The Last Wish

Everyone once in a while likes to hear, read, see and listen to a story that scares and terrifies them for some time of their lives. Now, this might be due to the reason for the insatiable human curiosity to delve into the unknown, unexplained, paranormal/supernatural phenomenon, or plain simple it might just be for thrill-seeking purposes. This can be in the form of movies, podcasts, books, stories, or tales of old horrifying legends coming down from generation to generation. Most of these stories are genuine and true and have some basis in the cultural, religious and traditional history of mankind; while others might just be based on hearsay, or just conjured up for the thrill of it. Some stories and legends are made up just to scare people to their core and gain popularity. The story I am going to tell you is about two people who were the best of friends from their school days. One of them was very handsome, strong, tall and very popular with everyone. While the other was not so strong in physical terms, was average looking and an introvert.

Despite these obvious physical differences both of them were the best of friends and the whole school was a witness to their friendship. This is a story about their friendship over a period of time when they grew up and went their separate ways and also of their reunion after 25 years and what happened afterwards which resulted in one of the friends having a very harrowing and frightening experience. 

This is purely a work of fiction and I have made the best of efforts to keep you awake. I sincerely hope that you like it.

Rishi and Sachin were two young boys in the same school and same class since the time when Sachin had first taken admission in the school and had been taken in to Rishi’s section. Rishi had taken an instant liking to Sachin from the very first go. At the first instance, everyone in the class had been amused by Sachin’s appearance as he was dark in complexion, was of average height and looks, he was also was an introvert to the core. Whereas Rishi was tall, fair, handsome adored by all teachers and swooned over by girls. During the first few days, everyone used to make fun of Sachin including the teachers. It was Rishi who one day saw Sachin sitting quietly at one corner during recess having his lunch. Something in Sachin’s demeanor made Rishi goes up to him and ask “why aren’t you having lunch with us?” Sachin looked up at him and with a faint smile said “nobody wants me to”. Something in Sachin’s response made Rishi very sad and he thought that ‘I should not behave like others towards him and it is my duty to protect him’. He quickly stretched his hand towards Sachin and asked “will you be my friend?” Sachin at first was too surprised at Rishi’s gesture but looking at his gesture he promptly and happily shook his hands with Rishi. Since that time both Sachin and Rishi became the best of friends and were inseparable at any and every occasion. As time passed and with that, the bonds of friendship strengthened with each new passing year. At every instance, Rishi used to make sure that Sachin tries to come out of his introvert character and for that he used to introduce Sachin to new people on every occasion including girls. Finally, the time came when they were graduating from their Senior High School and had to go their separate ways for the attainment of their own goals. Rishi and Sachin both of them were very sad and upset about the idea of separating. Though they knew that there was no other choice as Rishi wanted to join his father’s business and for that, he was going to Australia to study and make a career for himself. Whereas Sachin had his own goals set out and he knew that he had to try and make a life for himself here only. On the day of their farewell party, Rishi had said something while holding a drink in one hand which made Sachin look at him strangely. Rishi said looking at Sachin and few other close friends “We don’t die, we multiply”. This statement though made while being intoxicated at the time; but it made everyone’s eyes glisten and later on it became such an iconic statement that Sachin remembered it for a long time and did not forget for quite a long period of time.

Gradually time passed and Sachin made a career for himself in a corporate company and got married. All this time despite being busy he tried to find about his friend Rishi but unfortunately could not. He even used to check the Social Media for any sign that his friend might be there. Still, he had no luck. This used to make him very sad and he used to recount to his wife Chaitali about his friend Rishi and their school time exploits.

Then one day out of the blue Sachin got a call on his phone. At first, he could not recognise as the voice was very faint and trembling. When the caller introduced himself as Rishi; Sachin was too stunned and excited and happy to respond on hearing his old friend’s voice. Then somehow he calmed himself down and asked “Hey! How are you old friend?” Rishi just said that “Can we meet and talk somewhere?” Sachin was at first a bit taken aback by the sudden abruptness and urgency in Rishi’s voice but agreed and the next they planned to meet at a nearby café. Sachin was in for the most shocking surprise of his life. As he neared the café, a whole range of emotions went through him like that of excitement, nervousness etc. When he first put his glance on Rishi he could not believe his eyes. He saw an old man with drooping shoulders and in a constant state of stress. Rishi could recognize Sachin immediately as Sachin though had become old aged like him but there were no signs of aging except maybe a few wrinkles on the face and his beard going white at places. Anyways both of them hugged dearly and sat down to talk about all these years.

Sachin started by saying that “After you left, I got into a college of your choice since you wanted that both of us should go to the same college and then after graduating I immediately got a job” Before he could continue Rishi asked him “Are you married?” Sachin said yes he was and his elder son was graduating this year and daughter was about to go to junior high. Rishi was glad to hear that though the stress in his face kept him from displaying any real emotion. When Sachin said “Now it’s your turn”, Rishi looked at him and with a sad smile said “My life has become a mess and I have ruined everything”. When Sachin could not understand Rishi just said that “It’s a long story, I will explain it to you some other time. Can you lend me some money for the time being?” Sachin was really surprised by this direct request and he immediately said yes and gave him some money on the spot. After spending some time, they left from the café while promising to meet again. From that Sachin’s troubles began. Rishi in the coming days used to call him and ask for money for a variety of reasons. At first, Sachin helped him as much as he can but then he too had responsibilities and he told Rishi about his predicament. Rishi listened to him and promised not to bother him again. Few days later Rishi again called Sachin and asked for some money by saying that “Yaar, I have promised my daughter something and I don’t have so much of cash with me right now, so please help me this time and I promise that I will not bother you again”. Sachin was too embarrassed to refuse him on the face but somehow convinced him that it was a bit difficult for him too but he will try. Rishi said he could understand and did not call him again.

It had been a couple of weeks when Sachin was about to go somewhere when he got a call from a mutual school friend and the news this friend gave Sachin was the beginning of the most frightening and harrowing experience for Sachin. He said that Rishi has committed suicide a few days back. Sachin was stunned and could not react. He asked this friend that ‘how, when and where and why did this happen’, but the friend also had the sketchiest of details. Sachin was devastated and he constantly cursed himself for not being able to fulfill his best friend’s last wish. He kept to himself and was always reminiscing about the old times he had spent with Rishi. Even his wife was surprised and upset at this news.

Anyways as days passed, Sachin started to recover from this tragic loss though he knew that the void will never be filled again. One day when he was in office, he got a WhatsApp message which both surprised him and shook him. It was from his friend Rishi’s number saying “you did not help me”. Sachin was so surprised at this message that he could not understand how to react, also there was an eerie sound attached to the message. Sachin was so busy with his work that he did not pay much attention to it and thought someone might have played a prank on him and let it go. While in the evening when he was coming back from work, he again got the same message saying “you did not help me” and the same eerie sound attached to it. This time Sachin tried to respond and typed “who is this?”, but there was no reply. The same night after dinner when Sachin was planning to retire to bed after giving a lot of thought as to who might have sent that message; he again got the same message. This time he was really very upset and he planned on giving the school mutual friend a visit in the morning. He wanted to know whether this guy was the one who was playing prank on him, did he have any idea who might be doing this. So the next morning he went to this friend’s place and after the usual greeting came straight down to business by “do you know anyone who might play prank on me by sending strange messages?” When his friend looked at him quizzically, Sachin showed him the phone and the messages. Sachin was astonished to see this guy laughing and he became furious and asked “Why are you laughing? Is there anything funny?” Then the friend put his hands in mock surrender and said that “what messages are you talking about?” and he showed him the phone.

Indeed there were no messages on the phone. Sachin was really surprised as the last time he had checked the messages were there and he remembered clearly that he did not delete them either intentionally or by accident. Anyways he apologised to this friend and went back. This made him think that who might have sent him these messages. That same night Sachin was working on his laptop when suddenly he felt a deep sense of depression. He felt that tears were welling up in his eye but could not cry. He also heard a very faint knocking on his door. At first, he had to strain his ears to listen to the sound, but as he went near the front door he could the knocking distinctly. So he checked through the spy-glass but could not see anyone on the corridor. Sachin thought he must be imagining things and went back to his work. It was already 2:30 a.m. and now he was exhausted and very sleepy. As he was to lie down, he heard a loud bang on the door. He was startled that who would bang on his door at this hour. He went back to sleep but then again there was loud banging on the door which awakened his wife also. Sachin got up from the bed very pissed off as he was in deep slumber and went checked through the spy-glass; again there was no one. He even opened the door and looked through the corridor but could not find anyone. So he came and lay back on the bed thinking that he would check with night time guard if anyone had come to his floor or not. The rest of the night went uneventfully.

The next day he checked with his guard and he said that no one had come during that time. Sachin was a bit skeptic about the guard’s statement but kept quiet as he had no other option. That evening when he was returning home he could feel that someone was following him. So he looked back but could not see anyone. The more he walked the more he felt that he was being followed. That night was the first night of the start of Sachin’s nightmares. It was when all of a sudden Sachin started screaming in his sleep which awoke his wife Chaitali with a start. When she shook him awake he was all covered in sweat and mumbling something.

When Chaitali asked him “What’s the matter? are you okay?” Sachin said that “Rishi came in my dream and took me to the place where he had committed suicide.” Chaitali was all ears now and listening very carefully, so Sachin continued and said “Rishi was very sad and had said that you did not help me fulfill my last wish my dear friend” Sachin further said that he could not speak nor move an inch either way in this strange place. Lastly, he saw that Rishi was tying the same noose around Sachin’s neck and hanging him the same way as he had hung. His eyes were red-hot glowing with fire and his face had taken a demonic look and he was laughing wildly. That’s why Sachin had started screaming so badly. Chaitali somehow soothed him by saying “it was a bad dream and your unnecessary guilt is bothering you. You should try to forget about everything”.

Sachin did not say anything but could not sleep that night. The next few nights were a nightmare for Sachin as he continued to have the same dream again and again and every night he used to scream and wake up in the middle of the night terrified and covered in sweat. As this was not enough there were strange incidents like: things vanishing from one place and reappearing at another place, loud scratching like noises coming from underneath the bed etc. When Sachin tried to look he could not see anything. The worse part that Rishi’s spirit started manifesting in front of Sachin especially at nights. The apparition just looked at Sachin with anger and rage in its eyes and finger pointed at him accusing him of not helping Rishi in time.

All this had a terrible toll on both Sachin and his wife Chaitali. Sachin started looking haggard, unkempt and with deep rings forming underneath his eyes due to lack of sleep and rest. Chaitali also was under much stress as she could not help her husband.

One day when Chaitali had gone out for shopping and as she returned home she got the biggest scare of her life. She saw Sachin trying to hang himself. Chaitali rushed and prevented him from doing so. She found that he was in a trance and it was with deep difficulty she brought him out of it. When Sachin came out of the trance he broke down and cried like a baby. He said that “Rishi had come to take me away to the place where he was” This was the final straw for Chaitali as she could not take anymore. She started talking to people and discussing about her husband’s predicament. When someone suggested that she should go and visit Dr. Sareen who was a noted para-psychologist. When Chaitali visited this person, she was surprised as she saw a young pretty lady with a caring attitude towards her patients. Ms. Tanu Sareen was a renowned para-psychologist at an early age and she was much sought after by various hospitals and doctors and also by private citizens.

Tanu listened very patiently to Chaitali’s description of her husband’s problem, only intervening when she had to write something down. After hearing her out Tanu said that she would like to visit their house. So it was decided that evening she would visit Sachin & Chaitali’s residence. In the evening Chaitali had already informed Sachin about Tanu and that she was going to come this evening. As Tanu neared Sachin’s residence, she could feel a very strong negative aura surrounding the house. When she entered the house this feeling increased many times and she felt that something heavy had been placed on her chest and she was being choked. Somehow she could chant some sacred lines and felt that the pressure on her chest and throat had stopped all of a sudden. Then she suggested that Sachin and Chaitali together should go to a temple and do some ritual to give salvation to Rishi’s soul and also donate some money in his name. When Sachin asked “Will that satiate him?” Tanu said that “I don’t know but let’s hope for the best”

The next morning Sachin and Chaitali went to a nearby temple and did as told and also donated a huge amount of money in Rishi’s name. They felt good about it and hoped that everything will be all right. Indeed from that evening, everything went back to normal and there were no more episodes of manifestations of Rishi’s soul or Sachin’s nightmares. Now Sachin slowly and gradually Sachin has got back his past life and his happy but still sometimes gets very sad when he thinks about his old friend.