On the other side of the mirror - chap. 2

An hour after Annie fell from her balcony..

Person1- "Good lord! poor girl."

Person2- "She must be the same girl, I saw on television news yesterday, a Spanish tourist got raped."

Person3- "How can you be so sure? Poor girl."

Person4- "Somebody call the doctor."

Person2- "What else could be the reason to commit suicide?"

Person3- "May be she was being harassed by the landlord?"

Person1- "That can't be true. We in India treat guests as Atithi devo bhawa."

Person2- "Very true, very true. I am telling you she must be the same girl, the Spanish tourist."

Person4- "Police is here!!!"

Police taped the whole crime scene and the mob dispersed. Everyone returned back to their work as if nothing had happened.. Annie's skull was badly fractured.. small pieces of granite stone had pierced into her skin.. there was enough blood loss. A doctor arrived at the crime scene.

She could feel brightness of the sunlight even though her eyes were closed. It was a warm welcoming morning. Where was she? She turned her head and saw herself laying on the grass, some 10 feet away from herself. What?? she rubbed her eyes in amazement. She was here and she was there. Two her-selves. Strange! she saw herself laying flat like a dead body wrapped in a white muslin cloth. The lawn was big..big enough to play football. On one end of the lawn stood an old catholic building, The pavement to building was shaded by tall Gulmohar trees. On the other side of the pavement she could makeout image of a cemetery. Some people had gathered there and were talking. Was she dead? How could that be possible? She turned to herself. She was standing but where were her legs?? she had no legs and no arms.. no body?? yet she could see.. see the whole world? Annie got baffled. She tried to run and walk and yes she found herself capable to move but without her feet. She was floating in mid air. Her deadbody was still on the grass. Then she heard voices.. a crowd was coming towards her. She stood near her deadbody as if to protect herself from being carried away. 6 men came forward and picked up the deadbody. Annie shouted "No!" then paused and again she shouted "No!" what was happening? she could not hear her own voice.. also people seemed unaffected by her presence. She tried kicking people and snatching her body from them but all she could do was... Nothing. She had no arms no legs.. nobody could feel her. Annie had never felt so helpless. Tears would have rolled out of her eyes if she was but alive. Sorrow.. and more sorrow grabbed her. She saw people burying her body without coffin under bare gravel and red sand.  The ceremony didn't lasted for long, soon after burying Annie's body people returned back to the town. Annie was left alone..she sat on a mound of gravel just next to her grave. Dry leaves lay around her fluttered in zephyr. She could see the blue sky hidden behind orange clouds. She could hear birds chirping. A magpie crying at top of his lungs, a pair of Indian mynas tweeting. A photogenic beautiful sunset. Annie sat watching the sunset lost in her thoughts. Nobody showed up.. how would they know?.. nobody knew that she was here in India and that she was dead. She was lost in her thoughts , it grew darker and darker.. Streetlights started glowing around the Old dilapidated catholic building. No it wasn't like a big cathedral but an old building .. from British era. A church for poor people may be... Annie still lost in her thoughts got up from the heap of gravel where she was sitting. Or she was thinking that she was sitting.. huh!!! she had no legs.. no body.. how could she sit? She moved towards the building. It was a church.. a very small church. Brick walls were peeping out of the broken plaster here and there.. The big wooden door, the only entrance of the church was closed.. locked.. It was a full moon night and Annie was standing all alone in the deserted cemetery. Then suddenly she felt someone's hand grabbing her from her shoulders. She turned her head back quickly and a tall black figure stood behind her.. a man may be. Before she could react.. he kissed..Annie's heart was banging inside her.. she was too scared to cry out for help.. kissed by who, a shadow?? or a man? Annie tried shaking him off but he grabbed her tight from her waist. She was trembling in fear but ..His kiss was passionate.. very passionate.. she gathered some courage and slowly opened her eyes.. 

"Good morning Honey" said Jack smiling ..Jane cried out in surprise "It was you jack!?!" Jane pushed him off her.. and sat kneeling on her bed "Was I dreaming?" Jane asked looking baffled.. Jack shrugged "Yaa!! you might be dreaming.." Jane sat holding her head thinking "How stupid!!" "Actually you were moaning in your dream so I felt like kissing you." Said Jack with a flirty smile on his lips..scratching his head.

Jane got off her bed. Looked at a clock fixed on the wall. showing 9.30 Sunday.. She went for a shower. Standing under the shower she kept recalling her dream.. She could not recall all of it but the last scenes from the dream kept flashing in her memory. the church.. the street lights.. the wooden door.. night and the kiss.. and she washed off her dream in the shower.. and dream mixed with water and soap.. flowed down to the drain..