Obituary.

The smell of outside air was refreshing to him. It felt like an eternity passed. Never did he imagine that he would forget to walk among trees or eat something besides the freedom chapatis.

Viyur had changed. There were posters on the walls that looked like painted photographs. Traffic had grown immensely, with buses, bikes and auto-rickshaws. But what amazed him the most was these boxes everyone one had in their pockets. Most people were either talking to it or looking at it.

Sankaran found it difficult to reach to his usual place as many of the landmarks he remembered has been now torn down or were completely different. No one had come to accompany him as well.

Reaching his hometown, he went to Narayanettan; a bloke who used to sell tea in stall around the corner. The place had a few surprises waiting for him as well. A mini restaurant stood in its place.

Narayanettan informed that he missed the date of Sankaran's release, on seeing him. There wasn't much excitement that he had expected his old pal to show.

In the next ten to fifteen days, Narayanettan helped him find a place to crash, and a small job of a sweeper in a super market near by. Narayanettan's wife wasn't very happy to learn the return of his "friend" from prison.

Fourteen years is enough time for any married man to forget friendships and Sankaran acknowledged it. He stopped going to Narayanettan's tea shop.

Few months went by and Sankaran tried to remain happy with his job. Unloading the stock from vans, cleaning the store and occasionally substituting the cashiers, became his routine.

It was a Tuesday when the manager heard arguments and loud noises coming from the store. A customer was having a fight with someone. When the manager reached near the commotion, he was informed by the customer that he had hired a murderer. A murderer is the store is a bad reputation. Sankaran was fired instantly. Staying in his hometown was no longer an option. Most people refused to hire him.

Kochi welcomed him. The fish market became his new home. Staying with a few roommates, he saved money. A decent life. Peace started to enter his life, but it was short-lived.

A gang walking through the market recognized Shankaran as the man who murdered their fellow member. On that day Sankaran got beaten up very badly. Had the police not shown up, he would have died. They threatened him to never show his face again, in their territory.

His roommates turned against him, but one man tried to help. Jose always thought there was a mystery behind Sankaran, but never expected it to be murder. He helped him at the doctor's as he wanted to know why this man turned into a criminal. Jose learned from Sankaran that he murdered a man for self-defence. There was no reason for this man to be crucified.

Jose had a friend who worked for a contractor in Orissa. With some talks and string pulling, the contractor agreed to hire Sankaran. It was an escape for him; an escape from society's shunning. A man's desire to lead a normal life, after a mistake.

On his way to Eranakulam North Station, he came across an obstruction, that sabotaged his plans. The gang was there. Seeing them, he took off fearing for his life. The gang chased his down and slashed him. Sankaran was hacked and beaten to death.

His life was ruined because of an article in the newspaper and now it ended with an insignificant article in the same paper, fifteen years later.