A Surreal Tale

I was there. I was there a long time ago. And I was waiting. I didn’t remember what I was waiting for. There was a sense of desperation and a bit of urgency in it but I was patient. I looked around and discovered that I was in a square. The walls of square were painted in colour of barren landscapes devoid of any vegetation and they extended, as if, from inside of me. It was then that I realised I was in a corner. I believe a lot of time had passed since I settled in there. I say this because I could see the cobwebs of time around me.

I could see edges of the square from where I was sitting. All of them were covered in a shade of dark. It seems the only source of illumination in the square was a hole and that served as my window to the outside world, though there is very little that I could see and I must confess my sight is a bit impaired. From this hole I could see the rays of sun entering into this melancholy square and creating wonderful patterns in the air out of mere particles of dust. I found this amusing and wanted to smile but then realised that I should be sad, I didn’t understand why.

I had this sinking feeling that I was unable to comprehend. I was not sure if it was originating in my stomach or in my head. The endless solitude of the square was only aggravating it. Probably I should have gotten up and walked around a little, and found someone to talk, but something told me, it was against my nature. I therefore remained silent and kept on waiting.

Someone walked in. Or did I conjure it? I saw someone walk out of darkness. I could not see the face, it was blurred. However, I established from the smell that it was a girl. She did not notice me at first and kept on circling the square, reciting a poem that I could not hear. I looked intently at her. She seemed lonely but I was not sure. I wanted to draw attention towards myself, but then realised that it has been so long that I have not spoken; I wasn’t confident that I was capable of it anymore.

After a long time she noticed me. I wasn’t aware till that moment how I look. When I witnessed her body twitch on seeing me, I realised that I was ugly.  Somehow she controlled herself. She then sat down very close me and brought her face near to me. I could still not see her face properly but I could make out her lips and her nose. Her smell was now overwhelming. She looked at me with curiosity and I felt like I was under scientific examination. I was confused and did not know what to do. I spit at her. This angered her and she raised her hand. She looked so furious that I thought she would squash me. I was frightened. Then suddenly she lost interest. She again started circling the square but now I realised that she was crying. I wanted to console her but did not know how to. She then sat down at the corner opposite to mine. The darkness slowly consumed her and she disappeared.

It must have been getting dark outside as the light coming through the hole had dimmed. It was then that it entered through that very hole. It flew around looking for someone to tell the tales of the outside world but probably found it very dark in here. It finally landed besides me and I quickly realised what I have been waiting for. I devoured it, my prey - the lovely moth, into pieces and felt the satisfaction that I so desperately needed.

Well, you see, if you hear intently then even someone like me, an eight legged solitary hunter, at corner of your room, has a tale to tell.