Sivapalan sensed his friend was agitated this morning.
Did the Boss scold Silibiris. No, there has been no time for that. CC only arrived a few minutes ago, late as usual, but signed at the top of the page on the first line reserved for him. De Mu Peter Silva 0801 ….signed in Sinhalese with a flourish.
Nobody knew what the Sinhala letters De Mu stood for. His colleagues added a few more initials to the front of the name behind his back. The clerks in his Department called him Pu Ka De Mu Silva. They joked that he was always managing up by being a Yes man to the Bosses above him.
“ enna da machchang… why you looking here there..like somebody is chasing after you”
“What for the telling men… not just chasing. Some louts tried to knife me”
“Aaandawane Saami….who who”
“Kolonnawe Vijes boyz”
“Who who this Kolonnawe Vije?”
“Kanthi’s cousin. He is in jail. But his friends circling her”
“Aiyyo thambi… I no unnerstan what you talking…..who who this Kanthi…Who who this Vije”
“ Long story machchang…we talk we talk at Lunch time”.
Silibiris busied himself for the rest of the morning carrying files from one desk to another. Sivapalan kept an eye on his friend from a distance wondering what trouble Silibiris had got himself into within a few days of being in the city.
While sharing the Vegetarian lunch packet given by temple abiththiya along with Sivapalan’s thosai and wadai Silibiris sheepishly told his friend what he has been up to after work. Sivapalan couldn’t wait to see Kanthi.
“I say…..Silibiris….you can’t stay in the temple for ever. I can’t sleep under the tables in my uncle’s saiver kade for ever. Why don’t we rent a room in Kolonnawe Pelihouse? Problem solved no?”
The friends met up with Gune that evening.
Gune promised them to ask around Kolonnawe Pelihouse area if there were rooms for rent. Of course, Gune needed to be treated to a full tank. No. Not Petrol. He only possessed a rusty old push bike. He had to be tanked up with Kasiya.
Gune lead them to Sumana Akka’s Kasiya spot behind the Plantain Tree Grove.
“ Aaa Gune, you found another drinking buddy eh? Good good come come sit sit have a bite first”
Sumana served hot hot chilli grams to the trio.
Sivapalan looked around nervously. Why on earth would Silbiris want to live in this place, he thought to himself but said nothing.
After many drinks costing them several days wages, Gune decided to embark on the mission. To be fair, he came to Sumana Akka’s Kasiya spot not just to get himself a few free drinks but also he knew she would know if there were any rooms for rent in the area. As a matter of fact Sumana Akka knew all the news – real and manufactured.
Gune pushed his Raleigh bicycle with Silibiris and Sivapalan in tow. He stopped at the end of the lane, in front of a two story shack made of planks, rusty metal sheets windows made of higgly piggly planks.
“ Aaa Margaret aachchiye how you been? Why are you alone here. Where are your son and the family?
“Why yakko.. didn’t you hear the news? Everyone in this waththa knows.”
“What news? ‘
“You didn’t hear? Yakko, it was in the papers even”
“Aney Margaret Achchiye I don’t read newspapers. Just tell will you… without beating around the bush”
“Yakko, they won the Lottery - one Lakh and a Benz car. Why would they live in this hell hole after that?”
“Really? That’s great news. But why are you here all on your lonesome?”
“Don’t ask. That whore of a daughter in law of mine didn’t want to take me to their new bungalow. They left me to die here”
Margaret readily agreed to rent out the “top floor” to the two boys for ten rupees a month. The top floor had to be accessed from outside climbing a rickety old bamboo ladder that went through a window into the attic.
The friends paid an advance to Margaret Nona , agreeing to move in within a week.
Silibiris waited at the bus stop with Sivapalan until he caught the bus home. When Silibiris entered the temple kitchen abiththiya whispered that the Lokuhamuduruwo has been waiting for him.
Silibiris felt a sense of remorse. Lokuhamuduruwo had been very kind to him. Yet he had not even consulted the monk about his move. Silibiris dragged himself to the monk’s doorway with great trepidation.
Koluhamudurwo was in deep meditation. Silibiris returned to his room feeling like a man in the death row getting a temporary reprieve.
Only temporary though. Because next morning the monk did get hold of Silibiris and asked Silibiris to join him in the hall.
After observing Pansil, the monk gave Silibiris a half sermon, half advice about the life Silibiris has chosen. All he said to Silibiris was to be mindful in all actions.
Silibiris was shocked. How did the monk know his intentions? Come to think of it, how did Lokuhamuduruwo appear at the very moment when the louts were about to beat him up? Silibiris was overcome by a wave of great respect for the monk.
But that did not stop Silibiris from joining Sivapalan as roommates in Margaret Nona’s two-storey Pelihouse on the same weekend.
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