Maidaan

Chandanpur ki zameen phat gayi.

Seedha. Ek line mein. Gali ke beech mein. Zameen phat gayi aur andar se kuch aaya — na khoon, na aag — roshan. Ek kaali roshni. Agar kali roshni hoti — agar darkness ka apna photon hota — woh aisa hota.

Zara girne lagi — Vikram ne pakda.

Dono khade the. Gali ke beech. Zameen phat chuki thi. Ped — jo ek gali door tha — woh khud jhhuk gaya. Seedha unke upar. Shaakhein zameen tak aai. Jaise ped ne jhuk ke kuch catch karna chahaa.

Hawa nahi thi. Phir bhi sab kuch hil raha tha.

Jinn — Zara ke zariye — aage badhna chahti thi.

Yakshini — Vikram ke zariye — zameen mein kheench rahi thi.

Dono ek doosre ki taraf thi. Ek doosre ke khilaf.

Aur woh dono insaan — Vikram aur Zara — unke beech the.

Vikram ne feel kiya — andar kuch hai. Kuch jo usne khud nahi socha. Ek primitive, jagah ki yaad. Jungle ki. Yeh jungle, yeh zameen — ek haadse ki yaad. Ek baar yahan kya tha jab koi nahi tha — insaan nahi the, shehar nahi tha — sirf ped, sirf mitti, sirf yeh Yakshini jo akeli thi aur khush thi. Woh yaad... sad thi. Usmein ek aisi udaasi thi jo thousands of saal ki thi.

Zara ne feel kiya — andar kuch hai. Ek bhook. Na insaani — Jinn ki. Ek aisi longing jo space aur zamaan se pare thi. Kisi cheez ki talash jo yahan nahi thi, kabhi nahi rahi, par woh aati rahi. Baar baar. Iss duniya mein. Alag alag logo ko chodke. Alag alag shehron ko jalake. Woh bhook... woh kabhao nahi marti. Dono ne feel kiya.

Dono samjhe.

Yakshini ne zameen se kuch maanga.

Jinn ne roshni se kuch maanga.

Dono nahi diya ja sakta tha.

Aur uss moment mein — jab dono ek sath maang rahi thi, dono ek insaan ke andar thi — ek doosre ke khilaf —

Plan kaam kiya.

Woh ek doosre mein ghus gayi. Yakshini zameen se upar, Jinn zameen se neeche — dono ne ek dusri cheez ko push kiya. Na koi awaaz nahi. Na koi darshan nahi. Koi drama nahi.

Sirf —

Ek silence.

Poori. Complete.

Jaise duniya ne saans rokha.

Ek second.

Do second.

Teen.

Aur phir — BOOM.

❖ ❖ ❖

Zara zameen par thi.

Vikram zameen par tha.

Dono gir gaye the.

Subah ho rahi thi. Actually. Suraj tha. Chandanpur ki taraf suraj ke pehli kiran aa rahi thi aur yeh pehli baar lag raha tha ki yeh jagah normal hai — koi bura nahi, koi supernatural nahi. Sirf ek purana, bhula hua shehar jahan suraj ki roshni galiyon mein aati hai aur dhool mein girta hai.

"Zara."

"Haan."

"Theek ho?"

"... Haan. Main... haan."

Vikram khada hua. Zara ko haath diya. Woh bhi khadi hui.

Dono ne ek doosre ko dekha. Dono normal the. Aankhein normal. Haath normal. Saans normal.

"Gaya?" Zara ne pucha.

"Nahi pata," Vikram ne sachchi kaha. "Chal."

Woh Arjun ko dhundhne gaye.

Aur woh mila — gali ke aakhri taraf — ek ghar ki seedhiyan ke pas — baitha hua. Ghutne muh mein. Chhota sa. Kaanpka hua.

"Arjun."

Arjun ne palak uthaayi. Aankhein — normal. Brown. Thaka hua. Lekin uski. "Woh... woh chali gayi," usne kaha. "Andar se. Chali gayi. Main feel kar sakta tha jab thi. Ab nahi hai."

Vikram ne ek saans chhhodi.

Zara ne bhi.

Chandanpur mein pehli baar — seedha, sahi — chiriya ki awaaz aayi.

Ek. Doosri. Teen.

Subah.