Chapter 1

The Past

The future is made up of the decisions taken in the present based on the mistakes of the past.

Chapter 1

The alarm began to ring precisely at the moment the clock turned four-thirty am. Still with his head buried in the pillow, Samuel wildly ran his hands all around, searching for the vile piece of technology. The shrill alarm tone continued to ring for another couple of minutes, its sound echoing around the cramped living room. After what left like a monumental struggle, his fingers found the bottom edge of the phone. He grabbed the device and shut the alarm off.  

His success of shutting the phone was futile. The damage was already done. He was wide awake. Grumbling, he got up from his bed after lolling for another fifteen minutes and walking like a zombie, made his way to the bathroom.

This is how a typical day began in the life of Samuel Gomes. If he had taken more time to get up, he would be late to work. Samuel had been working at a call centre for the last 4 years, ever since he cleared his junior college. That was remarkable, even for him, considering he hadn’t even turned 18 at that time.

He stared at his reflection in the mirror. At the age of 20, he looked like a person who had lived many more years. His shoulders were bent, his spine never erect. His father often joked that he had the weight of the world on his delicate shoulders.

For Samuel, his family was everything. Many people claimed that he was a rude person and hardly interacted with others, but that was not the case. He considered himself an introvert. His family comprised of his father, a sister and a brother.  He was once blessed with two beautiful women, whom he called his mothers. His biological mom, whom he referred as ‘Devaki’ had committed suicide when he was four years old, while his stepmom, whom he referred as ’Yashodha’ had passed away in 2007, after succumbing to the dreadful disease of AIDS.

The thought of his mother’s frail body in her dying moments, brought tears to his eyes. He could never forget that morning…

He got ready in another thirty minutes. Dressing up was a task indeed in the morning. His home was a 225-square feet room, which comprised up of a hall and a kitchen. When the house was renovated, his father had a wall constructed to separate the two.

Samuel would only turn on the lights of the kitchen so as not to disturb the others sleeping in the hall. This proved to be a little strenuous for him for his eyes were very weak. On top of that, navigating from the kitchen to the hall required some extra measure. His siblings would sleep on the sofa-cum-bed that occupied almost three quarters of the room. His father slept on a mattress on the floor, the edge of which grazed the door when opened.

As he was about to leave, he looked at the crooked mass of the man sleeping on the mattress. His father’s health was on the decline. After surviving tuberculosis and a heart attack, there had to be some repercussions after all. Moreover, his father was losing weight at an alarming rate. That brought only a foreboding feeling in his mind.

No matter how much Samuel proclaimed of his icy relationship with his father, deep down he knew he loved the man too much. He trembled with fear at the very thought of what really was happening to him.

‘Please Jesus,’ he thought, turning to the altar on the wall and joining his hands, ‘Please take care of him.’

Without another look, he turned and closed the door as he left.

---

There is something about today.

That was the first thing that came in Samuel’s mind as he rode his scooter to work. The streets were deserted, not a single soul in sight. Although life in the suburbs is not that hustle-and-bustle in the early mornings, one would still catch a sight of the newspaper guy piling stacks of bundles upon a bicycle or the milkman riding along to deliver the regular milk to people’s doorsteps.

Today, Samuel hardly saw anyone.

He was wondering about what could be the reason, when it dawned on him as he rode past the city’s local political party’s office. Huge banners flanked by the party’s banners proclaimed that there will be a nationwide strike or bandh observed to protest against the rising inflation.

Samuel snorted when he saw the banner. He recalled having an argument with his colleagues at work about the fruitlessness of such strikes. No public transport, no government services, no banks, no business - businessmen hated such strikes as it meant a loss in the day’s revenue. The party, in its ‘glorious’ years, did nothing but organize such strikes, playing a cruel political game at the cost of wreaking havoc and interrupting the daily lives of the citizens.

He reached his work much earlier than usual. Apart from a couple of people, none had turned up. He felt famished and decided to head down to the cafeteria for a quick bite before his supervisors turned up for the shift

‘Good relief!’ thought Samuel, as he gorged on the snacks. On a normal day, the cafeteria would have nothing to serve. But today, they had prepared a couple of snacks, much to Samuel’s surprise. After having a couple of idlis and a cup of tea, he went back and logged in for the day’s shift.

The day started as usual. Being a Thursday, there was not much work to do. Samuel couldn’t wait for the day to get over already. He had been really looking forward for the weekend.

Samuel, along with his school friends, was going on a week-long trip to the city of Goa. They had planned about this trip two months back. Initially, Samuel was not sure whether he could make it. But coaxing and threats from his friends eventually worked in the end and he found himself planning the month’s household expenses in advance in order to save money. So much was his determination for this trip that not only had he managed to save for the trip, he had informed his father about the trip last night, presuming the negative backlash from him.

There was a excitement among his friends too. It was his dream to visit Goa and explore its scenic beauty. He had even managed to convince his team leader to approve his leaves. Nothing could stop him now!

“So, all set for tomorrow?” asked the girl sitting next to him.

“What?” he said, coming out of his daydream, “You said something, Suparna?”

“I asked whether you are all set for your trip,” she repeated.

“Oh yes!” he exclaimed, tapping the mouse on the table, “You keep an eye on Facebook for the crazy pictures that I will be uploading.”

“Yeah, yeah,” she rolled her eyes, “But I’m so jealous of you. I wish I could go on a trip like that with my friends.”

“Amazing, isn’t it?” Samuel continued, “And it is just us, all school friends together. It will be a trip of a lifetime.”

“That’s enough, you two,” came his team leader’s voice from behind the desk, “The day has just started people. Please focus on the work and stop the chitchat!”

“Sorry!” said Suparna in a timid voice, vividly flabbergasted. She slumped back in her chair and pressed a finger to her lips, turning to her workstation.

At that very moment, Samuel’s mobile began to vibrate on the desk. It was a call from his sister Joy.

‘That’s a first,’ he thought, looking at the screen. His sister had never called him at work before, especially around seven in the morning. He got up and went to the toilet to answer the call. They were not supposed to keep their mobile phones switched on during business hours.

“Hello? Joy? What happened?” he spoke.

“ANNA*, YOU HAVE TO COME HOME RIGHT NOW!” she said in a hurried breath.

Samuel was shocked. He couldn’t mistake the panic in his sister’s voice.

“What happened?” he asked again, trying to keep his voice calm.

“SOMETHING’S HAPPENING TO DAD! PLEASE COME FAST! JOHN HAS GONE TO CALL THE DOCTOR. COME FAST SOON,” she jabbered, again in that same panic-stricken tone.

She hung up.

“Hello!?” said Samuel disbelievingly staring at the phone screen.

He felt a sense of unease creep in his nerves. There was something in the way his sister spoke that sounded foreboding. Panic started to flutter in him and his heart rate started to spike up. His breath began to sound hoarse.

‘No, I must keep myself calm,’ he berated himself.

 He rushed out to his supervisor. He did not realise that the eyes of his fellow workmates were glued on him.

“Javed, listen, I need to rush back home!” he said in a hurried whisper. He kept his voice down so as not to have Suparna eavesdrop “It was a call from my sister. She said it is urgent and that I need to rush back home.”

“Ok, go,” replied Javed, “Call me if you need my help.”

“Thank you.”

Trying to keep his pace as natural as possible, he darted out from the work floor and headed to the nearest lift. He tried to control his breathing. He could feel the tremble of his fingers. Irritated, he shut them tight. Within a couple of minutes, he was out from the parking lot and rode through the deserted street back to his house.

‘I knew there was something wrong with him,’ he thought, as he recalled the previous’s night conversation with his father...

“See this,” Samuel said, dropping the stack of clothes on the mattress.

“What’s this?” asked his dad, a little rudely.

“New clothes that I bought for my Goa trip,” he replied.

A hush fell in the floor. His sister paused in the act of stacking clothes inside the cupboard and turned to stare at him while his brother John kept staring from his father to Samuel.

“Goa?” said his father, his tone full of surprise, “When did you plan on telling me about this?”

“I am,” said Samuel defiantly, staring right into his father’s eye, “right now.”

They exchanged silent looks. A couple of seconds passed without each saying anything. His father took a napkin and wiped the sweat off his forehead.

“Are you alright?” asked Samuel, noticing how pale his father looked. He was leaning on the wall for support, with a couple of pillows to cushion the weight of his back. He was sweating profusely even when both the fans were on in the hall.

“Despite us repeatedly saying no, he consumed all of his medication together,” piped in Joy. She gave an angry look to her father and continued, “Today, his doctor gave him pills of some higher power and TOLD HIM to consume them at regular intervals throughout the day! But the man has taken them all together. Now, look at him!”

“Why did you do that?” asked Samuel, bending down to pick up the napkin and wiped the sweat of his father’s forehead.

“Listen, if you are going to Goa, make sure you leave the gold chain back home,” his father added, “for safekeeping.”

Samuel smiled. Even when he disrespected his father, he still cared for him.

“I will call you, once I reach there, ok?” said Samuel in a reassuring voice.

“Have fun,” his father smiled back.

He reached his home and ran upstairs to his apartment. To his dismay, the door was locked. His neighbours were out and stared at him as he rushed to the corridor’s window.

“Your brother and sister just left in the rickshaw,” one of them informed urgently.

Samuel ran back to his scooter. He was about to call Joy when his mobile started to ring again.

“Joy!” he exclaimed, “Where are you guys? I just reached here.”

“We are headed to Millat hospital. Dr. Shaikh came and told us to take dad to the hospital immediately. We are reaching there in a couple of minutes”

“Ok, I am coming there. Just keep me informed,” he finished the call and started his scooter.

‘Oh God! This can’t be happening!’ he thought. His mind started to race. Once again, he felt the sensation of fear rising in his throat. He wanted to pause and take a deep breath. But time was of the essence. He rode to the hospital which was a mere 10 minutes away from his place.

Millat hospital is located on the Swami Vivekanand Road in Jogeshwari west. It is situated exactly opposite to the 24 Karat theatre. According to Samuel, it was one of the most cleanest places he had ever seen.

He reached the hospital’s compound. There were a couple of people loitering by the entrance to the casualty ward. He ran to the entrance. There were steps leading downwards. A large banner placed near the entrance stated that everyone had to remove their shoes before entering inside.

Samuel took them off and descended the steps in his socks. He quickly scanned the waiting room for any sign of his brother and sister, but they were not there. A sole nurse was walking past the many counters.

“Excuse me sister?” he approached her, trying to keep the shiver out of his voice, “where is the man who arrived right now? Have you taken him inside?”

“Who?” asked the nurse, unperturbed by the urgency in Samuel’s voice.

It took a second for the impact of that one word to hit him. The nurse looked at Samuel nonchalantly.

“Who are you looking for?” she asked him, in a bored voice.

“A-A-patient has been brought here right now,” he implored, hoping for the situation to make sense, “He is accompanied with a girl and a boy -”

“Oh yes!” she piped up suddenly, interrupting him; “We turned them away. The doctor doesn’t come in till 9. They went just a couple of minutes ago.

Samuel felt as if someone had slapped him in the face. He couldn’t help but stare at the nurse in disbelief. His eyes betrayed the feeling of shock. Perhaps the nurse felt it too for she added,

“Look son, there is nothing we could have done here. Not without the doctor.”

Samuel turned and ran up the stairs. His mind started to race and he could feel the panic rising in his heart. He had no idea where his siblings were. A hospital had just turned them away, without even offering to help them. He started to wear his shoes.

“Looking for the man in the rickshaw?” asked a man coolly, sitting on the plinth near the entrance, “He is dead meat.”

Samuel wanted to hit the man, but couldn’t bring himself to it. He started sprinting back to his scooter and called up Joy.

“Joy! Where the hell are you?” his voice shook with anger.

“We are in the rickshaw right now to BSES hospital in Andheri,” she answered. Her voice sounded hollow, “There was no one at Millat.”

“At least, tell me!!” he spat, his fury breaking over Joy, “I wasted time coming to Millat.”

“Calm down, OK!” responded Joy, sounding a little hostile, “You don’t shout right now and come here fast.”

 She hung up. Still furious over his sister’s ineptitude, he started the scooter and rode for the BSES hospital.

In all the time lost, he couldn’t help but think of his father. The man needed help, but there was no one to help him. His siblings were clueless and he was going around with no information. All he knew, he had to reach the hospital before it was too late…

It took him another 15 minutes to reach the BSES hospital. It  is situated on the S.V. road that passes through Andheri. Going through the wrong lane, Samuel veered his scooter in the compound of the hospital.

He ran inside the entrance lobby and turned left. The reception counter is located at the end of the lobby and has corridors branching off in both the left and right directions from it. He reached the end and turned to scan the corridors. At the end of the left corridor, he caught the sight of his younger brother John sitting on a bench.

He reached and tapped John’s shoulder. Joy sat next to him. Either of them were not speaking.

“What happened? Where is he?” asked Samuel, his voice bordering on hoarseness.

John simply pointed to the door opposite to the bench. He looked too shocked to say anything.

Just then, the door opened and a ward boy came out.

“Mr. Gomes?” he asked, looking at John.

“Yes?” said Samuel, stepping forward.

“The doctor is calling you inside,” he answered. Before Samuel could prod him further, the ward boy turned and darted back inside.

His legs felt like lead. He dreaded going inside and find out. But he couldn’t just stand out there.

The room was small and was packed to the brim. Just behind the door were a desk and two chairs. A paper curtain was drawn, shielding the bed. The ward boy, a nurse and another man were standing next to the desk. It was difficult to get a view of the bed from the door. Samuel turned his eyes to the man sitting across the desk. The doctor had a sheet of pink paper in front of him. Samuel knew what that sheet was. The flat line on the sheet was unmistakable.

 “I am sorry,” said the doctor, looking at Samuel solemnly in the eye, “He is no more.”