THAT NIGHT

I was angry. An argument with my friend at a party got out of hand. Things woudn’t have gotten worse if the tone in which it was said would have been taken into account. It is rightly said” To err is human”. Well I don’t put all the blame on her . Truth has its own forms. Infuriated as i was i dashed out of the room, down the stairs, through the hallway and in no time i found myself walking down the road. I felt a gust of cold wind rush through my face, it’s when i realized how cold it was. It was midnight , stars shining with all its blaze and the moon appeared as beautiful and luminous as ever. I saw a number of people sleeping on the streets, people with no shelter ,wrapped up in thin blankets trying to protect themselves from this BITTER cold. Ignoring the world around me, i kept on walking.
“This was the third time this month that we fought, i wasn’t going to take it anymore”. I thought to myself. My mind on war, preoccupied with the events that had followed, i didn’t notice a girl sitting on the footpath .
As soon as i heard a cry i looked around to see, where it was coming from. My eyes met the glaze of the girl who looked at me with frightened eyes, eyes that were sore due to constant weeping, eyes that spoke more than words could. I went up to her. It’s when i realized the dilemma she was in. Her clothes were all torn and shaggy , her hair brittled and dirty. Her little feet were swollen and i could see cuts and bruises on them which she had got walking barefoot. She looked scared and hungry, helpless as I  was I stood there staring at the little girl in utter disbelief.
For a moment neither of us spoke, she because i was a complete stranger to her and i because the sight that i saw left me speechless. After a few minutes of silence , I  gathered the strength to talk to her. At first she didn’t speak, I  could
See the horror in her eyes, my presence was not liked by her. I somehow wanted to help her. A part of me said that I  should go back home ,it was getting late while the other half of me felt a sense of obligation towards her. I closed
My eyes and took a deep breath , i had taken my decision i wasn’t going to leave this poor child alone in this cold. I  gave her a pack of chips i had in my purse.( I wonder how junks come to the rescue even in adverse situations.) However, before i could hand over the packet to her , she snatched it from me. I watched her empty the packet , the way she started licking it. She hadn't  had a meal for days, which was evident. I regretted having eaten the other packet . She looked at me again, but this time her eyes told a different story................