Hogalu beda, Sebastien. Illi nee beku. (Don’t go. I need you here.)
– The lighter, half-buried in mud. A tiny flame flickers once. Then dies. Hogalu beda, Sebastien
Xander stands. Pours cheap whiskey onto the concrete. A Kannada ritual he learned from a fallen friend in Bengaluru. Hogalu beda, Sebastien