Mãshí

The teacher started to check the attendance of her class.

" Number 1, Number 2...".

A girl of eight rushed with fast footsteps and paused at the door of the class. She is gasping heavily.

" Sorry, Ma'am. I'm late".

" it's okay, Mashi. The bell just rang. Don't panic. Take Care of your time always. Now get in". Teacher allowed her in.

Mashi got into the class. Sarah, her close friend, smiled at her from a far distance. Mashi moved to her. She gave her a space to sit beside her.

" Hey Sarah, My Mom made a special dish for us today". Mashi told in a low voice while she took the book.

"Really! How sweet of your Mom". Sarah replied.

" OK children. Listen here. Yesterday we listened to a story about a Hen, right? How was the mother Hen? Did everyone like her?".The teacher asked the children.

" Yes Mam". The whole class echoed in a single tone.

" Hey Mashi, the mother Hen is just like your Mom". Sarah whispered.

" Mm? why?" Mashi asked.

" Because she too collected special worms for her kids". She replied in a naughty tone.

They both giggled together.

'DRAW THE PICTURE OF A HEN'.

Teacher wrote on the board.

"This is your task, children. You have to draw a Hen right now". The teacher told them.

" Okay Ma'am " again the tune came.

All of the children started to draw the picture. Teacher walks to each bench and observes the drawings of them. She didn't forget to make good comments about the pictures they drew and she encouraged them with a broad smile on her face.

As such she walked for around ten minutes and she paused once at Mashi and took her book.

" Woow... So beautiful! So you made a sweet home for your Hen and her kids?". The teacher happily asked.

Mashi Shook her head and giggled.

" Great! I just loved the trees and flowers near the home. Good good keep going Keep going". She gave back the book. She bought the book and continued to draw.

All children are busy with their drawings. In between the peon entered the class and gave a Memo to the teacher.

"All of you listen please. Due to the sudden strike of the Political parties we won't have afternoon classes today. So you can leave the school at noon". The teacher read the Memo.

By hearing this some students are happy and some are not. The discussion of the students seems like the chirping of the birds.

" Keep quiet, Do the work". The teacher said in a raised voice.

The whole class became silent as one stopped the engine of a vehicle.

The bell rang. it's started to drizzle outside. The children came to the verandah and stretched out their hands to feel the rain. They collect the chilled rain drops and sprinkled each other. The air is filled with the burst out of laughing and screaming.

Teacher came suddenly.

" Why are you all here? Go inside the Class". Teacher ordered.

The children ran inside the Class within seconds.

The rain got heavy and started to shower big drops. Children are enjoying the rain inside the Classroom.

" Are you enjoying the rain?". The teacher asked.

"Ahh...Ahh..." They replied.

" Okay then I'll sing a rain song for you". The teacher told them.

The whole class got excited to hear the song of their singer teacher.

🎵🎶🎼

it's raining, it's pouring

the old man is snoring

He went to bed and he bumbed his head

and he couldn't get up in the morning.

Rain rain go away

come again some other day

rain rain go away

come again some other day."

Boom !!!

Suddenly a loud crack occurred. All the children screamed along with the earth-shaking thunder.

" it's okay Children. No need to be afraid. it's all about the naughtiness of the nature. You all are at a safe place now. Be Brave".

No one can penetrate through the minds of a child as a teacher does. A very single word of a teacher can change one's attitude. Now the children have become calm.

Hours passed. The long bell strucked to announce the ending of the school.

" Okay Children. Please line up quitely. No need to rush. The floor is all wet. You should be walking slowly to avoid slipping. See you on Monday. Have a happy holiday. Thank You All". The teacher told them.

" Thank you Ma'am". Children lined up as the teacher told them.

Mashi and Sarah stood near by in the line. Sarah placed her arms on Mashi's shoulder. They chit-chatted about the little things of their fantacy world. They stepped down to the courtyard of the school.

" Your bus has not arrived yet". Sarah told Mashi while stepping down the stairs.

" Ah yes. It will come soon". She replied.

" Mm then Iam leaving. I want to walk home quickly before the next rain". Sarah said.

" I too will come with you to the gate". Sarah Smiled at her.

" COME".

They both walked hand in hand to the gate. They seperated their locked palms when they reached the gate and farewelled each other.

" Bye, See you on Monday".

" Bye" Sarah waved at Mashi and left the school. Mashi turned back to the schoolyard to wait for her bus to come.

She stepped three to four steps. Some boys are playing touch and catch a game there. Ditch water can be seen here and there in the yard. To the bad luck of Mashi, a boy about ten jumped into one ditch and splashed out the muddy water on her. Mashi got stuck for a few seconds. The boys were indulged in their play and even didn't notice the Mashi mere once. Her face reddened.

" Idiots". She murmured angrily.

She walked to a bench kept in the verandah of the school. She placed her bag on the bench. The skirt, as well her bag, are covered with mud.

" Oh God! What a Day!". She said to herself.

She wipes out the mud from the bag. It spread over the bag even worse than before and her hand got muddy too.

" Shit!"

She took the bag and looked around once and went straight to the bathroom.

As she moves forward the voice around gets fading. Her footsteps became more clear and in addition to that sky covered with rainy clouds started to drop down the raindrops.

Tik... Tik... Tik... Each paces on the floor echoing as she is in a cave. When she entered the bathroom her footsteps seemed to annoy her too badly. The sharp steps between the utterly silenced walls paused her feet from moving for some seconds. She looked back once and then she pressed her palms on ears and ran to the very end of the bathroom door. The Last one is spacious when compared to others. It has a sanitary disposable machine for the grown-up girls and a space to keep their belongings. And moreover, the bathroom has enough light in the day time because of the transparent glasses of the upper windows. Mashi took out the things inside the bag and kept it in that provided space and opened the pipe fully and showed the muddy area of the bag.

She almost cleaned up the bag, kept it aside, and started to pee. Still, she didn't turns off the pipe. She noticed a pink-coloured chalk piece that had been kept in a hole on the wall by somebody. She took it out and started to draw a line from the bottom of the door while urinating.

Outside, the rain becomes torrential along with the wind. The school buses all arrived at the ground and children started to get on the bus. Almost all the children left the school already.

Ram, the peon of the school walking towards the main door of the bathroom. He tries to keep him away from the rain shower so that he walks so close to the wall. When he reached the door a strong wind blew and Ram shrank to himself. He quickly took a bunch of keys from his pocket and searched for the key. He wipes his face,

" Damn Rain!"

He Pulled the half of the door and followed the other and locked the door with a THUD!!!

The clock struck 4:20 pm. Mashi's mother opened the window and looked out. She looked at the clock once again. Suddenly she heard a horn outside. She quickly came to the door expecting it was Mashi but in vain. She started to walk to and from the verandah and often she looks at the time every single seconds. Every single minute seems like an era to her. Ten more minutes passed. She stepped to the gate and looked at the road for the third time. Her faces seems tense and she walks here and there in the yard. When she was about to look towards the gate she saw some children pass across the road.

They are in color dresses and in their hands cricket bats, balls, stumps, etc can be seen.

" Didn't you guys go to the school today?". She asked.

"We did Aunty, but the school left at noon because of the unexpected strike ". One of the boy replied.

" What about the primary students? Are they still in school?". She enquired.

" No Aunty whole classes dismissed at noon. No one has classes". the boy replied and left.

Her senses all imply stopping functioning. She was frozen and rooted herself where she stood. She couldn't understand what's going on around her. She could hear her heartbeat like a drum playing. She wanted to move but her legs were heavier than ever before. She looked at her home once. Only faded things could be seen. However, she starts to move with some gentle steps. Then it turned to the fast, faster and fastest one. Two drops of tears slipped down through her cheeks from both eyes along with the steps.

She hits the door and is about to fall. Somehow she entered the home and searched for the mobile phone. She leaned on a chair and dialled the school number. She held on, each ring took away her breath. No one attends the call. Again she dialled with a little hope, but no fruit. So then she dialled the number of Mashi's class teacher. She took the phone in the third ring. Half of her life got back to her.

" Good Evening. May I know who you are?". Teacher asked.

" It's Me Mam Mashi's mother". She replied quickly.

" Ah yes. Speaking". Teacher asked her.

" Don't you have classes today? Are all students going home?". She asked in a panic.

" Yes". Teacher replied.

" Uh... uh... Pri.. Primary class ???". Her throat trembled while asking.

" Yes. All had gone. We, the teachers and all students left the school after the morning sessions". Teacher added.

The whole world appears to be blank ! Her throat sears and not a single word comes out of it. She froze like half dead there.

" Hello... Hello... Can you hear me?". Teacher calls her at the other end.

She has nothing to respond to. The mobile dropped from her wet hand.

* * *

" And that's all about the agenda of our meeting today's ".

" Well done Yadav! Good Job!".

" Thank you Sir".

" Now it's time for your discussion. Go ahead".

Phone rings...

" Say, Iam in a meeting". He moves to a corner of the hall. He pauses suddenly.

" What happened to her? Stop crying dear. Say what happened to Mashi?". He became tense.

" Whaattt! ... Okay... okay... Keep Calm. Iam coming... Nothing dear... Iam coming". He disconnects the phone and runs his eyes at colleagues.

" What happened Sir ? Are you okay?". One of the colleagues asked.

" I have to go home right now. We can continue our meeting the other day". He said in panic.

He left there as soon as possible. He took his bag and stepped down furiously. He cannot see anything. He slipped the step and he managed himself from falling. Somehow he reached his car.

" Bloody Shit!!!... Key!". He runs back to the office.

When he was close to climbing the steps a colleague called him from upstairs.

" Sir, you forgot your key". He extended his hand while coming down.

" Ah yes yes... Thank you so much". He grabbed the key and ran quickly.

He moves with a heavy heart full of thoughts.The assumption of many things tears his heart. Mashi's face flashes in his mind as he moves on. He offered prayer to all of God to make his assumptions wrong.

All of a sudden his car fell into a pit. Due to the rainfall, the roads were all messy and the tire got stuck. He accelerated his car to get out of the pit. He made it on the third try. He moved again. The rain started to shower slightly, but inside his heart, a downpour and thunderstorms took place already.

The car decelerated when he got to the gate. He stopped the car in the yard. He came out of the car and walked in. He sees many sandals and he can hear murmuring inside. He stepped in and went straight to her. She burst out at most and hugged him hard.

" I don't know where she is... I called the teacher... she told the school to leave at noon... she won't go anywhere alone... l...l... ". She can't complete it.

" Okay... Okay... We will find her... She will be somewhere... Don't worry...". He kissed her forehead and hugged her so tightly.

" Can we go to her school?". Mashi's uncle touched his shoulder.

" Have you checked nearby places here?". Father enquired.

" Yes we have". Uncle's said in a low voice.

Father kept silent for some seconds.

" Then okay fine we can go to the school, Come". Father consoled her and went out with her uncle.

He saw two policemen outside.

Uncle said," I informed them".

" Hello,Sir. A Public meeting of a political party takes place in front of the school. So, so many cops are already on duty there. I informed the SI. So they will help you to find the girl. We passed her photos and all on social media and we are trying our best in every possible ways. So no need to worry. We will find her soon". The policeman said.

" Yes, Okay Thank you".

Father and uncle get into the car. Uncle is in driver's seat. He turned the key to start. He looked at Mashi's father. He is sobbing too badly. His cheeks shivers and he closes his eyes tightly. Tears are competing to jump out from his eyes.

Uncle didn't say anything, he sat calm and pattef the fingers on the steering. He sighed heavily and he patted his back after a while.

" Nothing will happen to her Brother. Stop crying and be bold". Uncle held his shoulder and said.

" Yes yes... Iam okay. Let's go". Father replied while wiping his eyes.

They hurried to the School.

They could hear the shouting of the leader from a long distance. Their car was blocked in the rush. They move like a snail through the road. The bursting sound of the leader penetrates their ears.

" What the HELL is this. I can't bear this sound". Father agitated.

They see the SI and police team at the school gate. The peon also came there. Half of the gate of the school opened.

" You go brother. I'll park the car somewhere". Uncle told him.

Father got out of the car and walked to the gate.

They shook their hands.

" WHAT SIR??? " Father asked.

" WE HAVE TO SEARCH INSIDE THE SCHOOL". SI said loudly.

Their conversations are taken away by the big sound boxes as well as the vehicles passing through.

Half of the road is covered with chairs. But only fifteen to twenty people in the audience occupied the seats.

SI gestured to get in. They entered the school and started to open the classes one by one. Each door possesses a ray of new hope to the Father.

Uncle came in a few minutes.

" Where is SI? ". He asked the father.

" They went upstairs. Ground floor is over. I can't bear it anymore. So I didn't go with them.". Replied in a depressed tone.

" Okay. Stay here. I'll go " uncle said and rushed upstairs.

Father moved to the bench in the verandah and sat. He touched something, he took a look, the mud is still on the bench but it dried now!

He couldn't sit there long. He got up and looked upstairs. No, they are not coming.

He moved to the stair and stepped one or two steps.

" Oh God, I can't". He came down again and moved to the very end of the verandah. He is fully out of mind now. A strong wind blew. He heard a thud sound and turned to have a look. The lock of the bathroom is moving along with the wind. He moves towards the door, comes close to it, and holds the lock.

" Brother". Uncle called.

He woke up from his lost mind and looked at him full of hope.

He shook his head negatively.

"Now I handover Mike to the secretary. Thank You".

Audience is applauding outside.

" Come Brother. We have to leave". He came beside him and pulled him. He unheld the lock, it again started to move!

SI, policemen, peon, uncle and Father crossed the school gate.

The peon pulled the gate. It closed with a creaking sound. He locked the gate, father gazes at the lock like a lost soul. The sounds are still ecoing from the boxes...

FRIDAY ENDS... MY CHAPTER TOO!!!

Saturday Morning 9:45.

The bus departed from the school bus stop. Some passengers stepped down from the bus and some got in.

" Teacher". Someone called from around ten feet away. The teacher didn't hear.

" TEACHER". This time in a raised voice. The teacher stopped and looked back. It was the class teacher of the standard two of the same school. She had a handbag on her right shoulder and she was holding her abdomen with her left hand and carefully walking towards the teacher.

" Good morning". The teacher greeted her when she came close to her.

"um". The other one replied with a fake smile.

" ohh!! Why did the Head Master call us to come today? He didn't say anything clearly. More over I took a booking for the seventh-month check up in the hospital for today". She explained to her.

" Mashi is Missing". She spoke in a depressed tone.

" WHO? MASHI! Your favourite one??". she asked tensely.

" Mm". The teacher's face paled and she was in the stage of the burst.

" Hey, Cheer up. I didn't know about this. She will be fine". She consoled her.

Teacher dried up her wet cheeks with her saree. They walked into the school together.

They both didn't utter a single word then.

They reached the school verandah. Two ladies came opposite to them. They were in a very normal saree and they carried broom sticks, waste baskets, soap oil, brushes and all. They smiled very pleasantly at the teachers and greeted them happily which shows that they didn't know about the matter yet.

No rooms are opened in the school except the office room and the staff room. They both headed to the staff room. Almost all teachers and the PTA members have already occupied the spaces inside the staff room. Their discussions and talks can be heard outside. Two of them got into the room. The teacher didn't attend to anyone. She moved to the very end of the bench and sat very silently. She didn't look at anyone. She supported her head with her hand and looked down. Her breath appears to be too warm. She often wipes her tears and squeezes her nose. Head Master entered and all stoop up but not Mashi's class teacher. She still keeps her eyes down. Some of the staff looked at her and the Head Master simultaneously. Head Master winked at them and gestured to take their seat. Head master started to talk in a very low voice.

" I want to inform you about a piece of bad news. Our third standard student named Mashi was missing yesterday. She didn't reach her home on the last day. Yesterday itself we informed the police and searched in every possible area. But there is no positive result at all. We didn't leak this incident to the public and other parents yet. So, we have to take care of this matter so carefully. First we must enquire in our own way plus police also help us as they can. Make sure it won't affect her family and herself." He paused.

Mashi's class teacher still sits looking down like she is not present in the room and she has not utter a word.

" What about their parent's condition?". PTA member asked.

"Well, I contacted them yesterday. They are in such a depression. So I couldn't ask them many questions. First of all, we have to take further steps to find the girl along with them. Our police department also tries its level best. They will come to our school for their inquiry. All of you please co-operate with them in all possible ways. Every single second is valuable for us. Above all, we have to console her parents and give them confidence". Head master added.

" Does her class teacher have anything to say?". Head master asked.

She turned like a statue by then, a statue who could only breath but could not respond! She didn't even hear what the head master told and asked.

A thin warm air from her nose and a pair of heavy eyes are the only things she can feel now.

" Teacher!". The head master came close and called her once again.

Teacher boggles from her virtual world. She gazed at him very pathetically. By words, she didn't reply anything but through her tears she did, it rolls down unconditionally. The whole room became pin-drop silent !!!

* * * * *

" Ram, Can you please unlock the bathroom?". The pregnant teacher asked him.

" It's already open. They are cleaning it ". Ram replied to her.

"Oh Okay!". She replied and stepped towards the bathroom.

" Teacher, I am also coming". Another teacher called behind and joined her.

" I can't face the teacher. She is too much attached to that girl". The teacher told her.

" Ah yes, She always talks about Mashi when we were waiting at the bus stop and inside the bus too". She replied to her.

" Such a smart girl! ". She said desperately.

The ladies started to clean the toilets already. There are two seperate bathrooms for the teachers only. They entered the bathroom.

" We pour the soap oils in the toilet. Please take care". One of the ladies told them.

They both entered nearby doors. The ladies went outside and waited. The other teacher came out soon.

" I'll wait outside". She told her.

"Okay Okay" She replied inside the bathroom. She kept in her saree and stepped out slowly. Inside, the teacher came out from the bathroom. After she stepped one or two she slipped on the floor once and quickly held on to the wall with the right hand and pressed her abdomen with the left. She felt some inconvenience and stood there for a few seconds. The other teacher talked with the ladies outside and she didn't notice her. She tightly held the abdomen and moved very slowly. She could hear their conversations from the verandah. She again paused after some steps. She looked down to her abdomen and ran her palm on it. She thought about the condition of Mashi at the very moment once.

" Where have you gone, Mashi?". She asked herself.

Suddenly Ram walked across the bathroom and he noticed the teacher.

"Are you okay?". He enquired about her. The question regains her reality.

" Ya, Iam Fine". She replied with a smile.

" What happened?". The teacher asked from outside.

" Nothing, I slipped slightly. Iam Okay Now". She told her and walked out.

Ram opened the student's bathroom by then and he left.

" We can wash this toilet after applying the soap oil in the student's bathroom." One of the ladies told and they entered the other bathroom.

When the teacher stepped out from the bathroom a boy of about nine ran fastly towards the companion teacher and was clinging around her.

" Don't run. You will fall. The floor is all wet." She runs her fingers through his hair.

"I saw him in the staff room with you. He was busy with the colourings". She said and winked at the boy. The boy smiled back to her.

" Ah yes. Today is school off, no? No one is at home to take care of him. So I brought him along with me here". The teacher replied to her.

They talked and moved slowly to the staff room. The police reached the school for the inquiry and the Head master is talking to the SI infront of the office room.

Suddenly a screaming was heard from the bathroom. The whole school shook and everybody froze for a second. The SI ran quickly to the bathroom the very instant. The head master and some other teachers also followed him. Some have stayed wherever they were.

A few seconds later the SI carried Mashi in his arms and flew like a bird towards the jeep. The teacher who stood infront of the staff room with her boy covered his eyes and wrapped him in her arms

" CALL HER PARENTS". SI shouted and got into the jeep. Other policemen also quicked in. Head master, peon and three more teachers followed the police jeep.

All occurred in a fraction of seconds. It took minutes and even hours for the people in the school to get back to reality. Half of the problem is solved!

The boy hops through the verandah after this heavy storm. He stopped infront of the bathroom. The master door is still opened. He saw many muddy footprints here and there on the floor. The boy ceased at a pairs of clear footprints which seemed to the SI' s. He followed it with enthusiasm. He jumped on one and on another and so on and he reached inside the bathroom by following it. He suddenly paused by hearing something. He stood in one leg like he was flying. He listened carefully. The sound is increasing, but he didn't get it from where. He hold his breath and listened again. He gazed forward, it's from the last bathroom. He walked very gently towards the door. He is very careful about his foot steps. Unexpectedly the door forcefully opened, he is just two or three feet away from it now. He stoned, his legs gripped on the floor. He collected all the strength and moved on. He held the centre of the door and pulled back. He stepped forward. He was shocked! He couldn't either stay or leave. A girl is tracing some pictures on the wall, she is panting heavily as well as she felt difficult to breath. She stopped her hand, from moving for an instant, paused for a moment, turned her head and stared sharply at him... MASHI !!!