Just Ghosting Around...

How it all came to an end...

For hours, I moved around the house in a senseless tizzy, trying to calm my ever-growing anxiety.

I looked at the wall clock.

It was getting late enough to be worried.

I once again stepped out into the balcony and looked down. Except for the drenched street dog that was lying down miserably near the gate, there was not a soul to be seen anywhere. Rain water had puddled under the lamp post. A breeze ruffled the mango tree in the courtyard and a few twigs fell down and broke. Thunder rumbled in the distance. Did I hear a soft knock at the door?

I turned back, rushing through the length of the hall to stand in front of the door. The door knob jiggled and after what sounded like a huff of annoyance, she made her way inside. Right. Through. The. Door.

In shock, I took a step back. Nitya. She... She was dead and stood in front of me.

What in the-

She didn't give me a chance to open my mouth, jumping into my arms to hug me. I had no recollection of what hugging felt like but on auto-pilot, my arms caged her in.

"You're Dead, Nitya." I said, still shell-shocked. A part of me grieved, remembering the shine in her lively eyes that I'd never see again in her ghost form.

"What happened?" I asked and I didn't mean just her death. I meant the fact that she was no longer angry.

I was still that same as I was before. Nothing had changed. But apparently, everything had.

"I- I fell down some stairs and hit my head." She said, her voice weirdly upbeat.

Then as suddenly as she had barged in, a smile lit up her face. I felt something akin to a heart thump inside me. Even death hadn't been successful in taking her life away.

"You won't believe what happened when I reached the Doorway, though." She began, pulling me to sit beside her on the Sofa. I felt strangely solid. "A mistaken identity, can you seriosly believe that?"

She told me of a twenty something man who loved riding his bike. She told me of a family driving in just the next lane. And she told me of another person, who wanted the family dead at any cost.

Three lives collided, pretty literally in this case.

The vindictive person rammed his SUV against the family's car.

The accident was serious, a tire-rim flying to hit the the first boy's bike, sending him to his death.

The Family's car was crushed by another oncoming Lorry. The three people- two adults, one teenager- present inside died instantly.

Nitya's parents and her brother.

Same happened to the homicidal man and the other man died too, each with his own files of deeds stacking up with every breath they lost.

But something happened. Two souls got mixed and the victim ended up getting punished for the culprit's crime. The victim was me.

Just as she finished her story, I felt something I haven't in a long while. Remembrance. My name came first, the smallest hint to my identity. Slowly, memories filled my head. My parents. My elder brother. Friends. Family.

I looked at my hands which had solidified. I was no more a ghost.

"But, you. What about you?" I asked her, watching her smile turn wider.

"Well, seeing that their fault caused so much upheaval in our lives, they gave us both a choice to get back to living." She replied and true enough, I felt her warm skin against mine as I held her tighter still.

"All this because of a stupid filing problem." I murmured against her hair. "Who knew gods were so unorganized."

"They do have a lot of responsibilities. But I'll be selfish so as to say, there were some good things to their mistakes too."

I leaned back to look at her for the first time through my own eyes and find her to be right.

The heaven's mistake did grant me her. Even if she didn't come to love me the way I did.

"I hope we can set things straight." I told her, remembering my parents. Losing their youngest must have been hard for them.

"Yeah." She said, and I let out a surprised grunt as she pulled my face to hers. "Though, if you're planning to get out of my life with a simple 'Nice meeting you!' I'll kill you myself. I'm in Love with you and you might as well tell me that you are, too."

Well, what was I supposed to say to that? I laughed, a mixture of relief and gratitude filling me as I allow myself to surrender to the feeling.