"Bhaiyya, aren't we going to call Kriya to play with us?" six year old Priya asked in a confused tone as she wondered whether to call her younger cousin sister to join them or not.
"Oh, we surely can call her. But what are we gonna play? Hide and seek? Hop scotch? Ice and water? Can't you both understand that we can't play any game if she joins us" Anuj said in a frustrated tone, as he averted his gaze towards the five year old kid who was sitting on the swing that was located at a corner of the garden.
"Bhaiyya is right, Didi. We can't play any game if she joins us. I feel sorry for her, Di" Preeti said to her twin sister; Priya, in a pitiful tone.
"Bhaiyya, why can't she see like us? Why was she born blind?" Priya asked in a curious and melted tone.
"I don't know. Mom said it happens rarely. But one of my friends at school said that if a child is born blind, it is because she or he has done a greater sin in their past life" Anuj said in a steady nine year old tone, as he softened the voice in order to make sure that his words does not reach the mentioned person's ears.
***
"I'm not deaf, just blind!" Kriya wanted to scream out loud to her so called cousins who were busy discussing about her disability. But she was not the type of kid who would throw tantrums in order to gain others attention. After all, she already had enough attention thanks to her lack of sight.
Being the eye of both her mom and dad, Kriya never had complains about her life. Why would she complain when she had the best mom and dad in the whole world? Not only her parents, her Badi Dadi, Make-up Dadi, Hairless Daadu, Anju Bua, Shyam Phupha, Chashmash Chachu, Wordless Chachi, Sanki Nani, G-Nani and Bade Nana; all the elders in her family loved her. But the problem was with her cousins; Anuj bhaiyya who was Anju Bua's and Shyam Phupha's son, Priya Di and Preeti Di who were Chashmash Chachu's and Chachi's twins. It was not like they hated her, but they didn't like her much either. The fact that they always tend to tip toe around her when they were together had created an invisible wall around them. After all, you can't blame them completely, can you? They were bound to feel awkward when they were hanging around a cousin who was not normal unlike them. So she never complained about their indifference towards her as well. Therefore Kriya Singh Raizada was one happy girl who enjoyed her life to fullest.
***
"Kriya, baby, why are you sitting here alone?" Khushi asked in a concerned tone while walking towards her five year old daughter who was sitting aloof from the other occupants of the garden.
"Mama!" Kriya squealed with joy hearing her mother's voice, successfully diverting Khushi's mind from asking the next question.
"I was waiting for you, Mama. Aren't we going home? We have to welcome papa nah? His flight will land in few more hours' right? Oh mama, I missed papa so much during this week. Can't we join him along on his business trips? Can we go home now?" little Kriya went on with her twenty questions round, leaving Khushi amidst an episode of giggling.
"Awe, why don't we join him next time on his business trip? But right now we will go home and get ready to welcome your papa" Khushi said in a loving tone, as she took her baby girl in her arms.
"So we are ready to celebrate holi tomorrow?" Kriya asked in an excited tone.
"Yup. We will come tomorrow morning and join the rest of the family, okay?" Khushi asked gently while tucking a strand of hair that was disturbing her baby's face.
"Okay!" Kriya said aloud in joy.
After bidding good bye to the three kids who were busy watching the verbal exchange between the mother-daughter duo, Khushi and Kriya left Shantivan with the hope of returning next day to celebrate the festival of colours.
***
"Papa, do you know what Anuj bhaiyya said about me?" Kriya asked in a sweet tone, as she snuggled more towards her father's body as she lay between both her parents while enjoying the feeling of her mother's fingers running through her hair.
"What did he say my princess?" Arnav asked in an affectionate tone, as he rubbed his thumb against his daughter's cheek.
"He said that the reason behind me being blind is because I have done a greater sin my past life. Is it true papa?" Kriya asked in an innocent tone as she looked at Arnav with her hazel eyes, leaving her parents wordless for few seconds.
Arnav and Khushi shared a silent eye conversation at once, and soon diverted their attention towards their symbol of love.
"What do you think, princess?" Arnav asked in a calm, gentle tone, as Khushi caressed her baby's cheeks.
"At first I felt bad, papa. But then again I thought about it and realized bhaiyya was wrong. If I have done a greater sin in my past life, why would I be born to you both? You both are the best parents any child would wish for, and I consider myself as the luckiest girl in the whole world. Therefore surely bhaiyya was wrong" Kriya said in a voice full of pride and contempt, leaving Arnav and Khushi stunned hearing their daughter's simple words with a greater meaning.
Khushi placed a lingering kiss on Kriya's cheek as she said, "You are right, my baby. You have done no sin in your past life. Everything happens for a reason. God may have not given you sight, but in your life he may give you a better gift. You may lack something that others have, but that does not make you a weak person. You are our strong girl, and you make us proud every single day by living your life to the fullest"
After listening to her mama's wonderful words Kriya squealed saying, "And I know what god's gift is; you both"
"And you are the best gift god has presented to us" Arnav said in a voice full of love as he placed a kiss on his princess's forehead.
"I love you both a lot" Kriya said with a wide grin on her face, and placed kisses on both her parents' cheeks.
"We love you too" Arnav and Khushi said in unison, as the small family of three burst into giggles.
***
Next morning Arnav found his wife standing by the poolside looking stunning as usual in white attire.
"Happy holi, baby!" Arnav greeted his wife as he turned her around and applied red colour on both her cheeks.
Khushi, who was till now lost in a deep trail of thoughts was taken in by surprise by her husband's actions, but soon recovered seeing Arnav's handsome smile playing on his face.
"Happy holi, Arnav" Khushi greeted excitedly as she stood on her toes and placed a kiss on one of Arnav's cheeks before transferring some of her colour from her cheek to his. And the same was followed with his other cheek as well. And in the next instant Arnav took Khushi's soft petals in a tantalizing kiss leaving Khushi in a love dazed state.
Few good minutes later, both drew apart to inhale a well deserved gust of air that aerated their circulation. After being silent for a moment, Khushi awoke her voice with a slight hesitation.
"Arnav, there's something I need to tell you"
Arnav was bit surprised to see his usual talkative wife hesitant at the moment.
"What's the matter, baby? Why do you look nervous?" he asked in a concerned and slightly worried tone.
"We are going to have a baby" Khushi said in a voice mixed with joy and little nervousness.
"Wow, Khushi! That's the best news I've ever received on a Holi day. Now there are two reasons for today's celebration. I love you so much, Khushi! We are gonna have another baby" Arnav said ecstatically while trailing kisses on Khushi's face.
But when he realized the lack of response from the other participant, it was confirmed that his wife was holding herself back from enjoying the moment due to some good reason.
"What is it, Khushi? Why do you look worried?" Arnav asked in a soft tone, as he tilted Khushi's face upwards to meet his gaze.
"Arnav, I was so happy when the results were confirmed, but then my happiness was short lived when my thoughts started to trail towards unwanted territories. What if..." Khushi's words were interrupted by Arnav, as he didn't want Khushi to think of any "ifs".
"Khushi, don't ever think like that. You and I both love kids. So we should accept this baby with open arms without any hesitation. It doesn't matter whether she is normal or different from any other kid. This baby would be our symbol of love. And we would love him or her the same way we love our princess. All we have to do is get ready to shower our new baby with our love" Arnav said in a confident tone, trying to erase away Khushi's worries.
"Arnav, I didn't mean it in that way. It's just that if our second baby would be born disabled, I don't want him or her to go through what our baby girl is going through right now. I don't want our baby to live in pain" Khushi said in a barely audible tone, as her eyes filled up with tears of worry.
"Hey, hey... it's alright. Look, I promise you that no matter what happens our babies won't get a chance to live in pain. Look at Kriya. She is the happiest kid I've ever come across in my whole life. Have you ever heard her cry or throw tantrums complaining about her disability? Have you ever heard her say one word against the way her own cousins treat her? Have you ever seen her worrying over pitiful words that are said by our relatives or neighbours or guests who visit us? The answer to all these questions is a big no. She is the best kid any parent would love to have. Not just parents, anyone would love to spend time with her if they closely hang around with her. To be honest, she is perfect. And why do you think she has emerged as a wonderful kid? It's because of you and me. We have made sure that she would be able to face any hurdle that she would come across in her life alone. But if she needs to share her worries or if she needs help with something, she would always come to us. That's the reason behind her being happy always.Therefore we will make sure that our second kid would be one tough cookie just like our Kriya"
Arnav's words of comfort left Khushi speechless with awe. After listening to his words, she fell in love with him even more, if that's even possible.
"I love you, Arnav. You are every woman's dream man" Khushi said lovingly as she stole a kiss from his lips with overwhelming joy.
"But you can only be my dream woman. I won't let any man dream of you" Arnav said in a mock serious tone, making Khushi chuckle adorably.
"Well in that case Mr.Raizada, get ready for nine months of sleepless nights, because I'm sure this time it's gonna be a boy. And boys are way more naughty and demanding than girls" Khushi said in a teasing tone.
"Says the most demanding girl on earth" Arnav said cheekily as he circled his arms around Khushi's curvy waist, and placed a kiss on her cheeks.
"Mama, Papa, Happy Holi!" Kriya's overexcited voice broke Arnav and Khushi's alone time, and they were more than happy to apply colours on their baby girl's face.
***
"Happy Holi Badi Dadi!" Kriya screamed out loud as soon as Arnav and Khushi entered Shantivan with Kriya on Arnav's arms.
"Happy Holi to you as well, Kriya" Devyani said with a smile adorning her face, as she took Kriya in her arms.
"Wow, your face looks like a rainbow Kriya" Manorama said in a teasing tone.
"Do you like it, Make-up Dadi? I asked mama and papa to colour my face with all the colours because I wanted this Holi, and everyone's life to be colourful like my face" Kriya explained the reason behind her colourful face, leaving the rest of the occupants of the house amazed with her words.
"In that case why don't we make you even more colourful, so that your life would overflow with colours" Devyani said mischievously while applying colours on her favourite grand granddaughter's face.
And everyone continued to apply colours on each other's face, enjoying the occasion to the fullest.
***
Later that evening, Kriya was chatting away with her Dadi while others continued to busy themselves in cleaning the house.
"Badi Dadi, will my brother or sister love me? Or will he or she be uncomfortable around me like my cousins?" Kriya's sudden question left Devyani baffled for a moment. But after giving a thought for some time, she replied wisely making sure that her intelligent grand granddaughter would understand her words
"Bitiya, why would anyone not love you? It's hard to not fall in love with you. I understand why you asked this question. It's just that your Anuj bhaiyya, Preeti di and Priya di needs time to understand and get used to you. But it won't be the same with your brother or sister. He or she would be close to you because you both would be living under the same roof. And he or she would grow up with you unlike your cousins. Therefore there's no doubt about him or her not loving you. I'm sure you both would make a great team"
"I guess you are right, Badi Dadi. How foolish of me to even think such a thing? I'm sure we would make a great team" Kriya said confidently, as she rested her head on Devyani's chest.
"That's like my girl" Devyani said caringly as she placed an affectionate kiss on Kriya's head.
***
Nine months later...
"Mama, he is so small nah?" Kriya asked as she touched her new born brother's hand.
"Why don't you hold him? I'm sure your brother would love to feel the warmth of his sister?" Khushi said in a gentle tone, as she carefully handed over the baby to Kriya, who was sitting on her father's lap.
"Wow, he is heavy" Kriya said at once, but soon trailed off saying, "...but is soft and cuddly".
The baby giggled hearing his sister's voice, and in the next moment the most amazing thing happened leaving the other three with joy. The baby raised his tiny arms and touched Kriya's cheeks making Kriya squeal in joy.
"He likes me" Kriya rasped in a genuinely happy tone.
"He loves you, baby" Khushi said as she caressed Kriya's face.
"So princess, have you thought of a name for your baby brother?" Arnav asked in a curious tone, as he held both his kids securely within his encircled arms.
"Yup. I thought Aditya would be a perfect name, because he would be the light of my life" Kriya said in a confident tone.
"It's perfect!" both Arnav and Khushi said in harmony as they were happy with Kriya's choice of name for her brother.
As the brother-sister duo continued to play with each other in their own way, Arnav and Khushi watched their antiques with a smile playing on their lips. They were proud parents' of two adorable kids, and what more did they want? They were one, small, happy family.
***
Please do leave in your thoughts, because I love reading them😳
Ishaani
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