The Fall at Matheran – (Chapter 5)

Story So Far!

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4 

At Dadar West, the taxi drivers had made it almost impossible to get out of the railway station, and the way they kept the taxi cabs made sure that no one could get away without being filtered through their cabs!  Johan got into one and its driver was in a hurry to take it forward. He started off as if he did not care a damn about Johan at all or his demeanors implied that he would have driven off even if Johan did not board that cab.


“Santacruz, near Vakola Bridge” Johan said softly, while adjusting his pain-stricken body to the old, pale looking rear seat. Those words did not make any difference to the driver as he returned neither an acknowledging nod nor a doubtful ‘this-way-or-that-way-saab type stare. He drove forward as if he knew the place even if Johan did not say anything. As the car found its way through the crowded street, many people had waved their hands in front of the cab to stop, but the driver ignored most of them and showed a ‘No deal’ to another few.


Johan did not initiate any conversation further and the driver was not in a mood to speak either. The driver had already proven the harsh side of him and what Johan liked in him was only his speedy driving. In between, he was speaking on his mobile phone, using his mother tongue in an anxious way, whenever the cab was stuck due to a traffic clot.


As Vakola Bridge appeared from a distance, Johan prepared himself to get out. ‘Signal ke aage right mein rukha dena” he directe the driver and slowly dragged himself to the door. Again there was no response returned from the driver and what he did was exactly contradictory as he turned the car towards left and took a sharp turn towards Kalina. ‘Are you deaf’ Johan yelled, hitting on the front seat. Shockingly, the driver did not even look back and the car was not stopped! ‘Stop the car’ he shouted again and grabbed the driver’s collar! In the mirror, in the rearview, he saw an ambulance behind the taxi!


Will continue...

The Fall at Matheran – (Chapter 4)

It was a fast local train towards Bombay. Through the blurred trees, stations and buildings, the train dashed forward as if there was something amiss. Whenever it stopped at a few stations, there was hardly anyone to board the train because it was a lazy Saturday morning and moreover, the day couldn’t completely be mismatched from the night; darkness was yet not shied away.


The train jumped like a rabbit on those bumpy joints of rail tracks, and this wrenched Johan causing unbearable pain. He chose to sit on the corner, where no one could fix an eye on him so easily. Among the very few passengers who entered his compartment, Johan found that almost no one had noticed him sitting there. They were either busy rolling their eyes on the morning newspaper or busy chatting on the cell-phones. Some others bent their heads for a nap that such an enchanting morning, with the grace of a seductress, could easily tempt them into.


This reminded Johan of this feature of city life that leaves no time for others. Fitting the day into a morning-to-morning roster was that every one was chasing for. In between, consciously finding time for others would be nothing but suicidal. Hence the glances were cut short to see just the desired glimpses and senses were always tuned to exclude the ‘other parts of the stories’.


Slowly, but sadly, Johan realized a kind of comfort in the seclusion he was receiving, the staying away from doubtful stares and sympathetic questions; a condition that he was into would have created, otherwise. Thinking of his condition, he felt all the more angry on Sebi and Neville. He tried to imagine them as two monsters eating the word ‘FRIENDSHIP’ in the valley of Matheran.


Soon, the train announcement, in its broken voice, reminded of Dadar, the next station to come. As it repeated the announcement for a third time, Johan got up from his seat with much effort and moved towards the exit. The place where he sat was cold.

The Fall at Matheran – (Chapter 3)

The last train had gone from the station. The next train was at six in the morning. It was only a quarter past midnight and Johan could not carry on anymore. He sat on the platform bench and kept his legs straight into the walkway. He wondered whether someone would boot on his legs and fall on the platform. But, this straight, independent position gave him the mostest relaxation. Soon, sleep hauled him into its dark interiors.

When he woke up, it was exactly 6 in the morning. The train had arrived on the platform and was all set to start from the station. The clotted blood on his joints stopped him from standing straight. Somehow he managed to stand and then stepped into the train carefully.

The Fall at Matheran – (Chapter 2)

When Johan looked back, in the dim light of glowing Moon, he could see the peak of the mountain where the three of them stood the previous night and took the oath of ever-lasting friendship. Standing on the peak, looking up the moon, they cheered for being together. ‘Like stars we should live together in the sky of life’; he remembered Neville saying metaphorically.

Johan scoffed at the word ‘friendship’! He could not believe the irony that pulled in soon after the oath. And more than a surprise, it spread across his nerves and gave him a kick to walk faster. He intended to meet them, his ‘so-called’ friends and talk to them for once more.

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