I lost my vision at the age of six in a silly accident. I call it silly because I was hit by a bicycle while crossing the street. The fall damaged my optic nerve. I’ve had Bowey, my service dog, my beloved pupper, since then. Apart from Bowey, I have my father and mother who worked in the airforce. We all lived in the same house but separately. It rarely affected me. Bowey was all I needed.
Oh, and I also have a friend, my neighbour, an old lady whom I call Marlboro due to the strong smell of cigarettes on her whenever she hugged me. She hugs me tight and takes a long sniff off of the top of my head. Marlboro is a widow of an airforce officer who was killed in combat, her son is also a flyer. She stays right above my apartment but I have never been to her place. My mother says she must be lonely and that’s why she must have befriended me. But I know that she loves me like a grandson and thinks I am special.
It was not long after the accident but by then I had come to terms with it. I knew the path from my home to the park, school and shops inside the airforce campus. Marlboro always waited for me on a bench near my home and used to finish the last leg of her walk with me. She felt that I won’t be able to climb the stairs to my apartment alone, even though, I go everywhere alone, except for Bowey.
She fixes me a sandwich whenever I get hungry even without asking. She used to have treats for Bowey as well. But I felt Bowey was not very fond of Marlboro. Whenever she came near me to hold my hand, Bowey would shift to the other side. I assume it’s the strong smell of tobacco. He was a happy and playful boy and who would not leave my side, ever.
When my mother returns from her duty, I tell her all about the adventures of the day and how Marlboro brought my favourite tuna sandwich. Sometimes, it is hard to tell if she is listening at all. But I think I am a great story teller, Bowey and Marlboro agree.
Father mostly joins in for the after work drinks with the other officers and reaches home late. He hugs me tight and kisses me goodnight with his alcohol breathe.
My home is silent most of the time so I have learned to smell my way around. In an airforce campus it is pretty hard to rely on sounds as it is loud all around. I recognise the smell of the corner cafe at the turn from my school, the rose bushes near the turn at the senior officers’ quarters, the fuel smell near the area of the aircraft station, just before turning to our apartment complex and my final stop is the bench where Marlboro waits for me.
One day, Bowey fell ill and he couldn’t accompany me to the school. Mother and father had an argument that morning about dropping me off to school. In the end, Mother dropped me off and asked me to wait at the bench near the corner cafe until she could come to pick me. I asked her to tell Marlboro to not wait up for me today. My mother agreed hurriedly and left.
After school, I waited at the cafe bench for a long time. I could sense the light dimming and the cafe buzzing with the sounds of young officers. I decided to walk back to my home alone, it was my usual path sans Bowey. I passed the rose bushes, fuel smell and I counted my steps to Marlboro’s bench. She was not there today. My mother must have informed her about the change in today’s routine.
I started climbing the steps to my apartment. I had never done this without Bowey or Marlboro. I climbed and climbed and nothing smelled familiar. I was tired by now and as I climbed further, at a point I felt a flat wall in front of me. It was not a wall, it was a door. I pushed it and stepped into the room. It felt open, I could hear the aircraft sounds, louder. I walked forward with no smell to guide me, tears were filling up my eyes by now. Whatever light I could sense dimmed further. I missed Marlboro. I missed Bowey. I bumped into cold steel and fell.
I had a sudden realisation that I was too high up and I could feel my heart-beat in my eyes and I was about to fall and somebody familiar was holding onto my hand, preventing my fall. I smelt Marlboro and was relieved immediately. She pulled me up and hugged me tight. We didn’t talk much while walking back home.
When my mother returned from work I told her what had happened. She was overcome by emotions, hugged me tight and promised me that she would never leave me alone. She wanted to thank Marlboro in person. We went upstairs to find her apartment locked. Upon enquiring with the neighbours, we got to know that an old lady used to live there several years ago. She committed suicide by jumping off of the terrace. The apartment was never allotted again and has been empty since. My mother held me close that night.
For several days my parents took turns to drop me off after school. I was not bothered much by the revelation, I just had one strong feeling, I missed her. One day, when I walked back home, I waited at our usual spot, hoping to see her again. She never came. I got up to leave, but then Bowey shifted to my other side. I smiled. I smelt cigarettes again.