A Sew Through Time [Banbudh And Budbak]

21: Homesick

Khushi wiped the humid bathroom mirror with the back of her hand. Long strands of hair covered her forehead, almost touching her lashes; the ends touched her shoulders.

Pulling open the drawer behind the mirror, she took out the small metallic scissors. A small strand of hair fell on the basin, making not much difference. Remembering the techniques she had taught herself during the pandemic, she cut the excessive strands and shortened the end. After she was done, she took a closer look of her hair, feeling proud of her little masterpiece. Though she had cut it too short, it looked fittingly sober on her face.

The red pills sat on the basin. Grabbing them, she threw them in the toilet and flushed it down.

Keeping the scissors back, she noticed a purple lighter inside. It was half filled with transparent liquid; her stepmother might had forgotten about its existence. Deciding to throw it away, she took the lighter in her pocket and closed the little cabinet.

Downstairs, light footsteps trailed towards the door. The lights had been
turned on. She glanced at the clock, it was six thirty pm. Not that it showed the correct time; all clocks around the house have been facing peculiar issues recently.

She left the bathroom to peek downstairs, noticing Aditi leaving the house. She was wearing an old T-shirt and a pair of skinny jeans, the keys clanking in her hands.

Running back to her room, she dresses up in comfortable clothes- denim onesies and a striped yellow tee underneath. Turning to the backdoor, she unlocked it with the spare key from the kitchen and headed out to follow her.

The clouds began to swirl in the sky. Aditi halted on a large mound of a hill present in the outskirts of town. The wind blew on her face, making her long hair flow behind her neck.

Khushi climbed up the little hill and steadied herself, keeping a few meters away while observing her.

Aditi sat down on the green grass, blankly staring into pitch black street in front. It was a few metres down the hill, a faint streetlight was lit up with moths fluttering around for vitality.

With careful steps, Khushi crept to her side and placed her hands on her.

Aditi felt startled as she looked back in an instant,

"You?!"

"What're you doing here?" Khushi asked, sitting beside her and crouching her knees towards her chest.

Aditi grew silent for some time. She pointed towards the dark and mumbled,
"That's where it had happened"

She craned her neck to observe but it was frivolous.

Aditi took out a cigarette and lit it with her green lighter, exhaling a puff of smoke into the air.

Khushi shifted away a little.

"Sometimes" Aditi sighed, "I think it would be best if...I were dead with them"

She slowly turned her head towards her.

"Better to not have anything than having it all and then losing it"

Silence was exchanged between the two.

"Tell me, kid" Aditi turned towards her, "What have you lost?"

Khushi's toed curled.

"Have you held it close enough to your heart?"

"You sound depressing" she stuck out her tongue.

Aditi chortled, the cigarette bouncing between her lips, "Some depressing things happen, you know why?"