Chapter 1
Suraj was walking back to his house in a cold winter morning just after his routine morning walk. Normally it would be sunrise by the time he returned home. But that day he had left the house a bit early. It was difficult for him to sleep. It was the second-year death anniversary of his parents. They both had died in a car accident. Suraj was studying at a public school when he had heard the news. He had come back immediately and had never returned since then. He lived with his brother now who studied in an engineering college. Suraj’s brother, Sanket, tried to cheer him up to go back to school but Suraj never listened to him. He had decided to live life on his own terms. Sanket imagined how difficult it would be to raise him in such a competitive world.
Sanket himself was very young to handle it all. He, including his parents, believed that Suraj was a different child. The only difference was, the parents called it as a ‘special’ child. As a child, Sanket sometimes felt jealous of him for getting so much of attention from his parents. In reality, it was always Sanket who excelled in school and extra curriculars but Suraj received all the praise and was adored most of the time. Sanket believed that maybe because he was just the youngest kid in the house. Little did he know that Suraj was indeed special.
Suraj returned to his house and woke his brother up. He opened up the curtains and the window just before he inhaled the fresh air. He could now see the sun rise slowly. He smiled and looked at his brother who had gone back to sleep once again.
“Wake up! Don’t you want to go to college today?” said Suraj.
“It’s Sunday, you fool.” Said Sanket and pulled over the blanket.
“Is it?” Suraj sat down on the bed. Sanket didn’t move.
“What if I still want you to wake up?” said Suraj. Sanket did not say anything. Suraj waited for a moment and shook Sanket’s leg, “Wake up.”
“But what for?” Sanket was irritated.
“We need to talk.” Said Suraj and to that Sanket was surprised. He opened his eyes suddenly. He slowly got up and stared at Suraj. He was surprised because it was always Suraj who avoided conversations, be it going back to school or just having a conversation in general. Suraj rarely struck conversations with people even with his closed ones.
But it didn’t mean that he had nothing to say. He always had a lot going through his mind. For him it was a struggle to keep himself calm. It is why he mostly avoided talking to people. So that he could work and rectify his thoughts rather than spilling them out.
“Have you planned on going back to school?” smiled Sanket.
“Of course not!” Suraj shrugged.
“Then what?”
“Look, I think there are things you must know about me. Especially now that mom and dad are gone. I have kept quiet for two years. But I cannot anymore.”
“What is it?”
“Mom and dad,” said Suraj, “They did not die in a car accident.”
“What are you saying? You weren’t even here when they died.”
“Shocked you must be. I can understand. But I can’t hide the fact that…” a tear rolled down Suraj’s eye.
“What is it?” asked Sanket.
“They died because of me.” Said Suraj and burst into tears.
“What are you saying?” said Sanket and put his arms on Suraj’s shoulders while he cried, “Hey, calm down okay. I know this must be very hard for you right now. But don’t worry. I will be taking you to one of the finest doctors in the city. Trust me. This shall pass.” Said Sanket and patted on Suraj’s back.
“You don’t understand. We don’t need a doctor.”
“Shh..” said Sanket and held Suraj tight. It was a very tough moment for both of them. Sanket worried that Suraj was losing his mind. While Suraj believed that they were a part of a greater destiny orchestrated for them. Who was right? Perhaps both. No two individuals could ever be same but the beauty with these two brothers was that they understood each other’s reality ever so perfectly. They were always nonjudgmental.
For two years Suraj pretended to be a part of Sanket’s reality. But when Suraj’s reality is unveiled to him, he was very concerned. Suraj cried in Sanket’s arms as he missed his parents. He remembered about the day his parents sent him to a public school.
Suraj was sitting at the back seat of the car, looking out of the window with a worried look. His father, Siddharth, drove the car and Suraj’s mother was sitting beside him.
“It’s only temporary.” Said Suraj’s father with a smile by looking at Suraj in the rear mirror. Suraj looked at him and nodded.
“You are quiet today. Worried my son?” said Suraj’s mother.
“Little.” Said Suraj.
“Don’t worry. This school is nothing compared to the adventures you will be facing soon.” Said Maya, Suraj’s mother. Suraj’s father touched her hand to stop her from saying anything more.
“It’s okay Siddharth.” Said Maya. “How long are we going to keep him away from everything? He is grown up now. Sometimes I just feel that we should tell him everything.”
“Tell me what?” frowned Suraj. Silence prevailed.
“Not today.” Said Siddharth.
“Why not? It’s just three of us here.” Said Maya and Siddharth pursed his lips.
“C’mon. We must tell him.” Said Maya.
“Okay,” said Siddharth and both of them looked back at the innocent boy who was sitting at the back seat of their car.
Suraj got out of the car furiously. He even kicked the car tyer at some point. He was in tears. His parents stepped out of the car too immediately.
“Look, we didn’t mean to hurt you. We just wanted you to know the truth.” Said Maya.
“So, is that why you are sending me away?”
“What? No! We just want you to be safe my son.” Said Siddharth as he tried to take a hold of him. But Suraj pushed his hand away immediately.
“Don’t touch me.” Said Suraj.
“Suraj please,” said Maya, “We love you so much.”
“Then why isn’t my brother here with me. Just because it is easier to raise your only real son, isn’t it? How could you just abandon me?”
“We haven’t. We’ve just…” said Siddharth.
“Sent you away.” Suraj cut him in the middle.
“Look, if you don’t want to be here then it’s okay. But please calm down first. We can go back home right from here. But first you have to listen to me very carefully about why we brought you here.” Said Siddharth.
“Tell me.” Said Suraj looking right into Siddharth’s eyes in fury, his arms folded.
“I will. But first,” said Siddharth as he opened the door of the car, “Let me take you to right where it all started.”
