I saw him sitting on a bench in a park and there is a perchance he was crying.
You may want to know what I was doing there. I had started back from home thinking that I will go for a jog but as soon as I stepped outside, the nice weather prompted me to search for an empty bench where I could sit and relax, the same thing I had done since morning.
He was my friend from school whom I hadn't seen in years. The moment I saw him, I couldn't even remember his name. I clearly remembered his face though. It was a face you can't easily forget. It took me some time to remember his name. His name was Sanket and we called him Santa back in school. Wait, he wasn't just Sanket. He was Capt. Sanket which I came to know further ahead in the story.
I went up to meet him and he immediately got up on seeing me. We shook hands and after the usual pleasantries were exchanged, I asked him what he was doing. He told me that he had retired as a war veteran and was currently into some business ventures and had just come to the city. I was in awe of him now. He had been a carefree lad in school but seeing him sitting there, I could sense his transformation into a man.
I could see the dried up tears on his face. They were there acting as the silent proof that he had been crying. I asked him about them and he fell silent. For about five minutes, he was silent. His shoulders drooping down, his head lowered, his eyes fixed into the ground and then he began:
Today is the day when my friend died, a brother of mine. We were serving together in the same regiment fighting in the Kargil war. Our regiment was called up to take on a post and we were formed in small platoons. There were three of us in ours and one was injured. But we both went ahead after taking him to a safe position. There was an enemy bunker with some soldiers ahead of us and we had to take them down. I planned to go ahead and he was to provide me cover. As I got near, the enemies saw me and opened fire. There were five of them. We could see them but they could only see me and while they were firing, a bullet struck me. I fell down and was losing consciousness but I could see him running towards the enemies opening fire. He was shot in retaliation. He could have waited for help but he didn't and gave away his life when he knew I was already shot with less chance of survival and him facing a sure death. The injured soldier had informed another platoon by then which came searching after some time and took down the enemies. We were taken to the emergency ward where I survived only due to him.
Today is the same day, the day I lost my brother who had given me a new birth.
Sanket was again crying and I was too. He told me how he had voluntarily retired. His friend's family consisted of his parents, his wife and a boy. They moved back to their ancestral village after his death and so did Sanket along with them. He had been living near to their family, helping them and taking care of them. He had never married and went home himself only once or twice a year. He told me that his parents were proud of him. He had moved recently back to the city as the boy who had grown up now, had joined college. He was visiting with him.
I saw the kid coming towards us and knew that the time for farewell had come. I could see the eyes of the kid and how proud he was when Sanket introduced him. Sanket brought his hand forward but I hugged him and stood fixed as they moved away together, the young man looking inquiringly towards his uncle.
