Should i love or should i run?

One last day

All of a sudden I was on the other side of the river. I don't even know when did I introduce siri and madhu to each other, but three of us were standing on the other side of the river. In addition to that, sun is almost setting and it's already dusk.

I don't know why and how we got there, It must be perky's weird adventure idea. The surroundings were filled with dense fog, I could barely see few trees peeking out from the fog. The environment was spooky as it can get.

*dogs howling in background*

My heart started thumping and I recalled every line Madhu has spoken about evil spirits the other day.

while I was involved in thoughts..a hand from fog tapped my shoulder from behind.

My heart skipped a beat..I was about to scream but then as the fog cleared I realized that she was siri.

" Anish! I'm very much afraid now!! please get me out somehow..." trembled her voice in fear.

Madhu : "lets quickly get back to the bridge! I hope the bridge gate is not yet closed"

We started running towards the bridge, I held siri's hand so tight. I was afraid I might lose her in here. Madhu held my hand.

By the time we reached, the gate was already closed. There is not a soul in sight who could hear us. 

 Siri : "I know another route to get back into village, but we will have to walk a mile"

Madhu: "walk..? we'd better run for life.."

Three of us walked towards the alternative route. The denser fog then seemed to have cleared off as a heavy breeze blew, everything about the night under crescent is telling us to run for life. Soon, we were almost half way through. Then we could hear an echo of a deep women voice.

"Come here...."

"Cooomeeee hereeee....."

The voice became louder and louder as we walked forward, at one point the sound was loud enough that it seemed someone was screaming from beside. We turned towards our right to see what was a threatening, spine-chilling, blood-curdling scene. A woman in complete white was hanging to a tree branch upside down, her flaming red eyes looking straight onto us.

That's it, we ran with all our might. Far away a fire could be seen, we hopefully thought that there could be some human who can help us out. We ran towards the fire like a "moth attracted to the light" only to find the same scary woman(ghost) guarding the fire.

The blood-thirsty ghost headed straight to me....

"Wake up now! we are leaving today! pack your bags.." said my mother trying to wake me up. I breathed a sigh of relief, all that has happened was just a dream. 

But the thought that the 9-day festival is completed, left me with a unique feeling of getting lost. I can no more see her, i can no more touch her, i can no more talk to her(we didn't had mobile phones back then.)

That evening i packed all my things and ran to our meeting spot just in hope that she might come earlier and we can have one last longer conversation. I somehow got connected to these surroundings, i got habituated to sitting at this place every evening, i got used to watching the sunset here, and above all i will miss her a lot.

She finally came there, tears rolled down my eyes after seeing her.

"Aren't you a baby! don't cry..." She wiped my tears.

" Farther we are, nearer are our hearts." She said that she can wait for me forever and nothing can part us, not at least the distance. She gave me the mud-pot we prepared at her friend's house. " Hold this, take good care of this...whenever you feel like you are missing me, stare at it and believe I'm beside you.."

That evening I hugged her for one last time, promised her that I will be back next year, and left for the railway station. That night in the train I recalled every memory the vacation has given to me starting from the day I first saw her to the day I kissed her, I smiled to myself like an idiot,  and now bidding farewell to Ramachandra Puram left a lump in my throat.