The Last Meal

"Reviewing the aggravating factors that we unanimously found to be proven beyond reasonable doubt in section A; we, the jury, also unanimously found that the aggravating factors are sufficient to warrant a possible sentence of death and they have marked yes."

Some cheered some cried but my fate was sealed.There was no going back.I did this,I had to pay the price for it.It was cheap.A soul for a soul.Mother cried,refusing to accept the reality,she had to.

There was no other way. I was unfazed. After all, I did this. I had taken his life, I couldn't bring him back. It was my fault, my hands did it. I appreciated the judge's verdict.

They took me to my cell that day. It was nice-a nice bed, a warm blanket, and a quiet view of the yard. I started to like the place.

I was a bit sad that I would get transferred soon. From what I heard, it isn't pretty. I heard there was no window. But I deserved it. I know well about that.

My lawyer visited me one last time, the dude was looking devasted. But I was unfazed. I deserved it. I told him,

"Don't worry, my family will ensure you get your payments on time."
He was shocked to see no remorse.

"Sir!, give me one more week. Surely there could be some proof." he said.

"No! no need to spend your valuable time for me." I said.

"Please sir, I can't let an innocent man die.
"But I did let him die, Mike."

"You couldn't I proved to the jury that there was no possible way you could have pushed Jimmy off the building. You were on the 2nd floor when it happened."

"Does it matter Mike? Everybody saw I did it. There is no denial."

"It was someone else, sir. They are framing you."

"Maybe they are but I have had my verdict, Mike. There is no point in fighting anymore. You must let me go."

Mike insisted some more but I wasn't paying attention anymore. I accepted my fate. Jimmy was my best friend, I could have taken a bullet for him so why not chair? You know, I cried when Jimmy died. But I cried even more when I realized I killed him. It was a striking revelation.

For the first time in my life, I made it to the news."Killer in Denial" Yup that was the headline and boy was I in denial. I couldn't process what was happening. But all makes sense now. It was me who pushed Jimmy off the building. Funny how AI can even make the innocent believe he is guilty. I tried arguing at first. Hired Mike because he was the best but it was no use. The overwhelming evidence was against me.

So anyway a few days later, I was taken to death row. The new cell was crammed. There was no window, it was all dark. But I liked it. It had somewhat of an aesthetic vibe to it. I was fifth in line for execution. I calculated how much time I had left. Some guy named Marco was first in line.

He was charged with homicide. Seemed like a chill dude. He joked," I had never been 2nd in a single thing in my life. Feels good to know that I will never break my streak."Off he went to the room.

My days were numbered. But I was still counting them. Funny what solitary confinement can do to you. I was counting every single second like a sport. I didn't even have a watch.

Soon came my last meal request. I was looking forward to it. This prison's food is trash, I could smell something rancid but I couldn't complain. I was not allowed to. I didn't have any favorite food now that I think about it. I sat on the bed as I thought.

"What can I eat? Should I go all out on a three-course meal or a single dish?"After thinking for some time, I settled on mac & cheese, a cashew-nut salad, and a bottle of Dr Pepper. It seemed nice, I didn't like spice that much and wasn't feeling like eating a full meal. Mac & cheese had a sense of home to me for some reason. So I ordered it.

The food came in hot. The cheese didn't melt properly but it was alright. Beggars can be choosy I suppose. But something about the salad felt off. It had a different taste than I remember. It had a different feeling. I remember Jimmy actually loved making salads. He would make one each day.

Now that I think about it, I never really bothered to figure out who killed Jimmy. Who could benefit from both his death and mine? Something didn't feel right. The "Does it matter though?" I questioned myself. The judge did justice to Jimmy's family. But was it justice.? Was it justice to take an innocent soul for a soul? "Did I deserve all this?"Maybe I did but Jimmy deserved better. His family deserved to know the true killer.

I couldn't sleep that night. I was to be executed in the morning but that was not what I was worried about. I thought about the case, the jury, the hearing. Something didn't feel right. Where did things go wrong? How did I go from denial to such a form of acceptance? How could a fake video fool so many qualified people? When did I even hire Mike as my lawyer? Who did? I couldn't remember.

Suddenly the guards barged into my cell.

"Your execution has been rescheduled, Mr Sarker. Get ready. You will be executed when the chair is ready." "Can they even do that?" I whispered. Where is my family, my lawyer? It didn't make sense. "Wait! I have something to tell " I cried.

Maybe it was wrong to accept all this. This isn't justice. I didn't kill Jimmy, why am I acting like I did?

"You have the wrong person"

"That's what they all say," One of the guards spoke.

I was taken to The Room. It had a dim atmosphere, more like mood lighting. For the first time in weeks, I was in again in denial. It was true. I didn't kill Jimmy.

"Please let me call my lawyer" I pleaded. But they weren't hearing me. More like they couldn't hear me. The anxiety made me speechless. I was making all these weird noises as they started to cuff me to the chair. There was no hope.

"Where is my family? " I shouted. But where was my sound? I couldn't hear my shouting. They all went outside leaving me alone. I was scared.

"This is wrong." I told myself, but I couldn't do anything. I couldn't see anything. They had put a black cloth over my face. My heart raced like it had never before as I was about to have these final thoughts.

I was imagining the moment they were gonna push that lever and then it would be all over. I tried to calm myself down and not think about it. As my whole body tried to choke on itself I was about to breathe my last. And then range a phone.

I was jolted awake." Maybe I became unconscious. But why haven't they electrocuted me yet." I thought. Something felt off. I realized I could move my body again. " What is happening?" I thought as I raised my hands. I realized there was no black cloth covering my face. It was my blanket.

I was in my room in my own house. It was all a dream?

"What a dream man!" I said to myself. Guess I was just stressed out for some reason. I smiled to know that I wasn't going anywhere. Not yet. I had more time to live. I went downstairs as happy as I could be. I could see Mother making breakfast. Everything was back to normal.

Our door rang, and I went to answer it. I was surprised opening the door. It was the Police.

"Are you Swapnil Sarker?"

"Yes why so?"

They didn't answer. They never do. They pushed me to the wall and put handcuffs on me.

"Mr Swapnil, you are under arrest for the murder of Jimmy Smith."