59. Short Story : Moving On.

There was water dripping from the tap and he was looking at it for last fifteen minutes. Mother shouts at him, “What are you doing inside for so long”. He has no answer. He cannot tell her that he himself doesn’t know what he is doing inside. He is young, his mother must be thinking that he might be jerking off. Otherwise why would he take so much time inside?

He moved towards the bucket which was half full. He had this ritual where he would always empty all bucket water before filling it again with new water in it. May be it was his another technique to take a bath or may be he just needed some alone time. He remembered how when was he was a kid he used to stall getting a bath during winters and never liked it. When he grew up came a time when he wouldn’t start a day without getting water on his body first. His mother started calling him pandit and he hated that.

But suddenly something changed in him. He got rude to everyone. He wouldn’t get haircut. He wouldn’t remain clean anymore. He has lost interest in his studies. He also started re-reading Fountainhead. There was something wrong with him but no one knew why. His father had stated scolding him now on daily basis. He would get up late and he knew his father would never tolerate his son getting up this late. It was his small form of rebel.

He had stopped picking up his phone. There was a time when he would give his life for his friends and now he wasn’t bothered about returning their calls. Some friends would come to meet him and won’t leave unless they meet him. Irritating they were. Finally he would get out and hang out with them but when he returned, his whole body and breathe would reek of a mixture of peppermint and cigarettes. His mother was too afraid to confront him and too scared to tell his father. Though one day she told his father but he was also too afraid to confront the young kid. No one wants their kid to hate them for scolding them. Children don't forget easily. The father decided to advise him and talk cordially. It didn’t work, except he was more careful now.

It seemed there was no solution to his problems and it seemed that there was no particular way to know what the problem is.

But one day everything got fine. When there was a smell of deodorant coming from his room, his parents knew something was changed. Today he had shaved, bathed and eat his breakfast more than he had ate in last few weeks. Today, he was going to his college on time.

He has finally moved on.