A Tragedy

The moon was glistening. It was a windy night. I was returning from my English tuition, earphones plugged in. Tightly hugging my sweater, I was walking by the road which was nearly empty. 

"Lovely" by Billie Eilish was banging into my ears. When suddenly my phone vibrated. It was my mom. She knew my tuition was going to end late, yet she was worried. As a mother, she was always been the one who worries too much for her daughter when she is out alone. In the beginning days, she used to come to drop me off and also to pick me up. But she soon realised she needs to worry less about me and take care of herself more, as her joints had started aching. Hence today, I was returning alone.

I picked up her call. There was nothing on the other side. I kept saying "Hello". But there was nothing from her side still. I realised it might have been some network problem and declined the call. And then called back. This time the line came busy. I returned back to listening to Billie's amazing vocals.

After some time, I reached home. Ringing the doorbell, I opened my shoes. Nobody opened the door. Only mom was there at home. Since I was a single child, and my father stayed outside most of the time for his office work, my mother and I stayed alone at our little home. 

By now I had rung the bell at least ten times, but still, she didn't open the door. I tensed a little. I gave her a call. Then I heard her phone's Nokia ringtone ringing from inside. But nobody picked up. 

The weather was chilly. The moon was still up there. But I was sweating. For nearly 15 minutes I called her and rang the bell continuously, but nobody picked up the call or the door. I decided to go to nearby shops if she had left to buy some groceries, though it seemed unusual that at 9:30 pm at night she would go out despite knowing that I would be returning home. I went from shop to shop asking about her, but everybody said that they hadn't seen her. 

I returned back home. I wondered if she had an accident at home only and she couldn't reach the phone or reach the door. Out of confusion and fear, I started crying. Hearing my cries, one of the neighbour's uncles came out and asked me why I was crying. He consoled me and took me inside his home.

He made me sit and gave me water to drink. And then asked why was i standing at the door for so long. I asked him in return if he had seen my mother, and that she is not opening the door and not picking up my call. The neighbour looked at me surprised.

He touched my forehead and swept his hand over. He asked me where I was returning from. I told him that I was returning from tuition. 

He took out his phone and looked at some pictures and then looked at me. Then he got up and went into another room. I could hear he had called someone. I thought that maybe he had done something to my mother. I got up and began searching for her in the entire house madly. By now my head was throbbing and my eyes were swelled with tears. 

Then the uncle came out of his room and gave me a smile to me. I didn't feel good. He came near me, but I tried to get away. He asked me not to get scared, but I was very scared and my hands were shaking. And then his doorbell rang, and he opened the door. Three people came inside wearing uniforms. I couldn't figure out who they were. They came and grabbed my arms and took me outside. I started shouting and tried to release myself from the grip. Then, the neighbour's uncle looked at me and said that they will take me to my mom. Something in his eyes made me believe him and I went with them.

They put me in a van and drove fast. The entire way I kept asking them what they had done to my mom, and why she was with them, how was she. But they kept avoiding my questions. Then I felt them injecting something into my arm, I yelled and tried to stop them but I couldn't, they were very strong. I cried and kept crying until sleep took over me and I dozed off.

When I woke up, my head was still aching. I realised I was in a bed in a room full of girls of my age. I couldn't see my mother anywhere. I started crying again when I saw a lady sitting beside me and holding my hand. She was not my mom. But she looked familiar. Slowly, I realised who she was. She was my doctor, who had been taking care of me since I had been hospitalized in this hospital. 

She looked at me and asked me if I was hungry, I told her that I was. She revealed a plate of pasta and fed me. It didn't taste like the one my mom used to make, but it at least looked like that. She asked me how I was feeling. 

I fell into her arms crying bitterly. She hugged me tightly. I told her I was missing my mom very much. 

Nearly five months back, everything was different. I used to sleep beside my mom, and she used to wait for me every day whenever I used return from tuition alone. It was 25th Dec, my father had returned from abroad. We three were together after a long time. Everyone was happy so we decided to have a dinner party. Father drove us to a special restaurant. The night was spent well. Mom and dad fed each other and I also took a selfie with them. And then while we were returning, we were chatting in the car too. And father turned his back and looked at me when a truck suddenly sped towards our car and we had a terrible accident. I don't remember anything after that. The doctors told me my parents had died and I somehow survived with severe brain injuries. I had developed amnesia and hence my memory keeps coming back and forth. It was the fifth time that I ran away from the hospital to our old home where once we used to stay.