Buggie

It was a sunset like no other when Buggie flew into our house. The sky was a half-finished painting of a shade of purple-blue decorated with puffs of cotton candy clouds. The moon, in her pearl-white dress, sat upon this dash of colors like a majestic queen. A little piece of her was missing though, like a cookie that someone took a bite out of.

“Mom, look it’s a bunny in the sky” Akash pointed his little fingers at a herd of clouds resembling different animals.

“Ah! I thought it looks like a teddy, dear” I poured him a small cup of cold chocolate milk and tried to get him to sip it, while his eyes were dashing at the sunset. The chirping of sparrows, people chatting in the distance, the smell of soil after a drizzle, and the lemongrass from our garden were bidding the sun a good farewell.

Just then something flew into our house like a buzzing rocket with wings.

“Mom, I just saw a shooting star. It flew into our house” said Akash, who was now sporting a Dali-mustache drawn in chocolate milk.

“oh, dear dear. Let us find the poor thing. He must’ve hurt his back falling from the sky”

Akash trotted past the many potted plants shining with fresh roses and hibiscus flowers looking for his fallen shooting star.

“There goes my shooting star” I smiled.

Akash was crouching down and staring at something for a long time. I was anxious, I didn’t want him to be kissed by a hungry bee.

There was something on the floor next to Akash. And it seemed to be equally curious and staring at him. It was a small bug, soft like silk, beautifully painted in red and black. Was it a red bug with black circles or a black bug with red circles? I don’t quite remember.

What I do remember is Akash mustering his courage and picking up a paper cup to catch his little treasure.

“Mom, It’s a bed bug! It’s so big.”

“Be careful dear. Don’t let it bite you. It’s not a bed bug. It’s a beautiful little red bug. hm… He seems to be quiet”

Akash placed the coffee cup in front of the bug and tried to push him in. But the good bug walked into the coffee cup on his own.

“Does he have superpowers, mommy? Will I become a bug man if he bites me?”

“You’ll be itching all over if it bit you. You’ll be an itch man instead if that’s what you want, Akash”

“I’m going to call him Buggie,” said Akash with a wide grin. I could see the two missing teeth inside his mouth. 

“Buggie is a great name. Maybe if you take good care of him, he’ll grant you a wish and you can wish for anything.” 

“Anything, mom? Anything? Even an electric bike?”

“Yes, why not. It could be an enchanted bug, my dear. Keep him safe and feed him well; You’ll soon get your wish”

“Yay. A cricket bat?”

“A whole cricket set for Akash” I squeezed his pinkish cheek and walked him inside the house. He didn’t realize that I secretly got him to drink the cup of chocolate milk.

Akash placed Buggie on the table next to his bed and took good care of him. Buggie munched on little bits of green leaves and grew fat each day in his little coffee cup. We live in an apartment complex which has 35 other houses and there were children in most houses. Akash was loved by his friends and always had a band of kids around him wherever he went. Now, he had something special to show his friends. He invited many of his friends and classmates to our house each day so they could say hello to Buggie.

It all seemed to go well until one day when Akash asked something unexpected.

“Mom, wouldn’t Buggie miss his friends?”

“That’s very thoughtful of you, Akash. Maybe he will.”

“Should we let him free?”

“Yes, maybe it’s time for your wish. Think of something in your mind and let him free. Next to our garden is a large neem tree he’ll love being in.”

And off we went jumping to our garden with the paper cup in Akash’s hands and Buggie inside it.

And that was how Akash wished for something and threw the bug outside. He thought that Buggie would fly. It was a bug after all.

But Buggie landed somewhere next to the neem tree, on the ground. We were perplexed but excited.

“Yay!” we screamed as if to encourage Buggie in his new adventure.

But something else happened that day.

A big lizard hiding next to the tree came sprinting and stuck its pink tongue at Buggie.

“oh no!” Screamed Akash.

And thus vanished Buggie, the enchanted bug.

“Must be an enchanted Lizard” I tried to console him.