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Chapter 9
Geet hated that Maan was right -- that even though she was trapped here, she wouldn’t scar a child by telling him that his own uncle was a gangster. Resignedly, she followed Maan up the stairs and up to the foyer, where a chandelier winked at her from the ceiling.
By the front door stood a knobby-kneed boy in a baseball cap, large glasses, and a backpack with a cartoon dinosaur printed on it. He was gripping the straps of his backpack as if he were nervous just to be in Maan’s presence.
*I know the feeling,* Geet thought.
“This is Neil,” Maan boomed, causing both Geet and Neil to jump. “Neil, this is Miss Geet. Where’s your dad?”
“He dropped me off and left,” came Neil’s small voice. He had a lisp, which instantly endeared him to Geet.
“Typical of my brother,” muttered Maan. Geet wondered what kind of father would allow his own young son to regularly visit a dangerous house like this. No doubt Maan’s brother knew what kind of enterprise Maan ran.
Maan kneeled down and ruffled Neil’s hair. “I have some work to do. Go play with Miss Geet.”
“Okay,” squeaked Neil. His eyes grew wide as he looked at his new babysitter.
As Maan disappeared off to his office, Geet smiled at the little boy. “Hi,” she said softly. “It’s very nice to meet you, Neil. Do you like dinosaurs?” She pointed to his backpack.
Neil chewed nervously on his lip before nodding.
“Which one is your favorite?”
“Triceratops,” he said quietly, looking down at his shoes.
“That’s my favorite, too,” Geet said, her voice overly enthusiastic. Not that she knew a single thing about any kind of dinosaur, except that they were extinct. “But I’ve forgotten some facts about them. Can you remind me?”
Neil cautiously began to regale Geet with various facts about Triceratops, like how they were herbivores and could grow as long as thirty feet.
“Oh wow, so interesting!” Geet exclaimed, leading Neil into an adjoining sitting room. She seated him on a large couch, with cushions so far deep that Neil’s feet dangled over the edge.
“Um, are you hungry?” asked Geet. She couldn’t believe she had found herself in the position of babysitter of a totally unfamiliar child without so much as five minutes’ notice. How was she supposed to keep him occupied?
“No, thank you. I ate at home.” Neil flipped off his backpack and pulled out a large book with, unsurprisingly, dinosaurs on the cover. He held it up to Geet. “Can you please read this to me, Miss Geet?"
Geet smiled. A child who loved reading, just like her? Maybe this wouldn’t be too hard, after all.
----
The rest of the morning passed smoothly, despite Geet tripping over all of the complicated dinosaur names in Neil’s book. At some point, Maan’s personal chef came in and gave them both a snack of apples and peanut butter. Neil pulled out toy dinosaurs from his backpack and had them race each other across the coffee table while Geet looked on.
“Do you come over every Saturday to visit your uncle?” Geet asked.
Neil shook his head, a smear of peanut butter on his chin. “Only some Saturdays. Daddy says it will be good for me to be around Uncle Maan.”
“Good for you? Why?” Without thinking, Geet used her thumb to wipe the peanut butter from his face.
Neil was quiet for so long that Geet thought he might not have heard her, but he finally whispered, “My dad says I shouldn’t be weak anymore and that I should be strong and tough like Uncle Maan.”
Geet couldn’t help the sound of sympathy that escaped her throat. Her heart immediately went out to Neil, who was turning out to be the sweetest, most polite child she had ever met -- quite different from the stereotypical boy who liked to be loud, run around maniacally, and wrestle. Geet thought of her deceased brother, Rocky, who had been Neil’s age when she had last seen him.
“Well,” Geet said after she could gather herself, “I think you’re very strong and tough. I can tell you’re as strong as a . . . Triceratops!”
Neil began to laugh, leaning forward so that his glasses fell into his lap. “Miss Geet!” he exclaimed. “They weighed *tons*!”
“Oh, really? My mistake. In that case, you’re even *stronger* than a Triceratops!” she amended.
The two sat laughing on the couch until Neil abruptly stopped. Geet turned her head toward the entryway of the sitting room where Maan was standing, a curious expression on his face. How long had he been watching?
“Time to go, Neil,” Maan said, his voice sounding strained. “I’ll drop you home.”
Neil obediently put his book in his backpack, which he slid over his small shoulders. “Can Miss Geet come with us for the ride?” he asked hesitantly.
Geet’s eyes shot to Maan. A muscle in his jaw twitched before Maan replied, “I don’t see why not.”
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Thanks for taking the time to read this story!
Edited by kumari3 - 4 years ago
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