Destiny

They were reading the last entry from Anush s diary -
Funny thing this destiny is. Many times we think that we are destined to something but most of the times it turns out that we were destined to think that we were destined to do something, but we actually are destined to do something totally different. Incidents over the last few months have made me feel that I am destined to help others out of grave danger, but now I realize that I was destined for something else.….

They flip the dairy to entry made two months ago –
We were all waiting for Namana. She had been getting ready for the past few hours now. The movie was about to start in few minutes. But as always she took her sweet time getting ready.

“Namana!! Be quick. Are you waiting for some cosmetic which is yet to be delivered to you?” said Sanath.

“Sanath I think it is entirely your fault. You must have told her the movie is tomorrow. She ll definitely be ready for tomorrow s show”

“Shut up Anush. I am almost done.” Came a voice from her behind the closed door of her room. Yup that s me, Anush.

“Namana we are going for a movie, it will be pitch dark inside the theater, and no one will be able to notice how you look. So please don’t waste your time. Make it quick we will be waiting outside. Please do not take another hour to select your shoe for the night.”

“Thanks for being so patient and supportive Abhinav. I will be out soon.” Replied Namana.

At last the wait is over. She came out where we were all waiting and asked “hey guys, how do I look?”

“There s something wrong.” I said

“I knew there was something wrong!! I guess my ear rings are not matching, are they?”

"Dude!!! Did you have to say that??"

“No. not that, there s something wrong here about this place, this time.” I said and I suddenly got hold of her hand and pulled her towards me, she was in my arms. No one knew what was happening, they were all shocked by what I did, but what happened next was something no one had expected. Moments after I pulled her, a huge branch came down and landed at the spot where she previously stood. It looked like someone had aimed it right at her head.

Entry made a month ago –
We were on a trek. It was night and we were camping midway to the peak. The forest guard had asked us not to use our tent. They had a small room here, just 4 walls a window and a door, nothing other than that. They had permitted us to use this room for the night, asked us not to venture out during night, and go out only in group if required. I was tired and fast asleep. Sanath and abhinav were talking. Namana was well inside her sleeping bag, trying to sleep.

We had a small fire in the chimney to keep us warm.

Something made me get up. With my eyes still closed I said “Sanath do not open the door. There are some wild boars outside”

And when I opened my eyes, in the dim light of the supposed to be “camp-fire” I could see Sanath petrified at the door, with one hand on the latch and another on the handle. Namana too was up and staring at me.

“How do you know? You must have had a dream Anush.” Said abhinav. But by their looks I could tell that somewhere deep within them they knew that I must be right.
Right then we heard a “thud”. Nothing was visible from the window. Peeping through the slit in the door sanath said there were 2 wild boars fighting outside, and going by the noise there was a chance of a third one being somewhere close by.

Nothing was said. Everyone looked at me, and stayed where they were without making any noise. I do not think they were able to sleep that night.

Entry 15 days ago-
We were on our way back from the trip. Sanath was driving the car. We were about the pass the deadly yet beautiful pincurves of the western ghats. Music was on. Namana was looking through out trip pictures. Abhinav was almost asleep. I was lost in my own world of thoughts. The most beautiful and deadly part of the ghat was to begin in about a kilometer. We were still on plain straight road. Suddenly I said “stop the car”. I am not sure what made me say this. It was just an impulse.

Sanath immediately applied breaks but the car did not stop as expected. It was not like in the movie where the car’s breaks fail and the car start moving faster and faster. In our case, the car did come to a halt but took lot more time than normally. And when it stopped they were all looking at me. I knew what was going on in their mind. Had this happened on the curves of the ghat we might have ended up in as bodies (if we were lucky, else in pieces) down somewhere in the valley.

“Anush you really scare me now. This is all happening like that movie Final Destination, where initially a bunch of friends are saved because someone has 6th sense and then each of them dies a painful death. I don’t want to end up like that.”

“Oh!! Don’t be ridiculous Namana. I do not have any 6th sense. It is just that at some point of time all my senses become powerful. I am not very much conscious about that. I had read an article about conscious and subconscious minds. It is always our conscious mind that is active. But certain thing are controlled without you knowing about it. for example hypnotism. Subconscious mind can work wonders. And I think I sense these when my subconscious mind is very active. At that time all my senses are at its peak. For example when that branch fell down, probably my subconscious mind heard the sound of the branch cracking down. I can never explain how I did that but I really do not think it was 6th sense. And why don’t you think about it the other way? I was with you guys because you were destined not to meet these accidents. That day when the branch fell, you guys were supposed to meet me at the theater, but I happened to come by your place, because you were not destined to be under that branch. About that trip, I was supposed to be at home but decided to come last moment, may be to alert you about the boars. You guys are destined to live a long life, probably that is the reason why I end up with you guys.”

Back to the last entry again–
To this day I do not know why I sense what might happen. I do not know if I sense them, or if I really see them happen and then prevent them. That day in the car when I told Namana that I do not have 6th sense, I was not confident of what I was telling. Deep within me I always thought that it was 6th sense. But I was never able to decide on it. All those events, I might have sensed them or seen flashes of what could have happened, and then I did something to prevent it from happening each time. For all those times I do not remember seeing any flash. But this one I am very sure. This time I did see flashes of what might happen in sometime, and I think it is going to happen.

Namana would soon get into the river. She is a good swimmer. But swimming in the pools is different than in rivers. Unknown waters are always dangerous. Something happens and she starts to sink.

(Sometime later)
I warned her not to get into the river, but she did not heed to my warnings. There is still some time left, for it to happen. She has not yet started swimming.
Funny thing this destiny is. Many times we think that we are destined to something but most of the times it turns out that we were destined to think that we were destined to do something, but we actually are destined to do something totally different. Incidents over the last few months have made me feel that I am destined to help others out of grave danger, but now I realize that I was destined for something else. But if this is the last thing I am destined to do, then so be it….”

About the flashes, I don’t know why I remember them very well this time. When she sinks and cries for help I dive in. Then she is sitting on a rock, panting. Right now sitting here I know which that rock is. I try to climb it, lose my balance, slip into the water and get carried by the fast current, and then I saw me getting hit to some rocks. And then there is blood all over.

To think of it now, I guess what Namana said makes sense. This is all happening like Final Destination. No one can beat death. The day when the branch fell down, I was standing at that spot moments before namana arrived. Which means that branch was meant to target my head and not her’s. They say that the universe has its own way of course correction. I was destined to meet death that day but I managed an escape. By doing so I dragged my friends in my mess, the boar and car thing. I guess there is no escape. I prevent her from entering the river today, tomorrow something else would turn up. So if this is how I am going to end, so be it. Good bye all….

Shocked to the core they put aside the diary. “He knew all this would happen and yet he dived in?” asked sanatha.

“He knew all this is going to happen and yet he let me get into the river?”

“We have one crazy friend here” said Sanath.

“My leg hurts. What happened? Why am I not able to move it?”

“Dude you better not move it. I think we have a broken leg here.”

“What happened? How did this happen?”

“I got stuck in some water weeds and was sinking low, all of you dived in for me. Before you could reach me I got my legs free and managed to climb the nearby rock. You helped me climb it, then when you tried to come up, you slipped and got carried away by the current, I guess you became unconscious after you smashed yourself to the rock. Luckily your leg got hit first and then, then your body was bruised by the rock, you have cuts all over your body. Abhinav was close by, he got hold of you soon and brought you to the shore. We have given you first aid, tied sticks around your leg, so you wont be able to bend it. We have given you some pain killers, and are on the way to hospital. You will be alright soon.” said Namana.

“Anush, you were right. We are destined to think that we are destined to do something, but our final destiny might be something else.”