death of a soul...

‘Can I have one more chapatti?’ he asked touching his popping out belly. Every eye in the house stoned, they had only two of them and it had already disappeared in his giant mouth. The head of family came ahead, joint his palms and said, ‘sir, no more chapatti’s left today, please come by tomorrow and we will prepare something good’

‘Oh, no issues, anyway my wife had also made some food at home, if I eat too much here, then those will have to be fed to dogs’ he said, stood up and started walking towards the door, he followed.

‘Sir, my loan…’

‘Don’t worry, I will pay the loan amount for you, just don’t forget what you have to do in return’ he said and left.

Inside the house he saw his wife tearing off a chapatti in three and giving each to his children. He almost ran towards her and slapped hard on her face.

‘You said there was no more chapatti’s, he is the one who is going to pay my…’ he left the sentence incomplete.

‘My children are dying of hunger’ she said and started crying on their fate. Two of the three children also started crying seeing their mother cry. Only the elder daughter sat there eating his part, a sign which shows people tend to get used to with time.

Morning, she was standing in front of the same guy, her husband used to call ‘sir’, he has given the amount for the bamboo and assured to give the rest of amount which is required for cremation. People are pulling his body from the tree in the backyard, which was hung whole night. She was not crying, but looking at the children who were helping others in making bamboo bed, which is going to carry their father’s body.

The man said, looking into her eyes, ‘don’t worry, I am still alive, I will pay the loan amount for you, just don’t forget what you have to do in return’

She was left there, standing alone, lost…