Wednesday | 15 January 2025 | Reg No- 06
বাংলা
   
Wednesday | 15 January 2025 | Epaper

L e o

Published : Saturday, 20 January, 2024 at 12:00 AM  Count : 979
Nazrul Islam
One
In her sleep, Prarthona heard Leos cry. The kitten has had a fever since last night. Well, do cats get a fever, too? Prarthona cannot understand. She decided to ask her science maam this question after the Eid vacation. All the teachers adore her because she is very attentive in class.

Prarthona realised she was dreaming. She tried to go to sleep, but again she heard the sound of crying. What time is it now? What happened on the outside? Maybe she wondered about these questions, as if someone were speaking from the street before their house. Suddenly, her elder sister, Pranty, screams out, "Mom, our Leo is lying dead on the street!"
The next events transpired very quickly. Each member of the Prarthona family is sitting on the street in front of their house. Everyone stares at the dead cat with sly eyes. Only Prarthona is standing on the street, crying. When an eight-year-old child cries over the death of her kitten, the scene is hard to bear!

The incident is terrible. Early in the morning, Leo quietly came out of the room when everyone was asleep. While standing alone on the road, he was crushed to death by a speeding motorcycle. Because he was too small, he could not run away. Blood was pouring out of Leos mouth as he lay on the street. The colour of the blood is bright red!
Prarthonas mother broke the silence by saying, "The cat must be buried."
Prarthona was startled. She wept bitterly!

Two
In the evening, a phone call came from Pratharnas aunty: "I have found another kitten for Prarthona. A cat next to our house had a few kittens. All are dead; only one is alive. Its as big as Leo-maybe four or five months old."

Prarthonas mother said o directly. Pets increase the illusion. They will disappear after a few days, then another cry. But Pranty interrupted. She said, No, they want another kitten. Otherwise, they will not be able to forget Leo. Maybe she could say this out loud because she was in eighth grade.

The next day, a new kitten arrived at their house at noon. What a surprise! The new kitten looks exactly like Leo! A black ribbon is tied around the neck, too!

While cuddling the cat in her arms, Prarthona noticed a cut near his nose. Leo had a cut near his nose, too! She went to the balcony alone with the kitten and called silently, "Leo, oh Leo?" Surprising Prarthona, the kitten looked up and replied, "Meow!"

Instead of being happy, Prarthona began to fear!
In the afternoon, without telling anyone, Prarthona went quietly to where Leo was buried. The place is easy to identify, with new soil. Prarthonas mother covered the grave with polythene, which is also the same as before.

Prarthona is no longer going to the new cat since this evening. From a distance, she noticed that the behaviour of the new cat was precisely like Leos!

At night, when everyone is at the dinner table, Pranty screams, "Mom, look, someone cut the nails of the new kitten!"
Three days before Leo died, Prarthonas mother also cut Leos nails...

Nazrul Islam is a writer and an MPhil researcher (education) at the School of Education of Bangladesh Open University.



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