The enigmatic night whispered words from a long-lost lullaby. The euphony nevertheless seemed to be bereaved of its magnificence by a broken yet stubborn soul. As Mayank revealed his eyes, the adventure from several hours ago appeared to be an excerpt from an insignificant tale to him. His eyes were in peace with the darkness in no time. With mild perplexity sticking to his mind, he turned his head to the side, only to find an empty space.

He got up to sit on the bed and brushed his eyes all over the place. The kid, however, was nowhere to be seen. Mayank took in a deep breath. With a jogging heart, he got down from the bed and headed toward the torch on the small table kept by the window. As he looked outside, the scene caught his eye.

A little figure sat still before the stairs of the pond. It had to be Fayzan. Mayank stood in silence as he continued to observe him. It was the last of all places he was expecting the boy to be.

A couple of minutes later, he found himself standing right beside the child, who was still immersed in a realm unknown. Following a few moments of quietness, he gently claimed a seat beside the boy. Fayzan turned his head to the intruder in a rather blank fashion, as if Mayank was meant to be there by his side all along, and the late arrival deserved to be pardoned. In no time, the kid's eyes were once again placed upon the water of the pond that trembled with the shy breeze. The world around appeared to be shrouded in a delicate veil of fantasy; although the door stood right before the eyes, none could find a way out of the dream.

"Don't tell me that you were crying for those worms the whole day."

"They are my family," Fayzan replied, his eyes still lost in the show.

"Where's your real one?"

"Family?" The boy's lips quivered. "I have no one except Waseef Bhaiya."

Mayank's eyebrows went up. "Parents?"

"Dead."

"Oh."

"So, you live with that worm?" asked Mayank, following a moment of silence.

"Waseef Bhaiya is not a worm. He is the best brother in the world."

"He can't always bring you along, can he?"

Fayzan sighed. "No. He leaves me behind with a weird creature when he is away on tours."

"A weird creature?"

The boy nodded lightly. "Yes. Papa's son from his previous marriage."

"That makes you his brother."

"He has never treated me like one." The boy wiped his eyes with the back of his hand and threw his gaze up at the star-studded sky.

"What about you?" Fayzan carried on. "Who are there in your family?"

Mayank's face grew stern, but only for a second. After a brief pause, he set a few words free. "Mom," he uttered in an unnaturally fragile tone. "And—and a little brother."

"You have a baby brother? How old is he?"

"Of your age."

"I can't believe you left him behind. He must be missing you."

Mayank smirked. "Who would miss a terrible creature like me?"

"You know what, Mayank?"

"What?"

Fayzan thought for a while. "Nothing. Leave it."

"Okay."

"But tell me one thing."

"You better ask something that's worth responding to."

The boy paid the threat back with indifference. "What made you choose this way?"

"What way?"

"This way."

The all-rounder narrowed his eyes. "This is where I belong. I was done hanging out with good boys."

"Good boys?" The kid shrugged. "Well, they aren't precisely what I would call good boys, but I would definitely prefer them over a bunch of robbers."

Mayank remained silent. He did not seem to perceive it as an insult.

With no response heading his way, Fayzan got up on his feet. "Maybe you should get some sleep. Vaibhav might end up sending you off to another mission tomorrow."

The all-rounder did not bother to respond. After a period of curious observation, the kid walked away toward the house.

The stench of acrimony filled the air as Mayank glided back to his past, letting his entity suffocate in the constricted chamber of memories. Sternness took over his face while he continued to tremble in fury. Promises were broken, and the vice was not to be forgiven. Amidst the agony, he found a rough pebble lying barely a foot away. It was grasped without a second thought, and a moment later, a small abrasion formed on his left wrist. The physical pain delightfully conquered a seat beside its mental counterpart, which refused to rule Mayank on its own.

**********

A figure continued to fidget on the bed; despite the soothing silence, his mind refused to let go of the voracious wolf that was relentlessly devouring and throwing him up. He turned to his friend, responding to the sudden, soft grip on his arm. Even in the darkness, he could make out Shranav's anxious face.

"You are not fine, Aanvik," he uttered in a feeble voice. "Auntie asked me to look after you, and I feel I am not doing a very good job."

"It's alright, Shranav. I thought you were asleep," said the captain.

"Have some mercy on yourself, buddy. You will need some life to deal with him when he returns."

"If he returns."

"I don't know this version of you. Where is the silly boy who still believes in dragons?"

Aanvik could not resist a smile. "C'mon, what's wrong with believing in dragons? Believing doesn't hurt."

"Exactly. Believe that Mayank is going to come back. It won't hurt. And maybe he will pick up some gnomes for you on his way back."

The grin on Aanvik's lips grew wider for a second. "But I can't stop being anxious. There's a match in a couple of days, and I feel like I am going to end up making a joke of myself."

"We aren't the only ones who are dealing with a loss here. Even if it turns out to be a circus, it won't be one-sided."

"Waseef," Aanvik muttered. "Poor boy. He is going crazy."

"Do think about yourself too sometimes."

A brief pause followed.

"Shranav, you know what? There's something that I can't drive out of my mind."

"What is it?"

"I promised her, but I failed to keep my word. I feel like a sinner, a nefarious one."

"It's not your fault. You know that, right?"

"I don't know what's what anymore. All I know is that I won't ever be able to forgive myself," Aanvik continued, overlooking the words of condolence. "I have broken a promise. A promise made to someone who meant so much to me. That's not how I was supposed to repay her."

"You were just a kid back then, boy. It doesn't count."

"But—"

"No more words. Try to get some rest. You have to stay strong for the rest of the team. Even if we can't get past the border of uncertainty, we can at least outrun the other side in the race."

Aanvik let out a long sigh. "Let's hope for the best. I have already lost enough. I can't afford to let the match slip out of my hand now. We'll make it. We will."

Although he knew that the captain had to push the words with great effort, a weak smile spread across Shranav's lips. "That sounds more like you."

Aanvik did not respond any more. He gently dragged himself closer to his friend and buried his face in Shranav's shoulder. A second later, he felt a palm placed affectionately on his back. The warmth seemed to make a part of his discomfort abate with time.

The magical dark sky continued to witness the misery of the troubled souls—the ones to whom peace was not heading in flocks anymore and the ones to whom the mere glimpse of felicity had been scrumptious for long.