In the neighbourhood - SERIES 05

Sukanya froze as she heard her daughter Anushka talking.

"I love you Rajas........ please try to understand."
She would keep the phone down and dial again to say the same thing. The person on the other side was obviously abruptly disconnecting the call.

Sukanya took a step ahead. But kept herself from going there. She went back to the kitchen. Stared out of her window. She could see some scooters lined up. A policeman strolled through them. She couldn't see anything though. She was out of her mind.

Extremely worried about her daughter, she resolved to go back there. She walked steadily towards the couch where Anushka sat with her head down.

Sukanya was now standing opposite Anushka. Anushka looked at her, she was terrible scared. She hurried to keep the phone down. "Anu..", was all Sukanya could say.

Anushka hugged Sukanyaa and cried. "Aai.... I love... I don't know... look at him.. don't scold me please....aai.. don't tell... worthless.. feeling bad..", Anushka could hardly complete any sentence.

Sukanyaa covered her mouth and was crying relentlessly as her daughter sobbed around her waist. Sukanyaa looked at her and said, "Anushka... it will all be fine for you. I don't want to hear a word about it right now. You go to sleep right now, we'll talk about it tommorrow."

And Anushka slept on the sofa. With her head on her mother's lap. And her mother's hand on her forehead. This was the world's most comforting position Anushka could be in. Few minutes later, Terry came and slept in Anushka's arms. The three were soulmates indeed.

Sukanya, though, was stark awake. Now that she knew, she was worried.

The next morning, Girish woke up as always. He didn't find Sukanya besides him. He thought she must be in the bathroom. He yawned as he came to the drawing room only to find his daughter cuddled up on her mother's lap.

He saw Sukanya awake.

"Sukanya... what's wrong? Did she tell you..."

Sukanya looked at him, she thought her eyelids had gone heavy.


"Uhmm.. Girish.. wait.. I'll make your breakfast.."

She got up, carefully keeping Anushka's head over a pillow.

A couple of minutes later, Girish was inside the kitchen with Sukanya.
"Oh, you heard all that", Girish asked.
"Yes..."
"I am definitely going to scold her. See, there are some things, which cannot be explained to children. They need to be sent across directly."
"Girish.. is she a child now?"
"She is behaving like one..."
"Girish.. this should not be a problem for her academics."
"Sukanya.. she is my daughter too.. I care for her. We need to take steps immediately. I am coming home early today.. and we'll talk to her about it."

"Ok..."

The day continued as always. Shyaam was going to have a hectic day today. He had to go to school, followed by tuitions and then one of the test series that he had taken admission to.

Sukanya packed three tiffins for him as he rushed.

Sukanya went back to her room cleaning and dusting the photo frames. She came across an old picture - the day of her engagement. She was wearing a beautiful pink sari and a beautiful gold necklace which her grandmother had given her. She looked at herself. Anushka looked so much like her very own self.

And she remembered the face. The face of a bright young man. Fair, tall and intelligent. She had never spoken to him. They were just classmates back then. And she remembered that evening. When she decided she would stop thinking about him.

She never did. There were no regrets at all. She loved Girish - he was the ideal man she could have ever found.

But yes, Sukanya remembered that she had made a compromise. A compromise she was strongly going to stick to.

A compromise that she knew her daughter would have to, as well...

All Sukanya wondered was how she was going to help her daughter heal her broken heart. The way she herself had, long back.