Rigor Mortis

It was a very cloudy day and all the cabbies were making way to their homes. The weather forecast had spelled warning for the next 4 days. He owned a Swift Desire and was registered with the Meru portal. The day had started off very sunny and bright but the sudden turn of tides was completely unexplainable. Victor had read about global warming and its impact on the water level in his school days but, it was a long-forgotten concept to him. As he drove back to his residence, he crossed the St. Cathedral High School, the only one in his locality that offered a night school facility. How many times he had thought of enrolling himself, but, for his age.

As he took the last turn to reach the lane of his residence the thunderstruck and the downpour began. He quickly informed the senior official in the portal about having to stop work and parked his cab beneath the shade. As usual, he spent ten minutes inside the cab, mindlessly looking into the oblivion. He had grown to be like that. The oblivion was a familiar place for him, an inheritance sort of, one that he sometimes wanted to condemn.

He had grown to be a tall, handsome man, 6 ft 4 inches with an athletic built. He was very proud of his body. Not all were as blessed as him. He had a lot to himself. His flamboyant nature, free will and ability to draw people’s attention, like the news that the downpour had created today. The muck, the roadblocks and the waterlogged pathways, everything needed to be cleared.

He quickly happened to see himself in the mirror of his cab before getting down. As usual, yet again, admiring himself while listening to Porcupine Lazarus. Then, as if by way of habit, he started humming his favorite lines in the song as he cleared the water droplets on his windshield. He hated this mess that the shower created, often wanting to control its occurrence. But to his despair, he could not do so. 

There were some pebbles on the porch of his house. Beautifully maneuvered. He looked at them each day he got back home. Today, only a reflection could be seen. Everything was so foggy and unclear that his mind became a little restless as he entered the house. As he waited for a cup of hot tea, he preferred to freshen up and sit down to watch the news. The news flashed “Milan subway flooded; warning continues for next 3 days.” He felt gratified to have gotten home in time.

Then he went back to his backyard but realised that the soil was wet. It would be very difficult to dig another pit. After all, Victor cared for all his customers and their comfort. Especially when he had left someone in the rear of his car for more than two hours. He was experienced enough to know that rigor mortis would make his task difficult.