Mirage

Look, Deepali,
Next time when you enter
That tunnel in search of
The light at the end of it-

You will never know where to
Enter, where to exit or
Where to turn or if you need
To keep going at all.

Cicadas will chirp even though
There wouldn't be any and
The serpents will hiss even
Through their absence.

The darkness will grow emptier
And you will listen to your
Silence screeching like words caught
In the middle of a sneeze.

And even then if you want to
Chase the madness- The faint blip
Of that meaningless light-
You may never find it.

And probably when you flutter
Your eyes in the dark in search
Of something to hold on-
Maybe you will catch my eye.

As I too would have been lost
Just somewhere there
In search of the same mirage.
But I shall be free by then

And out of the tunnel.
As I would realize, you were
That light and redemption,
All along.

But once outside, you weren't
Anywhere around.
I thought you came in search
Of me. But it now seems-

That you were there to
Wait for someone else.
What a surprise! Seems, the light 

Was a Mirage from the start.