The 50 mosquitoes
Long gone are the days when kids got out and embraced the sun for some real ground action.Like I used to do.Staying within walls isn't the same;more because it fails to create impactful memories.Among the many that I created during my hopscotch days one such is about "The 50 mosquitoes".
We sat on our chairs-I,Rutaba,in my vividly colorful frock with puffed shoulders and matching shoes along it and my brother, Al, on the side chair in a red jersey numbered 50 along with a pair of khaki shorts and properly laced shoes sat gazing upon the table unemployed making imaginary shapes on the table.The properly attired us was all credit to our mother.That time around T.V wasn't our best-friend and computers were an alienated term.At the maximum we used to spend an hour or so watching cartoons but most of the time we preferred doing ground breaking,object trashing and stuff that made our mother "suggest" out door was best suited for us.It was a weekday around noon and with the sun being at it's peek outside wasn't a good option and inside was killing us ........well...inside.
"I am bored" my world-weary brother proclaimed.As if I could not have been more with him on this.
"So Am I,wanna play?"with a voice with no substance to it I asked.
"Sure,but what?"
"I don't kno-oo " tuning my "oo's" in the last.
"Then think! think!" It looked as if the heat was getting to his head.
"Wanna chocolate?"I asked
"Fineeeeshed"He tried to imitate my tuning and looked rather frustrated while.
"How about dollies!? We could play with them"
"Dollies are for babies and especially girls and i am NOT.A.GIRL."He was like any boy of his age trying to settle in every other persons mind that he is a grown "man".
After a few minutes and many bizarre sighs we were still hopeless and still sitting on our chairs.Every thing tended to have slowed down;the fan;the clock on the wall,the sound the fridge was making like a pigeon dying and we ourselves seemed to have slowed down.
Yawning with my mouth wide open I heard a little buzz near my ear,so annoying was it that I had to shut instantaneously my as bored as me yawn and waved my hand by my ear while tilting my head making sure I had done a good job of getting rid of it.Definitely it had to be a mosquito.They have distinctive irritating ability anyone who has had experience with them would know.It went away for a while but then the sound came back.I again repeated my gesture and peace it was for a few more seconds.Third time around I wasn't that patient.Shook my head crazy,flapping my hands in air and kicking the table with both my feet i screamed
"Get offffff meeeee".
Off it flew for then.Al who was already noticing my crazy mosquito dance by then raised his eye brow just to ask me"What's bothering?A little insect?" looking to me as if i was a child whining about a petty thing.To only think i was actually.
"Yes!"with a scrunched nose "and its very annoying" I folded arms.He sighed again and nodded and looked down at his shirt.He kept looking his lost look started to gain a meaning.He pouted and blinked his eyes as if he was planning something and in the middle he got disturbed when the mosquito had returned to seek revenge on me for my terrible attitude towards it.I closed both my ears with my hand to avoid that annoying buzz.Fun fact?What's worse then a mosquito's bite?ITS BUZZING RIGHT AROUND YOUR EAR.Al looked up"I got it!"
I wasn't paying attention to him but he took one hand off my ear and it appeared as if due to my brothers movement the mosquito had surrendered for the time being.
"Phew"A relief for me it was.
"You know about the..the...that..thing?That green thingy that aunt got form the shop to kill mosquitoes?"My un-assured brother said.
"What? that spatula thing? That you whissh wooshh to splat them and bing baaam kill em?"I replied with unnecessary sound effects.
"YES!Let's get it."raising both his eyebrows assuring the indication of "upto no good"
He ran downstairs to our aunt's floor.We were a joint family then and accessing the weapon wasn't a problem.
With age comes experience and that was quite right when my brother could hop his way down the stairs yet I had to be careful stopping at each step making sure my lack of "stairs-updown" caused me any unwanted and painful experience.And so I was at that time always two steps behind my brother.
"What are you going to do with it?..Kill mosquitoes?"I asked not laughing for I knew he was capable of unthinkable.
"No captain planet I am going to trash that think so that the entire mosquito creation can serve me for a life time"Trying to be smart he remarked.
"Seriously,what and where would you fine them and just why would you do that?"I inquired roughly.
"Got a better idea?"He was quick in questioning.
'No"
We soon got our hands on to our weapon of mass mosquito destruction.
"I guess killing a few would do"I jerked my shoulders
Smiling my brother pointed out on his shirt"Not a few....but a good 50 my dear sister...an half century as they say in cricket "
Couldn't have ever thought that a numbered shirt could make him lead to this satanic for the mosquitoes plan.We ran to get out of our aunts floor to search for some of the blood suckers in the backyard.Brother always knew his character and had the sense of blending in with it.That day he was a killer,a secret mosquito serial killer.If one can imagine Pink Panther on hunt for murderer suspects I would advice them to think the actions of my brother were no different at that point.
He bended his back,
Squinted his eyes to look left and right,
He watched his step as if they could hear his breathe,
He smiled wickedly and held onto the weapon as a dear dear friend.
Oh boy,were the mosquitoes in trouble,
For my brother I saw turned into a vicious killer,
(Vicious killer abstracted by the original "The 50 mosquitoes" written by amateur mosquito sympathizer Rutaba)
I tried to cope up with him thinking he would give up eventually"Well ..uhmm..."
"Shhhsss"He said
I stood still.
"I got ....SPLASH.....one!"exclaimed he in utter delight.
"Where ..where..oh..where?"I walked towards him to see.
"Look there.....can you see it?"
"Yeah i can"making faces"It doesn't look good and it's yukhy..."
"Look there another flying..let it settle."
"okay"Hoping he would sooner or later get bored.
But the killings weren't stopping,He would run up and down the stairs,on the terrace,even to our bathrooms to hunt them down and I would back him up but at times two steps back due to all the up and down.
"AND THAT IS MY 32ND!"with joy in his tone.
"Alright now we are done...can you just leave it......"I said for something within me didn't feel right.
"Why?"asked my brother
"cause you have killed so many ...i think its enough...i don't think its right..what if someone finds out?"I spoke like the scared second party that was aiding the murderer.
"They'd probably thank us..do you know they can cause us malalia and fever and bite us everynight in our sleep...we should get honored for this ..plus I am only stopping if I hit 50"
I sighed.
He continued"Do you think...well I think this could be a world record!...imagine...50 mosquitoes killed by Al...I'd be in books remembered..If only i can find my 33rd and get on with it.."
"I assure you ..I think you have killed every mosquito in this home's perimeter...the others would have scared off..."inhaling some oxygen I paused "You should stop...they are all finished...you won't get to 50"
He was least interested in me demotivating his way out of it.
"I bet there are few near the trash can"He smirked.
"Eww..." I was a girl not a boy and dirty places and junk were not my favorite.
He ran and I ran after him like his assistant.What was unusual,now that I think is the way I wouldn't leave him alone even with all the disagreement.I hopped with him,didn't rather celebrate along but stood there.
"That's 40 baby sister!"excitement could be felt by his voice.
"Ok stop ..stop killing these poor things..what have they done to you"I spoke on behalf of the dead mosquito.I felt different for them.
"Why getting emotional?...and i wont stop "
"Just give me that thing" i said while trying to snatch it from him.But he was too busy noticing his 41st target.
"We have ourself a target!"He snatched away which was easy done and walked towards slowly.
"SHOOO RUN AWAY ..SAVE YOUR LIFE!"
That was my attempt to save a life.I succeeded but this did not made my brother happy.
"What ever you do..i am not stopping"
Usually I would expect a run for my life after interfering into his work but there is something about boys nature that when they get into action..they just love it too much to bother about tacky things.It's in them.
That day what we achieved isn't clear to me.But what I did learn was that companionship is cherish-able.I learned how my brother and I were bonded.So close that even with completely different opinions and heads we stuck together.Siblings as we are,we are crazy.It wasn't like I stopped taking to him but I got more the reason TO talk to him.I mocked him and he stayed ubber cool with his annoying statements smacking right at me.I realize now that time spent together was equal to memories gained and lessons leart.With every disagreement also there is bonding and togetherness,a commonality.
"And that's my 50!...we should make a dead mosquito cemetery"He tried to be funny.
I sat on the stairs with hand on my chin disappointed that I wasn't able to stop him "I can't see any mosquito around anymore...you did quite the job" I stood up walking up to our house.
"Well yeah..I am that good "said my ingenious brother.
No matter how small the subject to our memories.We create them and learn from them.Those dead 50 mosquitoes mean nothing and there being dead may not have impacted the rate of malaria or fever that humans suffer from but those 50 mosquito gained me an opportunity to spend time with someone I still to date look upto and as I rewind time these baseless from the outside but weird and deep memories are what makes me hopeful.And make me think how time if spend,even uselessly spend with someone,someone with meaning to you;You can create a meaningful story out of it.Just one more story our the many that make your life.
After the entire massacre ended my brother ran upto me as I was walking up home and grabbed my hand to help me pick up to his pace.."So you think....I can score a century?A 100?What say A 100 mosquitoes!!!"
We sat on our chairs-I,Rutaba,in my vividly colorful frock with puffed shoulders and matching shoes along it and my brother, Al, on the side chair in a red jersey numbered 50 along with a pair of khaki shorts and properly laced shoes sat gazing upon the table unemployed making imaginary shapes on the table.The properly attired us was all credit to our mother.That time around T.V wasn't our best-friend and computers were an alienated term.At the maximum we used to spend an hour or so watching cartoons but most of the time we preferred doing ground breaking,object trashing and stuff that made our mother "suggest" out door was best suited for us.It was a weekday around noon and with the sun being at it's peek outside wasn't a good option and inside was killing us ........well...inside.
"I am bored" my world-weary brother proclaimed.As if I could not have been more with him on this.
"So Am I,wanna play?"with a voice with no substance to it I asked.
"Sure,but what?"
"I don't kno-oo " tuning my "oo's" in the last.
"Then think! think!" It looked as if the heat was getting to his head.
"Wanna chocolate?"I asked
"Fineeeeshed"He tried to imitate my tuning and looked rather frustrated while.
"How about dollies!? We could play with them"
"Dollies are for babies and especially girls and i am NOT.A.GIRL."He was like any boy of his age trying to settle in every other persons mind that he is a grown "man".
After a few minutes and many bizarre sighs we were still hopeless and still sitting on our chairs.Every thing tended to have slowed down;the fan;the clock on the wall,the sound the fridge was making like a pigeon dying and we ourselves seemed to have slowed down.
Yawning with my mouth wide open I heard a little buzz near my ear,so annoying was it that I had to shut instantaneously my as bored as me yawn and waved my hand by my ear while tilting my head making sure I had done a good job of getting rid of it.Definitely it had to be a mosquito.They have distinctive irritating ability anyone who has had experience with them would know.It went away for a while but then the sound came back.I again repeated my gesture and peace it was for a few more seconds.Third time around I wasn't that patient.Shook my head crazy,flapping my hands in air and kicking the table with both my feet i screamed
"Get offffff meeeee".
Off it flew for then.Al who was already noticing my crazy mosquito dance by then raised his eye brow just to ask me"What's bothering?A little insect?" looking to me as if i was a child whining about a petty thing.To only think i was actually.
"Yes!"with a scrunched nose "and its very annoying" I folded arms.He sighed again and nodded and looked down at his shirt.He kept looking his lost look started to gain a meaning.He pouted and blinked his eyes as if he was planning something and in the middle he got disturbed when the mosquito had returned to seek revenge on me for my terrible attitude towards it.I closed both my ears with my hand to avoid that annoying buzz.Fun fact?What's worse then a mosquito's bite?ITS BUZZING RIGHT AROUND YOUR EAR.Al looked up"I got it!"
I wasn't paying attention to him but he took one hand off my ear and it appeared as if due to my brothers movement the mosquito had surrendered for the time being.
"Phew"A relief for me it was.
"You know about the..the...that..thing?That green thingy that aunt got form the shop to kill mosquitoes?"My un-assured brother said.
"What? that spatula thing? That you whissh wooshh to splat them and bing baaam kill em?"I replied with unnecessary sound effects.
"YES!Let's get it."raising both his eyebrows assuring the indication of "upto no good"
He ran downstairs to our aunt's floor.We were a joint family then and accessing the weapon wasn't a problem.
With age comes experience and that was quite right when my brother could hop his way down the stairs yet I had to be careful stopping at each step making sure my lack of "stairs-updown" caused me any unwanted and painful experience.And so I was at that time always two steps behind my brother.
"What are you going to do with it?..Kill mosquitoes?"I asked not laughing for I knew he was capable of unthinkable.
"No captain planet I am going to trash that think so that the entire mosquito creation can serve me for a life time"Trying to be smart he remarked.
"Seriously,what and where would you fine them and just why would you do that?"I inquired roughly.
"Got a better idea?"He was quick in questioning.
'No"
We soon got our hands on to our weapon of mass mosquito destruction.
"I guess killing a few would do"I jerked my shoulders
Smiling my brother pointed out on his shirt"Not a few....but a good 50 my dear sister...an half century as they say in cricket "
He bended his back,
Squinted his eyes to look left and right,
He watched his step as if they could hear his breathe,
He smiled wickedly and held onto the weapon as a dear dear friend.
Oh boy,were the mosquitoes in trouble,
For my brother I saw turned into a vicious killer,
(Vicious killer abstracted by the original "The 50 mosquitoes" written by amateur mosquito sympathizer Rutaba)
I tried to cope up with him thinking he would give up eventually"Well ..uhmm..."
"Shhhsss"He said
I stood still.
"I got ....SPLASH.....one!"exclaimed he in utter delight.
"Where ..where..oh..where?"I walked towards him to see.
"Look there.....can you see it?"
"Yeah i can"making faces"It doesn't look good and it's yukhy..."
"Look there another flying..let it settle."
"okay"Hoping he would sooner or later get bored.
But the killings weren't stopping,He would run up and down the stairs,on the terrace,even to our bathrooms to hunt them down and I would back him up but at times two steps back due to all the up and down.
"AND THAT IS MY 32ND!"with joy in his tone.
"Alright now we are done...can you just leave it......"I said for something within me didn't feel right.
"Why?"asked my brother
"cause you have killed so many ...i think its enough...i don't think its right..what if someone finds out?"I spoke like the scared second party that was aiding the murderer.
"They'd probably thank us..do you know they can cause us malalia and fever and bite us everynight in our sleep...we should get honored for this ..plus I am only stopping if I hit 50"
I sighed.
He continued"Do you think...well I think this could be a world record!...imagine...50 mosquitoes killed by Al...I'd be in books remembered..If only i can find my 33rd and get on with it.."
"I assure you ..I think you have killed every mosquito in this home's perimeter...the others would have scared off..."inhaling some oxygen I paused "You should stop...they are all finished...you won't get to 50"
He was least interested in me demotivating his way out of it.
"I bet there are few near the trash can"He smirked.
"Eww..." I was a girl not a boy and dirty places and junk were not my favorite.
He ran and I ran after him like his assistant.What was unusual,now that I think is the way I wouldn't leave him alone even with all the disagreement.I hopped with him,didn't rather celebrate along but stood there.
"That's 40 baby sister!"excitement could be felt by his voice.
"Ok stop ..stop killing these poor things..what have they done to you"I spoke on behalf of the dead mosquito.I felt different for them.
"Why getting emotional?...and i wont stop "
"Just give me that thing" i said while trying to snatch it from him.But he was too busy noticing his 41st target.
"We have ourself a target!"He snatched away which was easy done and walked towards slowly.
"SHOOO RUN AWAY ..SAVE YOUR LIFE!"
That was my attempt to save a life.I succeeded but this did not made my brother happy.
"What ever you do..i am not stopping"
Usually I would expect a run for my life after interfering into his work but there is something about boys nature that when they get into action..they just love it too much to bother about tacky things.It's in them.
That day what we achieved isn't clear to me.But what I did learn was that companionship is cherish-able.I learned how my brother and I were bonded.So close that even with completely different opinions and heads we stuck together.Siblings as we are,we are crazy.It wasn't like I stopped taking to him but I got more the reason TO talk to him.I mocked him and he stayed ubber cool with his annoying statements smacking right at me.I realize now that time spent together was equal to memories gained and lessons leart.With every disagreement also there is bonding and togetherness,a commonality.
"And that's my 50!...we should make a dead mosquito cemetery"He tried to be funny.
I sat on the stairs with hand on my chin disappointed that I wasn't able to stop him "I can't see any mosquito around anymore...you did quite the job" I stood up walking up to our house.
"Well yeah..I am that good "said my ingenious brother.
No matter how small the subject to our memories.We create them and learn from them.Those dead 50 mosquitoes mean nothing and there being dead may not have impacted the rate of malaria or fever that humans suffer from but those 50 mosquito gained me an opportunity to spend time with someone I still to date look upto and as I rewind time these baseless from the outside but weird and deep memories are what makes me hopeful.And make me think how time if spend,even uselessly spend with someone,someone with meaning to you;You can create a meaningful story out of it.Just one more story our the many that make your life.
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