The repeated visits

The knocks felt like the one who had been knocking was an avid music lover. It has a rhythm. Vidhi glanced at the time, it was 2:15 AM.
"Who comes home this late? Today is a Wednesday. Not a day for party. I could have understood coming home late on a weekend. Maybe they had been celebrating," Vidhi thought to herself. But brushed that idea of party goers with another thought, "but what if the neighbor worked in the night shift and came back from the work? That must be sad," Vidhi remembered her own work days when she worked in shifts and how much she hated working at odd hours. She had not seen the neighbor, yet she empathized with them. She focused back on her incomplete task.

The aggressive work did not end that night. Vidhi had to work the next night as well. Same set of events followed the next night as well. Same time and same rhythm. That made Vidhi believe that the neighbor is not a party lover but an unfortunate person stuck in a draining and distressing night duty. Vidhi prayed for the unknown and unseen neighbour that they find a job with regular working hours.

Finally it was Friday. The urgent tasks had been successfully completed. Vidhi returned home and decided to celebrate her victory. She ordered pizza and planned to binge watch a popular webseries. She was indulging the cheesy delight while watching the media and did not realised it was past her bedtime. That night too she heard the knocks at the same time. For a moment, she felt curious to open the door and see her neighbor face to face. But she thought that maybe the neighbor would feel uncomfortable for waking her up, so decided to contain her curiosity.

The next day was not just a regular Saturday but a national holiday. All banks, offices, and establishments were closed. It was past midnight and Vidhi was still awake, watching a comedy film. At 2:10 AM, she heard the knocks again. Vidhi paused the film. This time she got suspicious, "who works on a national holiday?"

Vidhi put on her thinking cap and the answer was easier that she imagined, "though it is a national holiday, some establishments still function. What if the neighbor is a hotelier? They return after closing the restaurant. What if they are shop owner? They could be in law enforcement or defence. Or they could be doctor or nurse. All these are community professionals and they get no days off". Vidhi felt an immense respect for the dedicated professional staying next door. She got up from the seat and saluted the work ethic of her unknown and unseen neighbour, "they must have created a code with the rhythm to keep the intruders away, smart people".

With the newly found respect for the neighbor, Vidhi was curious to meet them. She wanted to understand their routine. She wanted to hear their stories. She felt that she will find a new friend.

Yet, Vidhi did not know that the fact was stranger than what she had imagined. The knocks were for a special purpose and meaning that was far more sinister.