[Memory Lane]

Never again...

It was a sunny and busy Friday, Samadhi and I were running all over the department to ‘lock up’ our pages. At the sametime we wanted to go to the bank as well with a long week end ahead. Every time we tried to go out we failed with something or other important coming up.

Finally around twelve we managed to step out of office to go to the bank and then for lunch. Usually, we hop into three wheeler but this day we decided to walk. It didn’t take long though when we heard the loudest bang we have heard in our life time, and the area was filled with black smoke.

Samadhi and I were shocked and virtually in tears, but pretended to be calm as both didn’t want to jolt each other. Believe it or not the first few words which came out our mouths were “Oh, no.... what about the people?” The first thing I did was to dial the number of my better half and his family to ensure they were fine, but then I realised that the phone lines were jammed.

Of course I knew better than Anuki. When a bomb had exploded on an earlier occasion I tried to call Anuki’s place and the lines were dead. So the moment I heard the blast this time the first thing I did was to call my loved ones.

Not because I was afraid for their safety, since none of them were anywhere around. But just to spare them of the bother, because I know for a fact that as soon as they hear of the blast, they will try to call me. So while I dial my mother’s number I yelled at Anuki to do the same.

Although I knew we should get back into “Lake House” as my legs were turning numb. So I called my mother while standing at the exact place where I was when the bomb went off. I just screamed ‘Bomb at Fort’ and hung up. And when I tried to call my `flame’ I found that his line was jammed.

My next worry was that he might get to know of the blast and not think calling my mother, in which case he would fret till he thought of calling her or she called him. So I keyed in a text before the texts got jammed as well. It just read `Bomb’ near “Lake House”.

My legs were slowly recovering from the numbness and I suggested to Anuki that we should get back in. Just then we heard the sound of fast moving vehicles and people yelling to others on the road to get out of the way. We saw a tuk tuk speed away with a wounded.

I didn’t see it at until Anuki looked the other way with horror. And now she wouldn’t budge, because she was overwhelmed with pity. But I yelled to her to snap out of it, because we had told some of our colleagues that we were going to the bank, and they might worry if we didn’t turn up before long.

Although I forced her out of her shock, we realized that the entrance to “Lake House” was crowded with inquisitive people. It always amazed me to see people flocking together to see the results of a bomb explosion; how they clog the roads and the entrances to hospital at vital moments, when the best thing to do is to stay out of the way if you are not required to be there.

When we entered the office one lady remarked ‘You two seemed to have had great experience, wasn’t it?’ I was the first to reply.

“How can a bomb explosion be a ‘great experience”, I shot back and while walking towards our desks we silently prayed that we wouldn’t ever have to see or face such horrible sights!” Never again.....!