As days went by Haffy slowly turned to be disciplined and an obedient pet. He simply hanged around Annie.
When it rained and flooded now Haffy too accompanied Annie, while she trailed along the trees. In her land people depended less on technology and more on nature, Gadgets such as radio, television or even computers were unknown to them.
The Tribal community lived deep inside the forests. They lead a strange life and had strange abilities too. Skilled people can even communicate among themselves through telepathic waves.
*Telepathy – the capability to communicate directly by psychic means; the sympathetic affection of one mind by the thoughts, feelings or emotions of another at a distance, without communication through the ordinary channels of sensations.
For them thus the concept of telephone itself is outdated. They lived with nature some can even read minds of plants and animals. They worked, not for any financial benefit but for conserving the nature around them.
Natural calamities such as floods, earthquakes, landslides and even volcanic eruptions were common in their land. Annie’s parents and others mostly spend time in preserving and protecting their environment. There, kids like Annie were send to schools not to secure jobs for their future but to learn tricks and tactics needed to secure the life around them.
Food, clothes or money made no differences in their life. In fact they never had seen or used money to purchase any artifacts. They lead a simple and natural life, where sickness was also curved with traditional remedies.
When hungry, they simply ate fruits and flowers seen around them. When felt cold they used clothes, made out of natural hemps. They worshipped none so festivals were based on the breeding season exhibited by prolific plants and animals.
The concept of ‘God’ had never existed among them except for Annie.
Annie had learned a lot from Hannah they have been sharing information’s for the long time.
The strangeness in each other’s world had actually made them attracted to each other in the first place.
Annie happen to know more about computers, calculators and all those stuffs from Hannah. And Hannah had practiced a bit telepathic communications with few plants. Hannah had started to get connected with few plants too. She managed to co-ordinate the growth of few creepers. But after her drowning incident with the blue herons. Hannah thought of getting telepathically connected at least with one of those birds. Not only Hannah but Annie too had tried to search her friend. But with her limited abilities due to her younger age, she could not hunt Hannah, from anywhere out of her land. May be she too needed to step out of her present world in order to make a contact with Hannah.
With her talking pet ‘Haffy’, recently only Annie had realized that she too had managed to communicate with an animal.
Annie too had touched her teenage.
In their world they celebrated a mating season called ‘Ina’. Married or unmarried whatever it be, People who wanted to get mated or get settled in a Wedlock, or wanted a new relationship, met during this season only.
There, relationships are not marked or considered as a moral taboo for the society. A couple is formed only with the mutual consent of the benefitting partners in it. No parents or any kind of religious affairs, ever got in its way.
How long they stayed in a relationship? That is also an individual’s choice.
If this was the case with our known society, then marriages will never happen or no man would trust a woman and vice versa.
Even with this much freedom given in their community little or no cases of abandoning, rape or ditching happened in their clan.
People were sensible enough to, not to hurt anyone’s feeling or not to gamble with anyone’s free will. Such strong minds they benefitted from such opened up courting relationships.
When people are completely devoted to the nature, where is the time for the couple fight, cheating or petty divorces. So there is no chance for pre, post or present extra marital affairs. When the mind is connected, body contact does not matter. This fact is missing in Hannah’s fuzzy and busy world.
As per her tribal rules, Annie is old enough to make a visit to the mating grounds. But she felt odd. She felt the company of her chimp, Bird, fruits and flowers around her more soothing than to get involve with someone of the opposite sex. Anyway her friend is planning to make a visit to the mating grounds this mating season, which is only few months away.
Annie had grown up seeing her parents love, she had always imagined for a mate, who can love her more than her parents. But she wanted to stay independent, which is also allowed in her world.
“Relationships are never to be forced.” They believed.
“So what’s with this Siyad?” Annie asked Hannah
“What? Nothing.” She replied irritatingly.
“Look, in your world. You can select your mate, whenever you wish you don’t have to wait for any season.”
“Cut the crap Annie. I only went behind him for contacting you.”
“For me! How?”
“Look, do you remember that silver chain?”
“Oh no, you are still behind it.”
“Just shut up and listen Annie. It has got a GPS tracking device attached to it. Do you remember, the last time where we had it?”
Annie tried to remember, so Hannah continued
“After our lasting meeting, the chain got missing. So I searched for it, all over my home. And I think that I had left it in our last meeting place itself. Which must be probably in your world. Hope if Siyad or Adam could track it, then Annie I could find you.”
Annie’s eyes sparkled with happiness.
“Oh….. Hannah, Is that, why you were after Siyad?”
“It may sound foolish, but yes….. Honey”
“You brainy.” Annie hugged her fondly.
“But?”
“But what?” Annie got confused.
“I don’t feel like asking any more favour out of him?” Hannah looked down.
“Is it because he insulted you? Or is it because he is too close with Syrene?”
“Annie, you stupid. You haven’t even felt or seen a proper man. Them how the hell you suggest love and jealousy?”
“Haha…….. I am a female too and my dear, I never mentioned the word love or jealous. You did that sweet heart”.
Hannah sat rapt.
“But Hannah, do you think that the places we meet in our dreams are real? And is it possible for things like a silver chain to move on between our dream worlds?”
“I don’t know Annie.” Hannah said no more.
……………….
“Hi”
When Adam opened, the door of his work place. He saw Hannah waving a ‘Hi’ at him.
“What a pleasant surprise Hannah? Please do come in”. Adam acted politely.
Their office was large enough to manage an office table and two chairs. The room was highly disoriented. Papers, files and cans of sodas all seen scattered all over the place. One could also see remains of food wasted here and there, except inside the dustbin.
“Wow, what a lovely office.” Hannah mocked.
“Thank you.” Adam politely accepted her joke.
Inside that congested space, it had a wall mounted with LED flat screening TV, speakers and a play station. It looked more like boy’s room than an office space.
“Oh I though, you were rich.”
“Take a seat, if you can find one.” He smiled and offered.
“No thanks.” Hannah looked at the chair, which was already piled up with magazines and empty pizza packets.
“This is not our main office, just our Hide out.” Adam added.
Hannah then only thought of Siyad’s presence in and around that office.
Hopefully Siyad was nowhere to be seen.
“So why you came?”
“Nothing, just a friendly visit.” Hannah somehow felt discomfort in opening up her mind to him.
“How about a coffee Adam?”
“Sorry we don’t have a vending machine here.”
“Its’ okay, let’s go out.” She invited him.
Adam guessed that Hannah has got some real reason behind her visit.
“Okay then let me lock the room.”
Adam and Hannah were about to leave the building then Siyad suddenly appeared before them.
“Awkward.” He spelt at their sight.
“Hi Siyad, we were going out for a coffee. Care to join us.”
“Oh no need. He might be busy.” Hannah really wanted to act out her hatred towards him for some unknown reason.
“Please take the lady Adam. I don’t wish to come in between you guys. Adam give me the keys.” Siyad said that with an attitude.
Adam handed him their office key. Clearly Siyad felt bad at Hannah’s insult.
Minutes later Hannah and Adam sat opposite to each other around the coffee table.
“So what’s up?” He began the conversation.
“Two coffees. I guess.” She said
“Oh I forgot, we are here for the coffee.” Adam smiled
“Make that three.” Siyad purposefully joined the pack.
Hannah really wanted to avoid his presence, but he intentionally broke in.
“So what’s up?” Now Siyad asked.
“I guess 3 coffees.” Adam replied.
Hannah felt restless, but she knew that Adam cannot be dealt alone. Siyad would certainly jump in. So she slowly started.
“How is Maria?”
“She is fine. You want to see her?” Adam asked “Wait a second. I will video call her now”.
Hannah saw Maria through the screen. They exchange love and naughtiness. Siyad was silently observing Hannah. He knew that it’s not for Maria that she came in search of Adam. It’s something else. Her eyes are hiding a mystery. When the call went dead. Hannah said.
“Thank you Adam, now I will leave.”
“Okay then.” Adam smiled.
“Mind if I ride you back to your home?” Siyad offered.
“I will walk.”
“Please. I need to see your Mom.” Siyad insisted.
Adam smiled and waved them bye.
……
They were silent, finally he had to break it
“Hannah, what’s disturbing you?”
“Me? Nothing.”
“Please spill it.”
After a pause she said.
“Siyad … that chain, you gave me I lost it.”
“So……. You want a new one?”
“Actually Siyad. … You said it had a GPS tracker in it.”
“Yes.”
“Then could you just track its present location for me.”
“Why Hannah?”
Then suddenly Syrene’s call broke in. Hannah who was about to confess her secrets to Siyad now within a jiff blocked her speech.
Siyad somehow felt discomfort so he disconnected her call and he switched his mobile off.
“Why did you do that?”
“Because you were talking something serious”.
“Oh it’s nothing important, you please.”
“Hannah……. Please continue”. His voice was firm.
“I think it’s with my friend”.
“Friend?”
“Yes…..Annie.”
“Annie!” He remembered Hannah calling her name out during that night. So he became more curious.
“Siyad. It’s….” Hannah wanted to explain but, she thought that he might consider her insane. “It’s my childhood friend. She lives somewhere near my apartment.”
It took few seconds for Hannah to cook up a story about Annie in order to convince Siyad.
“We use to chat on our way to and fro from the school. She… She liked that chain. So I gifted her with it. Then….Then for the last few days she was not seen anywhere.”
“Missing. I guess.”
Siyad observed Hannah closely, her words were twitching, eyes were wandering away from his face, sweating and was biting her nails. Siyad somehow felt that Hannah is bluffing.
“Hannah, where does she lives exactly.”
“That….I don’t know. I only met her in the streets.”
“Who all are there in her home?”
“Parents, Haffy and Kit.”
“Kit?”
“Her pet bird.”
“And Haffy?”
“Her Chimp… her little brother”
He gave her a suspicious look.
“Parents, what do they do?”
“Work.”
“I know work. What kind of work?”
“Ecologist”
“Ecologist?”
“They love nature… I guess.”
Siyad now knew, that Hannah is hiding something.
“Look, it is easy to locate them. I know all organizations and research centers connected with Ecology. Give me her residential whereabouts. I just need my laptop to find this Annie’s house. We will contact her parents directly.” He commended casually.
Hannah now really had landed in trouble.
“I…I don’t wanna meet her parents, I just want to locate her present location using that GPS tracker.” Hannah finally managed to open up her intentions.
“Are you spying on her?” He tried to tease her.
Hannah had now lost all her confidence. She completely turned restless.
“Cooking up stories can certainly get her into more trouble only. Especially when you are dealing with smart guys like Siyad.” She thought.
“Stop.” she just shouted. He automatically hit on the brakes. She just opened the door and stepped out of his car.
“Siyad, I was just testing your wits. There is no such girl called Annie. I just lost your silver chain so I thought of fooling you with a foolish story. Kindly forget it.” Without giving an opportunity for Siyad to speak Hannah just walked away.
The traffic had stopped him from going behind her. Anyway Siyad had set his mind to find ‘who this Annie is?’
After all she is a mystery to him.
