Chocolatier Goes Missing
It was a lovely silent afternoon in Kalakh. Rustic cabins dotted the grassy hills as trees stood up like spikes, zigzagging the border of brick roads and unpolished homes. Birds flew in the deep blue, cloud infested countryside sky.
Ramu was a ten-year-old boy who lived in Kalakh. He had mischief in his eyes and a heart of gold. His skin was tanned, and he had curly black hair. He loved cracking mysteries. It was his birthday today and his mom had allowed him to buy loads of chocolates from choco uncle. Everyone in the city called the local chocolatier, Choco uncle. He was a great friend, and his companionship endeared him to the children.
At 8 in the morning, when Ramu reached, he was bewildered to see Choco uncle’s house in shambles. All the books were fallen, the curtains were in tatters, and all his prized chocolates were squelched on the floor. Ramu almost got lacerated by the broken glass window. Fluffy, choco uncle’s dog, was holding a piece of red cloth that Ramu assumed was from the curtain. Ramu scrutinized the floor and noticed faint, chocolaty footprints leading to the back door.
The New Friend
The footprints ended next to the door. Ramu trudged forward on the lookout for any traps. There were fresh tyre prints right before him. They led to an uninhabited house. The house was draped in dust, and it reeked of the worst odor Ramu had ever smelt. It was musty, dry, and moist. Ramu could see a seepage in the roof. He glanced at his watch; it was already 9:45! He made a mental note to look around the place after lunch and rushed towards school.
It looked like it was quite an eventful day. There was a new joinee, Rahul, who had joined his class in the middle of the year, which was quite unusual. He sat next to Ramu and within a few minutes they were chatting as if they had known each other for years. Ramu’s eyes went on his clothing, and he noticed that one of his sleeves was ripped off. Rahul hesitated and then told that he had a dog who had torn it.
During the lunch break, they could go outside school. So, Ramu thought of going to Rahul’s house and later sneaking back to the abandoned house. Rahul’s house was marvelous. Inside, there was a fireplace, a dining room, and a shelf filled with antiques. An odd-looking camera caught Ramu’s eye - Choco uncle had the same one. When Ramu mentioned that, Rahul started feeling queasy. Ramu couldn’t understand Rahul’s reaction, but he chose to ignore it.
The Escapade
Rahul told Ramu that he wasn’t feeling well and needed to rest. Ramu felt bad for the boy, so he stayed for ten more minutes. During that time, he made some soup for Rahul. He then remembered that he had to look around the suspicious house, and he had only 15 mins left. He waved goodbye in a hurry and dashed to the house with the intention of getting to the bottom of this.
The house was filthy. Someone had been here and left a mess. There was chocolate syrup everywhere, the carpet was filled with all kinds of disgusting food, and everything was on the floor. It was like a mission for Ramu to get out of that house safely without having stains on his clothes. Ramu was famished. He hadn’t eaten anything since the morning. He went to the kitchen hoping to fix himself some food. The kitchen was even worse. There were breadcrumbs on the kitchen table and juice spilled in the fridge. He lost his appetite instantly. His eyes went on a calendar on which it was written and circled - ‘Ransam for keednaping that choclater, on majic hil at 4 o cloc’. These kidnappers clearly didn’t know English, but Ramu didn’t have time for guffawing at their stupidity. His friend had been kidnapped!
The Surprise
He went to school with his shoulders drooped. He was down in the dumps the whole next period, thinking of what to do next. When Rahul tried to talk to him, he shut him off one way or another. He, who was the first one to answer in the class, didn’t answer any of the questions. After some hard thinking, he decided to go to Magic hill and hide to see what happens.
No sooner did the bell ring than Ramu sprinted to Magic hill. He reached there at exactly 4 o’clock. Ramu was awe-struck by what he saw. All his friends were there, with a birthday cake and banner, candles, balloons and in the middle of all this, was standing their beloved Choco uncle. Ramu stepped out of the bush, and everyone shouted, “HAPPY BIRTHDAY RAMU!”.
He couldn’t believe his eyes. In the afternoon, he was sitting in the back of the class sulking, and here he was partying with all his friends. He was amazed at how perfectly they had arranged everything to lead him here. They played games, cut the cake, and filled themselves up till they couldn’t eat another bite. Choco uncle would have taken pictures of all this, but he couldn’t find his priceless antique camera and that bothered him.
The Twist
Ramu thanked all his friends for the surprise and for hosting such a fantastic party. Ramu told Choco uncle that the idea of chocolaty footprints and the messing up of his house was spectacular. Choco uncle was confused. He told him that they were the ones who had put the footprints but hadn’t messed up the house at all. Ramu frowned. It was peculiar because Choco uncle normally kept his house spick and span. Who on earth would have messed up his house for no reason!
Then Ramu began to piece it all together. Choco uncle’s camera was missing, and Rahul had the exact same camera at his house. There were other antiques of the same kind too. When Ramu mentioned that Choco uncle had the same camera, Rahul didn’t feel well. Fluffy had a red cloth in his mouth. A part of Rahul’s red dress had been ripped apart. Rahul had hesitated that time and had told his dog had torn it. Could it be Fluffy? Rahul did not have any pet dog as well.
So, was Rahul part of a stealing gang and had stolen Choco uncle’s antique camera? But these were just assumptions, without any proof. He had some investigation to do, and this time it was a real case Ramu had to solve!
Written by:
Rishit Garg
(for the StoryWritingCompetition)
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