Dhanuwa and Thariya returned around 6. By then, the wake was packed with people. Tharinda was a bit more composed now.

"Hey, did you guys see the lady I was talking to?" I asked Thariya.

"No, man, I didn't see who you were talking to. It must have been someone who came to the wake."

"No, man, she said she knew my father. And my mother too. I was wondering how she knew your grandmother."

"Oh, come on, you're talking nonsense. His grandmother just passed away. We're at a funeral. Stop thinking about crazy stuff and let's go get something to eat. I'm hungry," Dhanuwa interrupted.

"Yeah, let's go. I'm hungry too. I haven't eaten properly since morning. Just a sandwich all day," Thariya said, pulling me by the arm towards the food hut. Even as we walked, I kept thinking about that lady.

... ... ... ...

We had planned to stay overnight at the wake, but it was freezing cold. The little kids who were shouting during the day were asleep. It was quiet and peaceful... Oh man, I just wanted to curl up and sleep. The three of us squeezed into a room because it was too cold outside. Luckily, the room had a bed big enough for four.

Thariya's eyes were already closing. He hadn't slept properly since the day before. He must be exhausted. He collapsed on the bed in his clothes and fell asleep instantly. Dhanuwa and I pushed him to the edge of the bed and changed into our pajamas.

.... .... ..... ....

Time: 3:00 AM

There was a strange tremor on the table. From one of the purses on the table, a blue light emanated, and it slowly began to rise as if someone were pulling it up. The black card inside slipped out as the purse fell back onto the table. A blue-gold light swirled around the card like a miniature tornado, as if it were absorbing some kind of energy.

In the blue light, some symbols spontaneously appeared on the card, a few letters followed by a fingerprint. Then, the card, now glowing brightly, fell back onto the table.

..... ... .. .... ... ... ..

Ring ring ring...

The familiar phone ringtone continued incessantly.

I woke up with a start, startled by the phone's noise. It was 8:40. I glanced at the time as the phone rang.

Unknown number calling...

I didn't recognize the number.

"Hello, good morning."

(Good morning, is this Mr. Ayan?) It was a girl's voice. I assumed it was customer service.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

"Yes," I replied.

(Mr. Ayan, I'm calling from Sumedha Health Care Centers & Pharmacy. You emailed us your CV for the trainee request, didn't you? Would you be able to come for an interview tomorrow?)

A job interview so soon! How can I go tomorrow, with this wake? I was planning to stay for two or three days...

"Yes, Miss, I did email. But Miss, I'm a bit far away right now. Would it be possible to reschedule the interview date?"

(Mr. Ayan, since the A/L exams just finished, we've received a lot of CVs from interns. We also have applicants with work experience. The interviewers are from the head office, so it's difficult for me to change a fixed date for you. The most I can do is change the time of your interview.)

She was a really nice girl. Even though I was annoyed, her customer service was excellent. I thought for a moment. Should I go or not? If I go, will I get the job? It's my first interview. If I don't go, will I be blacklisted? What will Thariya think?

"Miss, could I have a little time to decide? I'll call you back."

(No problem, Ayan. Could you let me know your decision within half an hour?)

I asked for some time because I wanted to discuss this dilemma with my two best friends and hopefully find a solution.

"Yes, sure, it won't take me that much time. I'll call you back soon."

..... .. .. .. . ..

"Hey, you lazy bums, wake up! It's past 8:30!"

"What are you shouting about? Look, he's still asleep. He hasn't slept properly since the day before yesterday," Dhanuwa said, but he was really just complaining because I woke him up.

"Okay, okay, I'm awake. Give me five more minutes," Thariya said, his eyes still closed, He was out cold, sleeping like—well, as if our grandmother had passed away—which, technically, she had, but it was his grandmother, not ours. He was just pretending to cry yesterday.

"Hey, wake up! Who messed with my purse? Check if anything is missing from yours." I was furious when I saw my tri-fold purse open and the cards pulled out.

My father had taught me to be organized since I was little. He taught me how to arrange the money in my purse, from the smallest note to the largest. So I knew exactly how much money I had and how much of each denomination.

"Dude, I had a photo of me and my girlfriend in my purse. I wonder if it's gone," Dhanuwa said. I couldn't think of any insults for him. What kind of idiot keeps a photo in his purse when he has a phone? And is that even important now?

"Why the hell do you keep a photo in your purse? Stop whining and see if it's there," Thariya yelled, pulling out his purse.

"Yeah, yeah, it's there... it's there," Dhanuwa said, like a true love-struck fool. "My old phone's display broke, so this photo is the only thing I have left. And it's been about two years old."

"Nothing's missing from mine. Money, cards, everything's there. Just the stuff in the purse was pulled out."

"Nothing seems to be missing from mine either. I don't really remember what I had in there," Thariya said, pulling out years' worth of receipts, bus tickets, phone numbers written for girls, and old bills.

Dhanuwa, the idiot, said, "I don't mind if they took the purse, as long as this is safe."

Dhanuwa then looked at Thariya and said, "Hey, maybe your dead grandma came back last night?"

"Even if my grandma came back, why would she mess with his purse? Are you stupid? It was probably one of the kids who woke up early and came into the room. The door was open, after all."

"Hmm hmm hmm... Let's think so. Nothing's missing anyway, so it doesn't matter now. I need your advice."

.... .... . .. . . . .. . . ....

Thariya and Dhanuwa both told me to go for the interview. Especially Thariya; he told me not to mess up my future because of a funeral.

"The ratings are good," Dhanuwa said. "Since the company has its own private hospital, getting an interview isn't easy. And they train the interns and pay for their courses to become permanent staff."

Thariya even planned how I could get to the main road on his uncle's bike, since Dhanuwa was staying for another day or two.

It's about a four-bus journey from there.

After changing the interview time to 3:00 PM the next day and having something to eat, I came to the road because it would be late when I got home. Since my father said he would come to meet me if it got too late, I got on the bus without any worries.

....... ... ..