Monster

Leaving behind the hustle and bustle of city life,  I sometime, took refuge at the ghats of Sukreswar temple. I would sit in the steps of the ghat for hours. I loved to sit there with nobody to disturb me. On one such visit last month, I found a familiar face. I saw her once or twice. She was a girl of twelve or thirteen years of age. But I never had conversation with her. She was staring at me from distance. I smiled and signaled her if she wished she could come and join.
She came without any hesitation.
'Hello, I am Biswarupa. But you can call me Rupa,' I introduced myself.
'Hi,' she replied shyly.
'What's your name?' I asked.
'You can call me Tutu,' she copied.
I smiled at her gesture.
'Why do you come here?' she inquired.
'I love to sit at the steps of the ghat and stare at the mighty river. I love being with myself and write the song of my lonely heart... ' I replied sensibly.
'So,  you are a writer... ' she asked-her eyebrows squeezed.
'Well, I aspired to be one...,' I said almost in a laughter.
'You write real or imaginary stories?' she asked curiously.
'A blend of two, real stories with fictional touch...' I replied back.
'Will you write my story?' she asked.
'Do you have a story to tell?' I questioned.
'Yes- the story that haunts me every night,' she answered.
She could not frame her words perfectly. I looked at her. She turned her face away. I shifted towards her. I put my hand over hers.
'Will you write my story?' she asked again.
'Yes,' I assured her.
'One night, I was asleep when a monster woke me up.  I could not figure it out in the dark. I only felt it on my chest which formed circle over my waist. I was afraid,  I could not shout. It went up and down starting from my neck and ending in my thighs. After sometime, I could understand that it had two legs. One went up and the other down. It continued exploring my body. Suddenly, I could hear footsteps nearing my room.  The door opened and the monster disappeared. I felt a familiar touch. It was my mother. And I was so happy that the monster won't come again for it was afraid of my mother. I was right.  It didn't show up that night.  But my happiness did not last long. It came the following night and continued nights after nights. I tried to tell my mother about the monster. But she ignored.  She thought it was my imagination. I was left alone in the hands of that dreadful monster.  One night,  with all my might I tried to face the monster. I waited to see how the monster looked like.  When I felt it over my body,  I slowly removed the blanket from my face and stared at it. My eyes remained wide open. I tried to hold my breathe. My lips dried and my throat struggled for water. The monster looked like my brother in the dark...'
She could not speak more. Tears rolled down her cheeks. I hugged her tightly. She cried in my arms. I had no words to soothe her pain.
'You have to fight the monster. Take your stand. Speak to your parents directly. Don't sleep till your mother comes. Change your room. Stop talking to your brother. Your parents will realise soon,' I said firmly.
She sat there with me in silence. The Sun was about to set. The birds were returning and so was the nature changing around us. Suddenly,  she stood up.
'Thank you, dear writer. It's time for me to leave. I will narrate the next version of my story in our next meeting. Hope to see you here again on the same day in the coming month. Bye,' she said smilingly.
She left me confused. I was unable to understand whether it was real or fiction.
'Did she play with my mind?' I thought.
'Maybe. Or,  may not.'
'A blend of two... ' reasoned my defeated mind.