Chapter 6

Blast!

Fire and bright light exploded everywhere.

Vinod could barely see. Everything was blurry. He was on the ground, so he could only see the leaves of a tree, as if looking up from its base. Smoke from the burning fire surrounded him. He tried to get up but was hit by a sudden, intense pain throughout his body. He looked at himself. Both his legs were shattered, useless. One arm was broken, the other bleeding. His own blood pooled around him. The significant blood loss was why everything seemed so blurry. He looked around. A little distance away, his friend Ramana lay face down, seemingly flung far by the blast. The fabric near his legs was torn, and a trail of blood suggested he had been dragged. Vinod had a similar trail, meaning Ramana must have dragged him to safety before losing consciousness himself.

Vinod: Ramana, hey! Wake up! Please, man. Why didn't you just leave me, a dying man? Why did you save me?

Vinod tried to shake Ramana awake. Ramana stirred.

Ramana: Ahh, ahha (shocked and unconsciously). You finally woke up.

Vinod: Ramana, why didn't you just leave me? I'm going to die anyway.

Ramana: How can you tell me to leave you? You're my friend, man. At least I had to save you. I couldn't save Shanmuk anyway. I thought I could at least save you, but that didn't work out either.

Vinod: Ramana, don't say that. It's never too late. You go. I'll make it out somehow.

Ramana: No, man, even if I wanted to go, I can't. I feel like these are my final moments. Anyway, dying with you has a different kind of fun.

Vinod: Ramana, stop it, man!

Ramana: Anyway, this is all my fault, right? I got into this, and then I dragged you guys in too. You trusted me and came, giving up your own happiness.

Vinod: Ramana, I don't even remember all that.

Ramana: Vinod, if I hadn't joined this, we could have finished our studies properly, met up in the evenings, drunk together, and enjoyed ourselves, right?

Vinod: Ramana, shut up, man! Why all this now?

Ramana: It's been a long time since we sat under this tree and chatted, hasn't it?

Vinod: Ramana, listen to me and go! Ramana... hey... Ramana...

Ramana stopped moving. He was bleeding too much. He couldn't stay awake much longer.

Vinod: Ramana! Hey, Ramana! Wake up! Heyy... Ramana...

Ramana's silence filled Vinod with profound sadness and disbelief.

Vinod's inner voice: Did I ever truly spend time with him or talk to him heart-to-heart? As boys, they usually prefer enjoying themselves rather than talking deeply. That's why I didn't know who he really was until he told me. I didn't even know what he liked or disliked. I was never able to share anything with him.

Vinod: Ramana, I honestly didn't know how much you cared about me before. I didn't even know you liked sitting under a tree and chatting. I thought you had a lot of knowledge about life because you always lectured me, but I didn't know how many wishes and sorrows you kept hidden inside. I only found out because you told me, but with Shanmuk, even that wasn't possible. I want to change everything. I want to undo all of it. I want to spend time with all of you again. I'm just now realizing what I've missed for so many days. Let's drink together. Let's spend time. Let's sit under a tree and talk endlessly.

Even if I don't know what's real and what's fake, I wish this, at least, were false.

Tears streamed down Vinod's face. It was incredibly painful to understand a good friend only after he had died.

The thumping sound of metal boots. The sound of many people approaching. One of the army members stood in front of Vinod and pointed a gun at him. The army personnel's faces were covered by masks and goggles. Their expressions were unreadable.

Vinod pleaded with them: "Sir, please, sir! Save Ramana! If you treat him, he'll live. He won't do this work again. Please, save him!"

The army person near Ramana shot Ramana. The army wanted everyone dead.

Vinod screamed at the army man: "Hey! Sir, he's alive! Please, sir! Kill me instead! Please, save him!"

The army person in front of Vinod continued to stand there, pointing his gun at Vinod.

Gunfire sound...

Tap! Tap! Tap!

Heavy breath... Vinod wakes up. Vinod found himself again lying in a sea of blood, where the water level was very high, meaning it was very shallow. He seemed to have swallowed some of the water. He coughed and coughed as he sat up. The sudden waking and the sudden shooting left Vinod disoriented and anxious.

A giant spider stared at Vinod. The spider was enormous. It resembled a round cave. Its shadow covered Vinod.

Spider saliva dropped onto Vinod's face. The spider suddenly shrieked and lunged towards Vinod's face as if to devour him.

Vinod woke up again.

Vinod's inner voice: Enough. This dream is enough. I can't endure this anymore. Please, someone end this dream.

Pooja came and placed an ice cream cone in Vinod's hand, then sat next to him with one of her own.

Vinod: What's this?

Pooja: Ice cream. You told me to buy it, remember? Look, I brought your favorite vanilla flavor. Don't you like it?

Vinod: N-no, it's not that. I'm just not in the mood to eat right now.

Pooja: Okay, then just hold it for a bit. I'll eat it.

Vinod: Shall we go somewhere else? It feels a little strange here.

Pooja: The rain doesn't seem like it's going to stop. Okay, let's share one umbrella. It'll be nice.

Vinod: Yeah, okay.

Pooja: What happened to you suddenly? Okay, wait, I'll finish this quickly.

She swallowed the whole ice cream, and her head hurt too. She then took Vinod's ice cream and asked him one more time,

Pooja: Are you really sure you don't want it? If I eat it, you won't get any.

Vinod: It's fine. Just finish it quickly.

Pooja: What's wrong with you...?

And she swallowed Vinod's ice cream too, in one bite. Her head hurt again.

Rain was still falling, small drops. It was a pleasant day. They were walking on the street sidewalk. Pooja held Vinod's hand. The umbrella was a little small, so she shivered, getting a bit wet from the cold wind.

Pooja: It's really cold, isn't it?

She looked at Vinod. Vinod was lost in thought, and that was bothering both her and him greatly.

Pooja: Shall we go to the beach?

They were at the beach now. They sat on a bench near the beach.

Looking at the beach, Pooja felt refreshed and romantic.

Pooja: This place is really nice, isn't it?

She looked at him again. There was no enjoyment on Vinod's face. He wore an expression of unknown fear and something deeply disturbing him.

Pooja: What's wrong? Something is really bothering you. If you don't like this, we can go home.

Vinod: It's not that. Nothing's wrong with me.

Pooja: Then what's your problem?

Vinod: I'm having strange dreams. And these dreams are disturbing me a lot. I can't genuinely enjoy anything. At this point, I can't even tell what's a dream and what's real.

Pooja: Are you talking about your nightmares again? Couldn't you see a doctor or something?

Vinod: It's no use. Who can control dreams?

Pooja: Maybe seeing a psychologist would help, right?

Vinod: I tried that too. It would be fine for a few days, then back to normal. No one can do anything.

Pooja: Then I'll get rid of it. We'll spend more time together. Even if dreams come, I'll try to distract you. Let's go on a trip together somewhere. Let's forget everything for a few days.

Vinod: We'll have to come back, though. What then?

Pooja: You said you don't like the job you're doing now, right? Let's do a job we like. We can join together. Or start something new. If we have a lot of work, such crazy thoughts won't come.

Vinod: Would you give up what you're doing for me?

Pooja: No. I've always wanted to open a bakery shop anyway. That's why I had this idea.

Vinod: You have a good business mindset.

Pooja: Well, if I don't plan that much, how can I take care of you?

Vinod looked at her and smiled happily, realizing he had found someone who truly understood and loved him.

Vinod: Why do you like me so much?

Pooja: I don't know how to answer questions like that. But I'll tell you one thing: no one else appeals to me like you do. And I don't know why I like you so much either. I just do.

Vinod: Just like that?

Pooja: Yes, and I haven't found anyone else with as many problems in their head as you do (she's making fun of him).

Vinod: Hahaaa hahaha (laughing at himself because of Pooja's joke).

Pooja: Hahahah (laughing playfully).

At the beach, a cool, romantic wind was blowing. The tides were calm.

Vinod and Pooja were spending a good time together. Pooja was sleeping on Vinod's lap and enjoying the conversation with him. She was already so comfortable with him, and he was too.

Vinod's inner voice: I've never spent this much time with her. The dreams, or alternatives, or something I can't explain, are making me spend precious time with my loved ones. I get it now. I shouldn't run away from my fears and all of this. I need to face it head-on and stay with them. And they are really happy to have me too. They don't hate me for what I am and how I behave with them. They love me for how I am. It's time to say sorry and be together.

But...

Vinod's face changed from its normally clean state to one covered in blood, with swollen eyes, cheeks, and a broken nose. He had been sitting, and now he was on the ground in the parking lot, with the strangers hitting him.

The place suddenly changed.

Vinod was no longer shocked by this. Even as the stranger hit him, Vinod didn't hit back or react to the pain. Because he realized the mistake was his. And he also understood why all of this was happening to him.

Even though Vinod's mind was occupied by different thoughts, the stranger was still punching Vinod with the sadness and rage stemming from his brother's death or loss.

Vinod spoke with swollen cheeks, his voice unclear: "I'm sorry."

Stranger: What...?

Vinod coughed and repeated it again: "I'm sorry for your brother..."

The stranger held his punch and looked at Vinod.

Can Vinod change his actions? Let's see in the next...