When I was a kid, my dad always told me this story. A kid was challenged to visit a cemetery at the night. And he went there and as a proof that he visited the cemetery, he’s supposed to hammer a nail into one certain gravestone. When he tried to turn back he felt something pulling him, which freaked him out. Later they came to know that he hammered the nail on his knickers’.
“Fear is the biggest ghost within,” he would conclude.
“This is summer and let’s do some activity, yaar” Rohit said. “Where’s the S.O.B. Akrit?” I asked him. “He’s not even called us in few days,” I continued.
Just then I received a call on my mobile. “Sorry guys, I moved into a new place. I was busy with these household chores that I couldn’t call you. I am hosting a party, only three of us,” and he gave us the address, “Aston Villa no.13, Road No. 78, Jubilee hills” and this address echoed in my ears again and again.
“Dude, we have some activity now,” I said looking at Rohit. And we geared up for the evening. “Arey macha, wassup da? Been a long time since we saw you,” we went and hugged Akrit. The sun has almost set and we reached the destined place a few minutes back.
And after Rohit hugged him, I looked at his shirt. “Damn f@k, where the hell did you stain your shirt with these blood marks?” I was curious. “Akrit, you are bleeding macha?” Rohit asked. “Oh, shit,” he looked at his wrist which was seemingly slashed by a blade.
We bandaged his hand after washing it with an antiseptic. And we then proceeded to dine after a round of hard drinks.
“Wait… wait… how the f@k did you move into this house?” Rohit suddenly asked. “This is my ancestral property and I am supposed to be moving here,” he replied.
“Where are your parents, then?” I asked.
“They left a few minutes back”
Left where, I thought.
“Man, I have a hunch that we should also leave,” Rohit said.
“Where so early… I ammm wautuiiinnnhh feur uuhhhh,” Akrit muttered even as he jumped onto Rohit. His skin suddenly started to peel off and blister very much like a zombie. I immediately rushed for a log lying nearby and was about to hit him when Rohit shouted, “Stop…”
“F@k you, you would have wounded me badly,” Akrit shouted. Damn, he’s fine. Was it my delusion? F@king shit.
“I guess you had enough kick. Retire to sleep,” they advised me. I am still uncomfortable.
Akrit slept in a separate room and me and Rohit slept in another room.
And I slowly woke up and proceeded to the table. I picked up a blade lying on the table. And I looked at my wrists. With a single blow I slashed my own wrists. And blood started to ooze uncontrollably. But instead of the pain, I felt something relieving me of my insomnia. But I dint stop this here.
I picked up the blade and slid the sharp edge over the neck’s ridge. “Glug…glug…” blood spurted out from the cut and filled the windpipe that I wasn’t able to breathe.
I hit my head hard onto the pillow and my body pressed heavily against the mattress when I suddenly woke up. F@king shit, that was a dream…it seemed so real.
Rohit narrated how he picked up the blade and slashed his wrists in the dream. A few minutes back three of us shouted almost in sync. Three of us had some god damn nightmares. The first one to narrate was Rohit. And then it was Akrit’s turn.
“And I walked out of the bedroom to drink water. I slowly opened the door of the other bedroom to have a look at you guys. What I saw perhaps should have blanked me out, in fear. I saw myself sleeping next to Rohit. And my skin peeled off at places and I was rotting...” Akrit stopped suddenly, “I cant continue....”
What is wrong with this place? Why these nightmares to three of us? I thought. “What about your nightmare?” Rohit asked me. “I just forgot,” I looked at them in utter astonishment. Damn, what was it...
And we retired again to sleep. All the while I was tossing and turning unable to sleep. I was so restless. What the f@k!!!
“Rohit....” I shrugged him.
He seemed to be in a deep sleep. He refused to wakeup. He was sleeping prone when I turned him over. F@k F@k, he was bleeding. His wrists and his neck were slashed. I looked at him and he held the blade in his hand.
I rushed to the next room where Akrit was sleeping. A sudden stink of a dead carcass made me nauseate and I pushed the door open to find him rotting.
I was so freaked out that I ran out of the house. Never even tried to look back. My dear life was not in my hands, but in my legs. I ran as far as my legs could carry me before collapsing onto the ground.
The next morning I woke up when somebody sprinkled water on my face. Pushing myself out of the curious onlookers crowd, I ran back to Aston villa no.13.
I reached the place. But there was no house where me and Rohit stopped yesterday night. Did I miss the house? I looked at the name plate of the previous house. It read no.12 and I walked a little further. It read no. 14.
Damn f@k, where did 13 go? And I saw a small gap in-between no.12 and no.14. I walked a little inside when I saw a huge board which read Aston villa, overlooking which was a cemetery.
I closed my mouth with my hand as I nauseated. My head reeled over yesterday’s events.
“Wake up….” I distinctly heard a sound. Which became more lucid and loud. Suddenly I woke up from the bed, very much at my home.
I immediately pushed aside the quilt and reached for my mobile. I dialed Rohit. But he wasn’t picking. I dialed Akrit. His mother answered my call.
“Can I talk to Akrit, aunty,” I asked. She started crying. “Akrit’s passed away a few days back,” I could make out from her words amidst her melancholy.
Shit, without saying another word I cut the call.
And I removed the cap of my pen and started to write this story.
“When I was a kid my dad always told me this story….”
I wrote a few paragraphs. I just remembered my dream. Rohit before slashing his wrists and neck, cuts off my fingers. And I was about to pen down the same when I saw blood blotting the paper. I dropped the pen onto the paper. One by one, drops of blood trickled onto the paper. I looked above. There was nothing. Where the hell is this blood dripping from?
I tried to hold the pen but I couldn’t. I looked at my hands and there were no fin....
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