My Mobile Baby…

Yes, I was watching in that lonely street.….the baby is talking on the mobile and jus walking in front of me…
girl/boy..?
I usually take that shortcut for reaching the main road……
I walked a bit faster….so I I could see more clearly, yeah… red top and a blue short trousers ..
In the street light I could see the baby being asked something by two guys standing by side of road on a bike…

Giving a strange pause to the guys she continued her walk…with her mobile chat..
I started increasing my speed to catch up with her..she was walking faster than me….
I stopped near the two guys... “Do you know whose kid is it? Where is she going?”
Both of them stared at me and then…….“No, we don’t know…we were also thinking…..” I didn’t wait to hear from whose mouth the word came out…for I felt angry….. you guys not bothered about a small kid roaming like that?
I ran behind her..could see she was still talking on her mobile..
Just when she made a turn on the bend of the road…I caught her by left hand…
She was really damn cute….with her little earrings…making her more beautiful…

“Where you going?”
No reply…..she was trying to push away the grip I had on her left hand…..
“Where is ur mom?mommy?mother?amma?”(I don’t know what all synonyms came from my mouth… )
Ok, hardly 2 years? English is out of the scene…..
Fine..tamil? Kannada………the next try.
“Elli hogathey? Veedengey…? Maney elli? Amma , mummy, mother…engey….?” I believe I repeated this 5 times so she could catch my tone of voice…
Thank God she replied..
“ Office……… “ Gave me a smile.
Shook off her hand to let her lose…started walking again…
Tata indica – taxi came in on side road… I caught her again to make sure she is safe next to me on the road side…
Shook off her hand to let her lose…started walking again…
To chatter on her mobile, not bothered about anything, not bothered about the tension I had in my eyes….not bothered about the road she heading to.

Some 100 meters, she will be on Maruthi Nagar Main road..where she will be lost in the crowd…..
Oh God …Whose kid is this… what I am to do now… I can’t see anyone….on the road…It’s so dark at 8pm.
Should I take her to nearby shop…on the main road…and explain the situation…
I stood there for 2 seconds with million thoughts, Struck me..I can’t let her go!!!
I sat on my knees on the road…to hold her with both of my hands..
I caught hold of her mobile…hm!!!! Is it a dummy playing calculator or a toy mobile ? Toy calculator? I couldn’t make out….
”elli hoguthey…..hellu…”
Serious reaction looking her mobile in my hands… “Office……”
2 year kid going to office….at 8pm at nite..
This question is not gonna work out…Was I hurting her with my tightly gripped hands on her arm?
I looked around…
There comes a couple….from the nearby gate…they had plans of getting into their car, I stopped them…
“Do you know this baby…seen somewhere in nearby house?”
“No”
“She came from this way…..I was following her all the way till here, she is walking towards main road”

The lady tried to ask her mom’s name…asked to dial number in her toy mobile…..
Yeah…I knew what she would reply…..“Office….” What more can I expect from this IT world in Bangalore..
When I looked back the way I came from…I could see one of the bike guys standing near me…
He asked me “ Got parents” … I told “No”
I told all of them to walk her back the way she came from…
On the way they kept on asking “Maney elli…..Maney thorasu..“
Hm….She would reply only the word she knew.. “Office…. “
I took her hand and started walking all the way back ….she came from.
When I reached the point where I saw her first, I checked nearby houses, if any mother worried or any noise or cries?
No!!!
Only one house had light in the verandah….I waved the 2 girls standing over there to come out….
Situation was taken over by the couple who joined me ; conversation in Kannada…
More people came out from house…They knew the kid……
That’s it…..
I knew my role is done……
When all scenes explained ; I smiled at her……and turned away.

I looked up at the dark sky….headed for getting my dinner parcel….
Can’t explain in words what is it that I felt that moment..:-)
I wanted to know her name….But then I thought for me let she stay as “My Mobile Baby”