'BEEP,BEEP,BEEP'
"Ugh!"
He wakes up, looks at the alarm clock, which shows 6:00 AM APRIL 6th 1993. He stretches himself, yawning and full of drowsiness. He quickly goes to wash himself up. As he comes out of his room, he hears noises of few children making a ruckus.
"Mom, I want new shoes!"
"Mom, I want a new geometry box"
"Mom, I want a new lunch box"
They were his children, precisely his brothers' children. Two beautiful women were making the children get ready for their school, without bothering with their demands. Not that they were heartless, but they truly couldn't afford to spend on these things.
"Okay, okay, stop it now will you. While coming back from work I will get those things for you. Now stop making a ruckus this early in the morning"
'Sigh'
A sigh could be heard from one of his sister-in-law. He then looks left and right, searching for something or someone. He finds an old lady, making an embroidery on a hand kerchief, siting on a wooden chair near the door.
Shaking his head, he walks towards his room to get ready for his work. He dresses himself in a formal attire, neatly combs his hair, wears a pair of socks and walks out. He stares at the old lady, sits besides her where the shoe rack is present.
"Get married, for how many days will you keep looking after your sister-in-laws and their children? Even you have a life!"
Says the old lady, without lifting her face. He stares at her, furrows his brow, replies while showing an action of hitting her.
"Shut up! They are my family, if i don't look after them then who will? Besides, I don't find this burdening at all after all it's my responsibility"
'Sigh'
A sigh escapes from the old lady. She is worried of her youngest grandson. She still remembers, that night, because of a comment from him, her oldest grandson became a drunkard and left her youngest grandson full of guilt. She, before he leaves caresses his head before once again sighing while looking at her deceased husband potrait hung on the wall.
He stands up after tying his shoe lace, walks towards his 135cc motorbike, kick starts it few times to get it started. He leaves his home for work. He maintains a constant and a slow speed so that he could save some money on the fuel. He stops at a bank named 'Miraggio bank', a privately owned large bank, perhaps the country's only privately owned bank.
"Good morning! Rudy"
"Ah! Good morning and don't call me that please! "
He is embarrassed by that name, his real name being 'Rudeus L Thomas'. He walks towards his counter while greeting few of his colleagues. He takes up a tray and walks out of his counter. A man is standing and waiting for him. The man, after seeing him walking out with a tray in his hand, waves at him to call him over. They both go to the safety locker to pick up the cash required for the day.
They enter the cash taken out in a register and walk out of the safety locker with the cash neatly arranged in the tray. He is looking forward for this day as he could get promoted today and improve his family situation. He earns a meager amount of $200 per month, which would increase to $300 after promotion.
He sits at his counter and flips the sign board to 'open' and gets busy with his work. At the lunch break he goes to a restaurant, to help illiterate people who can't fill the bank forms while earning a little from them for the help.
After the break, he enters the bank just to find one of his colleague getting congratulated for being promoted by the bank manager. His hopes get shattered, he clenches his hands few times but ultimately sighs and goes back his counter to resume his work.
After work, he wanders in his motorcycle on the streets, feeling a little depressed while thinking of the situation of his family. His motorcycle making him more depressed as it makes a loud sound giving him a sad background music. Clearly, it is an old Honda CD100, which his father left behind for him. He stops at a cigarette shop to smoke, feeling stressed he quickly finishes 3 cigarette in a row. He feels his throat burning and his fingers shaking a little just before he finishes his last cigarette. He then looks up to the sky and screams at the top of his lungs.
"Life sucks!"
'Ding!'
A bright light accompanied by a loud sound, which makes him a little stunned. He squints his eye, to see properly, but after looking at it properly, he finds the situation a little absurd and unbelievable.