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“Good bye, Macau,” waved Nisha with child-like enthusiasm as the ship pulled away from the jetty. It was a bright sunny morning but with a sharp nip in the air.
Nisha watched the city from the seas. Macau was a small town—not very crowded. Yet there was something so powerful about it. Coming from Hong Kong, her first impression was somewhat disappointing. That this city may have nothing much to offer. In many ways, the city looked very austere. There were hardly any skyscrapers. Then it slowly grew on her.
The mild pink and orange buildings did look like ordinary flats from a distance. Yet they hid the richest of treasures inside their bosoms. So many people were like them—she thought. They would dress simply and would never boast about their wealth, property or other possessions. They would hide their emotions as well. But once she got to know them, she would realise that they too had a treasure buried deep underneath their impassive Macau like demeanour.
Raj was definitely like that. The first time she met him, he came across as a very simple boy, with dreams no different from anybody she had met so far. She was willing to mentor him—just like she was willing to mentor anyone. But when she slowly got to know him, she realised that he had an aura which was mysterious, yet soothing. She felt so safe with him, even when she didn’t know that he had a black belt in Judo and Karate. Those long walks—she had taken with him on the Marine Drive—she wished that they never ended. When she was with him—everything looked so beautiful—as if life was never meant to be sad.
Her mind flashed to all the fabulous things Macau had to offer—a kind smiling goddess, the breath-taking ruins of St. Paul, the ultra-modern piece of art and luxury known as the Venetian, the casinos, the cuisine that you may not find anywhere else in this world, the world class evening shows that she was unfortunately too tired to attend—Macau had something to offer to everyone.
Nisha was a little saddened to leave Macau. Why was that?—she wondered. She realised that she had fallen in love with the city, just like she had once fallen in love with Raj. And if God gave her a second chance, she wouldn’t mind coming back to this fabulous city—just like she would like to be with Raj—for all eternity.
Raj was sitting quietly. Both were enjoying the ship ride and admiring the scenic beauty. The ship honked as it approached the Hong Kong harbour. Nisha woke up from her reverie—startled. Her journey was over. The ship slowed down and then stopped. She saw the crew alighting and tying the ship to the dock. She was about to lift her carryon, absent-mindedly, but Raj stopped her.
“Don’t bother, I’ll take care of that. You don’t strain yourself,” said Raj.
Nisha had forgotten that she suffered from terrible back and shoulder pain. And that the doctor had advised her categorically—not to lift anything heavy—not even a carryon—or especially a carryon. But Raj remembered. And he didn’t want her to get hurt—at any cost.
Both slowly made their way out of the ship. They needed to first go down and then climb up and Raj gave Nisha a helping hand instinctively. She felt bad for him. He was already pushing two carry-ons and now he had to give her some support as well.
When she came out, she had her first proper glance of Hong Kong. Or nearly first. She had only seen its glittering lights from the plane. And afterwards she only remembered sleeping in her hotel room. But my God. If Macau was austere, Hong Kong was lavish. The city was chock full of towering skyscrapers. It looked very prosperous. And perhaps very commercial.
Raj paid for two MTR tickets (MTR is Hong Kong’s metro by the way) and both boarded the MTR to Disney Land. Nisha spotted a vacant seat and quickly grabbed the opportunity. Raj was standing chivalrously guarding their luggage. She noticed that most men were wearing a dark suit and a tie. Women were wearing white blouses, dark skirts or trousers and high heels. She realised that most of the crowd were regular office goers. Some were munching on a sandwich—so typical of a fast paced city life.
It took almost an hour to reach their hotel near Disney Land. Disney Land was one of the main not-to-be-missed highlights of Hong Kong. And Nisha was glad that Raj had booked a hotel near Disney Land so that they could spend most of the time there. The airport was also close, on the same island. Almost next door. So it was a sensible choice.
“I think you should relax and take a nap for a few hours. And then we’ll head straight to Disney Land,” said Raj.
***
Nisha became a child again as she was greeted by—Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Goofy and Pluto—all “friends” from her childhood. She had watched them on television but now was meeting them “personally.” Just in front stood the magnificent castle of Sleeping Beauty. The castle looked huge and very medieval with its natural white and pink colours. The rooftop and the spectacular towers had a dark shade of blue which shimmered in the sunlight.
It was really a fantasy world with a Cantonese twist. All signboards were in English and Chinese. Her eyes suddenly fell on the poster of a 4-D show and she immediately rushed with Raj to that theatre. She was handed a pair of 3-D glasses and she had to wear it over her rimmed glasses. A double pair of glasses! How heavy and frustrating! The lights slowly dimmed and the show began.
The show featured Donald Duck and his adventures, or rather misadventures. Suddenly in a scene corks started flying and it looked like—they were going to hit her. Oops! Nisha almost ducked. Just then she felt a sprinkle of champagne on her face. Raj was in splits, and pointed out those tiny sprinklers fitted to the seats in front that were spraying water once in a while to complete the effect.
Then Donald fell to the ground with a THUMP and her chair ROCKED. Suddenly, out of nowhere, apple pies started flying in front of her eyes. And she could smell them—that freshly baked smell with a hint of cinnamon—YUMMY! Nisha felt like grabbing those pies. The show ended with Donald almost hitting her and landing behind her with his butt stuck in the wall. Wow, what a performance!
Everyone was standing up, clapping and laughing. No doubt they called Disney Land the “Happiest Place on Earth.”
Nisha wasn’t in the mood for spaceship travel rides as the warning signs discouraged visitors with health problems. Instead she opted for “It’s a Small World” ride. She loved the song as it kept playing in the background as her ride moved in slowly.
“It’s a small small small small small small world...”
It felt like all the puppets were dancing with her—the Russians, Hungarians, British, French, Arab, Chinese and Indians. She gently squeezed Raj’s arms—she always did that—whenever she was excited. Or whenever she was nervous.
Nisha freaked out with all kinds of rides. By evening she was so exhausted that her legs hurt. Her shoulder and back ached. She felt weak. The fever was gripping her again. Raj sensed that something was wrong. He touched her forehead with his palm and realised that it was warmer than usual.
“Should we move back to the hotel?” he asked.
“No, I’m fine. I just want to sit down. I have to see the fireworks,” said Nisha.
“You sure,” Raj asked and sat down with Nisha on a bench near the Sleeping Beauty castle. The sun had almost set. Nisha looked at people around her. Nobody appeared sad or grumpy to her. Nobody. Small boys and girls were giggling and squealing. Moms hugged them and kissed them on their foreheads. Dads looked as excited as their kids.
The night was approaching fast. The colours of the castle had started changing. It was no longer the nice white and pink. The base of the castle had become dark blue, the stair towers a light blue, and the entrance had become orangish-yellow, very fire-like. The sky colour too had changed. It was light blue and orange first, then orange and finally black.
Nisha, though exhausted, waited for the fireworks to begin. She leaned her head on Raj’s shoulders and closed her eyes. Suddenly from a corner of her eyes, she noticed some yellow lights emitting from behind the castle. It was accompanied by a whistling sound and an explosion. The yellow lights were followed by pink, blue, and then green sparkles till the whole sky lit up.
Raj saw the reflection of the fireworks in Nisha’s eyes. He was amused at the child-like wonder her eyes reflected. The whistling sounds and the muted explosions were all adding to the charm. The fireworks continued for a few minutes and the sky became black again.
“Oh it’s so beautiful,” said Nisha holding Raj’s hands.
“I’m glad we waited,” said Raj.
Nisha suddenly had a strange sensation—a depressing one. Her demons were visiting her again. They took an ugly shape—that of a monster. She wanted to fight it but was slowly succumbing to it.
“You’re so sssssssssssssssssssselfish, Nisha,” they whispered in her ears. It sounded like the hissing of a snake.
At that moment, Nisha wished that she were dead. Her life was already over. But why was she destroying Raj’s life? That poor guy had a normal healthy life and a successful career ahead of him. Why was she taking that away from him?
She hated herself. Did she really love Raj? Really? If so, why didn’t she stop him when he almost cancelled his three movie deal? Oh no. No. No. No. Shedding a few tears wasn’t enough. If that’s what she thought. She knew how competitive the movie industry was. She knew about Raj’s dream. About his struggles. Then why did she not stop him?
Because she had become so selfish. She was dying pretty soon; so she wanted all the pleasures of life—at Raj’s cost. Did she even care about Raj? What will happen to him after she was gone? Will he have a career? No. He will be mourning as a shattered widower. And nothing else.
She felt immense pain radiating from her shoulders to her back. She was gasping for breath.
“You’re so sssssssssssssssssssselfish, Nisha,” the demon again hissed in her ears.
