Kuchoe Ama! Chapter 5

Walking past the manager, Dema heads towards her room without even looking at him. Stretching his chin up, he looks at her disappearing into the room. Banging the door hard, she throws her bag on the bed and dials Chophel’s number. She expects him to respond but it’s still switched off. Playing a music loudly. Bending her head down, she covers her ears as she hears the manager and her mother shouting at each other from the counter. Where is Chophel? Why has he left her suddenly?

Last night, after a few rounds the chorten he took her to a movie. Then having dined at one of the restaurants, they booked a hotel and talked whole night. Then she might have fallen asleep, so when she opened her eyes, he was gone.

“Ashim, did you sleep with him?”

These words alert her. Lifting her head up, she looks at the door and her sister, Deki stands at the door wearing a sad face. Keeping her phone down, she looks at Deki, as she pushes back the door and slides the latch slowly. Taking gentle steps Deki towards towards her and sits on the bed beside her.

“I understand, Ashim. Our family is in a big trouble,” says Deki, looking at the closed door.

Taking her hands slowly on to hers, Dema says, “Don’t worry. Everything will be fine.”

“I am worried. I know, mom is not going to send me to school,” says Deki, when Dema turning face to her interrupts, “Shhh, look at me!”

With watery eyes, Deki turns her face and looks at Dema. Holding her cheek with her palm, Dema says, “No matter what, I promise. You will go to school.”

Before she can respond, there comes a sudden knock on the door. Carrying Deki’s head on her shoulder, she waits. The knock comes again.

“Dema, please open!”

The voice of their mother rings a happy feeling in them. Dema stands up and opens the door. Her mother stands at the door looking very sad. Dema takes a glance of the counter, checking if the manager has left the room or not. Luckily, he has. Thanking God, she looks back at her mother. Grabbing her hand, her mother pulls her towards the bed. Shoving her on to the bed, she shouts, “You knew, why the manager wants to marry you, right? Didn’t you?”

With hands on the bed, Dema stays silently.

“Now, he is not going to marry you. How can I send Deki to school? How? No credits. No customers. Now, he is going to give this canteen to another girl. Now, what?”

Her mother shouts, choking with anger.

Looking very frightened, Deki stands up.

“Dema! Choice is yours. Let me be jailed or marry him. It’s not necessary to be a graduate to earn a living. It’s how you choose to earn a living, be it a dropout or you have Ph.D.”

Saying these words, her mother walks out slamming the door shut. Looking at her, Deki walks out of the room leaving her alone iced by her mother’s words.

Picking up the phone, she dials Chophel’s number again. It’s switched off. Standing up, taking out a paper from her bag, she rushes out of the room. She walks up the dusted road towards the manager’s office. It’s a two-storied wooden house. On the ground floor, it houses the offices of accounts and other offices and on the top, is his office. She has never been there once but she has heard from others. Walking to the lone receptionist behind the counter, she asks about the manager. Standing still she observes the interior of the dirt covered office; in the meantime, making a phone call, the receptionist looks back at her.

“Dasho is busy.”

“Oh really?”

The face of the receptionist changes from smiling to terrified on hearing this tone. As she keeps looking at her, she walks up the wooden staircase heart beating eccentrically. Taking her legs off the last step, she stands at the door. Taking a deep breath, she looks through the window and finds the so-called ‘dasho’ smiling, on his revolving chair phone stuck to his left ear. Closing her eyes, she grabs the door handle when she hears from her back, “Hello there!”

Opening her eyes, she looks back and a lady with natural beauty hiding behind the make-up stands with a cautious face. Taking her hand off the door handle, she stretches her back up.

“Who are you?”

The lady askes her, pushing her away from the doorstep. Taking her leg in front of the lady, Dema pushes her away and says, “I am here to meet my hubby.”

Taking a few steps away from her, the lady asks, “Your hubby?”

“Yes, my hubby,” says Dema, making a very dominant face.

Looking through the door, pointing her finger to the manager, she says, “He is my hubby.”

As the lady stands at the doorstep not being able to swallow these words, Dema grabs the door handle and walks inside pushing the door hard. Frightened by her sudden entry, the manager stares at her in awe, as if he has seen something which he is not supposed to see.

Happy Losar!

Story by: Phurpa Dorji (PJIKKS)

Chapter 6 Tomorrow @9PM

Impermenance of life

As I lay there watching the beautiful sun set,
Its beauty injects happiness into my life.
Yet as the sun slowly loses its heats and sets.
The sun depicts the impermenance of life.

Sadly but nothing is permenant here.
No matter how rich you are,
No matter how intelligent you are,
No matter how strong you are.

When the life roles it's dice.
Every thing must come to its ultimate sense of reality.
The ultimate sense of impermenance.
We all must obey whats coming with full mentality.

Appreciate what you have with your whole heart,
Share what you can with under privilege ones,
And most importantly learn to accept and forgive.
We may never know next birth or tomorrow will come first.

No matter how beautiful a setting of sun may be,
It remains only for mere minutes to spare.
Life is too short to waste on unhappy things.
Focus on good things and be good.

Kuchoe Ama! Chapter 4

Her head aches. Eyes are swollen. Aum Wangmo stands at the counter feeling exhausted. Unlike other days, today there are no sign of people walking inside for breakfast though it’s time. She has been waiting since the dawn. Looking outside through the dusted window pane at the workers heading towards the quarry plant, she waits. Last night, she could not sleep. Not at all. Though, she was drunk, she saw some truth in the words manager’s personal assistant (PA). She has no idea about the workers at the quarry but she does know a few. She heard other people talking the manager and his girlfriends. Having spoken the words, PA left saying, “Money can be earned but life once destroyed is gone for good.”

She tried to sleep after Deki disappeared into her room, without finishing her food. Dema’s phone was switched off. She dug into the suitcase beside her bed and found the family photo album. She cried flipping the album. She sought forgiveness from her late husband. She does not know what to do. Should she not force Dema into marriage? If she doesn’t, she looked for ways to pay back the money but she cannot find one. She has no lands to sell being from a poor family background. She has two brothers but they will be no help to her as she has not helped them when they asked for help. Now what?

The sudden door creak startles her. It’s Zeko. One of the senior most workers of the quarry. He smiles at her. Going to one of the tables, he sits down. Grabbing the TV remote from the table, she walks towards him. Standing in front of him, she asks, “How have you been?”

Turning his face towards her, he takes the remote from her hand.

“Is my breakfast ready?”

“Yes.”

It’s 8.30AM. Usually, Ap Zeko is the last person to eat breakfast from her canteen. Today, he is the only customer. Thinking about this, she walks to the kitchen and gets his breakfast ready when she overhears murmurs from the counter. Thinking that it’s noise from the TV, she ignores placing the fried rice plate and suja on the tray, when the noise becomes louder. Grabbing the tray carefully, she walks into the counter. To her surprise, standing beside Zeko, the manager looks at her. She stops walking holding the plate. Looking away from her, he looks at Zeko, “What are you doing here? Go to work.”

Switching off the TV, Ap Zeko stands up and walks out obediently with his head bent low. As soon as Zeko leaves the room, then the manager cum owner of the quarry, Ap Tshenchap sits down on the chair, stretching his boots on the tables. Leaning his back against the chair, looking at Aum Wangmo, he shouts, “It’s rude to keep your customer waiting.”

Not knowing what to do, she stays frozen when Deki walks into the room. On noticing her, turning his face to her, he stops Deki.

“Shhh, come here!”

Deki stops suddenly and stands at the midway to the kitchen when Tshenchap calls her again.

Walking slowly towards him, she stands in front of him bending her head low, eyes on his shoes. Taking his feet off the tables, he looks up at her.

“I heard, Dema is not here last night. Someone saw her at memorial chorten with a boy. So, tell me where was she last night?”

Tshenchap asks Deki, his face becoming red.

On hearing these words, not being able to take these words, Aum Wangmo turns her face and takes a step towards the kitchen when the manager shouts, “Shhh, come here!”

Without listening to him, she disappears into the kitchen. Keeping the tray on the table, she kneels down on the floor heart going numb. What has Dema now? Why is she doing that to her? These questions bombarding her head, she feels like vomiting.

Stretching his hand up to Deki’s chin, he forces her head up.

“Deki, you are a good girl. Just tell me the truth. Where was Dema last night?”

Face covered with hair hanging down from her head, taking long breaths, Deki stays silently, expecting her mother to walk towards her and say something.

“Deki? Can’t you hear me? Where is Dema?”

The sudden knock on the door wakes Dema up. Opening her eyes, a little, she observes the room brightened and warmed by the morning rays streaming through the windows. She turns back and finds the empty pillow next to hers. Where is he? Throwing away the blanket, she gets off the bed. Picking up her clothes, she heads towards the toilet thinking that he is inside. Sadly, he is not there. Walking back to the bed, she puts on the clothes. Walking to the window, she looks outside. She finds the street filled with people moving up and down. Walking back to the bed, on the table she finds a note with a few words scribbled on it.

Lifting the paper, she reads, “Dema, I think your mom needs you more than me. If possible, help her. We are not made for each other. Chophel.”

Crumpling the paper, she shoves it away on to the floor. Switching on her phone, she dials his number. Switched off. Picking up her bag, she walks out. Walking past the waiter standing at the door, she rushes down the stairs. Walking outside, she walks through the crowd hiding her face towards the City Bus Parking. Getting inside a taxi, she says, “Damchu.”

Back at the canteen, having stood in front of him for a long time, not being able to tolerate his mean behavior, Deki finally speaks out.

“Why are you doing this to my family?”

“What am I doing?”

The manager smiles at her, with his anger disappearing from his face. Playing her hair, as he is about to speak, the door bangs wide open. Face reddened, eyes filled with tears, Dema stands at the door. Hearing the noise, Aum Wangmo stands up and rushes to the counter. Dashing her feet in front of Dema, catching her hand she pulls her inside.

“Where were you?”

She asks looking at her face.

Turning his face to her, Ap Tshenchap says, “Look at her! How can I accept her now?”

Happy Valentine!

Story by: Phurpa Dorji (PJIKKS)

Chapter 5 Tomorrow @9PM

Kuchoe Ama! Chapter 3

Washing the last plate, Aum Wangmo takes a glance of the phone nearby the rice cooker plugged in for charging. Toweling her wet hands, she picks up the phone and searching Dema’s number from the contact list, she dials looking at the wall clock. It’s 9.45PM. Dema went to Thimphu town for shopping today. She left at 5 in the evening. She has never come home late but today it’s too late. Holding the phone to her ears, she waits. Now, her heart goes cold. Where is she? Why is she not responding her call? Keeping down the phone, looking at the counter, she shouts, “Deki, dinner is ready.”

Filling up her plate, she lifts the rice cooker lid when her phone rings. She dashes towards the phone, thinking it’s from Dema. Grabbing the phone, she takes a glance. It’s not from Dema, but the Manager. Listening to him for a while, she hangs up the phone. Looking at Deki, who stands beside her with a plate, she asks, “Do you know where Dema is?”

Shaking her head, she fills up the plate. She has been angry since the morning about the shopping. Aum Wangmo tries to open her mouth when Deki walks away to the counter. Exhaustion suffocating her, she at Deki sitting down at one of the tables. In addition, she is so worried about Dema. Closing her eyes, covering her ears with palm, she sits down on a chair, standing idle beside the refrigerator. She rests having a sensation of confusion burning her forehead. Not even a single customer has paid credit today. Without that she cannot do Deki’s shopping but Deki does not understand the situation.

Today, right after breakfast she went to meet the quarry manager. After waiting for one hour, finally he called her into his office. Revolving his chair, he stayed silent observing her for a few minutes. Finally, he called his personal assistant and asked for coffee. Keeping the coffee in front of him, he said, “This coffee is not free. I have to buy from the market. They give me when I pay them. So, Wangmo. Life is all about give and take. Give. Take.”

Getting off his chair, catching the coffee cup in his hand, he took it near her mouth saying, “Smell it. You like the smell? Don’t you? Coffee beans need to be burnt to give this smell. To give life somewhere, you need to sacrifice something.”

Circling her, he walked front and back, then finally, he said, “What did your daughter say?”

Without saying a word, she stayed silently.

“You are her mother. So, why do you even need to ask her?”

He asked her, leaning his face towards her, with his eyes bulged out.

“I am giving you a week and if you fail to arrange the marriage by then, you know the circumstances you are going to blessed with.”

The sudden ring of the doorbell wakes her up from the morning memories. Standing up slowly, she looks at the door as Deki walks towards the door. Pulling back the door, Deki stands there talking. Thinking it’s Dema, Aum Wangmo rushes out of the kitchen towards the door. Standing behind Deki, she hangs her head outside. To her surprise, the manager’s personal assistant stands outside swaying her body side to side, as if to fall down. Smell of alcohol surrounds her.

“How can I help you, madam?”

She asks looking outside. Falling on the ground, the madam looks up at her.

“How can you give your daughter to the manager? I am his fourth wife. We have a son.”

She says crying, trying to stand on her feet.

“We have a son. Son.”

Hidden in the night devotees thronging round the memorial chorten, having circled for the third time, Dema looks at Chophel.

“Can we go now?”

He stops walking and looks at her, walking away from the path making way to others. Catching her hand, he says, “Dema, you need break. Your result is not good and you are tensed. Instead of helping you, your mother is forcing you to marry an old man. You are in a very bad situation. You are badly in need of a break.”

Holding her hand, she pulls her round the chorten back into the crowd. She can feel the phone vibrating from her bag. As Chophel walks in front of her, holding her right hand, she runs her left hand into the bag and pulls out the phone. Pressing the power button, she switches her phone off. Sliding the phone back into the bag, she follows Chophel calmly. He is right. She is badly in need of a break. She likes the grip of his hand on hers. She senses a mysterious feeling of being bonded. Bonded. A feeling of being bonded forever.

Story by: Phurpa Dorji (PJIKKS)

Chapter 4 Tomorrow @9PM