Spectral Serenade

The Mysterious Voice of the Madrasa

Aamir, a slender young man of about 19-20 years, was pursuing his education at a madrasa located at the foothills of Kohsar. This madrasa was quite far from the city, situated in an almost jungle-like area. Aamir resided in the madrasa's hostel, and his room was on the fourth floor.

Every day, around five in the evening, Aamir would step out of his room onto the balcony, play his harmonium, and hum. He felt a deep connection with nature, which always brought a smile to his face and helped him concentrate well on his studies.

One day, as he was playing the harmonium on the balcony and humming a tune, he suddenly felt as if someone was watching him from behind a wild tree some distance away. He hesitated a little, stopped playing the harmonium, and just stood there humming. But when he looked around the tree again, no one was visible. He convinced himself that it might have been another student, or someone who had wandered there. However, this was unlikely because the tree was quite far, and no student ever went there alone. Anyway, he went back inside and started playing the harmonium again, but his heart wasn't in it; his attention kept drifting back to that tree.

The next day, as he was about to sit down with his harmonium on the balcony, his gaze instinctively went towards that wild tree. Again, he saw no one there. Even while playing the harmonium on the balcony today, his mind started wandering. Just as he tried to compose himself and his eyes, and was about to sing a long note, his attention once again went to that same tree. Yes, now the person was slightly visible from behind the tree. It seemed like they were watching him. Aamir stood up and tried to carefully discern the person hidden behind the tree. Yes, there was truly no one there, and not only that, it was also true that someone had been watching Aamir, but it was still unclear who it was—an outsider, a woman, or just another student from the madrasa.

That night, Aamir couldn't sleep. Lying awake, he kept trying to figure out who was watching him from behind the tree. Was someone watching him with ill intentions? Many unresolved questions now flooded his mind. Anyway, somehow, he managed to get a little sleep in the morning, and around 7 AM, the boy from the room next to his woke him up with a call. He needed something, so Aamir woke up, unlocked his door, and gave the boy what he asked for. Then, yawning, he came out to the balcony.

There were small clumps of bushes and trees, so it wasn't clear who it was. Anyway, Aamir was now fully engrossed in looking at the tree. Gradually, Aamir's focus of mind and physical restlessness began to increase, and now he felt as if a beautiful maiden was standing by that tree, beckoning him with a hand gesture.

Aamir had no idea what was happening. His mind had stopped working; he didn't know what to do. Nothing was in his control now. Suddenly, Aamir realized he could easily jump from here and go to that maiden. He didn't know how his mental state had changed so drastically that he didn't look left or right and suddenly leaped from that fourth-floor balcony. As soon as he jumped, he felt as if the maiden standing by the tree suddenly flew towards him, caught him, and took him to that same tree. It all happened so fast that Aamir couldn't comprehend anything. Upon reaching the tree, Aamir started humming like a long-lost beloved, and she began to sway with a faint smile. Aamir was completely lost; he had no idea who she was or how she had come there.

Anyway, the boy from the adjacent room, who had come out to get a towel for bathing, had seen Aamir jump. He was in a state of unconsciousness because he had seen Aamir going towards that tree after jumping.

The next day, as Aamir was about to sit down with his harmonium on the balcony, his gaze instinctively went towards that wild tree. Again, he saw no one there. Even while playing the harmonium on the balcony today, his mind started wandering. Just as he tried to compose himself and his eyes, and was about to sing a long note, his attention once again went to that same tree. Yes, now the person was slightly visible from behind the tree, perhaps looking at him. Aamir stood up and tried to carefully discern the person hidden behind the tree. Yes, there was truly no one there, and not only that, it was also true that someone had been watching Aamir, but it was still unclear who it was—an outsider, a woman, or just another student from the madrasa.

The boy had seen Aamir jumping and going towards that tree. He couldn't believe his eyes because what he saw was only possible in a dream-like scenario. Anyway, he gathered courage and told this to the students in the nearby rooms, and then these students decided to take a watchman and go to that tree. Upon reaching the tree, the students saw that Aamir was singing with a calm mind, but his demeanor suggested he was singing not alone but with someone else. Aamir was unaffected by the students' presence; he continued singing unaware of them. Finally, the boy from the adjacent room tried to stop him, but Aamir was oblivious to the students' presence. Suddenly, Aamir's singing stopped, and he shouted loudly, "Where did you go? Look! Don't play hide-and-seek, come in front of me!" After that, one or two other students tried to catch and make Aamir sit down, but Aamir kept shouting, "Where did you go?" Suddenly, the watchman broke a couple of leaves from a plant, crushed them, and made Aamir smell them. Aamir felt a strong jolt and began to regain consciousness. He now knew who she was. He was very surprised to find himself there, and then he started asking the students, "When did we come here? I was in my balcony, then how did I get here?" Then he vaguely remembered that he had jumped from the balcony and a maiden had come here, but she hadn't said anything.

Anyway, the students asked him to walk and also said that they just came like that. They had confused him into walking and silenced him by not answering his questions properly. Now both sides (the students and Aamir) were hiding something from each other. All the students sat for hours. The watchman was also sitting in Aamir's room; he wanted to say something but couldn't. Finally, he couldn't hold himself back and told the students who were taking pictures that it was for their well-being to inform their families immediately, because if something bad happened today, her spirit must have come, and he had felt it many times before.