SORRY

SORRY

Ajaad belonged to a very wealthy lucknowi family. When he was 9 years old, he was enjoying his school vacations with his uncle Praveen. After enjoying vacation in Japan for a month, Ajaad came to Lucknow as after 2 weeks schools were going to reopen.

Stepping up in home of Lucknow which was big like a mansion, surrounded by a forest, lake which was owned and constructed by Ajaad’s great grandfather during the British rule .Ajaad was eager to meet his family - 20 year old sister, Mother Reena, and Father Lakhit. However, the 9 year old boy was warmly welcomed by his mother and sister only .When he asked his mom about his Father, she replied by holding Ajaad near to herself saying father passed away (8, May, 2003) due to a car accident near Jaipur highway as he was riding under alcohol influence at night due to an unsuccessful business agreement.

Now Ajaad was grown up into a 19 year old boy but he strongly disliked his mother as she ran an NGO to help Aids patients. He felt that she should do something to emancipate alcoholic people from their liquor habit as his father passed away due to riding car under alcohol influence. Ajaad’s birthday was on June 6. On the midnight of June 5 as clock clocked at 12am, few of Ajaad’s four close friends came at home to wish him birthday. Ajaad’s mom had bought out a surprise cake for him of chocolate flavor as he liked that flavor. Then his friends, Mom, Ajaad’s 31 year old married sister with her husband celebrated his birthday by cutting the cake for him.

Mom spoke with smile, “I have a special gift for you, son”..

 “So is it again a new mobile, a bike or a car’?” said Ajaad.

“You possess these things already”.

 Mom handed the gift to Ajaad. As Ajaad opened the gift, he discovered a condom hidden into the packed boxes. He replied in fierce along with embarrassment, “Mom are you mad or idiot! Are you gone crazy? How did you dare to gift me this? Has anybody have passed away from family that’s why you have gave me this ? .Mom replied with rational, calm and composed face ,  “This tool has saved life of millions then why is it harm to give you this tool or yantra in a form of gift.” “.Ajaad left the place, with his gift on the floor ,by eating his favorite chocolate cake and went in his room and slept with disgusting feeling on receiving such a  gift .While he was going in his room mom spoke from behind loudly with a huge laugh, “You will say sorry to me tomorrow.”

The birthday boy Ajaad got up with a reconciled attitude for his mother vice-versa. Ajaad had a fixed schedule on his birthday- having his favorite breakfast prepared by his sister, then watching movie in theatre with friends, afterwards going to the temple, return back to home in the evening. So after attending to his schedule his mom informed while he was coming to home that a small party is arranged for his friends for celebrating his birthday.

Azaad’s friends were: Sampath, Noor, Jabaaz, and Shirish. Everyone was present in the evening party- Ajaad’s sister, mother and uncle Praveen along with one married son. A small game was decided by Ajaad’s mother and it was a Treasure Hunt which was planned to be played in their home (Big Mansion).

So Ajaad’s mom asked who all are going to play the game then only Ajaad and his four friends raise their hands .Ajaad’s mom moved a big chit box in front of them and all chose their chits i.e. clues of treasure hunt. The game was started in the big mansion.

Sampath got the first clue which was “Thousands of years before how man contacted from Egypt to Japan”. Sampath understood and he went and searched for the internet wifi connection device but didn’t get anything then he ran towards the artificial mobile tree and there he got another clue which was “Have you seen Mausam”. Thus, Sampath got freaked out by reading this clue but he went outside the mansion searched in the green lawn, forest little bit but didn’t find anything for 25mins so exhausted he said ‘’I give up”. Then Ajaad’s mother replied with a smile, “Have a juice.”

Jabaaz was searching for his first clue which said “If I stand on what should I sit”? He rationalized it was a chair but there were many chairs in the party. He was wondering but at the end he found his clue on the Royal Chair designed for the birthday boy .From there he got another clue which said “From what I clean wet things “He rationalized towel in washroom and got successfully another clue “Big tree on the top I am there” .Jabaaz rushed to see the tree which was very big. He climbed the initial tree with help of mobile staircase. Due to his unawareness, some female servants of mansion took away the mobile staircase; leaving Jabaaz wonder on how to remove the chit. As a result, Jabaaz got stuck and trapped on the tree .He didn’t get the chit as it was on the top and anyways he was unable to get down of tree.

 Shirish was successful in his first clue which led him to another clue that was “Small ocean wanna go”. But as per rules of game Shirish was unable to take help to get a dive in the swimming pool which was 8 feet deep. The next clue was at the bottom of the pool .So he also gave up as he was not a good swimmer. Then he went to eat starters of party.

Noor was next.  She got a clue on a small tree which led her to next clue that was “One who guards the home” .She understood quickly and went near the watchmen cabin and got a clue from there which led her to next clue it was “Screw to unscrew”. She identified it was a screwdriver thus she found the screwdriver in the homes’ kitchen after a big run .The last clue spoke “I am resting in peace in BX”. She identified it was a box and she was searching everywhere in party and was close to the box on which things were kept by people. The box was made of cardboard.

Ajaad had his first clue which spoke “A Place where all events are engraved”. He thought for a while it was a calendar; this guided him to other clue “I am behind entertainment” . Immediately, he saw the T.V and removed the chit which was stuck behind theT.V. The last clue spoke “On me stuffs are placed”.

Both Noor and Ajaad were running for the gift which was placed in a box. Mobiles, hairbands, chargers were placed on the box. Ajaad was near the box but he got a itching near his feet that made him to stop.  Noor, his friend, went near the box by taking advantage of Ajaad’s itching, and she opened the cardboard box by displacing all the stuff hurriedly. She removed two gifts from the cardboard box, one was wrapped in the box and other was wrapped in an envelope.

So as she opened the box wrap, it was an appeal mobile, the other had some papers like medical documents, a letter written by father Lakhit to his son Ajaad. Everyone applauded Noor’s victory in treasure hunt including her friends, Azaad himself and his mother. Noor spoke softly  in the birthday party to Ajaad saying “This is an envelope which I found wrapped as a gift but it certainly belongs to you as your mom may have thought you will win this game and this document will come in your hand irrespective of the new mobile”. So Ajaad opened the envelop hurriedly in which a medical letter with a doctor’s signature was there which confirmed that Likhit Singh has passed away due to AIDS disease. Ajaad was shocked to learn about this.

 Then there was another letter written by Lakhit to Ajaad, it spoke:

Dear Son,

I hope you are 20 now and congratulations for your birthday. I passed due to AIDS , due to contact with many by having physical relations in my business circle, and  due to less precaution. I got infected to this disease when you were 4 years old.

I insisted your mom to only let you know my real reason of death when you were grown up as an adult because you will be mentally prepared to digest this truth. As per promise, I hope she has gifted on your 20^th birthday the life saving yantra from this infectious disease of AIDS.

My letter and my deaths reason will give you an example that pleasure seeking lifestyle will end up killing you .So good regards and blessing from me to your life. I hope you enrich in career, health, and family.

Regards,

Your father,
Lakhit.

After reading this letter Ajaad cried a little by knowing the real reason of his father’s death. Noor helped him to wipe tears. Ajaad said, “Take me to the stage”. Ajaad took the mike from his uncle who was exhibiting his talent of singing song for few people in the birthday party. Ajaad said on mike, “Mom, I am really sorry for insulting the gift that you gave me yesterday in the mid- night”. Ajaad’s mom called him down from the stage and told, “This letter was written by father just two days before his death as your dad was getting an intuition that death is close to him. So he decided to write this letter”. Its fine but I hope you read the letter and won’t commit what your dad did by such type of lifestyle that too without this life saving yantra”. The clock bell at 12am, and Ajaad’s birthday was over.