35mm HiGhLiGhT rEeL

She looked through the window at the pigeons and sparrows playing in the puddle of water. It was a respite from the heat burning their wings through the day. The grass in the lawn was almost dead; unlike the green carpet a few years back. The air was dense and the trees stood still that evening. But there was an air of excitement and celebration inside the house. Her family and grandchildren had gathered under one roof after a long time. The little ones would run down and sit next to her. They would fight to get the closest spot to their grandmother and then would bombard her with a chain of inquisitive questions. But she would happily respond to them with interesting answers. The older members would keep moving in and out of the room to check on her health.

She had been fighting to stand tall against her sickness in the declining stage of her life. But since morning her heart felt quite numb and at peace. There was a high contrast in the decibel levels inside the house and the garden outside. The birds began retreating to their comfort zones at higher altitudes. The apartment in the neighborhood was their favourite brooding spot. Her eyes fell on one pigeon which laid immobile next to the puddle. The sharp strings of the kites flying in the sky had badly wounded its wings. There were stains of blood merging the shades of blue and grey on its feathers. It was helpless enough to move a few inches and wash them off.

She looked at the pigeon with pity. Her state was quite similar too. Her daughter called out for the kids to move to the dining table. They immediately rushed out of the room while she asked her mother too. She wasn’t too hungry since morning as opposed to the other days, when she wouldn’t skip her meals. There was a sudden rise in the sound of birds chirping outside on the trees. It was not the regular noise they generated; this was an alarm. The sparrows began maneuvering the bushes on the other end of the garden. She bent closer to the window, strained her focus and saw a pair of yellow eyes advancing from the bushes.

She suddenly felt an excruciating pain in her chest. She pressed it with her right palm and wanted to call for help; for her and for the pigeon lying in the lawn. But she felt as helpless as the meager bird watching her end advance towards her from a distance. She tried to yell, but her voice would go past her diaphragm. The cat began advancing at a faster pace and birds watching this couldn’t do anything more than just cry out loud. The pigeon began fluttering its feathers with all its might only to figure out that it wouldn’t help. The lady, with all her strength and courage, pushed herself from the chair to stand up but ended up striking her hand on the glass jar.

The glass jar fell crashing on the ground and the loud noise alerted the cat. But it wouldn’t stop; instead it began the final sprint across the garden to secure her supremacy in the food cycle. Her daughter immediately rushed from the kitchen towards her room. Without disrupting her pace, the cat swiftly dug the sharp teeth into the pigeon’s throat. The lady skipped her beat in an attempt to cry out loud without realising it was her last. She collapsed on the ground while the cat ran back towards her safe zone to relish her accomplishment. There was an utter silence that engulfed the entire moment.

In the seconds to follow, there were loud cries inside the house.