By Priyanshu Misra
The scared, knackered face of Riley was enough to say that something was eating him away from the inside. Usually an upbeat and jolly sort of chap, this morning though, he sat in a twisted fashion inside Stuart's apartment, his only trusted friend, with a glass of brandy that Stuart had offered him seeing his condition. He took some heavy gulps of the liquid but still didn't find the will to open his mouth to utter a few words.
“ Riley, I am asking you for the millionth time again. What the hell happened to you? Look, if you don't speak then I can't help you in any way, ” Stuart said with some frustration as his earlier efforts to make his friend talk had utterly fallen flat.
Riley laughed a hollow, maniacal laughter on hearing his friend's statement.
“ Help me? Oh, my dear Stuart. Whatever ails me can't be mended by you, or for that matter, by any mortal man, ” Riley said.
Hearing his friend's strange statement made Stuart's ears prick up like a bloodhound and an air of curiosity gripped his very being.
“ By putting it like that, you have just aroused my interest, mate. Please, tell me exactly what happened to you? Even if I can't offer any help as you say, at least talking about it will provide a relief for you from your distress, ” Stuart suggested in a sympathetic tone.
Riley adjusted in his seat, took another sip of the brandy and began narrating about the thing that was troubling him.
“ Now, I know that you are not a religious man and silly superstitions are not something you entertain yet this narrative of mine is right up that alley. So, are you willing to hear it? ” Riley asked with caution.
“ Oh, spare me with this stupid suspense, Riley. Come on man, get on with your tale, ” Stuart commanded, his voice sounding a little exasperated.
“ No, first you will have to promise me that there will be no laughter from your side no matter how silly my story sounds, ” Riley demanded with unflinching authority.
“ Yeah, yeah…fine. I swear on my life that I will not even snigger, let alone laugh at your narrative. Alright? You happy now? ” Stuart said with impatience.
“ Alright, then. I believe now we are good to go, ” Riley said while clearing his throat. “ Anyways, here's what happened to me, ”.
“ It was two nights ago when this particular incident took place. I had gone on a little business trip and had checked in the Hotel Tulip Grand for the night. It's a nice hotel and looked to be equipped with every facility that could count for a good night’s rest. Alas! How wrong I was, ” Riley said in a defeated tone.
“ What was the issue? They didn't provide you with nice meals to eat or nice quilts to stay warm and comfortable? ” Stuart remarked with a roguish grin.
“ See, that's what I was referring to? You and your snarky remarks, ” Riley said in irritation.
“ There's nothing snarky in what I said. I mean, you are making the act of checking into a hotel sound a herculean task, ” Stuart said while shaking his head in disbelief, the corners of his mouth curved into a silly grin.
“ Do you want me to continue or do you want me to stop and get out of here. You know what? It seems like I am just wasting my time. So, I will just see myself out, ” Riley said while getting up hastily from his seat, his voice livid.
“ Hey, wait a minute. I am sorry. I promise not a single wisecrack will emit out of my throat, alright? Please, sit down, ” Stuart apologetically said and tried to calm his friend down.
“ Okay, but not a single word or I will be out, ” Riley warningly uttered while once again getting himself seated.
“ A promise is a promise, mate. Please, continue, ” Stuart amicably replied.
Clearing his throat for the second time, Riley again continued with his tale.
“ So, I checked in and was given a room on the thirteenth floor. To be precise, my room number was exactly 1300 and as I am a religious person, I was a little uneasy with the room alloted to me. Still, not to look like a whining dick, I took the key and made my way towards my room, ”.
“ The most odd thing that struck me immediately is the absence of any sound when I walked through the hallway that lead to my room. There was an eerie, pin drop silence prevailing all around me and that made me feel more unnerved than before. In fact, I felt so daunted that my hands started shaking while I inserted the key into the keyhole, ”. Riley suddenly stopped, his face developing a pallor as his mind recounted that night.
A deep breath followed before he again regained his composure and resumed the story.
“ Anyways, once I was inside the room, my fears quickly fizzled out. The room was a comfy looking one and after walking around it, I felt a little silly to even have been alarmed in the first place. I had checked into the hotel really late and as I had already dined before, I decided to retire for the night. So, with that in mind, I quickly changed into my night clothes and went to sleep.
By Priyanshu Misra
Reminds me of those stories we used to have in our English textbooks in school