The Night

by Jenani Srikanth

[box]A bad day and a painful night – unanswered calls, longing for a friend. Here’s a story on friendship by Jenani Srikanth.[/box]

She had had a really bad day. She came back home, worn-out, depressed and angry with the world. After a half-hearted dinner, her bones begged her to hit that comfortable feather bed. But her mind refused to sleep. She dwelt uncomfortably on the day’s events, recalling that angry voice, her mother’s tears and her total helplessness. She twisted and turned for what seemed like hours, but sleep evaded her. She finally decided that he was her only resort. His consoling words, his soothing voice, his encouragement – they were all that she craved for at that moment. She had spoken to him only once that week. It seemed like so long ago just when the troubles were beginning to surface.

She clearly remembered that Monday evening, when she was just back from a client meeting that had gone bad and he had called. That was the last time they had spoken to each other and much had happened after that. That Monday she had said a fateful ‘NO’ on her mobile in answer to his invitation to attend his graduation ceremony and almost cried into the phone that he never understood her and took her for granted. Ultimately, she had cut the call even as he was hanging on. Although he had informed her about the ceremony much earlier and she realized that it was her mistake to act the way she had just done, she could only blame her circumstances for the way things went during that conversation. All her attempts to get in touch with him post a self-introspective session went unanswered, except for one message that said, ‘DON’T COME.’.

She had known him for 17 years now. She couldn’t help smiling even in those tough times as she thought about the first time they met as neighbours, joined the same school, played together and loved each other’s family as their own. It was a huge blow to their happy times when his parents died in a car accident. Depressed with the haunting memories of his loving parents, he went on to live with his grandparents in another city. But they had stayed in touch constantly through letters and phone calls and rare visits and it was the sort of relationship that blossomed on the strength of words written and spoken. Ink and voices, that’s what it had been all about.

And now, what had she done? A burst of anger and he had gone out of touch. It was true that she was the only person left to see him graduating. She knew very well that he was thoroughly disappointed. But why didn’t he understand? Did all these years of friendship amount to only this much of understanding or lack of it, so to speak? Thoughts raced inside her head like sharp currents in water.

She suddenly jerked out of her thoughts and hurried out of bed and almost ran to the telephone. She dialed his number and waited to hear his voice again after that Monday.

A ring, two rings, three rings; she let it ring on; but the sleepy “hello” she expected never came. He must’ve slept, thought she. But that didn’t put her off from trying again and again and again.

As she waited endlessly for him to answer her call, the day’s happenings came back to her more strongly than ever. She had gotten herself into a nasty mess of sexual harassment with her superior; one that, at its worst, could spoil her reputation completely. If only she hadn’t attended that office party the other night and got drunk uncontrollably! She had gotten so high and lost control that she had moved closely with her not-so-good boss who now wanted more from her. She cursed herself for her senselessness when he showed the clearly recorded version of her antics that night on his goddamned mobile phone. Emotional blackmail at its peak. But what angered her more was that people whom she thought were friends didn’t help her when she asked them to and didn’t even bother to console her for fear of attracting unnecessary trouble from a superior. She felt betrayed. Their true colors had been exposed at the time of adversity and betrayal is something the human mind does not accept easily. As these thoughts ran through her, she grew angry and helpless all the same.

How could he sleep peacefully while his best friend lay sleepless? She kept trying. She was desperate to hear his voice – that was her only medicine now.

Medicine… ah! How that word haunted her. Even as she had entered the house back in the evening, her father had complained that mom wasn’t well. She had taken her mom to the hospital and had waded through many streets and many more shops, before she found the right medicine. Her mom had had two attacks already. She was worried and sick.

Still, he didn’t pick up. Now she was really angry with him. She was his best friend!! How could he do this to her? How could he sleep, when she was so miserable? After all this trouble, now her best friend had turned his back on her. It was true that they had had some petty, unreasonable arguments but she thought he wouldn’t let it injure their years of friendship and would forgive her. This was too much for her poor self to take. It was almost midnight. She decided to call him one last time. She dialed and let it ring twelve times before hanging up.

She suddenly hated him like never before. How could he?

He had let her down when she needed him the most. As she cried herself into an uneasy dream, every tear that fell on her pillow, told them how she missed him that night.

Pic : th.omas – http://www.flickr.com/photos/carve/

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