KUMUDINI
Swara suddenly woke up, her throat parched. For a while, she had been having all sorts of strange dreams; Kumudini(Kumu) was looking at her. No, how could Kumu be there? She was…. Swara chuckled to herself, thinking about old times. Anyway, her water bottle was on the dressing table; she could drink some water and go back to sleep.After drinking water, Swara lay back in bed. Old memories flooded her mind. Kumu, her school friend, was a cheerful girl, though a bit tomboyish. But there was nothing wrong with that. She was such an innocent girl, only wanting true love and nothing else. Moreover, why would she even want anything else? She lacked nothing. She had loved Anik. But no, Anik was only and only Swara’s. Thinking this, Swara had wanted to remove Kumu, seeing her as a thorn in her side, which led to such intense resentment towards her. It was in that fit of rage that she had…. Ugh, Swara couldn’t think about it anymore.”How are you, Swara?” The familiar voice startled Swara. It was Kumu’s voice, no one else’s. But how was that possible? Just six months ago, she had personally poured kerosene on Kumu’s dead body and set it on fire. “Remembering old times, are we? You put on quite a show of fake grief for my disappearance that day. What are you thinking now?” No, this couldn’t be a figment of her imagination. Had Kumu returned? Goosebumps broke out on Swara’s skin. She looked beside her to see Kumu staring at her with fierce eyes. “You look as shrivelled as a dried mango, I see,” Kumu’s ghostly voice hissed. Swara managed to croak, “Kumu, what are you doing here at this hour? Go back to your own place immediately.” “That’s rich, coming from a murderer. Do you know how much pain I felt when you killed me? Then everything just went dark. I won’t find peace until I take revenge for the injustice done to me.”Hearing this, Swara went pale with fear. She pleaded, “Forgive me, Kumu. I am really sorry. Please don’t kill me.” “Does saying sorry make all wrongdoings seven times forgiven? What do you know? My parents suffered the most.” “I truly didn’t want to kill you, believe me. It’s just that I really liked Anik, but he only paid attention to you, not me. He always talked to you. He had told me that you two weren’t in a relationship yet, that you’d wait until after building your careers. I just wanted to make him mine, so the thought of getting rid of you kept swirling in my head.” “You could have told me, Swara. I was your friend. Even if I hesitated, I might have told Anik later. But you took away my right to live? Why, Swara, why? Why did you do this to me?” “Let me go, Kumu, please. I’ve committed a grave sin.””No, Swara, no. I won’t find peace if I let you go. You will be punished for your crime, and it will be right now.” Saying this, two sharp fangs emerged from the corners of Kumu’s lips before Swara’s eyes. Kumu sank them into Swara’s throat. Blood spurted from Swara’s neck. Like a freshly sacrificed goat, Swara thrashed about for a while, and then her lifeless body fell silent. The ferocity on Kumu’s face was replaced by an expression of unspoken anguish. Leaning over Swara’s bloody body, Kumu burst into tears. “I considered you my true friend, Swara. I always wished you well. Yet you could do this to me? Anyway, despite everything, wherever you are, be well, Swara. Now I am free.” Slowly, Kumu’s form dissipated into the air. Like Kumu’s mind, Swara’s pristine white bedsheet was now stained with blood.This is how countless innocent lives, like Kumudini’s, are prematurely cut short in our society, with no accountability. Until people truly understand the meaning of love and friendship, thousands upon thousands of untold stories of many Kumudinis will continue to linger in the corners of society.