Another morning dawned. It was a morn draped in dew. The dew sufficed for the waters of the bygone rains as it had ceased raining outside. A cool, humid atmosphere and a young, gentle, orange sun awaited Arnav.

Upon the sixth strike of the pendulum, Arnav left the bed.

Arnav had a ruffled appearance. Sleep had not draped him yesterday. The hum of the rains had.

And had the numerous musings joining his past and present. The night with its long, cool hours had passed by, and Arnav had endeavoured to tally-to figure out the correspondence, the links, similarities, dissimilarities and most importantly, the motive of his past, path and pursuit.

Was life giving him a second chance?

The ruffled physique, with unkempt hair, shrinked cheeks, and dark circles underneath the protruding, restless yet fatigued eyes, sluggishly perambulated to the window.

At first, Arnav casted his vision at the potted clematis. Its viridescent leaves were still wet, bearing the crystalline globules of transparency. Spontaneously, the focal length of the restless ebony pupils magnified to cover the entirety of the street before.

An awakening city was it. Though the hustle and bustle of the day had not yet managed to entirely incage the street, there neither prevailed ataraxia.

A few cars, their horns echoing in spite of the lack of vehicles and traffic upon the avenue, arrogantly hustled past the islands, splashing mud and water from the patches upon the road. They sadistically drabbled the little kid walking restlessly up and down the footpath-ravenously.

A few scenes flashed back before Arnav:

"Mai, just one penny! Haven't had anything since last night! Please Mai." a wretched child pleaded, thrusting itself upon the feet of the concubine.

"Get off me you damn wretch." a fiendish shriek answered the pleas, accompanied by a severe kick of the heels worn by the lady dealt at the stomach of the cadaverous child.

***

"Here, have the roti and vegetables please. We would send in some meat too later." said Arnav, as he handed over the plateful of a hearty meal to the impoverished kid.

The kid casted his vision at the body of men. They seemed to have come from the large, elegant building at the other side of the road. It was perplexed at the selfless aid offered by the body.

"Take it please." pleaded Arnav.

Sameer and Robin exchanged glances upon the contemplation of Arnav's actions.

His pleas had begun their work since morning at about half past six. The streams of water sliding down the cheeks and the persuasive voice and manner had managed to convince the men. Arnav had wished to feed the child.

The morning sun had by now, risen up the sky; its distinct colours reflecting and ricocheting in the clouds, had now but converged into a bold simplicity of white. It drizzled its heat that had been tendered by the abounding clouds in the ether.

"No worries. You can also come to our place to have the meal. We are mere workers of the building on the other side of the road. Do you see it?" explained Robin, his hands pointing at the gateway of the rehab.

To this, the kid looked up once again, this time, a smile illuminating its blackened lips.

"Arnav?" gushed Sameer, as he handed over to him his mobile.

"Here, you focus like this, got it? Click a picture of the child!" instructed Sameer.

A shudder went spontaneously down the torso of Arnav.

His hands clicked upon the image of the kid formed on the illuminated screen. It was captured. The moment was no more momentary now. It was immortal. Eternal.

***

Arnav fondled his unorganised moustache upon his countenance using the sharp, sagacious blade of the razor. The shaving foam was wiped away so were the unkempt hairs, the austerities it swathed. The image of a clean shaved countenance ricocheted from the mirror. It was washed, cleaned, taken care of. Unlike the previous profile prevailing within the glass.

A fresh new face, speaking of hope and not unkempt, careless, wretched.

Did it signify of a fresh new start?

***

The men were seated before Arnav, an Arnav who was now poised, his emotions, and mannerisms signifying of a dignified, diligent composure. A rational gaze of scrutiny was eminent within the pupils; its glory emanated from within the ebony orbs, washing away the room in a beacon of hope.

The men were seated in one of the comfortable nooks of cabin no. three hundred and one, upon nightfall. The colours painted upon the clouds welcomed dusk and bid adieu to the sun, who now, had disappeared-however, a splash of its colours still remained to rejuvenate a glorious, tender hue in the evening sky.

The traffic was dense, the irritable noise of the horns and the bustle within the travellers puncturing the glorious moment and its ataraxia.

However, Arnav did behold. He beheld the ether, and the ataraxia of it all, capturing the panorama of the moments with his vigilant eyes.

The silence was interrupted.

"Umm, Arnav, what had happened with Arjun Dada?" Sameer reflected his inquisitiveness.

"Oh, well, he never did look back, even after getting to know what his actions had just done. Arvind Dada was about falling unconscious." replied Arnav.

"Maa had been wailing upon the porch that night. Upon the sound of commotion, her quivering feet ran to the spot of shock. Arvind Dada's hand had been more than injured. It was bloody, demolished, unlike the tender soft digits which would often caress us to slumber. It was an unaccustomed sight whose surprise has gotten Maa into losing control and falling upon her feet, petrified.

"Amid the shrieks and expressions of horror and exchange of words reflecting Arjun Da's audacity and loathing, my ears managed to ponder over the steady, uniform, unreluctant, and unperturbed footsteps moving upon the porch.

"Ignoring the regret within my bosom created from my action of leaving Dadabhai behind in such an injured state, I walked out of the door, steadily, stealthily to the front porch. The sapphire moonlight had created an ocean of enigma and bewitching beauty upon the muddy porch. However, at that very hour, my senses had not been acute enough to capture their ethereality. They were acute indeed. Acute enough to catch the stealthiest syllables and the softest whispers from the porch which thereby, had let shivers down my spine, upsurging the secretion of epinephrine from my organs. I felt my heart throb, my eyes ball out, spontaneously!-upon catching the syllables uttered with stealth upon the very porch.

"But, wait, there wasn't solely he over there but another entity, possibly a woman. The silhouetted figure, and the partially visible linings of the countenance exemplified her to be the owner of blissful beauty. Her skin was the colour of the moon. Her eyes the shade of amber grain. Her hair, an opaque ebony. But like the fangs of the sundew plant, did the entity but bamboozle, gobble me down with her queer, shocking actions and words.

"I stealthily moved behind a wooden barrel kept on the mud porch, but it wasn't a place safe enough for hideout. I pushed myself behind the barrel and near one of the rooms. The attic door was engaged since the frames conversed facing that side of the porch. I pushed myself inside the room and fixed my ears on the perforations of the door. Finally, did I partially open it, so as to make sure that I caught every word and pronunciation. From what I eavesdropped, I was sure that there was more to come our way; there was more to come Arvind Dada's way.

"'Hey, you sure, you ain't being watched? I am pretty unsure bout your confidence. I suggest you follow me to the attic.' the woman was the first one to speak, the trebles of her melodious voice washing over the ambiance.

"'Mou, there ain't any out here who can keep track of our convo. All are engrossed in the aid of that maniac.'a deep, resonant and accustomed, voice replied, its frequency and amplitude as low as the words.

"'But still, nothing to lose with carefulness.' replied the musical voice.

"'No Mou. Situations might turn sceptical if they don't spot me in the house. You please tell me what I wanna know. And be hasty.' commanded the resonant voice, this time hinting of slight agitation.

"'Mr. Arjun Lohar, you know, what I like bout you so much? You fight for your meal.' taunted the woman.

"'Who's there?' questioned the man, his voice alarmed, letting out a suppressed, yet eminently fiendish shriek. He pointed to the partially open door. And to my silhouetted, and vignetted, eavesdropping physique.

"I stood petrified.

"'Believe me, I spotted someone...' tried the voice to explain to the woman.

"'You're drinking too much nowadays. Your eyes are playing tricks.' the maiden asserted her conceptions.

"'No, I shall leave. Mou, get me the stuff. Send it in. And...' the man demanded.

"'And?' the same melodious, enigmatic, yet tantalizing tone.

"'And I'll manage for the amount.' a thunderous declaration was asserted by the man.

'"You sure? Twenty-five thousand ain't a matter of joke!' the woman questioned.

"'I know! You needn't worry. Okay, good night darling.' said the man, as he kissed the personification of Aphrodite on the lips.

"I closed the door, carefully, preventing the slightest creaks of the door as Arjun Dada journeyed out of the porch, past the door behind which stood my quivering physique. The maiden, as I harkened, journeyed out of the porch door, and disappeared into the dark of the night.

"Arjun Dada journeyed forth to the room adjacent to mine-the room in which the deed had been done, his face solemn with regret, his manners signifying of guilt-pretentiously.

"I had been nothing but transfixed in stupefaction. But there remained more to come, more to be added to my utmost awe and trepidation!"

****