The Walk I Had

The Walk I Had

I was gazing complacently at the vivid blue sky with small pieces of cushion like clouds floating over the horizon with glee and bliss. The lush green trees fluttering soothingly along with the mild, solacing breezes seemed as if they were chortling out and proclaiming with utmost happiness that spring has arrived. The snug temperature outside was just endeavouring to attract every soul sealed in their abodes towards itself. I have always had an imaginative mind- creating things that are not anywhere near veracity and reality, like trees having eyes and bushes having ears, and people actually flying after jumping from tall trees, but my English was so poor that even though I desired vehemently to become a writer, I was unable to. But yes, I always have that imaginative thing.

I had solemnly pledged to myself that I would start going to walk from the first day of spring and now, it was here. Although the trait of procrastination always stops me from executing any promise, this was the first time, I hadn’t felt that second mind talking to me and telling me that you have many other significant jobs other than this rubbish walking business. “It’s well and good, spring’s here but…”, I sighed, “the same problem- what time shall I go to walking”. “It’s better to do it in the morning when the mist flees with the reproach of the dazzling and potent sunlight”, one part of my brain suggested. “But you know, you can’t wake up at an early hour, that’s the truth”, that voice within me continued most eloquently, “You can do it in the evening or night after your meal”. Well, I pondered over the ideas; the first one was better and more virtuous but far from practicality, the second one was very friendly and more suitable, though it was at a bit odd time. After thinking for a while I thought, “It’s best to do in the evening”.

The house where I reside has just one lone voice and one solitude figure of a lean man, that is, me. The evening was the most enchanting one. The mellifluous sounds of the crickets and the dark sky with gleaming stars patched into it and a well round moon standing out as a king, was just nectar to eyes. I had my meal early that day for I was, for the very first time in my life, determined to accomplish my pledge. After my meal, I enrobed myself with sweat-free outfit, wore the fastrack reflex band watch, and put on my reebok running shoes and out I went. It was particularly pleasing to inhale the fresh, cherishing air of the spring and walk slowly in the arms of nature. The cwtch of the nature was unboundedly contending. There is a walking track nearby my residence, built specifically for this purpose. Well, I had driven past that track more often than to say ‘enough’, but never did I see it more deserted than that day. Peculiarly, not a single walking man was to be seen anywhere but this peculiarity of the situation didn’t cease me mid-way. “The people must have known that I was coming today”, I said jokingly as I put my headphones on. There was something queer-very queer about it; I could feel it. I had walked just a couple of steps when the sound from the headphones ceased to come. The music player in my mobile phone was still playing but the headphone-oh!- It wasn’t producing any sound. I hit it with the flat of my palm once or twice but in vain. Well then, I put the headphones on again- just for style now. Suddenly, some utmost scary and eerie sounds began to hit my eardrums. Those were very queer, strange sounds like Won! And like the crashing of something. It made me feel significantly uneasy; those frightening sounds made my blood run cold. I disconnected the headphone from my mobile phone but still it continued to play; now that was daunting. How can the sound come without any source! I was trembling and shuddering, the blood circulation was disrupted, my hands were white and my profile had turned totally pale. With my quivering hands and gasping breaths, I removed the SIM and even the battery from my mobile phone but nothing for the better happened. Now, the whole situation altered; the same sky seemed pitch dark and wan to me. The same trees seemed like witches and wizards glaring at me with shrewd eyes. The deserted road gave me an ominous and portentous kind of eerie feeling. I drew a profound breath and muttered to myself, “It’s all your imagination, everything’s all right and perfectly fine. The headphone must have cracked inside”, but as I said this, I felt a distinctive feeling that someone was behind me- a menace. My breath wasn’t able to free itself from the curb of my lungs; I hadn’t got the least courage of turning behind. I gradually started walking again. But I could vividly hear two footfalls, one of mine but there was surely someone behind me-surely. I endeavoured to ignore those frightening treads behind me, but those were like that music that irritates you when you lie on your bed, trying to sleep. Then, suddenly and most strangely enough, there was a hush in the bushes on the right of me. In the darkness, those black leaves swiftly reeled. “Ahhh!”, I almost shrieked but ceased midway as I saw a squirrel emerge from it. Well, fortuitously, after this incident, those eerie footfalls of an elusive person stopped. Half-way between relief and tension, I sat on a wooden bench beneath a huge tree. I was inspecting my headphones meticulously when a woman sat beside me on it. I didn’t glance up at her but from the rightest side of the vision of my eyes, I saw that she was staring at me constantly. I looked upon her countenance; she was extremely beautiful, her big, dreamy eyes looked like cheery beans on the topping of a cake. Her cheeks were tender pink with the soft appearance of a damsel’s innocuousness. Her enchanting locks falling on her small and white temples were just worth of a bodacious compliment. “Hello”, she said readily as I put my glance upon her luscious profile. “Hello”, I responded. “My name is Radhika; I live nearby in the professional flats”, she said delightfully, “Good”, I continued, “My name is Vatsal, Vatsal Shrivastava; well, I live in the KF-4 flats over that side”, I pointed towards the back. “Great, we are neighbours!”, she said sprightly. Although her grin was ameliorating my fear, I still distinctly felt that shudder. I ought to tell her about the incidents- but how? Will I not sound absurd? I better not tell her. The thoughts constantly whirled in my mind. She was very talkative and was all the while telling me about her origin and how did she struggle to get into the position in which she was now. I was pretending to listen conscientiously but I wasn’t at all following her words. “Quite peculiar, no one today on this track; it remains filled with people walking briskly up and down, isn’t it?”, I said. “Yes, this is queer”, she replied. “But all the same, I believe this is sheer coincidence, or maybe the coldness today might have kept people within their abodes”. “Maybe-but it’s queer”, I replied. “Would you like to have a cup of tea at my residence”, she asked most pleasingly. Well, I am not acquainted to saying ‘no’ so straightforward, but the tenderness and the innocence in her tone and the innocuous desire in her eyes urged me to say ‘Yes’.  We walked talking vaguely about world affairs and about the temperament of nature during the enchanting season of Spring. After walking for five to ten minutes, we reached her abode. It was a fantastic one just like her. The articles in her house were very well arranged and beautifully decorated. But its smell was utterly queer-smelling akin rotten meat or something sort of that. “Well, green tea or milk tea”, she asked as she walked along to the kitchen. “A milk tea would do”, I answered. I sat comforted at the dining table whose wooden lustre made me think strongly of my grandparent’s table. No audible sounds seemed to evolve from the kitchen except the faint crackling sounds of crockeries turning and clashing against each other were heard. Soon, the tempting aroma of the tea meandered up to my nose. It smelled so great and delicious that I couldn’t help sniffing at it like a dog. Few minutes later, she emerged from the kitchen with a tray held carefully in her hand. On it were two large cups beautified in ancient design. I sipped through the tea courteously and glanced at her abode-a modest yet queer one with hardly any pieces of luxury or indulgence. There was no television, no paintings, no artefacts and even no clock. On the wall to the right of me, there was a frame which had a crème white sheet within it. I concentrated my eyes to perceive what was written on it. There was a list with several names on it and alongside it were stated their blood groups. “Must be a doctor, she”, I thought to myself. But though I was hardly dubious that she wasn’t a doctor, I confirmed it, “Oh, so I see you are a doctor, that’s why that”. She held the cup down from her face and suddenly I felt the sinister travelling up to me. “No, it’s the names of those people that I have eaten yet; and you are the next”.