiled sadly; “I’m here.”

Tears had dried upon his face. It seemed as if a thousand knives were piercing his soul. "I....I have....." Penetrating her with his deep brown eyes, he whispered,


 "I've sinned..."

  

To Be Continued…..