The Rescue (Short Story)

Minding his own business as he carefully selects his groceries from the aisle he is stared upon like an outcast, so he hides behind his hooded jacket adjusting it to cover his face. Every time he steps out of the house the piercing eyes remind him of the scars he wants to hide, the scars he wants to forget.

Decades have passed, so many comments have been hurled towards him. At times it reaches to the point where he gets too tired, too exhausted to continue. Standing in front of the mirror everyday he stares at himself and towards the scars, the scars he tries to cover so hard everyday, trying to hide it from the world but fails. The half burnt face, the burnt and disfigured left arm, and the unseen scars on his mind which were the painful of all, a gift from the society and its people, that he endured for so long and still continues to do so, every single day.

Often looking, rather peeping out of the window, he gets lost in his thoughts and strolls back to that day which changed him forever, from within and outside. Asking himself again and again, would he do the same if it was today? After so much he had seen and so much he had experienced, getting judged every day by almost every pair of eyes. The answer would vary from time to time, based on the day he experienced, based on the head  turns he would get for the day and sometimes the day before.

***

The autumn morning was breezy so he decided to take a walk. It’s been so long since he ventured out in the early hours of the day when the light just started introducing itself to the horizon and a mix of light and darkness would give the sky an interesting shade with occasional chirps from the tiny birds.

After an hour-long adventure he planned to return home, walking slowly and embracing the cold air. Few streets away from home he heard a faint scream, his walk picked up pace, he started moving towards the scream then he heard it again which confirmed his direction and he started running. Within a few steps he could see the smoke and then there he was, standing below the 3 storey house. Looking left and right he searched for neighbours, for people, anyone or someone he could ask to call for help. He checked for his phone but remembered that he had kept it at home, unable to find anyone he cursed himself for not having mobile on himself.

He heard the scream again and his reactive mind couldn’t wait any further. Within the next seconds he found himself dragging on the floor of the building with smoke above his head trying to reach the source of the screams. He  found her, sitting on the floor tightly hugging her stuffed pinkish teddy bear, coughing vigorously with closed eyes and as soon as she could muster the strength, she screamed again before ending with a cough. He was now at a hands distance from the girl, but what next, how would he leave, the question he started pondering just now. He scanned for exit routes, the second floor pathway from which he came into the room is now blocked by the burning door, he wondered how he came in through that burning inferno. The smoke and the heat was making his eyes and face feel the burns. The best idea would be to stand in the balcony till help arrives, he told himself.

Dragging himself again he went to the girl and said, “it’ll be alright, you did good”. He grabbed her tight and went to the balcony. Keeping the girl in front of himself facing away from the house he stood shielding her from the heat. Still he could see no one, cursing the neighbourhood, he wondered if it was too early or were they just too careless, he couldn't understand. What was not known to him was that neighbouring houses were empty. The first house with people living inside would be with a gap of four houses, that too occupied by an elderly couple spending their retired lives in peace. He started to feel his face and arms burning with excruciating pain, even though he faced away from the burning house. At the same time, the girl shielded by his body started to calm down.

As the temperature rose, he could feel the flames approaching, he  turned around to see how far the fire was and saw the balcony door on fire. That would leave merely a few minutes for the fire to reach them he thought to himself. With the ever reducing time to take action and the reducing hope for anyone to help he decided the only way to get out would be to jump. He held the girl tight and climbed up the ledge of the second floor balcony, “it’s going to be alright” he told her, almost reassuring himself. He then held the girl close to his chest and imagined multiple ways to land but gave up in the middle of his thoughts, it’s going to hurt anyway.

Deep breath. 

And jump.

He wanted to land on his back so that the girl does not have direct impact. But as he neared the ground, he found himself at an angle and landed on his left arm. He felt the pinching pain but adrenaline took over as he looked at the girl asking if she was hurt looking for wounds. She denied. After ensuring there was no wound he let a gush of air out thanking God. As he started to calm down, he wondered where this girl’s parents were. But that thought was soon taken over by the pain and the burning sensation coursing through the body. Almost exactly at the same time, a lady came towards the house running frantically. Her attire told him, like himself, she went for a morning walk or a jog. As soon as she came near to the house, she grabbed the girl and held her tight to the chest looking at the burning house, tears running down her cheeks and visibly perplexed trying to understand what had happened.

As he saw this unfold his exhaustion overtook him, he lied down looking at the mother and daughter. After a few minutes as she calmed down after ensuring her daughter was well and good with no wounds, the mother understood what had just happened. She went near him and looked at him. He could see that she was still in visible shock and yet her expression changed on seeing him, an expression he would remember all his life. She quickly took her phone out and called for an ambulance. Ensuring the ambulance was on its way she started thanking him repetitively with tears in her eyes, “Thank You so much! Thank You so so much. Thank you for what you have done.” Just before the ambulance sirens would become too loud to talk, she tells him, “it would be okay” and thanks him again for saving her daughter’s life.

It would be too late before he would get to see his own reflection for the first time. The shock, the horror and the unending pain would leave mental scars that he would carry all his life. Multiple surgeries and years of therapy would do little to improve him, inside and out.

***

His chain of thoughts would suddenly break as he came back to reality, generally finding himself being the focus of attention for the staring eyes, of the curious kids and of the adult passersby looking up from the street. Quickly closing the curtains , he would go to his bedroom. The silence would give his anxiety a bit of rest but the pain would always make him feel the scars, on his body and on his mind.

The bell at his door rang. Annoyed, he guessed the kids might be pulling pranks again so he ignored the bell. Restless he started thinking that he has had enough. Then the bell rang again a few more times. He got angry and went to the door and opened it ajar, almost ready to blurt out, “what do you want?”. But instead, he left out a gush of air in disbelief.

After all these years, he still remembered the face clear as crystal. Age has had little effect on the girl. She came in and hugged him tight. With tears in his eyes, the hug reminded him of the teddy bear that she held that day. All his pains and scars he felt for so long, suddenly left him and he found his mind at peace. Peaceful enough to feel happiness.

The girl’s eyes were wet as she started crying, something she didn’t do on that fretful day. She had successfully tracked him after 20 long years, the stranger who saved her life and her teddy bear. 

She wouldn’t know that she did the same today.

***

©onerandompoet