Oh boy!
Older sister is the seeker so I have to hide extra good ‘cos she’s smart and will find me just like that. I got to hide, but where? Behind the garage won’t work ‘cos she’ll find me quick there. The kitchen can be an easy guess. Maybe, the loo? Nope, it stinks like… like, what a loo should stink of! Wait, I know. The door leading under the staircase is perfect. She won’t be able to think to look for me under there.
Damn, it stinks too. Mom was right about the cockroaches in there. Wish I had picked another place to hide. Stinky cockroaches! Too late now. I can hear her seeking everyone out. I’ll just sit here quiet as a mouse.
I could hear her out here. And, I was sure she thought I was in the kitchen. She’d never find me there!
It’d been a while and she hadn’t found me yet. I heard something. All my siblings started looking for me. They’d all been caught, but not me. They’ll never trick me into coming out to catch me. I heard Dad calling out for me. I heard someone going to call Grandpa to help look for me. Poor old man, cannot even walk properly. I had hidden his walking stick. I wasn’t going out to get caught.
I wondered what to do! If I had gone out, I would have been in big trouble. I thought, a lot!
I knew what to do! I designed a plan to tell them I fell asleep while waiting. And now to put on the big act, I shut my eyes. With my eyes shut, I started hearing everyone shouting out for me. Is that Grandpa’s voice, I wondered. He he. For an instance, I felt there is no one smarter and sneakier than me.
I heard mom howling my name out. I said to myself that it was just a game, and they know how to play it better. I didn’t get fooled. I saw Dad ambling towards the direction I was hiding, quickly. I didn’t come out.
I saw a few strangers coming into the play. They pulled my mom and dad away. I laughed, wondering if they added new people to the game. Whew! I pulled it off, I said to myself. Their voices kept falling, and after a point, ZERO. I couldn’t hear anything. Needless to say, I kept quiet about my own voices!
I closed my eyes only to find a deep giggle within myself. So smart, I thought.
It had been more than half an hour. My head told me everything is alright. But, no matter how much I tried to convince myself, I couldn’t listen to it. I opened the door, a crack, and peeked out. For an instance, I thought to myself, the crack is just perfect to peek at the fun.
The house was on fire.
It must have taken 10-15 seconds for me to sink into the situation. I didn’t cry. I was brave. In the spur of the moment, I shouted. I shouted for help. But, in vain. No one could have possibly heard me. The flames roared much louder than my meagre little voice.
I thought to myself, I wanted to play more football. I wanted to complete my everyday home work so that Ms. Latika Nair, my school teacher, would make me the class monitor. I wanted to do so much.
Taking all that as an inspiration, and working my way through the fire, I took tiny little steps. I ran up the staircase, just to realise that there is no way out for me. I thought of jumping out of the window next to my parents’ bedroom. The showcase, that was lit up immensely, fell in front of me, blocking my route to the window.
I didn't realise how fast it'd happened. I had no time to grab anything precious, even if I had the meekest of the chance to escape the fire. I grabbed a snap os my parents kept in a heart-shaped frame. I ran back to the same hiding place and shut the door. I wasn't scared till I tried. But now, I was. As the fire grew wilder, I held on to the frame and kept it close to my heart. I closed my eyes.
Epilogue:
A tear drop fell on my cheek. I opened my eyes. I was just in a hospital gown. Panic made the ventilator's beeps a bit louder. It was mom, standing besides, holding my hand. I simply asked mom, "Mumma, why are you crying?"
Older sister is the seeker so I have to hide extra good ‘cos she’s smart and will find me just like that. I got to hide, but where? Behind the garage won’t work ‘cos she’ll find me quick there. The kitchen can be an easy guess. Maybe, the loo? Nope, it stinks like… like, what a loo should stink of! Wait, I know. The door leading under the staircase is perfect. She won’t be able to think to look for me under there.
Damn, it stinks too. Mom was right about the cockroaches in there. Wish I had picked another place to hide. Stinky cockroaches! Too late now. I can hear her seeking everyone out. I’ll just sit here quiet as a mouse.
I could hear her out here. And, I was sure she thought I was in the kitchen. She’d never find me there!
It’d been a while and she hadn’t found me yet. I heard something. All my siblings started looking for me. They’d all been caught, but not me. They’ll never trick me into coming out to catch me. I heard Dad calling out for me. I heard someone going to call Grandpa to help look for me. Poor old man, cannot even walk properly. I had hidden his walking stick. I wasn’t going out to get caught.
I wondered what to do! If I had gone out, I would have been in big trouble. I thought, a lot!
I knew what to do! I designed a plan to tell them I fell asleep while waiting. And now to put on the big act, I shut my eyes. With my eyes shut, I started hearing everyone shouting out for me. Is that Grandpa’s voice, I wondered. He he. For an instance, I felt there is no one smarter and sneakier than me.
I heard mom howling my name out. I said to myself that it was just a game, and they know how to play it better. I didn’t get fooled. I saw Dad ambling towards the direction I was hiding, quickly. I didn’t come out.
I saw a few strangers coming into the play. They pulled my mom and dad away. I laughed, wondering if they added new people to the game. Whew! I pulled it off, I said to myself. Their voices kept falling, and after a point, ZERO. I couldn’t hear anything. Needless to say, I kept quiet about my own voices!
I closed my eyes only to find a deep giggle within myself. So smart, I thought.
It had been more than half an hour. My head told me everything is alright. But, no matter how much I tried to convince myself, I couldn’t listen to it. I opened the door, a crack, and peeked out. For an instance, I thought to myself, the crack is just perfect to peek at the fun.
The house was on fire.
I thought to myself, I wanted to play more football. I wanted to complete my everyday home work so that Ms. Latika Nair, my school teacher, would make me the class monitor. I wanted to do so much.
Taking all that as an inspiration, and working my way through the fire, I took tiny little steps. I ran up the staircase, just to realise that there is no way out for me. I thought of jumping out of the window next to my parents’ bedroom. The showcase, that was lit up immensely, fell in front of me, blocking my route to the window.
I didn't realise how fast it'd happened. I had no time to grab anything precious, even if I had the meekest of the chance to escape the fire. I grabbed a snap os my parents kept in a heart-shaped frame. I ran back to the same hiding place and shut the door. I wasn't scared till I tried. But now, I was. As the fire grew wilder, I held on to the frame and kept it close to my heart. I closed my eyes.
Epilogue:
A tear drop fell on my cheek. I opened my eyes. I was just in a hospital gown. Panic made the ventilator's beeps a bit louder. It was mom, standing besides, holding my hand. I simply asked mom, "Mumma, why are you crying?"
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