A handful of ruby-red seeds!

I knew him only for 2 months. We first met in our math tuition class,during my first year of engineering. He was tall, fair and above all very friendly with everybody. It was his native place, while I came from another district and stayed in a hostel which was near our tuition-class. He made our otherwise dull class, lively with jokes and funny answers to my  master's questions. He usually got into his nerves, but we actually enjoyed their encounters. He was in his first yr of mech engg. As I was in different stream, we met only in tuition classes, and that too once in two weeks. We were not close friends , but I enjoyed his company.

 

There were lots of  "manjadi" trees near our tuition class. Once their fruits are dried, they break up and lots of "manjadi" seeds which looked like ruby- stones where all over there. And I was fascinated by these nature's ruby-stones, I used to collect them frantically, after our tuition class. I didn't have much time to collect cos, after tuition class, it was almost dark and we had to run to hostel. Everybody made fun of me for collecting those ruby red seeds, but I continued with my craziness!

 

One Friday, after class, I started my usual hobby of collecting those ruby-seeds. Usually I was alone, but after some time I noticed, my funny friend sitting beside me on road-side and collecting those ruby-red seeds. We didn't

Talk. His friends were calling him to go home and not to sit with that "crazy girl". But after collecting so many "rubies" for me, he gave it to me and asked me to go to hostel, as it was getting very dark. He said that the area was not good, after dark ,and that he had helped me, to get to hostel early. And as my usual collection was doubled due to his help, I was extremely happy. I thanked him and went.

 

I reached home on Saturday and Sunday morning, I woke up with my mom, holding a news paper . She asked "do u know this boy?". And there I saw, my funny friend's stiff body, as being picked up from Kallar waterfall. I cudnt answer her. I looked at the dark, unrecognizable body...no, it wasn't my friend. But the news said "yes". He had told me on Friday , that he was going  for a trip to Kallar, which is a tourist spot. And on Sunday what I see is this.

 

I didn't go to his funeral, while all my other friends went, which was on Monday. I didn't want to erase that pleasant, friendly face, by seeing his dead body. He is still in my memory, as I saw him last time, sitting beside me collecting ruby red seeds.

 

I never collected ruby red seeds again, but I kept it with me till last year, when a small kid begged me, if I could give it to her. I gave that entire box of ruby-red seeds to her and told "Promise me that u will never throw it away!". She promised and was so thrilled to get my entire collection. I didn't tell her who was with me when I last collected them and what happened to him...