He

“I have told you once, twice and thrice that I don’t give any thing to beggars, now go away before I call the guard.” The woman snarled at him before slamming the door on his face.

“I have not nibbled a single thing in last three days.” He sobbed weakly.

He was one of those who are called “idiots” by their unkind fellow human beings and “autistic” by kinder ones. He did not had much coordination between his limbs and brain. He lived as a burden on his widow mother for the first forty five years of his life, then she was libereated from her miseries by death. Till her last day she worked in fields to feed them, if not every day then atleast once in two days.

His neighbours cremated her and then simply forgot him. They closed doors on him, he spent one month banging on those doors, hoping one will open, none did.

He left the village he has known since childhood and started to walk listlessly in the dusty roads. Begging. Sometimes he got alms or food and sometimes pebbles and stones, pelted at him by cruel children while adults looked nonchalantly.

He has reached this small town late last night and fell asleep on the first doorstep. The woman who was talking with him has opened the door to fetch newspaper and bottle of milk. He has asked for something to eat, and her rebuke was the answer he got.

He got up and started to walk, soon he reached another small home. He saw a bottle of milk and newspaper was lying on the doorstep. He did what he has never done, he picked up the bottle and pried it open and started to drink it. The ice cold milk burned its way through his parched stomach. Causing terrible pain at the end.

“Ma, ma look what that man is doing!!!!!” he heard the shrill shout of a child and looked around him, his gaze was met by the stunned gaze of a small child, hardly five or six years old. She was staring at her from the lawn.

“What happened? ….. Who are you?” a female voice asked, the door behind him has opened and a woman was standing there, staring at him.

“What happened?” this time a male voice joined in.

“He drank all the milk!!!” the child has approached him by that time. “don’t you know its stealing to take things without asking?”

“Stop preaching young miss, go inside and bring some toasts.” Her mother smirked.

“Who are you?” the woman asked, this time softly, she has realized his condition after observing him closely.

He did not answered, She did not expected him to answer either. The child has reappeared with some toasts in a plate. The woman handed him over the plate. He attacked them hungrily.

“Now what Mrs. T?” her husband asked with a soft smile.

“Will you send ramukaka, he can clean him up and give him some clean clothes. I will call up Mrs. Dastidar to ask if there is some place for a hapless creature in her home.” She softly laughed.