Sapphire Dreams

PART 1: THE BEGINNING

Everyone was preparing themselves to meet their kith and kin. They awoke earlier; they packed their clothes and other required things for a family ceremony they were going to attend. They were going to Kurunegala from their abode in Jaffna-A Cosmopolitan city in Sri Lanka. The trip was going to extract 4 hours and 36 minutes from their lifespan as they were going to travel through public trains. All and sundry were gathered in her house, Where she was in a rush to choose her ideal earring pair to suit her outfit. There she heard a furious call from Chamilki-her mom:

"Upeksha ain't you coming? We are ready to depart! "

"Coming"

"You are making us wait"

"Sorry", she said while she switched off the switches of the air conditioner with her long, perfectly red color nail polished fingers. She came out of her room. She looked resplendent in her attire and her enthralling accessories. Her folks were watchful on her. She felt mousy a bit.

Before leaving, she went to her granny's gravestone which was nearby her house and she kept Catharanthus flowers which were plucked by her in the garden. She always used to talk with her granny imagining her as she was alive which gave her a good feeling. But today as she was in the rush, she couldn't talk with her grandma. As soon as she kept the flowers, she returned to her house where everyone was waiting for Auto-rickshaws to arrive. Then she stood with her mom holding her backpack on the porch as the others did.

Her relatives were very zestful, talking about the groom. Then the auto-rickshaws arrived to take the people to the railway station. There were 12 of her relatives excluding Upeksha and her parents. 3 Autos were not enough so her uncle Shyam goose (He was the class teacher of her. He had a daughter and she was 29 years old, not to let her feel isolated. There was a brother too, who was Santesh. His sister was Chandhini and she was the bride.) arranged another auto-rickshaw. It took about 20 minutes.

Autos arrived and they departed for the station. Santesh and his sister sat next to upeksha as they always wandered as a gang to every place. As soon as they entered Chandhini slept, followed by Upeksha and Santesh. The aroma of aloo samosas made everyone wake up in the middle of the train journey.

Santesh took his phone and started to take pics of the train and posted it on social media. He included the snaps he took with his gang to post. After a while, they reached Kurunegala . On the way to their grandfather's house which they selected to rest in,The gang was tempted by the aroma of egg parathas in the streets. People entered the house but within a minute there was a tremendous sound with a sudden earth shake. No one guessed what it was and men of the family ran outside curiously." pew, pew" a sound heard by the ladies inside they too ran outside. Upeksha was not prepared to see what she was seeing. Santesh and his dad were shot by the terrorists. Both were sent to the hospital by the ambulance through a local guy. All 11 members rushed to the hospital. Luckily, Santesh was alive as there was just a mild impact of a bullet on his body but woefully his dad died!

His wife screamed Violently

"How could I live without you?"

"Don't shout here mam! It's a hospital", said the nurse with a grudge.

It was about 6:25 and Shyam returned to the grandfather's house without the soul. Rituals to his cadaver were done. Unfortunately, Santesh was not able to see his dad's face for the last time as he was in treatment.

"Sri Lanka blasts: 628 victims dead and one killed in the shooting", the newsreader in the television read in the hospital room where Santesh was given treatments.