Pratīti

That evening, the station was emptier than usual. Dark clouds covered the sky, and the platform was unusually quiet. A cool breeze passed through the station, comforting Meera's exhausted body while making her long even more to reach home and rest. She had been working since morning and was completely drained.

When her train arrived, Meera found a seat near the window and closed her eyes. A few minutes later, a teenage girl sat beside her. Meera knew her well; they had been taking the same train for weeks, and their small conversations had slowly become part of Meera's daily journey.

That evening, however, the compartment was almost empty. Apart from Meera and the girl, there was only a teenage boy sitting several seats away. Meera noticed him repeatedly watching the girl. Whenever the girl looked away, his eyes returned to her. Something about his stare unsettled Meera, so she quietly moved closer to the girl. The boy noticed, but continued staring.When they reached the girl's station, Meera got off with her. The platform was almost empty, and the girl's father had not arrived yet. They waited together while the boy also stood nearby, occasionally looking at the girl and sometimes at Meera. Meera noticed him, but said nothing.Meera immediately called her husband. “Can you come and pick me up from here?” she asked. “I'll be there,” he replied.A few minutes later, the girl's father finally arrived. The girl ran to him, and Meera stayed until she was safely with her father. They then walked away.When Meera's husband arrived, she pointed toward where the boy had been standing. “That boy... He was watching the girl.” Her husband looked around, but the boy was nowhere to be seen. They searched the platform, but there was no sign of him. Finally, Meera convinced herself that he must have left, and she went home with her husband.That night, Meera suddenly woke to a faint dragging sound. The bedroom was almost completely dark, and the air felt unnaturally cold.“Arjun?” she called.No answer.She slowly got out of bed. Her feet touched the cold, blood-covered floor. She froze. Her eyes adjusted to the darkness, and she looked down at the blood before looking ahead. Her husband's body lay on the floor, his throat covered in blood.Dizzy and terrified, Meera stumbled backward. Then she heard breathing behind her. A dark figure slowly became clear. It was the boy from the train, staring at her with the same creepy smile, his eyes greedy and predatory. Before she could react, he suddenly rushed toward her.Meera screamed and attacked blindly, striking his face. The figure fell to the floor.As her vision cleared, Meera realized it was the girl—the same girl from the train.“What...?” she whispered.Then she noticed something was wrong. This wasn't her bedroom. She wasn't even in her house. She was standing inside the girl's living room, with the girl lying on the floor in front of her. Before Meera could understand what was happening, the girl's father rushed into the room.He saw Meera standing over his daughter and became furious.“What did you do to my daughter?”“Wait—I didn't—”He grabbed a heavy photo frame from the wall and struck her on the head.Everything went black.Meera suddenly opened her eyes. She was sitting inside the train, her heart pounding. The teenage girl was beside her.“Are you okay?” the girl asked.Meera stared at her.“I didn't disturb you. You were sleeping,” the girl said.Meera touched her head. No blood. No wound. She looked around. The train was moving normally, but there was only one other passenger—the boy.Meera's blood ran cold.He was sitting several seats away, staring directly at the girl.The train began slowing down.Her station.The doors opened.Meera stood up, but before stepping out, she looked at the girl. She wanted to warn her. She wanted to tell her to get off the train.Then she looked at the boy.He looked directly at her.Slowly, he smiled.Meera froze.There was something in that smile that stopped her completely.It wasn't a smile of surprise.It was a smile of certainty.As if he already knew what she had seen.As if he already had the girl in his hands.Meera looked back at the girl.For a moment, she wanted to speak.But the words wouldn't come.She knew she couldn't save her.The doors began to close.Meera stepped onto the platform.The train moved away.She stood there, watching the girl disappear into the darkness with the boy.For a moment, she couldn't move.She had saved herself.But she had left the girl behind....