Betrayal

As I sit alone thinking of those summer afternoons, I become cognitive. I know for sure those uncertain days would not return. All of us tend to move on in different directions as we come to know that few of us may not see each other. Those early days of high demanding jobs started to disappear. Many of us were none of us. We were strangers to each other yet close. I quite do not know the reason.

We got close quite rapidly and with a touch of a button, all of us came off all at once. We started to jeopardise our own visions. We met there by the cut. Few folks never returned and few did not understand why they were there for.

At a point in time, there were several of us and all of us were unemployed. The notion of it all makes me laugh today. My personal belief or judgment that is not founded on proof or certainty started to fade away when we all started to overlook reality. There was a period where we met there by the cut and spent most of the day talking about comical things. Sometimes, long walks did suffice. What we normally discussed was the degree of foolishness to which we all got accustomed. This could be hilarious or convulsive laughter. I do not know.

We were all friends from the previous fierce but never got a chance to get close to one another. Then came a time when we all jumped into the same pool and got to know it was the wrong one. We embraced into each other’s sphere and started to understand that this is no fun.

Typically, most Indian families with middle-class background have varied levels of financial commitments which is hard to wade off. Sometimes, this comes as a curse and sometimes as prudence. All said, none of us were really ready to pound into the call of duty and be called as warriors. There was still some time left to play for ourselves. There was this obvious sense of laziness in each one of us and to understand what is being demanded out of us.

We spotted a new place to meet up every morning to discuss the course of action for the rest of the day. There was so much fun as we led an illusionary life. Some of us needed to have breakfast at home and then meet others by the cut. We mostly never understood the true essence in all of it.

There was a vague belief that we could find what we wanted albeit failing to understand what we wanted. There was no sense of urgency. There was no insistent necessity to understand the world around us. The entire day was to spend thoughtlessly. I conceive to the fact that this was no joke. The only way to be sensible and subtle was to think prudently. We never imagined to cried out loud.

There was this mammoth idea to plot an idea to kill all ideas. Eventually, it failed and we laughed a sigh. Binoth Dinnanath was a prominent and a rich member of our group. He was politically supported by Malcombe Barbarine. MeghaShyam Iyengar and I lived as close aids thus leaving Könda Mahoshay and Nicha Praveena. Binoth Dinnanath was mostly arrogant and rude. His lacking civility or good manners often resulted in rude intrusions but it was equally and unconditionally supported by Malcombe Barbarine. There were obvious intensions to do that. On the other hand, Könda Mahoshay started making noise every now and then created ruffle within the group. As it is, the group was not all that fine. Nicha Praveena had narrow and solitary interests. He would never let-go an opportunity that knocks his door or when others are failing. Most of us were very careful with Nicha Praveena as we often landed in uncertainty dealing with him.

There were vested interests in all of us but we managed to move along well as there was no better choice. Even though we met by the crossway every day, we were obvious and meaning to ensure our hay bakes out. At a time when finding a job was very important and equally difficult, we were closely inclined to allure and most importantly the glamour. The joint forces diverted us from what we realised in the early days.

The relevance to responsibility is in its pertinence. We hugely depended on little savings we did with our previous jobs and needless to say that it would dry up fast. Our day started with a cup of Coffee at a Coffee shop followed by few cigarettes. We would then move to a different part of the town wandering to collect more junkies. Binoth Dinnanath was a master of striking deals but mostly never fulfilled those that were in hand. Malcombe Barbarine on the other hand was a total reflection of Binoth Dinnanath. Both never really took off from what was assured or seen. MeghaShyam Iyengar was a combination of hard and smart worker. He was good at evading things that were off his interest. MeghaShyam Iyengar was good at grasping and was good at work. He mostly confined to his regular conservative social life that forbids him from extravagant lifestyle. I was however close to MeghaShyam Iyengar and the chemistry suited at one time. This separated MeghaShyam Iyengar and I with Binoth Dinnanath and Malcombe Barbarine as the differences crept up and mostly failed to sort them out. On the other hand, Könda Mahoshay was spurious and was totally unaware of the world around him. He was a thorough pessimist. He continues to doubt everyone until he finds a convincing answer mostly in his vested interest. Könda Mahoshay added flavor to our problems just by being a part of it. Whilst we speculate and presume Nicha Praveena to be a cautious fox, we kept a silent distance unless we required a favour from him. That way, any calamity could be avoided. MeghaShyam Iyengar as the name goes continued to develop a strong relationship with Nicha Praveena silently so that he could mount a combat with me. I will talk more about it later.

Binoth Dinnanath starting calling the shots and Malcombe Barbarine followed the dice. Malcombe Barbarine had his role to play which was best known to him. Malcombe Barbarine often imitated Binoth Dinnanath’s lifestyle and to an extent changed his name to impress the world, especially girls. Both of them were experts in swapping relationships, mobile phones, jobs and so on. They never succeeded in those anyway. MeghaShyam Iyengar and I were little different from what Malcombe Barbarine and imitated Binoth Dinnanath used to be. It was mostly incompatible. Könda Mahoshay was always there but never there when wanted the most. Arbitration between both sides never yielded anything. Nicha Praveena was authoritative and judgmental. He never really got himself under the wheels of confusion. Nicha Praveena was tactful and knew what he was doing. Overall friendship between each other ended in despair. These thoughts were formative until each one of them knew what they were doing.

Few harsh words sent each one in depths of despair. MeghaShyam Iyengar used Nicha Praveena to plot a scam against me and ended up successful. Later, I decided to stay away from both of them but eventually continued to keep in touch with MeghaShyam Iyengar. Binoth Dinnanath got stuck with few questionable acts and later disappeared for a while and came back with a woman he married. Malcombe Barbarine got diverted with other interests but eventually did nothing to call the shots. Nicha Praveena got caught with all sorts of traps and had to flee the city. MeghaShyam Iyengar proposed me of an idea to evade Nicha Praveena on permanent basis. This was a good idea as Nicha Praveena found to be more troublesome than MeghaShyam Iyengar. I eventually agreed and Nicha Praveena left the station.

In one way, Nicha Praveena’s departure was like breathing a sigh. Binoth Dinnanath’s disappearance added flavour to what we just expected. In a way, Malcombe Barbarine was disarrayed. Könda Mahoshay left for his home town and never returned. Könda Mahoshay also fought hard with Binoth Dinnanath and Malcombe Barbarine which could have caused his move. None the less, MeghaShyam Iyengar and I continued to be what we were whilst Malcombe Barbarine dug a step deep.

The entire troop was dismembered. Binoth Dinnanath lost his way, Könda Mahoshay left for home and never returned, Nicha Praveena fled for good, and Malcombe Barbarine got slightly distracted. This left MeghaShyam Iyengar and I as we ended up picking a job for ourselves and find our route this way. Malcombe Barbarine competed with MeghaShyam Iyengar for his job but eventually picked one that was discarded by MeghaShyam Iyengar. It was an open secret that MeghaShyam Iyengar and Malcombe Barbarine fought hard to hold an upper edge in their professional careers. MeghaShyam Iyengar holds an upper hand even to this date. I was largely blamed to brim up the fuel between them and equally supporting MeghaShyam Iyengar for his ill deeds. Malcombe Barbarine was largely supported by Binoth Dinnanath remotely and I did consider Malcombe Barbarine’s past deeds before supporting MeghaShyam Iyengar on a full scale. MeghaShyam Iyengar, Malcombe Barbarine and I met frequently for many years and Malcombe Barbarine was the sole target for all our experiments. Malcombe Barbarine suffered inferiority complex due to his failures and his inability to do anything lucrative. Malcombe Barbarine’s luck started to decline.

Few years later after the departure of Binoth Dinnanath, Nicha Praveena and Könda Mahoshay, dust started to settle down. MeghaShyam Iyengar, Malcombe Barbarine and I continue to stay put spite of several differences. This continued for a while until one day when MeghaShyam Iyengar pulled a trigger and dropped the friendship for good. This separation between the three was good for very many obvious reasons. It bought a sign of relief on all our faces as we do not get to speak to each other.

MeghaShyam Iyengar and I had several issues that no solution was found. We just stopped talking to each other and it probably proved good to both sides of the divide. MeghaShyam Iyengar started a new lease of life and probably this was the most convenient thing to do. Probably his ego became larger than life. A long standing friendship came to an end. Several collaborations, culminations and tact were shared between us. This division obviously bought happiness on Malcombe Barbarine’s face. Now there is none to mark a hilarious comment on him and none to support the other.

I continued the friendship with Malcombe Barbarine for a while but could not take his tactful lifestyle. We made several negotiations but no solution could be found. I decided to end the friendship with Malcombe Barbarine on a similar note as I did with MeghaShyam Iyengar. In case of MeghaShyam Iyengar, both sliced away into oblivion. In the end, none remained committal. I never happened to see Binoth Dinnanath and Nicha Praveena but I continue to stay in touch with Könda Mahoshay after his return from his native town. Könda Mahoshay is now retired from his psychological lifestyle and now leads a quiet life in the urban world. I occasionally see Malcombe Barbarine and MeghaShyam Iyengar at the cross-way but we remain moreorless strangers at this time.

The form of such a betrayal occurred between us and to the least, we realised that such a thing happened. I remember the time when MeghaShyam Iyengar helped me through thick and thin times. I remember the time when Malcombe Barbarine was the first to stab me from the back, I remember the time when Nicha Praveena took the obvious opportunity to hack a scam against me, I remember the time when my old school mates and I plotted a trick to bewitch Könda Mahoshay. I remember the time when Binoth Dinnanath discarded all of us and failed to recognise the favours done by all of us.

I do not know if this is right or wrong, we were probably not made for each other.  This group of friends and collective soul was probably built to break. There were few good and few trying times.

Hinweis/Disclaimer: The above mentioned story does not reflect or resemble anyone dead or alive. This is fictitious and is purely based on the imagination of the author. The author therefore takes no responsibility for any claim or allegation made towards this connotation.