The matter of trust

                     

A nighty night and perhaps the darkest and one of the longest night of his life. ‘vishwas’, a 21 yrs old final year BTech guy sitting in the middle of the road inside the C V Raman Institute of Technology campus. Legs are bent, head and the hands completely covering his knees and a pin drop silence in the vicinity. There is still one week for the insti to reopen after summer vacations so only very few students have come yet. He is going to leave tomorrow as his BTech course has already completed and he has got a good job in a reputed IT company. After an hour of deep silence in that posture, he stands up. His eyes are wet. He suddenly starts running on the road in the direction of his face. he runs till he reaches in the center of the college playground. He looks towards the sky and shouts really hard, twice and then starts crying. He cries and cries until the pain inside his heart get releases. Sometimes you have to take injections against some painful injuries i.e. to get rid of a pain sometimes you have to bear some pain also. It is a painful night, the most among those he got in his entire life. he steps back to his hostel. It is 3 in the morning. He packs his bags and leaves the college. He has a train to catch, at 4:30 am. He says himself that he will never look back…

2 weeks ago

Vishwas: ‘dost please tell me what is the matter? Why are you misbehaving with me? Why are you ignoring me? What’s my fault?’

Abhay: ‘look, don’t make me slap on your face. it’s over we are no more friends now. Our friendship is over.’

Vishwas: ‘you just can’t do like this. It’s not only a friendship. it’s a bond, a bond of love, a bond of faith…’

Breaking into his speech-

Abhay: ‘F*** your faith and f*** your love. these words don’t adorn your tongue anymore. And I will do what I like. You cannot stop me. Get yourself the hell out of my life. I don’t want to talk on this matter anymore.’

Abhay leaves after saying these aggressive words. Vishwash calls him… ‘abhay please listen to me.’ But he doesn’t react.

The very next morning, at the insti café inside the campus

Vishwas: ‘hay Abhay!’

Abhay is on a table with some of his friends waiting for the coffee he ordered. He doesn’t reply.

Vishwas greets him again: ‘hello dost!’

Abhay pretends as he doesn’t know him.

Abhay: Hey waiter! Where is my coffee? send it soon.

Everyone is in shock. They all well know that both of them are best friends. What’s the matter then? Why is Abhay ignoring him?

Vishwas leaves the café. Abhay’s friends try to know the reason behind the scene they just have seen but he refuses to tell anything.

Same day at noon, boys hostel

Viswas and Abhay have their rooms side by side. God knows how much effort Abhay had put to take the room. There were no two consecutive rooms left in the hostel. The one beside Vishwas’ was used for official purpose. It was full of old files. Their friendship was very fresh then. Abhay used to go to the warden daily with an application in his hand and the warden always used to deny his request. The warden offered him an another room, bigger than the usual ones. This was actually a guest room which was never used since it was built. Abhay even had refused that proposal saying— ‘I can give you anything, I am able to, for the key of the room I want’. The warden immediately had ordered the caretaker to shift all the files to the guest room. he had understood that he cannot overcome the boy’s insistence.

Today Abhay is shifting his room. the very room which he once wanted to have at any cost, for which he once was ready to give anything, he was able to. Today he is leaving that room. After his today’s morning and yesterday’s behavior, there is no need to be surprised much on this of his act. You and I can understand this but Vishwas could not. He is surprised. He tries to stop him and Abhay ignores him again. Abhay is packing the things.

Vishwas: what the hell are u doing.

Abhay: I am shifting to another room.

Vishwas: only two-three weeks are left. After that, we all are going to leave the college. Why are you doing this only for few days?

Abhay: I can’t spend even a minute with you.

Vishwas: all right. If you really want to go. go. I will not stop u but for god sake tell me what have I done which made u doing all this.

Abhay: you know well.

Vishwas: no. I don’t know(loudly).

Abhay: I don’t know either then(loudly). Now leave me alone and let me do what I am doing.

Vishwas: no. you won’t leave. If I am a thorn in your life, then I should leave.

Abhay: then please leave(in a confirm hard voice).

Vishwas is shocked. He had never expected this. Vikash packs his things and leaves the room.

The Same day, 10:30 pm.

Vishwas is sitting on a chair with right palm on his chin and the right-hand elbow on the study table. He is looking very upset and supposed to be thinking something. He hasn’t opened his packed bags yet. All those past memories were dancing right before him. The day he was badly sick and was not able to sleep, Abhay had spent the whole night with him telling him Santa-Banta jokes. Those maths assignments which he used to do for Abhay, to save him from the punishment of behra sir. How can he forget the day when Abhay had first told him about his new girlfriend ‘riya’. He was so excited that day. Vishwas was the only one with whom Abhay used to share all of his secrets. Suddenly he begins to think about both of them. What a couple that is? what a relationship that is? He gets to remember the misunderstanding of Riya due to which she had stopped talking to Abhay. Abhay was very upset and after asking so many times he had told him the matter. Vishwas had wisely settled the matter and had saved the friendship between Abhay and Riya. Vishwas then silently begins to pray that Abhay and Riya always be the same as they are now. may the God bless their friendship.

It's midnight now. Vishwas is still in the chair, head on the study table, eyes are closed and wet. He has fallen asleep.

After that day Vishwas tries many times to talk with Abhay. he tries to tease him, admire him, disturb him, just to take his attention. He has understood that the friendship has ended now but he wants to spend those two weeks with him in happiness. Earlier both of them had decided to do so many things, before leaving the insti. They had planned to spend the last week of the college days together. They wanted to go on a long drive on their bicycles. They wanted to watch so many movies together. They wanted to play badminton for a whole night. they wanted to shout together on the last day of the college in happiness. There was a long list in their plan. They had promised each other to meet on 14th of July after every 3 years in the insti. After all, this was the day when their friendship preferably had come into picture. There was a time when they used to feel each other’s heart. If one got hurt the other one used to have the pain. But none of these things matter now. Abhay had forgotten all those promises and plannings.

The days of the last two weeks were really the longest ones for Vishwas. Mostly he used to be in his room, the new room, far from the worldly objects. He didn’t meet anyone and today, he left the college silently.

Today, 5 pm

Abhay is in hurry. He is packing his bags. He wants to leave the college as soon as possible. while packing his stuff, he found the “last week PLAN sheet”. Today is the first day of the ‘the last week’ according to the sheet. He says himself— ‘f*** the last week. o god please never give such a friend to anyone. I don’t wanna see his face anymore. He has ruined my life.’

His mobile rings. He rejects the call. It rings again, and again he rejects it. It is Riya. packing is done. He looks around if anything left. Suddenly he gets his eyes on a cap. Vishwas had gifted it to him on his last birthday. Abhay had lost it. He had forgotten where he had kept it. He had tried a lot to find the cap but couldn’t. he shuts the door, leaving the cap inside.

He comes out of the hostel. Riya is there at the gate. He knowingly ignores her presence and passes away. Riya runs behind him and holds his hand.

Riya: why didn’t u reply my calls and messages.

Abhay: why would I? you betrayed me. There is no need of such friends in my life. why you two did this to me? I would have never interfered in your lives if any of you two had just told me the truth earlier.

Riya: I was just kidding. I wanted to see your reaction. You just hung up before I could say anything else and never received my calls. Vishwas is innocent. He didn’t do anything.

Riya and Abhay were in a relationship for 3 years. They had decided to get married after the completion of their BTech. Two weeks ago Abhay had called Riya to ask that how would they convince their parents. Riya was in a jolly mood. She had told that she and Vishwas love each other, just to see how does Abhay react on this. Abhay had hung up the phone without saying a word. She had called many times after that and also had sent messages but neither he received the calls nor looked the messages.

Abhay is in a great shock now. he runs towards the hostel. He proceeds to Vishwas’ room. he finds the door open. The room is empty. he stays there for a while and then runs to his own room. he opens the door catches the cap kept on the table as a predator catches its prey. He sits on his knee. He keep the cap on his heart, feels the presence of his heartbeat and starts crying.

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