GUILT

The result of his actions weighed on him like a ton of bricks, while he sat at the edge of the building, watching over the city lights. The horrendous incident kept flashing before his eyes. Tears pooled around the corner of his eyes, reminiscing the doomed night.

His car sped down the road, reeking of alcohol, the rush of adrenaline and thrill of speeding through the cold night air. All of a sudden, he saw him, the man that haunted him every night for the last 2 months, the man whose face was one he dreaded most. He was the man, that innocent man who fell victim to his recklessness.

The headlights of his car flashed onto the man, as if to bring a spotlight onto him. They revealed his terrified face anticipating the crash and pain to come. And with a single crash...two lives shattered at the impact of a careless accident.

There was only one thing he regretted more than the accident itself. The loud sound, the man falling to the ground, all that blood with the man's scream, it scared him. Frantically, he thought what to do.

What if someone came looking for the source of the sound? What if the man's family came? Would he be able to face the family he destroyed? What if the cops found out it was him? What if he faced punishment? And what if his wealth was not enough to make him free? And all these questions lingered in his head. The alcohol coursing through his blood, showed him the worst possible solution. He started the engine and sped off into the darkness. Not once looking back at his mistake, at the man he could have saved. Maybe, just maybe if he would have been sensible enough to climb out and had the courage to own up to his mistakes.

His mother's voice sounded in the background as he remembered her words, "Don't do something you will never be able to undo. In the influence of alcohol, you will make a terrible mistake, one that neither money nor power will be able to correct. Your life will be miserable and you will resent yourself. Stop drinking, stop gambling, stop it all, for if you're unable to stop, I'm afraid it will destroy you."

The words repeatedly sounded in his head, progressively getting louder and chaotic. The scenes not leaving his mind, continuously flashing the misfortunate night. His head spun. That day his whole life changed. His happiness died, his spirit urging to leave his body. The once carefree and joyful party animal was now an empty soul with remorse and pain. His eyes once full of glimmer and light, now seemed hollow as though all the life was sucked out of them. The government couldn't find him, or maybe they could but they didn't bother. He could have been punished by law, but maybe the dead man's life did not matter as much as that of a rich, spoiled teenager's did. But karma has its way of punishing everyone.

Just as the pain got unbearable, the guilt was a burden on his existence, he felt a push. A push from behind him that made him slip off the building wall. He fell off, no effort to save himself, no desire to live any further. And this is how one accident destroyed not one, but two lives.

You know who pushed him? -It was called GUILT.

*This story is to showcase, the increasing road rage in India and the negligence of govt. bodies towards the same. Drive safe.