Appear

22/07/2022

It’s nighttime in a metropolitan city. Right now we are in a simple 2BHK apartment. Inside the bedroom, a 25-year-old girl, Meghna is simply resting on her bed in her pajamas. The lights are dim as she prepares herself to go to sleep. But she is far from sleep. With great excitement, she is scrolling through her social media.

She takes a quick selfie, uploads it, and posts it with the caption ‘Good Night world. This is the final pic from Meghna@25.’ While she is choosing the right filter for the photo, there is a notification pop-up. Meghna’s cousin has tagged her in a photo that says,

“Happy birthday baby sister.”

She smiles while reading it. To that she comments, “I’m not in your timezone dumbo. Two more hours till midnight.”

This is followed by a series of private chats between the cousins. Meghna is so engrossed in the conversation that she does not notice a stranger appear in her room. This is a guy about her age. He seems clueless about where he is and how he simply manifested out of thin air. While Meghna is busy staring at her mobile screen, this guy in the background, looks around, trying to understand where he is right now. After some searching, he sees a huge portrait of Meghna on the wall behind him. He recognizes her. Then turning to her he says,

“Meghna?”

Hearing someone call her name makes her freeze. She is not sure how to react so she goes completely quiet. While there is silence in the room she can hear him breathe heavily. As she slowly turns her head and her body, she sees this guy standing next to the bed. She is taken aback and takes quick breaths as if…

“Meghna, Meghna, please don’t scream.” says he, “I can explain, I… just don’t…”

She goes ahead and screams at the top of her voice. Then taking a paperweight nearby she throws it at him. He dodges it. She then chases him out of her bedroom. This guy does not know how to navigate through the house so instead, he finds himself cornered in the other bedroom. On the way, Meghna has picked up a baseball bat and is threatening him. The guy shuts his eyes, goes into a defensive position, and cries,

“Please don’t hit me, please, Meghna. I can explain.”

“Alright. Who are you? How did you come in? How do you know my name?”

The guy settles down in the corner itself while Meghna guards the door. He starts talking. “My name is Nihaar Tasmai. I am a painter.”

Meghna points at a painted wall.

“Not that (speaks with disgust). I’m an artist. I take portrait commissions. A few days back a guy approached me to make a portrait of you.”

“Who?”

“I don’t know. We never met. We talked online. He sent me your photo and made full payment in advance to make your painting.”

“What was his name?”

“Stev… Some guy by the name Stevenson.”

“Stevenson…” Meghna recognizes the name, “Phil Stevenson?”

“Yes. Yes. That’s him. Do you know him?”

“He’s my boyfriend… Oh… Oh!… I’m so sorry!”

Suddenly Meghna’s mood changes. She smiles and stands up. Helping Nihaar get up she takes him to the hall. Letting him sit on the couch she brings some water for him to drink. Nihaar gulps it down in one go.

“Wait. I’ll make tea for you.”

“There’s no need for that.”

“Okay then, let’s talk business. Give me the portrait,” says Meghna with a smile.

“What portrait?”

“The one Phil hired you to make and then gave you our apartment key to leave it here before midnight.” says Meghna in a slow but happy tone, “I’m not dumb. You cannot keep a secret from me. So just give me the painting.”

“I’m sorry. There’s a misunderstanding. I’ve not made the portrait yet…”

“Why not? But then why are you here?”

“I don’t know,” says Nihaar remembering what just happened. “I had prepared the canvas, paints, and brushes. I was looking at your photograph on my mobile in order to make an outline. But then I blinked and the next thing that happened is that was in your bedroom.”

“What?!”

Meghna freaks out again. She goes and brings the bat. “Get out of here!”

“And go where?”

“Go home, go to a hotel, or go to hell. I don’t care. I just want you out now,” says Meghna while opening the door, ” And don’t try to do something that would make me hit you on your head, because I will do it.”

“I can’t go. I’m not from this city. Actually, I’m from a different part of the world.”

“Then how did you come here?”

“I don’t know!” he yells.

Meghna moves back. She’s not scared though. She sees fear in his eyes more than anger. He too seems confused about the situation. She shuts the door, goes to the kitchen and brings something to eat. Even after returning she sees Nihaar sitting in the same spot lost in his thoughts.

She gives him some chips to eat and then asks, “Tell me exactly what happened.”

There’s silence. He thinks for a while. Meghna wonders whether he heard her question or not. But before she repeats he starts talking.

“As a professional artist, I don’t just copy one’s face on the canvas. We capture the soul of the individual in our artwork. So before starting I have this practice to stare at the reference photo until I start hallucinating, seeing the picture move & behave the way that person would. I was doing the same with your photo. I never blink while staring at a reference photo, but this time I did and now I am here. This hasn’t happened before.”

There’s no reason for Meghna to not believe in Nihaar’s story. How else can she explain him entering a bedroom locked from inside? Hence, she decides to help him. They both think while eating.

“I got it. Why don’t you visualize your house? If you do that and then when you blink, you might go back.”

“House is the last thing I would want to think about.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“Nothing.”

Although Nihaar doesn’t say it, it is clear from his appearance the many problems in his life namely; financial instability, loneliness, and poor health. As he cries thinking about his situation his hands start shaking. Meghna touches his clenched fist to calm him down.

“You have to try. Maybe it will work. Think about your house…”

Nihaar takes out his phone and opens a photo of his house. He tries to imagine it as if he is there. But it does not work. Suddenly the doorbell rings. Meghna becomes alert. She starts to panic. “Quick! think about your house and leave now!”

She starts pacing back and forth. “Do it! Visualize your house, your bedroom, your bed… and just go.”

“I can’t.”

“Do it!”

“I can’t do it!”

“Shush. Don’t make noise,” she whispers.

“Okay fine. Go hide in the guest bedroom and try to disappear.” She picks him up and sends him to the bedroom. That instant, the door unlocks and a formally dressed man steps in.

“Hi… Phil,” says Meghna in a very awkward manner.

He smiles saying a loud, “Happy Birthday, Meghna.” while showing her the cake he brought.

“Thank you,” she speaks in a cold awkward tone.

“That’s it. Just thank you… Alright.” he says while removing his shoes. Keeping the cake on the table next to chips he goes to the kitchen to get a knife and candles. Meghna walks ahead to see if Nihaar is hiding in the kitchen. He’s not there.

“Mm… lighter…” says Phil while walking into the guest bedroom. “Wait!” shouts Meghna as she opens the door and enters the room first, “Oh, I thought this door was jammed.” Nihaar is not in there either. Meghna is relieved.

“Maybe he teleported back home,” she whispers to herself while walking back to the hall. There she is caught by surprise as Nihaar is trying to sneak out of the house. She slips, loses her balance, and is about to fall. Nihaar sees that and so he quickly grabs her preventing a hard landing. They keep looking at each other, while she is in his arms as if nothing else matters.

“Who are you?” asks Phil.

Both stand straight and out of fear start mumbling nonsense. They speak as if caught red-handed. Phil suddenly realizes what is happening.

“Meghna… are you cheating on me?” says Phil. Without waiting for an answer he goes on with, “Here I am feeling guilty that I can’t be with you on your birthday, meanwhile you are… with a guy… with some stranger?!”

“I’m not a stranger. It’s me Nihaar, the painter. You asked me to make a painting of her.”

“I don’t know you. I never asked you to do anything…” says Phil outright rejecting his claim, “Also, we are in the 21st century, why the hell would I want to make a painting of my girlfriend when I can print a high-quality photo of her?”

“I don’t know why. But you asked me. You sent me an email,” says Nihaar taking out his phone.

“I never sent you any email.”

“Yes you did,” says Nihaar searching for it on his phone, “Here, this is your email ID, right? ‘Please can you make a portrait…?’ See. You sent it.”

Phil looks at the screen carefully. He adjusts his glasses a couple of times because he is unable to believe what he is seeing. He speaks in a low tone, “But I don’t remember… why would I ask you… neither of us has an interest in paintings. You see, all over our apartment, only photographs…also this photo I gave you is so tiny, old, and looks like something lost and found years later.”

“Yes.” agrees Meghna. “Why did I not think about this? I love taking photos. They are for free. It does not make sense Phil would waste so much money on a stupid painting.”

“Ouch.”

“No, I don’t mean that way. I am a social media gal. I upload selfies every hour. See…” says Meghna showing him her timeline.

“That’s strange…” says Nihaar, “…because when I searched for a photograph of you I didn’t find even one.”

For the past five minutes that they have been having this conversation, Nihaar’s attention has been constantly being diverted towards the cake payment receipt. He does not know why but for some reason he wants to have a closer look at it. Eventually, he does. What he sees comes to him as a shock.

“Your birthday is on the 23rd of the 7th month?” asks Nihaar.

“Yes. Why do you ask?”

Suddenly Nihaar sits down. Taking out his phone he opens the email again and shows it to them. “Look.”

“What are we looking at?” both ask.

“Look at the date on your email.”

“12…10…2022…what?! 10th. That has to be wrong.”

“Really, have you ever seen an email delivery date wrong? Do you-”

“So what are you saying,” interrupts Meghna.

“Are you from the future?” asks Phil.

“More accurately you guys are in the past,” says Nihaar.

“It’s the same thing.”

“No, it’s not. Currently, the ongoing month is the 10th. You guys, this birthday, all of this has already happened. You are not real.”

“We are…”

The three of them simply sit quietly and try to understand the reality of the situation. An amateur time traveler has appeared in their house. This is a situation nobody prepares for until it happens. What are they going to do?

“Be it three months from now, still it does not make sense why I would hire you to make a painting.” Phil insists that he is incapable of doing this romantic gesture because he has a secret. Something he can’t tell. “I would simply download her photo from the internet… wait, did you say couldn’t find any picture of her online?”

“Yes…” says Nihaar opening his phone, “I looked everywhere… I didn’t find anything on her account but I saw a post you had written dedicated to Meghna. I have taken a screenshot of it. Here, take a look.”

Nihaar extends his hand to give his phone to Phil but Meghna comes in between and takes the phone herself. She sits down blankly staring at the mobile screen.

“What does it say?” asks Phil.

“It says that tomorrow, on my birthday I met with a terrible accident. I was bedridden in a hospital for two months after which I died. Knowing my death was inevitable I told you (looking at Phil) to move on in your life. But you didn’t. Despite it being an accident, you blamed yourself for my death. It’s the guilt that prevented you from finding someone else.”

Suddenly Meghna’s hand feels weak. Just when she is about to drop the phone, Nihaar takes it from her.

“So that explains the painting,” says Nihaar.

“Why would you feel guilty for my death?” asks Meghna. That instant she sees the same guilt, she felt in his written words, on his face.

“There is more… “ Nihaar reads what’s written, “In order to help me overcome my guilt she exercised her right to be forgotten.”

“What is that?”Asks Phil.

“It’s a company by the name ‘Right To Be Forgotten’. With your permission, these people erase your digital footprint after your passing. That is they delete all your photos, videos online. Not only that, if you give them access, they will go to your home and destroy all your printed photos as well. It’s magic what these people do.” explains Nihaar, “Personally I don’t think anyone should be forgotten. Taking this decision of being forgotten, what you did, requires a lot of courage.”

Meghna is silently crying. She is completely shattered hearing about her inevitable death. She expects Phil to comfort her but he is stuck in his own mental prison. Instead, Nihaar gives Meghna a shoulder to cry on. She accepts it. After some time she looks at Phil and says,

“If this is meant to happen then there is no reason for you to feel guilty. It’s not your fault that I meet with an accident and I… die.”

“It is my fault!” says he. Phil breaks his silence. The other two look at him attentively. “I feel guilty not because of what happens to you but because of why it happens.”

Now that he is talking Phil does not want to keep any more secrets. He finally tells Meghna about Sharon. Phil’s colleague whom she has met several times. What she doesn’t know is that they are secretly in a relationship. They are so much in love that they consider each other their soulmates. Had Phil not been in a committed relationship with Meghna, they would have gotten married to each other.

“I tried to tell you so many times. I even called her for lunch so that you could see how close we are to each other. But you were too blind to see the truth.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?” asks Meghna.

“Because I am scared of you, I’m scared of what you might do after…”

“What I might do?!” she suddenly gets angry, “What I will do is drag that witch out of your office and then out of your life!” She yells. “How can you cheat on me and expect me to be casual about it?!”

“Exactly, this is what I was afraid of,” he says pointing at her irrational (totally rational if you ask me) reaction.

“Oh… So I can’t even react now. Anyway, why would you feel guilty about it? If I am going to die means you can move in with your rich witch and enjoy your new wife for life. Problem solved.”

“I feel guilty for what I said tonight. Even before coming here, I was with Sharon. We were spending quality time together when I saw your cousin’s post wishing you. That is when I realized why you were okay with me not coming home. You were expecting a surprise birthday party, weren’t you? We had to go around the city searching for a place that sells cake this late in the night. While we were in the car…”

---

Phil was driving around and Sharon was sitting adjacent to him.

“Why don’t you tell her the truth? Tell her that you don’t love her anymore.”

“I can’t.”

“Why?”

“Because she loves me too much. God knows what she will do after learning the truth.”

“So then what about us? I can’t live like this my entire life,” says Sharon.

“Not entire life. I’m just waiting for her to die in an accident. This way I won’t have to talk to her.” He jokes.

---

“It was a joke. I did not think that would happen for real. That’s the guilt that is eating me right now. I said it like a prophecy and now you will die.”

“No she won’t.” says Nihaar, “Me coming here back to the past have changed things. This means the future won’t happen as it did before.”

“Yes.” agrees Meghna, “The reason I meet with an accident on Feri road is that I have planned to go to the jewelry store to buy a ring for my marriage proposal to you. Now that I know the truth, I don’t have to go,” she says very calmly.

Meghna finally realizes what mistake she has been making all this time. She always assumed Phil’s feelings for her. She never bothered to ask. But now she understands and accepts that her boyfriend has fallen for another girl.

“I won’t stop you. If you want to go live with Sharon, go now,” says Meghna.

Phil is surprised to see a change of heart. Although, he is not sure if she is speaking honestly or being sarcastic. “Are you serious?”

“Yes! she is serious,” says Nihaar.

“Who asked you? Why are you here anyway?…before you say anything I know how you came here. But why?”

Nihaar keeps quiet and lets Phil vent his frustration towards him. The guy who is clearly interfering in their personal matter.

“Why did this happen?!”

“Because of Meghna’s unconditional love for you.”

Phil looks at him confused. Nihaar has Meghna’s attention as well. 

“She loved you so much that she wanted to be with you. When she was dying she wanted you to move on. You must have told her about your prophecy and the guilt that followed. So she made a tough decision to take all the memories of her out of your life. But then she died and the guilt of her death consumed you. Her love for you transcended death. That Meghna somehow made this happen. Me coming here so that this time she could finally learn and accept the reality that (Nihaar looks at her) Phil does not love you like you love him.”

The silent eye contact between the two lingers for so long that, Phil feels like an outsider in this house. Realizing that he can go be with his true love Sharon, he gets up to leave. While at the door, he thanks Meghna and then looking at Nihaar asks, “What are you going to do now?”

“He can stay here,” says Meghna, “It’s only a matter of a couple of months until the present version of his disappears. Till then I can arrange his travel documents to go home.”

Phil smiles hearing all this and leaves. Nihaar smiles and then looks at Meghna.

“If every event from now has been changed means that the other me won’t disappear three months from now. In that case, I might have to stay here longer than a few months.”

She walks toward him, smiles, and whispers, “That is what I want.”

At this point, although it needs no saying I’ll say it anyway. The reason Meghna lets Phil move on with his life is that she herself just now experienced what it means to fall in love with someone else despite being in a committed relationship. She finally meets a guy who looks at her the way she used to look at Phil, i.e. with unconditional love.

END

P.S. If you like my writing style and if you want me to write a story for you, you can buy my services via Fiverr (click here). Also please support this website via Patreon (click here).

back to STORIES