Chapter 49

Quid pro quo

Unlike her Baba who after having s—at work would come home and yell at her mother for nothing, this man, did not yell or scream or mock her

He drove them to the Ortho clinic again

The sleepy receptionist mocked her though, he asked her if she was bad at disciplining her kid

“I will attend to my son and give you a response” she mumbled in Marathi

She had lost most of her fire in the last 10 years

There was no fight left in her

There was no one to fight with

No one even cared to fight with her

Barbs landed unhindered

The doctor determined the knuckle was not broken but there was definite ligament tear

in multiple places

Jai had to be partially sedated so the doctor could feel it

“Your boy is very naughty Ms Ghatge” the kind smiling doc laughed

“Umm.. no” she mumbled

He was not naughty at school… ever

He had no friends to pull pranks with

“I will be sexist and ask is the father a troublemaker?” he smiled

“Umm.. I don’t know” she mumbled confused

The Doc was shocked

The wife did not know the husband?

“Wow!!

“I could be doctore” Aatreya rescued her

“She is protecting you” he laughed nodding

“U cud say that” Aatreya agreed nervously

“Why is he so groggy” she panicked

“I have to check to see if he needs a scan”

“Why scan why cant u do a Xray?” she demanded

“This is just for cracks Ms Ghatge”

“He is fine… he was fine now he is not even opening his eyes”

“Don’t worry it will wear off and he will stay up all night” he laughed

“I want him awake now” she mumbled soothing his forehead as he lay on the examination bed

“Oh we will… one of u needs to entertain him” he winked

“OK” she nodded

She paid for the visit as he carried his son in his arms

For the very first time….

Sleepy and woozy he looked at Aatreya and asked “Can we do smileys?”

“Sure bud”

They drove in silence

When she picked him up near the stairs from the car

He smelled like Aatreya

She climbed up panting

And set him on his feet and unlocked and opened the door

Aatreya parked and followed with the med bag and Jaidrith’s epipen bag

“I was reading the muscle relaxant it doesn’t contain any compound he is allergic to as far as I cud tell

“OK” she nodded

Jaidrith was still slumped on the divan

“He is not waking up” she was ready to lose it

“He is just sedated”

“last time he BROKE his finger they didn’t do this”

“Relax… he will be fine”

“He is sleeping like” she began to cry crouching by him

Sobbed softly but he didn’t wake up

“Mrunalini” he sat on the floor “Sshhhh… stop crying please”

“When will he wake up?”

“I can stay with him for sometime” “Why don’t u go eat?”

“HOW can I eat, he hasn’t eaten”

“Oh… umm” he looked worried

“U think the doctor did not know? The ortho nurse asked me I TOLD her” she cried some more

“Sshhhh” he soothed without touching

“He is the only one I have” she sobbed

“He is just woozy”

He convinced her to go change

He found her pausing by the toilet and staring at the open door and noticing the mug was not bobbing neither did the door sway

She went in tentatively

She turned on the kitchen light and served herself some food

She didn’t want o ask him if he ate

He was no friend

She ate a couple spoons standing in the kitching facing the wall

Stepped out and asked him

“I have food”

“Good” he nodded looking up from his laptop

He was stretched on the divan leaning on the throw pillows by the wall

“U want little… food?” she asked in broken English fighting her fear of rejection

“Umm”

“I made veg”

“Sure” he nodded

They looked at each other eye to eye

She looked sad and distraught, her face puffy, she wore a tee and a skirt

Face scrubbed clean, the only jewels… her eyes

He was in work clothes olive green khakhis, and a navy cotton shirt crushed from carrying the weight of his new found family’s stress

She served food on one plate, changed, changed and changed and brought it out in a nice looking bowl

Rice dal and tinda

He was famished

She didn’t look at him went back into the kitchen

He ate every grain

Jaidrith stirred

She HEARD it

She flew out

“Dhruuuu… shakaraaa”

She mumbled Sukha karata dukkha harata, quite tunefully the next 5ish minutes

Then went back into the bedroom to cry

In an hour she heard mumbling, as she was stepping out of the toilet

She came out Aatreya was showing him some game on his phone as he still lay down

“DHRUUUUUU” she hugged him tight

Told him how he needs to mind his own beeswax in school

Told him how afraid she was how much she hated to see him be knocked out ALL

 in Marathi

Jai had looked at her coming out of the bathroom and asked

“ Tyānē bhūta māralē ātā tū rāṇī hōśīla kā? he did slay the ghost will you become a queen now?”

She found herself turning a bright red