Rendezvous

“Can it get chillier than this” Rahul muttered. He pressed his palm against his neck to see if he had any temperature.

He knew he made a bad error in judgment when he decided to take the bus late in the night to Chennai from Punalur. He had never taken a bus till date.

Late night journeys are never pleasant anyways. Even more as he took off against the wish of his mother. Now sitting alone on the seat of a haunted bus stop; multiple thoughts started creeping in his mind. Rahul never believed in ghosts but for some reason his mind was trying to prove to him that ghosts existed that very night.

Darkness drenched the place like monsoons in the season. Night weeds were croaking more than ever. Sometimes when the weeds stopped; the silence sounded ever more louder. It felt that it would explode any moment taking him into a vacuum. He had never been this shaken by an occasion.

When a gust of wind passed by; he felt a chill that he had not experience any time before. Somehow the bus stop was totally empty. He felt strange as a bus to Chennai will usually get many people here.

“The climate forecast for the week may be the reason for this” He consoled himself.

As he looked around, all he could see was a light coming from a distant temple. This was not time for God’s too.

Nights in Kerala are usually very dark; usually due to the thick vegetation here. It almost feels like you have gone two centuries back. The fluttering of wings by bats made him shiver often. He sat around wondering when his bus would arrive. He had never before longed for a bus like now. Every flutter of leaves made his heart skip a beat.

Just that moment; he saw someone coming to the bus stop. He could not see if it was a human being.

“What if it is a dog or some animal?” He thought.

He had always feared dogs; He believed that dogs and humans should not have coexisted on earth in the first place. His heart started beating faster as the shadow came closer.

“What would I use to beat if it were an animal?”

He had no clue. His adrenalin started pumping. He felt a chill in his hands, his palms were sweating, he had never believed when people said that you would have sweating palms when you are under pressure. It had been proved tonight.

He started hearing a coughing sound now. He felt half better to know that he had to deal with a human only. He also knew that strange people existed specially at night. Kerala was anyways notorious for drunkards. People behave like beasts when they drink alcohol beyond their limits.

The figure stopped on the other side of the road opposite him when he saw Rahul in the bus stand. Rahul did not know what to do in case the person attacks him. The scare that whipped through his spine was deadlier than what he had experience watching the deadliest of horror movies. He started coming towards him now. The man looked old. Was he a thief? Was he a killer? What should he do if he attacks him? All these questions started running in his head as the man started approaching him. Rahul never carried too much cash with him anytime; would he attack him if he says he does not have any cash on him.

His frame is clearly visible now. There was an unusual stench coming from him as he came closer.

“Should I call the police” he thought.

Sould he tell the police; the man has not done anything to complain. The stench was even sharper now. It did not smell like alcohol though.

“These people on the street; they never take bath too” he thought.

He would see him clearly now. The man would be in the late 50’s. Unshaven face; if looks could kill, this would be it. Rahul was never this afraid anytime. He put his hand in his bag to see if he would get hold of something to attack. All he had was cloths and a bottle of body spray.

“Worst case I can use my mobile to attack” He knew that it would not be a wise idea.

He could see the temperature rise within. The weeds started to croak even more loudly now. Suddenly the man stops on the middle of the road. He looked either side. Then he looks to the empty side of the bus stop. He starts to change his direction. Now he was moving to the other side.

“What would he be planning to do”  he thought

“If he was drunk, he will surely not be in his senses. It would be easier to fight a drunkard” he comforted himself.

The man moved to the other side of the stop and sat on the seat. His eyes were fixed on Rahul.

Is it true that you get hungry when you are terrified? Rahul felt a need to eat just that moment. The man was sitting on the far end and watching him. He never tried to approach Rahul. You never know when he might advance. For now he was quite. He looked like a tiger that had cornered its prey.

There was an eerie silence around. He sat there quietly not to provoke the man. His sense of hunger was increasing too.

He started to wonder why the bus had not come till now. The night was becoming worse, it started to rain too. It is as if the whole wide world was playing against Rahul.

Is there a bandh that I am not aware of? Bandhs in Kerala are like rains, it can pour in any time.

“This has to be the worst decision I would have ever taken” he thought to himself.

With a tight schedule travelling, Rahul had not managed to get enough sleep the previous day. This meant that this body was very weak and was in desperate need of sleep. He had thought of having a good sleep on the bus so tat he would be fresh to work the next day. But fate had other things in store.

The man now started making grumbling noises. Rahul lost whatever sleep he had even thought of. It had been 1 hour since the man sat there. It will be the longest 1 hour of his life.

A sudden chirping of group of birds was enough to wake him up. Did I sleep of? At least there is daylight now. He did not find the man where he found him last. He also wondered if he was dreaming all the while.

Rahul suddenly looked at his bag. It was there too. Am I alive? Where is the man? Was he a thief? Was he a killer?

He opened his bag to see if the man had stolen something. Everything was intact. Who was he then?

“Son, this is not a good place to sit in the night” A voice from behind surprised him. Rahul turned back and he immediately retracted seeing the man he had seen last night standing beside him.

He continued “The next time you take this route, make sure you travel in the day. This is a bad place; there are thieves around; particularly in the night. I thought I could accompany you through the night. Hope you were not bothered by my presence. Take care of yourself. If my son were alive, he would have been of your age”. He said with his eyes filled with tears.

He smiled and waved at Rahul and walked away. Rahul did not know what to say. He was lost in thoughts. He stared at the man until he went out of sight.