Toss of a Coin
It happened one summer night. Ramesh and I were quarrelling at a
petrol pump. We had gone to fill petrol. It was the night we had finished our
exams and we were in a happy mood. We were on Jonathan’s motorcycle and Ramesh
and I were fighting over who would sit in the middle and who would sit at the
back.
We were arguing till Jonathan
said, “come on, let’s solve the problem. Let’s toss a coin.”
“Heads,” I said unhesitatingly.
We watched as the coin spun in the
air and landed on the grease-stained ground. We peered into the shadows and then
Ramesh leapt up and punched the sky with his fist.
“The mark of a champion” he said, and I
didn’t want to argue anymore. Jonathan started the motorcycle and then I got on
and Ramesh sat at the back.
It was twelve-thirty at night and we
were on the outskirts of the city. We were beginning on a long ride on the
highway and felt jittery. Firstly, because Jonathan had no license and
secondly, it was a little frightening to be travelling so far away from home.
We were going very fast and there was a
thrill in it. We gripped the side of the seats as Jonathan went faster and
faster. The roar of the engine filled our ears and we had to narrow our eyes
because the breeze was so strong. We were all tense and excited. Jonathan
increased the speed and we whizzed by. This was dangerous speeding but we
didn’t care. Suddenly a car came from a side street. We had barely time to
notice the headlights before it crashed into us and we were all flung up into
the air.
When I next opened my eyes, I was in a
hospital room and the sunlight was streaming in through the window. I could see
my mother standing beside me, her face full of worry as she held my hand. She
smiled suddenly when she saw that my eyes were open. A doctor was standing
close by.
“How are you feeling?” the doctor asked.
“Stiff,” I replied, “Have I broken
anything?”
“Yes, you have fractured your right leg
and your right hand,” he said and smiled. “But don’t worry, everything will be
all right.”
My head was buzzing and I felt tired.
But I managed to whisper, “How are Jonathan and
Ramesh?”
“They are all recovering”, he said
“Don’t worry.” And gratefully, I drifted off to sleep.
The days passed and I started feeling
better and stronger. It was great to be back home, with my parents, my books,
my table, my chair and my bed.
After returning home my recovery was
very fast. My eyes cleared up. I had a good appetite and my humour and wit came
back. Sometimes I asked about Ramesh and Jonathan and my mother would say,
“They are recovering but they are still in the hospital.”
It was only months later when my
bandages were removed and when I was able to walk properly, that my mother and
father told me the terrible news.
“We pondered over it.” My father said,
“and we decided it was best for you not to be told anything while you were
recovering. But we can’t hide the truth anymore. Ramesh and Jonathan are dead.”
Suddenly my head whirled and I
remembered the toss of a coin. In the background, I could hear my father’s
voice.
“It was sheer bad luck for Ramesh that
he was sitting at the back. The car hit the back of the bike and he was
instantaneously crushed. Both Jonathan and you were flung off the bike.
Jonathan hit a lamp post with great force and suffered severe concussion. He
died in the hospital. You were hurt badly because you fell with great force to
the ground.”
But I couldn’t hear anything anymore.
Again I could the buzzing in my ears and I saw the toss of the coin as it spun
through the night air and landed on the ground and then, Ramesh’s exultant cry
of triumph. I had been saved from death by a whisker….. if Ramesh
had not protested, it would have been me who would have died and not Ramesh.
I was given a fresh lease of life. I was
given the chance to live again and that frightened me. One man’s death was
another man’s salvation.
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