Disguise

                              

It has been more than a year since my last post on the blog, I was thinking of a new post when during one of my hard disk clean up expedition I came across the first story I ever wrote, I thought it would be fun to share it. This was the first thing I ever wrote in my life, it would be unfair to call it a story I would rather term it as an experience.

                              

It’s a not a story but a very queer incident, whoever heard of it just laughed it off saying it to be a piece of my vivid imagination. It’s hard to convince them but I leave it to you to decide whether it was a dream or a disguise.

It was a typical December night – dark, cold and shivering. My parents were out of town to attend a cousin’s wedding leaving me with something I had long desired – ‘freedom’ and in that spirit of freedom I decided to watch a late night movie show.

It was probably half past midnight when the show got over, transport generally is hard to find on such lonely winter nights in Delhi and it’s harder when you have just a few bucks in your pocket.

Cash strapped, I thought it was better to walk rather than wait for a rickshaw to have some mercy on me.

I had been walking on this road since the time I could remember but today seemed a little different. There was something eerie about the road, as if something in the dark was looking at me, watching my every step. Maybe this is how the mind plays its games when you watch a horror movie late in the night and then decide to take the walk back home on a deserted road.

I reached home safely, the clock struck one the moment I locked the door. There was a power cut, having nothing better to do I decided to go to bed. I don’t know when I dozed off but the cranky door bell of my home screeched like a mad maniac waking me up from my slumber.

I groaned, I cursed, I shouted but the bell didn’t give up finally, half asleep, half naked I went to the door.

I opened the door to find my mother standing with her bag in her hand and the usual ‘frown’ on her face, “What took you so long?”, she grumbled and came inside.  

My first reaction was ‘Shit!!! no more night outs’ but then I realized that the wedding my parents had gone to attend was supposed to be the next day. Bewildered, I asked her about it, she said it had been postponed and dad had to stay back to finish some ‘business’. Before I could say anything else, she asked me if there was any food in the house, there was some pizza in the microwave and I offered her that, knowing very well that I would get the ‘stop eating junk’ remark.

Thankfully, there was nothing that came off her mouth other than the burp which would be expected after the two slices she finished in a couple of minutes.

If you ever meet my mother you would know that you can probably stop time but not her questions but that was not the case tonight, she was in her own world and seemed extremely tired and exhausted. I asked her to get some sleep so that I could also get mine, we said good night and went to our rooms.

I woke up at about ten the next day, we still didn’t have the power back. I went out of the room to see if mother had prepared the breakfast or now but there was no one there, I checked my parents room as well which too was empty.

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The phone rang then, my mother was on the other side. I asked her where was she and why did she leave without informing me. There was a pause and then she snapped if was still asleep or just day dreaming. I told her the whole story, she did not believe me just asked me to stop watching the shows that are meddling up my mind. I was confused, I argued but all I got back was how such shows and movies affect you when you are alone in the house.

I was starting to go with my mother’s version of the whole incident when my eyes wandered to the dining table, the empty plates of pizza from last night were still lying there and I thought if I was day dreaming then who ate the Pizza ……….