The Night

Knock! Knock!

"Quick! Hide me"

"Why? Who are you?"

I lit a matchstick to see the unknown girl's face clearly. She had beady eyes with brightest green shade. Her hairs were wet falling over her face. Her lips were perfect pink like that of a small girl. Mesmerized by her beauty I stood still watching her face unaware of the fact that matchstick gonna blow off soon.

"Your hand", she said.

"My what? Ouch!" I whined as flame of matchstick reached my fingertips. She laughed.

I quickly took my finger into my mouth which relieved the pain to some extent while she closed the door and walked freely around my house as if she owns it.

"Who are you?" I asked again.

"Why there is no light in your house?" she said ignoring my question.

"Its due to rain. Some electric polls broke down the street"

"Don't you even have a torch?"

"I have candles"

"But still you should keep a torch in your house"

"Maybe you should find house with a torch then" I said, opening the door.

She smiled. She slowly walked towards me and closed the door again.

"I like candles too", she whispered in my ear.

Her voice sent shiver down my spine. She noticed my uncomfortableness and took few steps away from me. I took this opportunity to run away from her gaze and light the candles.

Who she was? Why she came here?

All kinds of questions ran through my mind. Honestly I was kind of afraid from her. She was an unknown stranger running away from God knows what. It could even be a murder!

"Some men tried to molest me. I somehow ran away from them. I am an orphan and I don't have anywhere to go tonight", she said reading my mind.

I looked at her. She looked at me. I nodded in response. She did the same.

"You live alone?" she said as we sat down on the couch.

"I have a wife" I said giving her a glass of water which she accepted with a smile.

"Oh"

"Where is she tonight?"

"I don't know"

"What do you mean by that?"

"She's dead"

"Oh I am sorry"

She stared into the empty glass as if some jinni gonna come out of it and grant her three wishes. I offered my hand to take the glass back and she gave it to me. After another half an hour of talking I suggested that she could sleep on the bed while I would lie down on the couch but she refused. She wanted to sleep on the couch and I didn't probed any further. She was a stranger afterall.

As I walked into my room I looked at the picture on the wall of my wife- Reena with her favorite mug of coffee in her hand. She never let me use it except when she was away in some another country. She thought that if I will use her coffee mug I will feel more near to her. As I laid on my bed all the memories of her flashed before my eyes like a movie. My favorite one was when she used to bring me breakfast in the morning which was always a cup of coffee and a chicken sandwich with a heart over it which she used to draw with ketchup. Rain outside just got intense and I drifted slowly into sleep.

Beep! Beep!

I woke up as my mobile vibrated under my chest. I quickly hurried out of the room to see if my last night's guest was still there but what I saw left me frozen in time. She was gone but a plate of sandwich with a heart over it and Reena's coffee mug was kept on the table. Under it was a note that said

Until Next Time