Freed

It happened again. The most undesired made its comeback. Crawled into the consciousness like a stealthy predator, waiting to devour when one was least prepared.

Life had intervened and after what seemed like forever, she was up her feet, slowly picking up pieces of herself while trying to survive each day with an overwhelming positivity.

“Cry it out,” he advised.

His text sounded like a warm blanket on a cold morning, and she found herself smiling at the poignancy of their connection. All she had texted was “The clouds are dark,” and he knew what she meant exactly by that.

“Turn the shower on and bawl your eyes out,” he continued. “It’ll pass, you know that.”

The unexpected coldness of the water made her shudder. Surprisingly, there were no tears coming. A dry well, she mocked herself. Or perhaps it was another month of severe pms. The hard price one paid for being born a female, she continued in her head, as she lathered slowly, her hands mechanical against her skin.

“I’m going to have one great day,” she said to the mirror, taking a glimpse of herself after the shower.

The day was kind. The faces were bright and cheerful. Laughter ran wild and when the sun drooped behind the lined trees, she got into a cab to head towards her weekend plan.

She was the last to arrive, but was the first to propose a toast to the “awesomeness of life.” When the fire quietened down and the night sounds began to prevail, she laid down on her back beside her roommate who was peacefully sleeping.

The stars seemed to twinkle at her. She tried to look for a familiar galaxy but realizing that she would be seized by homesickness, she pulled out her phone and checked her social media.

She was caught off-guard by the first picture that popped up on the screen. For a brief moment, the world halted and the stars stopped twinkling.

A notification on her email beeped gently. Her account had been credited with two rupees.

Then came his text:

“You’re freed for life. Breathe.”

She closed her eyes and as the hot tears ran her face wet, she inhaled the night air and felt the twinkling stars gazing at her tenderly. 

PS: In Mizo culture, there is a term called “damlai lusun” which literally translated means “mourning the death of the undead,” signifying the marriage of a former lover or beau to someone else. On such occasion, the lover is given a sum of INR 2 as a token of bereavement. Though this practice has been around for quite a while now, there are many who claim to have never known about it.

For more on the topic, click the link: https://mizohican.blogspot.com/2009/07/chp-254-mm-see-you-on-other-side.html?m=1