A FACE IN THE DARK

Major Sangster (Retd.), a teacher, had been teaching for 20 years at an Anglo-Indian Public School in Shimla, was returning to school late one evening, after a game of billiards are the Shimla club. The Bazaar, with it's cinemas and restaurants, was about two miles from the school. Major Sangster, a bachelor, usually strolled into the town in the evening and used to return after dark. When he return he used to take a short-cut through a pine forest.

Twenty years of living in a boarding-school, and knowing -- without really ever getting to know -- thousands of polite but distant Indian school boys, had made the major rather lonely or despondent.

When there was a strong wind, the pine trees made sad, errie noises that kept most people to the main road. The hill people believe that each tree has its own resident spirit, only waiting to take position of an unwary passer-by. But major sangster was not a nervous or imaginative man; he believed in science and not in science-fiction.

On this particular night he was carrying a torch. It's pale-gleam (the batteries were running down) moved fitfully along the narrow forest path. The flickering light of torch fell on the figure of a boy who was sitting by himself on an outcrop of rock, Major Sangster stopped in some surprise. Boys were not supposed to be out of school after 6 p.m., and it was now almost 11p.m.

"what are you doing here ?" asked the Major coming nearer in order to try and recognise the miscreant....

But even as he approached the boy, the Major could tell that something was wrong. The boy appeared to be crying. He held his head in his hands, and his body shook. But it was a strange soundless weeping which made Major feel distinctly uneasy.

"well--what's wrong?" asked the major, his anger giving way to concern. "what are you crying for ?"

The boy would not answer or look up. His body was still racked with silent sobbing. "Come, tell me the trouble. look up."

The boy took his hands away from his face and looked up at his teacher. The light from the major's torch fell full on the boy's face. He had no eyes, ears, nose or mouth. His face---if you could it that---was a round smooth head, covered by a school cap.

The torch fell down on the ground from Major Sangster's hand. He turned and scrambled down the path running blindly towards school gate. He was still running when he saw a lantern swinging in the middle of the path.

The Major had never before been so pleased to see the night watchman. He stumbled up to the man, gasping for breath and speaking incoherently....

"what is it, sahib?" asked the watchman."Has there been an accident ? why are you running ?"

"I saw something--something horrible---a boy weeping in the forest---and when he looked up at me, he had no face" said Major Sangster

"No face, sahib ?"

"I mean---no eyes, no mouth----nothing.?"

"It is nothing to worry about, sahib," said the watchman pleasantly, and raised the lamp to his own face...

The Watchmen had no eyes, no mouth, no features at all---no, not even and eyebrow..

Major Sangster stood petrified......

and the wind blew the lamp out.....

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Tysm guys for reading till the end.....don't forget to tell me mah mistakes and tell fill the comment section wid suggestions...sorry for mah mistakes as i am a slow learner and learning slowly....

😊😊😊😊...hope u guys enjoyed it.....

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