Cross Roads: Pick a Path (5 page)

“Grab her,” shouted Miran, looking toward
his henchmen’s. With two animals lifting her by the arm Hasini was
beginning to loss consciousness, and as the blood dropped her fate
may have been sealed. Miran laughing psychotically sat on top of a
table next to the now shattered mirror, wishing to see Hasini
drowned, “Dump her,” he commanded. Dragging her hopeless soul,
Miran’s henchmen began to dip her head into a glass tank of
water.

Hasini knew in her mind, times were coming
to an end. She pleaded for her life, but there is no pleading that
was going to save her from the insanity that is Miran. When faced
with death we can do three things, hope you will live to see
another day, worry about what comes after death, or you can simply
embrace it. Hasini did not fight back the force of the henchmen;
she calmly closed her eyes and thought about Arrun one last time.
She knew her time was over, but in those moments she could not help
but think of the life she could have had with him. Hasini could not
help but think of how he will take it; will he move on? Can he take
another loss? Memories came to her, and as she began to struggle
for breath, she departed with a smile, with thoughts of Arrun
gracing her mind.

Stepping down from the table Miran spoke in
secrecy to one of his trusted henchman, “Put her in the car and
make it look like an accident; push the car off a bridge or
something, no traces! As for the other three bodies, just bury
them. Don’t forget to make sure Trent has an alibi, and get the
rest of this girls story from him.”

Breaking from his follower he turned towards
the crowd of women, now trembling in horror; with one glance he let
them know what happens when people come in his way.

After making sure transport for the women
was set, Miran took leave of the warehouse. Shortly after, Miran’s
henchmen began commencing on his orders; Hasini now a soulless
corpse was being carried to the near distance where her car was
parked in secrecy. Then henchmen were extremely careful in making
sure her death looked like an unfortunate accident.

A couple miles from the warehouse there was
a bridge, one that is never really busy. With the time being around
3am, it was the ideal time to end Hasini’s chapter. The time
3:23am, breaking through the concrete barrier Hasini’s car is now
gradually making way towards the body of water. As history has
proved, many who want to contribute to the world must face death
early. At times the world loses a savior, but ones death at times
has a bigger impact on another individual, over what they could
have done for the world. It is a tragedy that true love had to die
young; Hasini’s loss will surely have an impact on Arrun.

It has been such a long day; Hasini was busy
with something so I decided to finish prepping for her surprise.
After proposing to Hasini a few months back I thought it would be
reasonable for us to live together. I was already earning more than
I needed with my current job, and with the amount of money Sarah
left for each one of us I was able to purchase a beautiful
lakeshore condo in Toronto.

Early in the afternoon I got hold of the key
and the new place was beautiful, really modern looking. I liked the
open flow of the condo, but what really sold me was the view. It
was remarkably beautiful during the day, and I could only imagine
what I was in store for at night, with the lights of the city
shining bright. Initially I thought moving in was going to be a
hassle, but with the help of the movers the job was a lot easier
than expected. By the time midnight struck I was already settled
in; the new appliances were in, furniture in place, and me oh my,
my brand new TV had me confused if I could love Hasini the
same.

It was pretty late in the night when I
stepped on to the balcony with my cup of coffee. Placing a
cigarette between my lips, I had seen the best of both worlds. My
condo was placed in an angle; so when I look to my left I have a
beautiful view of the calm lake, resting easy with its roots, and
no destruction by men. Towards the right was the view of buildings
towering over one another; it’s weird that mankind usually destroys
the planet, yet they can make a city of lights seem just as
stunning.

Though the city lights were marvelous, I
stuck to what the Earth had to offer. The time 3:23am, glancing
over the admirable water, with the combination of coffee and a
cigarette, I was left thinking of the new journey I will embark on
with my beautiful fiancée.

Hasini was not going to know about my
surprise for her till the morning, and seeing how she probably
would not even call this late into the night I should probably
sleep.

~

I was only asleep for a few hours before I
started receiving an abundant of calls. They were from an
unfamiliar number, so I ignored it. It continued. Though after some
time I was not able to deal with the annoyance, nor was I able to
sleep. However when I answered the call I was immediately placed to
shock, it was from a Staff Sargent John Collins.

“
Hey Arrun, this is Staff Sargent John
Collins calling. I hate to be the one to break it to you but there
has been an accident. We were able to retrieve a phone from the
scene, with a number last dialed to you. Do you know a Hasini
Ravichandra?”

“Yes! Officer she’s my fiancée! Is she okay?
Where is she?” I inquired, already thinking the worst.

“
Arrun, I need you to remain quiet for a
brief moment and hear what I have to say. Sometime last night,
possibly early in the morning Hasini’s car crashed into the barrier
of a bridge, eventually submerging under water. Hasini seemed to
have sustained serious trauma to the head, and suffocation from
being trapped under water. My apologies Arrun, but we were too
late. By the time we came to know of the incident, Hasini had
already passed. We currently transported her body to St.Micheals
Hospital and would like for you to come there, so we can speak in
further detail.”

“Arrun! Arrun? Are you there?” called out
the officer.

No, it isn’t possible. It has to be a sick,
cruel joke right? My body felt numb, my phone surged to the ground,
and I dropped to my knees. It was hard trying to gain breath, I did
not want believe it. I didn’t believe it; I rushed to St.Micheals
Hospital, the whole time praying for that phone call to be a prank.
Walking through the emergency doors, a cold chill devoured my body.
I never felt this fear before, I wondered if anything can scare me
more.

I never liked the environment of hospitals,
a place of life and death; a hospital is the perfect explanation of
what lays between heaven and hell. There were strangers everywhere,
some mourning a loss, some in queue for death and life, and some
celebrating new arrivals. Then there was me, torn in confusion;
hoping for something that probably just won’t go my why. Receiving
a light tap on my shoulder, I turned to an officer.

“
Officer, don’t say it. Please, I beg
you! What the fuck are you doing! This isn’t funny; this is a
sick-fucking joke isn’t it! Officer, I can’t take it, please just
tell me it’s a lie. Please! Of course it’s a lie, I mean I was
going to surprise her today. I bought a beautiful condo, we were
going to marry and start a beautiful life together. She can’t be
gone, she just can’t. You’re lying! Tell me she’s there behind
those doors, with her beautiful smile; she’s testing to see how
much I love her, right? She’s everything to me, if she’s
gone…”

“Arrun! Get yourself together! I need you to
walk with me, it is going to be hard, but you have to deal with it.
She is gone!” Shouted the officer, as I stared upon him; still
hoping for everything to work in my favor.

With ever step we drew closer to the truth,
my denial was beginning to fade. I knew what lies ahead will not be
easy to handle, but I needed to know. Surging past the officer,
unable to hold the negative anticipation I forced through the
doors. With corpses lying lonesome, Sargent John Collins grasped
me. He pulled me back and walked me towards a figure covered under
a white cloth.

My hands nervously shivered, making pace
towards the cloth I did not want the truth. Pulling it over,
thousands of emotions filled my thoughts, but I was not able to
speak. A tear dropped, and emotions began to pour.

“
No, No, No, Hasini…No! Hasini, talk to
me! Please! Hasini, smile Hasini, I don’t want to see you like
this. I need you Hasini, Hasini! We were meant to grow old
together; you can’t leave me before we begin our lives. We were
going to have children, a son as amusing as me, and a daughter as
beautiful and loving as you. How am I to keep going now, without
you? Hasini, please!”

“Arrun, we need to go now,” said officer
John Collins.

I wasn’t able to bear it; I rushed back out
the door. I was angry, emotions took over, and I was punching
walls, smashing everything in sight. The officer was the one to
bring me down; he took me to the floor and shouted, “Arrun! You
need to calm down!” Hasini was gone, but I was the one who felt
soulless. Life no longer had a purpose, and things were never going
to be the same.

Three months passed since Hasini left my
life, and things never found their way back into place. I
constantly visited the bridge where the accident took place,
staring endlessly over the body of water that took her away from
me. Today was no different; I stood over with a flask of whisky
trying to forget. Forgetting was never a reasonable option, how do
you forget love that was real. At most, all I was able to do is try
and keep my mind off it, even if it were temporary.

It was hard; it was hard to believe how
things flipped upside down so quickly. You never get warnings
before accidents, and I knew it, but I just could not accept it.
With every ticking second I remember looking into her eyes and
feeling whole; her parting completely broke me.

At first I was ready to walk alone

Keeping the anticipation of a long journey
in thought

A journey I was confident of boarding
alone

Without my desire

She came

Standing shoulder to shoulder at the
entrance of darkness

With every moment that passed on our journey
we grew closer

The darkness became brighter

I was able to see life in a different
light

The missing piece

Right there

The middle of it all

She left

Making the light a darkness

Once again

Leaving me to question it all

Why? Why come, to go

Standing unable to move back or forward

Lost in the woods I must remain

Until I forget

But will I ever?

Days passed; I often found myself sitting on
the floor of my condo, leaning against the wall with alcohol as my
only companion. My family has often tried to get me back to being
the Arrun they love, but the Arrun the world once knew died the day
Hasini stopped breathing. I wasn’t even able to close my eyes
without her presence aching my soul, and as much as it hurt, it
helped.

It didn’t take me too long to close the
entire world out; at first alcohol was the companion. Soon the
presence of a dark room made things easier. The slash in my mind
became worse, and forgetting never seemed so difficult. At times I
could not even bare it; I needed more help. My family was always
there for me in times where I needed to talk, but I simply did not
want to associate with the rest of the world. Drugs; never thought
I would even have the thought of turning to them again some day,
but it did seem like a reasonable escape. I have smoked marijuana
back in high school, and university, but back in those days it was
more of a stress-reliever. Now I just want it so I can forget, and
maybe remember the good.

In the rare occasions I stepped out of the
condo, I observed a man who clearly had his hands on marijuana. I
once overheard someone call him Remone, after a few days of
observing his actions I decided to walk over and speak to him.

“Hey man, are you selling?” I asked.

“What are you, a fucking fed,” asked
Remone.

“No, just someone who needs to get his mind
off a few things,” I replied.

“I’ve seen you observing me lately, you’re
creepy as fuck dude. I don’t know if I can trust you,” replied
Remone in a hesitant tone.

“So you do have, come on man; I really need
it. Shit just hasn’t been easy for me. I’ve got money bro, I
promise. You’re the first person I’ve even spoken to in a while.” I
pleaded.

“You just get creepier by the second don’t
you. So you’ve got a problem eh? Why don’t you explain that a bit?”
He asked.

“My fiancée died in a car accident three
months back! I can’t get my fucking mind off her! I didn’t come
here to be your fucking friend, are you going to sell to me, or
what? Cause I’m sure I can find someone to take my money,” I
shouted.

“Chill bro, chill! Damn, I didn’t see that
coming. All right man, you do seem to be having it rough, here’s
three deagles, on me. Next time I won’t be showing you pity, I will
need the money,” replied Remone, while he slowly handed me some
marijuana.

Walking away from Remone, I decided to make
a quick stop at the local liquor store. Whisky is what I often
drank; it was always strong enough to get me drunk. When I made way
to the cashier she took a look at me, she was a fairly elderly
women. “You could use a trim and shave son, you’d get all the
ladies going crazy,” she commented, with smile. She was kind, and
she reminded me of Sarah so I was able to front a fake smile. I
noticed my change when I wasn’t even able to say a simple thank
you, I am far from the person I once was.

It didn’t take me that long to roll up the
marijuana as soon as I made it back to my condo on the twenty-sixth
floor. With first draw, the smoke swished its way down to my lungs.
Captivating me from inside, my mind tangled into a million
thoughts; and as I took continuous draws, the thoughts began to
process. Clouds of smoke filled the room, and leaning back on my
couch it was kind of beautiful watching the clouds drift as the
sea.