TALES OF FORTNIGHT - THE ODD ONE _CHAPTER -1

A weird journey  

I was sitting at a bus stop when a little girl came up to me. She gave me a strange smile and handed me a small box. It started trembling in my hands. I could hear a strange rumbling sound coming from the box. I looked up quickly to ask the girl what it was, but she’d disappeared. I looked at the box again and….

Opened it. I saw a crumpled piece of paper. It had blood stains on it and looked like it was about a hundred years old. I grew impatient. I had to know more. So, I opened it. To my horror, it was blank !! Was this some kind of a joke?

 Just then I saw a woman approaching me with a bottle of water. She tripped over a  man and lost grip of her bottle. The crumpled piece of paper was now soaking wet. I stood up to give the woman a piece of my mind. But a tiny voice inside me stopped me. I looked at the piece of paper once again. But this time, I observed some weird markings on it. 

Surprisingly, this gave me a clue. I heard the strange rumbling sound from the box once again. Ignoring the sound, I tried to figure out more about the markings. But the more I ignored the sound, the louder it sounded. Having no other choice, I opened the box once again.

As soon as I did, it started raining heavily. It was just a coincidence, I thought. But now, things were just beginning to get weird. Inside the box was a small glass bottle, with a creature in it. It was a rodent. A rodent with a weird pattern on it. It had two large teeth, a tiny tail, whiskers, and was pale. Now, I knew that this little creature was the one making those weird noises.

 I heard a loud honk as the bus had finally arrived. I boarded the bus and took a window seat. Before anyone could observe what I was holding, I put everything inside the box and closed the zip of my bag. Still holding the box in my hands, I realized how dirty it was. I took out the last wet wipe I had and wiped the box with it.  The bus had stopped. The driver said that it was because of the heavy rain that it had blocked the path. It was a narrow road, with many cracks in it.

 “Solid excuse” I heard a passenger say, who was sitting right next to me.  “ True”, I replied.  “ I know, right? Are you Daylla Shine ?”, asked the passenger. “ Yes, Do I  know you ?”I asked. He gave me a weird look. I looked around and saw that everyone was staring at me.

 I wished that I could have taken those words back. With no expectations of getting a reply, I turned toward the window. “ You know Daylla, you were quite famous until you just stopped singing. Why did you? ” Now I remembered , “ Well, my career took over my talent, and I had to focus on one of them. But that doesn't mean that I stopped entirely .”, I replied.

On my eleventh birthday, my parents had allowed me to publish my songs, songs that I composed myself. Well, some people loved them and wanted to hear more from me. But then, my career took over my talent and I stopped publishing my songs that much. But, that never stopped me from writing my songs.  Seeing so many remembering my talent, I was amused.

 “ Hmm, I am so sorry to be rude. I entirely forgot to introduce myself. I am Kairo. Kairo Precise .” he said, handing me a business card. It had his name and his number on it. “Nice to meet you, Mr. Kairo,” I replied. 

“ Oh, please just call me Kairo,” he said. “Okay then,  Kairo”. I said  “I am sorry to jump into a question just like that . I didn’t mean to make you feel uncomfortable .” he said. “ Oh, that ? It’s fine. I am used to such behaviour,” I said, giving him a smile of assurance. “ Oh, well . I became over-excited when I saw you . I listen to your songs till this day.”, He smiled. “Oh really ? I am so glad that you liked them !”, I replied.

He was nervous, I could tell he was keeping a deep dark secret. The rain had finally stopped. It was around Five O'clock.  It would take about an hour to reach home now. I then realized that the box was still in my hand. I took a peek, to see that the rodent was asleep. I kept the box in my bag carefully, making sure not to wake the creature inside.

“ So, tell me more about yourself, Kairo,” I said.  “ I am glad that you asked. I am a Zoologist. I graduated four years ago. I am Twenty - five years old. I also love cooking and music and often try out new recipes. You should come sometime.” he said. “ Oh yes! I would love to! I cook too! Maybe sometime we could cook together .” I replied. “ I can’t wait !”. He said. 

I got to know a lot about Kairo. We shared the same talents. He was three years older than me and was quite handsome. He was tall and had jet black hair which was wavy. His smile was friendly and gave someone a feeling of reassurance. 

The bus had finally arrived at my stop. I waved and got off the bus holding tight to my bag. It was six-thirty when I reached home. I was tired. Without any second thought, I rang the bell of my house.