The Haunted House of Rourkela
By Lokanath Mishra
Damodar was transferred to Rourkela and shared a quarter with his senior colleague Rajat. Rajat warned Damodar that the quarter was haunted, telling him that he had seen a woman in a white saree standing behind the mango tree at night. Damodar was skeptical, but that night, he saw a figure standing behind the mango tree. He decided to investigate and went outside with a torch. When he reached the tree, he didn’t find anyone, but the moonlight created a shadow that looked like a person. Damodar felt scared and wondered if it was just his imagination. He didn’t tell anyone, including Rajat, about what he saw.
After a few days, both Rajat and Damodar got drunk and blacked out. They had dinner and went to their respective beds. As Damodar slowly regained consciousness, he felt a strange sensation – another warm arm and hand in bed with him. Panic set in as he tried to piece together the events. Frozen in fear of waking up his supposed bedmate, he lay still, holding onto the mysterious hand.
With growing courage, he rolled over to investigate. In a moment of clumsiness, he did a pushup, flipped off the bed, and landed on the floor with a thud. As he struggled to get up, he realized his arm was numb due to the awkward position. His attempts to stand up led to more chaos, with him kneeling on his numb hand and crashing into the wall.
Finally, he managed to reach the light switch, and the room illuminated, revealing the truth – he was alone. The arm he had been holding onto was just his own, trapped beneath his body. He couldn’t help but laugh at the absurdity of it all, until the feeling started returning to his arm, and the pins and needles became almost unbearable. For 15 minutes, he had been convinced that he had ended up in a compromising situation with a stranger, when in fact, it was just his own arm playing tricks on him.
The darkness of the amavasya night enveloped the quarters, casting an eerie gloom. Damodar’s eyes scanned the surroundings, and suddenly, he saw a woman standing outside the fence, near the left side of the building. The absence of moonlight ruled out the possibility of a shadow playing tricks on him.
Intrigued and a bit apprehensive, Damodar decided to investigate further. He proceeded towards the spot where the woman had been standing, but as he approached, she vanished into the adjacent quarter. Damodar’s curiosity was piqued. Who was this mysterious woman, and what was she doing here? He wondered if he should follow her or go back to his room. The night had just become more interesting, and Damodar felt an inexplicable pull to uncover the truth.
A few days later, Rajat went for a three-month training program. During this period, Archana , the owner of the adjacent house, invited Damodar over for tea. Damodar accepted the invitation and visited her. Archana was a beautiful young woman, and they struck up a conversation over tea. As they talked, they became friends. Damodar started visiting her frequently . Their friendship grew stronger with each visit.
As their relationship deepened, Archana revealed a shocking truth to Damodar. She confessed that she had been in a relationship with Rajat, and at his behest, she would often stand near the Rajat’s quarter, dressed in a white sari, to create the illusion of a ghostly presence. Rajat’s intention was to make people believe that the house was haunted, thereby discouraging others from staying there and allowing him to have the place to himself. Damodar was stunned by this revelation, and their perception of Rajat and Archana’s intentions was forever changed.
Archana’s eyes welled up with tears as she revealed the truth to Damodar. She told him that Rajat had betrayed her, promising to marry her if she left her husband. Believing him, she had been willing to divorce her husband, but Rajat had callously refused to keep his word. The nights she spent standing near Damodar’s quarter, dressed in white, were all a ruse to help Rajat. Damodar’s expression softened with empathy as he listened to Archana’s story. Being a humble and honest man, he promised to be there for her, not in a romantic capacity, but as a friend and a brother figure. He vowed to support her through this difficult time and help her heal from the wounds inflicted by Rajat’s betrayal
When Rajat returned from his training, he was met with Archana’s icy demeanor. She avoided him altogether, her anger and hurt palpable. Rajat, oblivious to the reason behind her behavior, tried to approach her, but she rebuffed him at every turn. Before things could escalate further, Rajat received a transfer order to Bhubaneswar and vacated the house.
Meanwhile, Damodar’s bond with Archana grew stronger, and he treated her like a sister. Her husband, too, developed a liking for Damodar, appreciating his kind and humble nature. The three of them would often spend time together, sharing meals and laughter. Archana found solace in Damodar’s company, and her husband was grateful for the friendship they shared. As Rajat faded into the background, Damodar’s presence brought a sense of stability and comfort to Archana’s life.