Nge Michu Chapter 10

Opening his eyes slowly, listening to the noise of people from the other buildings, Dorji looks at Tshoki, who is sleeping so beautifully beside him. Many boys fell for her but she always rejected them. He feels lucky to be her boyfriend. Her eyes closed, face glowing as if to smile, which touches his heart deeply; she is a ‘sleeping beauty.’ Stretching his hand slowly, he grabs the phone from the table. As he looks at the number of missed calls from his parents, he gets up immediately, waking up Tshoki.

Opening her sleepy eyes, a little, she utters, “Going?”

“Yeah. I have exam today.”

As he wears the jeans, an unusual headache pricks his head. He feels as if the building is shaking. Grabbing the coat from the bed, leaning forward he kisses her and walks away towards the sitting room when the doorbell rings, frightening Tshoki. She gets off the bed instantly and dresses up.

“Shhh!”

She follows him, taking gentle steps towards the door. The doorbell rings again. Going to the door looking very frightened, she slides the latch slowly. Opening the door, a little, she stands frozen. In the meantime, Dorji asks her, “Who is it?”

On hearing this voice from the inside, pushing the door hard, Khandu walks in. stepping inside, looking directly at Dorji, who is the brother of his younger sister’s husband, he asks, “Dorji, what are you doing here?”

Dorji takes a glance at Tshoki, who stands at the door, looking very terrified.

Instead of responding, Dorji walks away from him. Standing in front of Tshoki, he says, “I am going. Catch you later.”

As he leaves the room, face burnt by his anger, looking very dark, Khandu goes in front of her. Catching her shoulder, he pulls her towards him. Looking deep into her eyes, he asks, “Tshoki, explain me, why was he here?”

Keeping her head down, she stands like a deaf, who has not heard a word of him.

Khandu shouts, “Tshoki! Explain me.”

He looks around the room and finds beer bottles, lying on the floor. Cigarette butts are scattered, at the kitchen doorstep. He jumps on the sofa, hunching back, ruffling his hair with his hand, he shouts, “Tshoki, please. Say something.”

Tshoki stands like a statue when he gets up and looks at her neck, lifting her hair covering her neck. Observing carefully, his eyes getting out of its socket, he asks, “What are these?”

At the same time, at Taba, Dema stretches her hand and picks up the phone and checks time. Keeping the phone down, she closes the book in front of her and arranges the books. Folding her hands, she closes her eyes and prays facing the picture of Jampelyanng pasted on the wall. As she tries hard to concentrate on the picture, her mother walks into the room, distracting her prayers.

“Yes, mom.”

She comes closer to the table and sits down on the bed, looking at her as if she wants to say something.

“Mom?”

“Dema, I understand that Tshoki and you are very close friends. Please, tell me the truth about what is Tshoki up to these days? Our neighbor’s son Dorji is missing since last night. Her parents contacted every classmate of him but nobody knew about Dorji’s whereabouts. Now they are going to report the missing case to the police. Other students say that only you know about Dorji and Tshoki,” says her mother, when she has no idea about this. If Tshoki is with Khandu, why would Dorji go to Tshoki’s place? Dorji does not know about Khandu and Tshoki relationship.

As she stays silent, thinking about these possibilities, her mother pleads, “Say something.”

“Umm, I will call Tshoki once.”

Grabbing the phone, she dials her number and waits. Even after repeated calls, getting no response, she ends the call and looks at her mother.

“Not responding.”

“So, you know the truth?”

Her mother asks, when she lies, “I don’t know. I thought, Tshoki may know.”

“But last time you told Tshoki’s sister that Dorji is Tshoki’s boyfriend,” says her mother, “please, if you speak the truth before it’s too late, you might be able to help both Dorji and Tshoki. You don’t know, how much pain Tshoki’s sister is in these days.”

“Okay. The truth is,” says Dema when her mother interrupts, “come on, let’s go to Tshoki’s sister house.”

Getting up, Dema follows her mother, confused if she should the truth or lie? Horrified by not being able to make the decision, taking her slippers out she walks in when Tshoki’s sister, Lhaden, stands up excitedly on seeing her.

Her mother greets Lhaden and sits down, when Dema stands beside the sofa. Tears filling up her eyes, jumping on to Dema’s feet, Lhaden cries out loudly, “Dema, please help me!”

Story by: Phurpa Dorji (PJIKKS)

Chapter 11 Tomorrow @9PM

Nge Michu Chapter 9

Closing the book, he closes his eyes and thinks about Tshoki’s words. He met her last year and she is his first love. It was the night of concert, when she accepted him, three months after the proposal. She is a sweet girl. He considers her as his soulmate. He wants to marry her. But recently, Tshoki is not at school and the rumor about her running away with a man hurt him and no matter how much he tries to connect with her, he was not able to do so. A call from her today surprises him. He is writing trial exams. He has exam tomorrow. What to do now?

He opens his eyes as his phone rings again. It’s Tshoki. Looking at the number, he checks the clock. Picking up the phone from the table, he answers, “Where are you?”

“Olakha,” comes the reply from Tshoki, with her voice sounding like a damsel in distress.

He stays silent.

“Please, come.”

She pleads, when he finally replies, “I will just meet you and come back.”

Hanging up the phone, he goes to his cupboard and takes out the jeans. Meanwhile, her mother shouts from the sitting room, “Dorji, dinner is ready.”

“I am coming, mom.”

He shouts changing his dress. Looking at the mirror, he makes his hair.

“I cannot ignore her, when she needs me the most.”

He says to himself and bending over, he picks up the phone and takes out some money from the drawer. On noticing the textbook, touching it with his hand, he says, ““I am coming back.”

He has exam tomorrow. He has to return home by any means.

As he walks into the sitting room, his mother appears from the kitchen. Observing him carefully, looking stunned by his dress up, she asks, “Dorji?”

“Mom, I forgot my book at friend’s place. I will be back very soon.”

Saying this, he rushes out as his mother keeps standing with rice filled plate in hand. He has to rush out before his father comes home. Walking outside, he rushes up towards the road filled up with plying vehicles with blinkering brake lights at the back, making the road colorful.

At Olakha, checking time in the phone, Tshoki calls Khandu again but he is not responding the call. Then a notification beeps. It’s a message from Dorji.

“I am coming.”

Excited by this message, she plays a music loudly and walks towards the kitchen. Opening the fridge, she looks inside. Only vegetables. Dorji likes beef. She has no idea where the meat shop is but she knows how to cook eggs. Taking out a few eggs, she keeps it in the wash basin. Checking the rice cooker, she warms the rice.

Going to the sitting room, she logs into Facebook. Sitting down on the sofa, she keeps browsing the news feeds when a meme about drinking alcohol strikes her mind with something. Rushing to the bedroom, she checks her purse and taking out some money she runs out of her house.

On reaching the taxi parking in the town from Taba, going to a bakery, buying her favourite chocolate cake, Dorji walks towards a taxi driver who is shouting, “Olakha, last seat.”

Getting inside, he sits next to an aunty. She smiles at him. Travelling for a few minutes, finally he calls Tshoki, asking about the building’s location. Taking note of that, he stops the taxi and holding the cake in hand, he keeps walking looking for the building.

Having done with the egg frying, Tshoki takes a piece and tastes it when she realizes that she has forgotten to add salt. Grabbing the salt container, she is about to open it when the doorbell rings. Keeping it down, she rushes to the door.

As Dorji stands at the door, she hugs him tightly.

“Thanks for coming.”

Walking inside, he hands her the cake when she comments, “How sweet of you!”

Observing the room carefully with hesitant eyes, he sits down on the sofa gently. In the meantime, she goes to the kitchen and comes back with her phone. Keeping it in silent mode, she goes back to the door and latches it.

“Whose house is this?”

“Umm, my aunt’s. They went to Paro. So, I am all alone,” says Tshoki, unwrapping the cake box.

As she picks up a slice of the cake, he asks her calmly, “Why are you not in school these days?”

“I am sick.”

“What?”

“Yeah, that’s why I am not writing trial,” says Tshoki, munching the cake, looking like a happy kid after father’s arrival with a chocolate for her, while Dorji looks at her, making a sympathetic face.

“I am so sorry to know about that. Dema didn’t tell me about that,” says Dorji, when Tshoki goes near to him and looks into his eyes, her hands touching his. Taking her face forward, she lifts her chin up and takes her lips closer to his, closing her eyes. He stays struck closing his eyes, as her lips feel the warmth of his. Pulling her on to his chest, he runs his hand down her back breathing heavily.

The next morning, at Motithang, as the dawn breaks, opening his eyes, Khandu looks at his baby son, sleeping peacefully sandwiched between them. Yangchen is still sleeping. Last night, Tencho left only after the dinner. He was drunk and he feared that he might speak out about his relationship with Tshoki, luckily, he didn’t. He is still confused why Tencho came home with those vegetables. Last night, before sleeping, he could not say a word to Yangchen.

Pushing the blanket away from him, he gets off the bed. As his feet touch the floor, Yangchen turns her face towards him, opening her eyes a little. She keeps looking at him, as he gets into the bathroom.

Toweling his face, he stands in front of the mirror, when he hears his parents-in-law reciting morning prayers from the other room. Yuden is sleeping with them. As he combs his hair, Tshoki flashes in his mind, rushing to him. She always used to hold him from the behind, whenever he combs looking into the mirror. Keeping the comb down, he goes back to the bed and takes out his phone from beside the pillow. He forgot to check his phone last night. Looking at the number of missed calls, he keeps the phone down. Taking the car’s key, he rushes out of the room when Yangchen says, “Eat breakfast and go.”

Story by: Phurpa Dorji (PJIKKS)

Chapter 10 Tomorrow @9PM