Drip.
Drip.

Shush!!!

Drip.
Drip.

Shushhhhh!!! Don't fall. Why do you roll off?

I cup my hands to catch the water dripping from the bamboo leaves. It rolls off as soon at it fills up the little hollow of my palm. I try to catch them but they slip from between my fingers.

Drip.
Drip.

The drops make a steady staccato as they hit the small, muddy puddle, sending up drops jumping back.

I clap my hands in excitement as a bit of it splashes on my face. The rain is coming down harder now, the drop like stinging pins on my face. But I like them. I love the feel of the rushing wind messing up my hair.

My hair!

Where's my hair?

The rats stole it.

Bad rats. They always creep into bed with me and squeak all night.

I don't remember for how long I haven't slept because of those vermin. Ugh!

The rain pelts down harder. The winds roar. The deafening silence which was a prelude to this torrent made it clear that a bad storm is coming.

The thunder cracks, cleaving the sky in two.

The heavens are always angry on me. They send messages to me more often than the voices in my head.

The voices in my head.

"What do they say?" someone had asked me.

"That I should kill Katie," I had whispered.

I don't remember who Katie is anymore. Who cares. I'm alone but I'm free and...

I'm lonely. Lonelier than the sun and the moon. I don't hear any voices except the monsters in my head. So I listen to them only.

I'm wet from the rain.

Mom used to say that I'll catch a cold.

Where is mom?

Mom is gone.

Gone where?

Far. Far. Far.

Mom doesn't love Judy.

I run inside the house.

The clouds grumble again.

But some other sound catches my ear too, like a low rumble. It isn't the winds that speak to me. It feels real.

Boom!
Crack!
Grrrrrr!

Silence...

What is that?

I drag my feet to myself and curl into a ball. Hiding my face in my thighs I stay like that till it is achingly painful.

The steady rain drums on my roof but the monstrous sound is gone.

I get up, padding softly to the verandah. Something is peeking put from behind my house.

Red and white. Metals are sticking out of it at weird angles and it's throwing sparks.

I jump out of my room and approach it very cautiously. It's a plane, a small one seater plane and there is a....

A man! A human.

Is he hurt?

I drag him out and try to listen to his heart. His chest is heaving up and down.

He's heavy but still I drag him into the house.

He's wet.

I start removing his dress. My fingers touch his sculpted abs and a spark runs down my spine. I draw back my hands in fright.

Nothing happens, so I proceed, removing his shirt and his trousers till he's naked.

Gorgeous!
Outstanding!
He's perfect as the most perfect man I've ever seen naked.

Wait! He's the only man I've ever seen naked.

I hide my face in shame.

He stirs and mumbles some gibberish. I feel his hands are death cold. I throw a blanket over him but his teeth are still chattering.

What to do?

I wrap my arms around him and he relaxes. He snuggles even closer as my warmth seeps into him. He sniffs my neck. It tickles. I giggle to myself.

This is fun.
Men are fun!

He's stirring again. I jump back in fright. What if he harms me?

I grab my hockey stick from the stand and pole him with it.

His whole body shakes awake.

"Jeez! Where am I?" a startled gruff voice asks.

"Hi." I wave meekly, afraid that even he'll reject me like everyone does.

"Where am I?"

"My house."

"Who are you?"

"I'm me."

"What's your name?"

"Ju..." I stop midway, trying to rock my brain but the thoughts are all jumbled to make a salad. "I don't remember." I shrug.

"You don't remember your name?" his eyebrows rise like big question marks.

"Who cares? No one needs me." I reply indignantly.

"I need you."

"Really?"

"Or how am I supposed to survive in this wilderness?"

"Like I do. Do you think I am mad to stay here?" I get angry suddenly.

My brain is boiling with a mixed feeling of guilt and rage.

He stared at me for a moment, assessing me from head to toe.

"No. You're not mad." he says finally.

"See Gyppo, he doesn't think I'm mad." I say to the hobgoblin in my room.

"Who's Gyppo?" he looks around confused as if he can't see her.

"She's Gyppo. She my only friend, the hobgoblin." I answer slowly, pointing towards Gyppo.

His eyes widen.

"Okay." he says finally. "Do you have a phone in here?"

"I don't remember the numbers." I say, pointing towards the landline.

"My Aviator crashed in your backyard due to the bad weather. How fortunate of me to have found you! You're a savior."

He presses buttons on the phone.

"Savior? I can't save myself, even. I can't save anyone!" a terrible sadness floods over me, washing me in despair.

"How long have you been here?" he asks.

"Ever since my mom left me."

"Do you know your address?"

"No." tears threaten to spill. "I don't remember."

"I've called someone about the plane crash. They'll be coming soon." he informs, ignoring my pleas.

"I love planes. Did you come down like zoooommmm!" I clap my hands playfully.

"Yes," he smiles. "Do you like planes?"

"He made paper planes for me and we used to fly them together. I still have them..." I drift off.

"Who is he?"

"I don't remember." I cock my head to one side, thinking.

"I'll make paper planes for you. Will you come with me?"

"Yessss!" I scream.

1000 words completed. Written for the contest by Romance and flashfic.

You must be wondering about the bizarre ideas but believe me, a person who's been mentally traumatized and is unstable experiences various hallucinations, delusions and illusions along with amnesia, thought block and regression to a more primitive stage of development. A little bit of love can save them. Isolation wrecks havoc. #mentalhealthawareness