The violet sky seemed to tremble and gasp at the sight of the ground that was being atrociously assaulted by Mayank's heavy feet. Rage had set his blood on fire; as he rushed along the path that led to Vaibhav's place, his eyes were crimson from humiliation. By the time he reached his destination, the exotic shade of the sky was lost in the arms of almost unadulterated darkness.

The door of Vaibhav's room was kicked open by the furious all-rounder. Although it hit the wall with a tremendous bang, the leader sat still on a chair with his eyes calmly set on the furious young man.

"What the hell is this?" The room shook violently as Mayank's booming voice broke free from the soaring infuriation. "What the hell is this?" he yelled again as his hand flung the rescuee toward Vaibhav. "You made me walk through that hellish jungle to bring back this stupid toy?"

Vaibhav sighed as he gently picked up the stuffed tiger. "Calm down, Aavin."

"Calm down? Calm down? After all this, you are asking me to calm down?"

Vaibhav got up from his seat and took a few steps toward Mayank. "Why do you care about whom or what you have saved? Your job is done. You have passed the test. That's everything that matters."

The all-rounder continued to pant. He nevertheless offered his throat a much-needed rest. "But why did you do this?"

"That doesn't matter either, does it? I know your head is bursting with questions of all sorts, but I have one final request to make."

"What?"

"Give me a little time, Aavin. I beg you."

Mayank raised an eyebrow. "And what do you mean by that?"

"Go to your room and take a rest. Meet me tomorrow at this time. Please, Aavin. I promise you will have all the answers you wish for."

"And why should I trust you?"

"It's my house, and I am not running away anywhere."

"Well yeah, I can see I haven't yet burned this place down."

"So, should I take it as an affirmative?"

"Not in a million years. How do I know you aren't playing one of your stupid tricks again?" asked Mayank, who was once again sensing a surge of anger in his limbs. "I should have figured it out long ago that you are simply messing around."

"I am not messing around or playing any trick, Aavin. I know it's hard for you to bear me at this time, but—"

"Why am I even listening to you? Why am I listening to an old, broken radio that hasn't been repaired in ages?"

Vaibhav sighed. "It's okay. You can blurt it all out. I am not going to be mad at you."

"Sounds like some favor."

"Where's your knife, Aavin?"

"Not against your throat. Not yet, I mean."

"If you don't get all your questions answered tomorrow, you can as well pass it through my throat."

"And your guys are going to stand and watch?"

"They aren't going to be there. No, you have no reason to believe this, but I hope you decide to give me a final chance. C'mon, young man, what have you got to lose at this point?"

Vaibhav was not entirely wrong. He did not have much to lose. "Don't be too pleased with yourself. I can use some rest, that's all."

"Thank you, Aavin."

Flinging an ambiguous glare, Mayank turned around to walk back to his room. He, however, was stopped by Vaibhav.

"Wait," he said. "Don't forget this."

Mayank rolled his eyes and received the toy, wondering for a second what the kid's reaction would be. A meager smile lit up Vaibhav's lips as he watched him leave in quick steps.

"I better find that worm asleep," Mayank muttered through gritted teeth. The child, unsurprisingly, had other plans.

The all-rounder stopped at the door and let his eyes slide in, only to find Fayzan sitting on the floor with his knees locked in a hug. He released a short sigh as the boy, sensing his presence, offered him a look heavy with exhaustion. Without bothering to speak, Mayank slowly shifted his gaze to the hand that was holding the stuffed tiger. Fayzan followed the lead.

Wonder froze the boy's eyes for a moment as he laid them on the toy. He moved his eyes back and forth from the toy to Mayank several times before the all-rounder threw it toward him. He grabbed it effortlessly.

"Toby!" cried the boy as he pressed the tiger against his chest. "Where have you been?"

"Hell," Mayank proudly replied on its behalf. "I have been to hell. That's where I found him."

Fayzan released Tobias from the hug and slowly got up with the all-rounder behind the bars of his sparkling eyes. He stepped closer to him with a mysterious look on his face, making Mayank raise an eyebrow.

Several blaring sirens began to ring at once inside Mayank as, without a fair warning, the boy locked him in an embrace. At once, his face went pale, his limbs went still, and his mind went missing. Bizarre warmth conquered his entity, and yet an enchanting icy breath bereaved it of life. Dreadful light filled his heart, and yet serene darkness agonized it. Was he, for a moment, allowed to release reality from the shackles of his unrelenting soul? With a vehement jerk of the head, he chased the thought away. The boy continued to cling to him while he breathed heavily.

"Thank you, Mayank," said Fayzan as he finally let go of him. "You can have the whole bed to yourself tonight. I will sleep on the floor."

Mayank, who was still recovering from the torment inflicted on him a moment ago, stood with his gaze fixed on the ceiling. Although a fair portion of his senses was peeking from a distance, trying to figure out whether it would be safe to re-enter his body, he knew that the reward was rather peculiar.

Visible confusion raided the boy's eyes. He poked the all-rounder's belly a couple of times, trying to pull him back to the mundane world. "Mayank?"

"What's that horrendous stench?" Mayank spoke at last.

Silence prevailed for a moment.

"Oh, sorry about that," said the kid, following a gasp. "I let the little goat play on the bed. He peed there. I took him back to his house; don't worry. He won't be bothering you."

"And you want me to sleep on a pee-drenched bed?"

Fayzan scratched his head. "Well, if you don't want to sleep there, I won't mind sharing the floor with you."

"Could this world get any kinder?" The all-rounder muttered as he finally let his vision descend to the floor.

**********

A little color invaded Waseef's pale face as a beaming face flashed on the screen of his mobile phone. He received the call and got up to sit on the sofa. 

"Hello, Aanvik."

"Hi, kid. How are you doing?"

"Good, I guess. Exhausted though. What about you?"

"Alive. Maybe."

Waseef let out a sigh. He knew his friend was doing no better than him. "You are coming, right?"

A slight trace of life seemed to brush against Aanvik's voice. "What will you feed me if I do?"

"Rat poison."

"I was expecting biriyani."

A faint grin appeared on the side of Waseef's lips as he pictured the false frown on his friend's face. "Biriyani with rat poison, then."

"Cool. We eat together. We die together."

"Deal," said the Bangladesh captain. "I haven't got a precise reason to be alive anyway."

"Same."

A minute passed without further exchange.

"Boy?" Aanvik gingerly pushed the silence away. "You still there?"

"Hmm."

"Listen to me."

"Yeah?"

"Don't die."

"Will try not to."

"No, I am serious!" said Aanvik in a bolder voice. "You will stay alive and suffer with me. No mercy!"

Waseef could not resist a smile. "Do come, buddy. At least we can cry together in peace for a while without hitting the headlines. Letting your plans go down the gutter would do no good."

"Guess we can bear each other for a few days."

"Yup."

"Alright, then. Get some rest and try to stay sane."

"Nayif will kill me if I don't. Can't blame him; poor chap is working his back off to make sure I don't end up in an asylum."

"God bless him."

"May God bless him and everyone else with all the joys in the world. And for myself, I want nothing but the truth."

"Truth?"

"Yes. Good or bad. Anything. Anything about my chipmunk. Is he alive? Is he dead? I want to know. Time can heal a wound caused by loss, but it can't heal a wound that it can't find in the first place. Such is the wound caused by uncertainty; nothing can locate it, yet it hurts the most."

A long silence followed.

Waseef closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "Goodnight, Aanvik."

"Night, buddy."

Aanvik put the phone down and drove his gaze up to the serene, glitter-sprinkled sky. The view grew hazy in no time; as he felt a hand placed tenderly on his shoulder, he made no attempt to hide his inundated cheeks. He turned around at once and surrendered to his friend's arms, filling the night with furious sobs.

"Why does Waseef get to go crazy and I don't?" The words pushed their way out through the crowd of despair. "How's that fair, Shranav?"

Shranav stood still with his hands around the captain. He had no answer.

"Loss hurts, and uncertainty hurts more. But do you know what hurts the most? Having to bury an innocent truth deep in your heart and losing the right to lose your mind."

Shranav's fingers quivered as he wiped away the tears forming in his eyes. "Truth remains truth even when it is hidden from everyone's eyes. You have lost no rights. You can be the sanest or the craziest of all beings, here in these arms. Nothing else matters."

A faint smile took over Aanvik's lips. "I know. I haven't run out of brothers yet."

The batsman ruffled his friend's hair. "Everyone's waiting for you at the dinner table. Go and wash your face first. You don't want to scare my stupid sister."

"Not in front of your mom, at least. She chased us with a broom the last time we pranked her little princess."

Shranav chortled. "One of those rare times when Mayank could not stop laughing."

Despite the sudden mention, the hint of amusement did not entirely disappear from their faces. The invasion of the delightful memory seemed to wash away the bitter taste of reality for a while. As Shranav walked back downstairs, he was half expecting to find Mayank quietly conquering one of the chairs. The momentary thought, however, turned out to be an abode beyond all known depictions of luxury as the sight of the empty space stabbed his eyes.

Mayank was not there.