Till The Count Of Five ✓

Chapter 34

Chapter 34

The beads rest against my skin but I'd very much like to see them around yours while you ruffled my hair and pinched my cheeks.

Vee

11th May 2019, Saturday
7:00

I stepped into the house, feeling satisfied from the full ache in my muscles. The light headedness I felt on my way out was long gone.

"What are you smiling at?" Mummy asked.

I shut the door. "Nothing." The smell of the breakfast hit my nostrils and I raised an eyebrow at the table. "Isn't it too early for breakfast?"

"Wasn't it too late for a run?" she replied, arranging the dishes.

I grunted and picked up a piece of cucumber. When I looked up, she stared at me with horrified eyes and a scrunched up nose.

"I washed my hands outside from the tap," I protested.

She mumbled something and I shook my head, proceeding to sit down. Nothing was going to spoil my mood today. Nothing was capable of doing that. After spilling my guts out to Shay, I slept like a baby. No nightmares, no Ashiamma, no Shay pointing at Ashiamma's face, no dragons; nothing but complete darkness. No whites.

"Where's Papa?" I asked. I did not see his car outside.

"Getting ready. Why? Not in the mood to continue last night's conversation?" She sat opposite me.

I paused. "No."

She intertwined her fingers and stared at me with that glint in her eyes. They shared everything. He'd go to her and talk about me. She'd call him and talk about me. Both of them would never talk to me together. It was like, you do it. Then, I'll do it.

"Do you know what's today?" she asked.

"Saturday," I deliberately said, staring at my plate.

"It's been one month."

A corner of my mouth lifted. Just one month? With everything going on, it felt like at least three months. "I think about her everyday, Mummy. One month or one year, it doesn't matter to me. I didn't count before when I could see her, I'm not counting now when I don't see her."

"You do," she said with a smile. "You do when you shut your eyes, or when you take her name. You see her, Vicky. You just don't know which version you see."

"The version that's either a memory or a dream." I looked around the table. "Is there a chance that I can escape Papa?"

She hummed at the same time when he chose to make an appearance. I snickered into my cup. "Of course. Just my luck."

Mummy laughed and got up to refill her cup. Papa stopped at the table and gave us queer glance.

"Good Morning," I said when he looked at me.

His eyebrows rose further. "Is he fine?" he said to Mummy and touched my forehead. I moved back, shoving his hand aside. He nodded, "He's fine."

When he sat down, he placed a file at the table. "In thirteen months, you'll be going to college. That's the logistics of the company. Understand it and explain to me later."

I gave him a flat look. "Thirteen months are not thirteen days. I have a year."

He adjusted his tie and snapped his fingers. "And it'll fly by like this." His gaze met mine. "Just like this month."

"How's Hardik?" Mummy said, coming back to the table.

"I'll do it," I said to Papa. "Hardik's fine."

It just reminded me how off our friendship had become. When was the last time we sat and talked about us than everyone else? It was either Ashiamma or Mehak or something else. I sighed and decided to utilize today to talk to him, but only after talking to Shay, face to face. And then, Junior. I decided then, if I had to do something great today, I'd mend us.

"Do it till evening," Papa said.

I took a bit out of my sandwich. "Tomorrow morning, eight o'clock sharp."

He shrugged. "How good are you at designing?"

I raised an eyebrow.

"That warehouse says a lot," he said.

I looked around the house for Raj. "Where's that detective of yours?"

"Fetching newspaper," Mummy said. "Aren't you going to pay her respect?"

Both Papa and I stopped eating. "You won't just drop it, would you?" I wiped my mouth. "I thought we're supposed to let go of people who're gone. Why pull them again in the mortal world?"

"Remembering someone does not mean pulling them back to life. If you moan and complain, you're not giving them peace. If you thank them for the moments they shared, you give them something good to take along."

"What about them?" I looked up at her. "Should she have not given us something to hang on to?"

"She gave you a friend."

And took that away.

"Where did this philosophy come from?" Papa asked.

She tapped him on the head. "Where did those craters come from when I sent them away?"

He grunted and stuffed his mouth.

Raj walked in, newspaper tucked under his arm. The colourful beads in his hand reflected the Sun rays. "This was outside the house."

"Didn't you come from outside?" Mummy asked.

I nodded and got up. This was Shay's wristband, but not the one I had. I remembered those vibrant colours. These were subtle shades. The three of them eyed me as I took it from his grasp.

"Were they just lying outside?" I asked.

"In the mailbox."

7:45

I waited outside Shay's house, debating if I should knock or not. It was then I saw the car, the police officer Kamal Singh in the passenger's seat. They didn't drive past me. They stopped right in front of the house.

"Good Morning, Vicky," he said, getting out. "Is anyone home?"

As I stared at his grim expression and Roy's absence, I felt this was far from a good morning. "I don't know. I wanted to talk to Shay."

He inhaled sharply. "Did you talk to her yesterday?"

"Yes, last night." I pulled out the wristband from my pocket. "This was in my mailbox. I am surprised she dropped by my house this early."

He gulped and stared at the beads. "Last night, she dropped it last night."