OS - Candy Crazy Family
"Shit!!!! Odus fell down. Damn it." Sanam yelped.
Asad and Zoya looked up in surprise.
"Allah Miya, what is wrong with you San? How can you make Odus fall? Poor owl, such a cute bird it is... How can you, how could you? Next time, you make sure, you don't drop it sweetie." Zoya screamed on top of her voice.
"Calm down, bro. It is chill. I hate it. I don't like Dreamworld. I like the day game, not this snooze fest." Sanam replied.
Asad was in the kitchen, making Idli and Sambar, when this absurdity was going on in the living room. He just looked at Sanam and Zoya with no idea as to what was going on. "What nonsense are you guys talking about?" He finally found his voice.
Obviously, no one heard him. He shook his head and went back to the task at hand.
"f**k. My. Life." Sanam swore, not even bothering to lower her voice.
By then, Asad had finished cooking dinner, and come in to the living room. "May I know the gravity of that crisis that made Miss Farooqui Khan swear in front of her parents?" He asked, his voice grave. Both ladies ignored him yet again. He could just hear weird bubble and plop noises from their phones. "What the hell?" Asad snatched Sanam's phone from her hand eliciting a groan and a scream from his daughter.
"Dude, what the hell? Dad... What is wrong with you? Why? I will lose that level. It is a time bound level. DAD!!!!!!!!"
Zoya was still oblivious to this commotion, her eyes glued to her phone. Asad moved to her and snatched her phone as well, who imitated Sanam's reaction as it was.
With both phones in his hand and his wife and his daughter damn pissed with him, Asad went and sat on the couch and indicated both of them to shut up. They tried protesting but stopped when he gave them a withering look.
"Can you guys tell me what's happening in this house? What is this crap with the phone? Is it some sort of an app or something?" Asad asked satisfied with the uninterrupted attention he was getting, finally.
"Ahm. Dad, it is a game. Candy Crush Saga. It is damn fun and interesting."
"Yup, Asad, there are so many levels, you don't even want to stop. Trust me, you should try it. It is awesome!" Zoya chirped in.
Asad gave her a cocky look that made her long to kiss her husband, he was clearly amused. "That's so exciting I think I am too boring for it." Asad said, smiling sweetly at her, only the occupants there knew, Asad was mocking their stupidity and silliness.
"Oh, please. Stop mocking us. We know what you are saying. What you actually mean to say is that, we are being childish and nonsensical." Zoya said, in her dramatic tone.
"No. Not at all. You think, someone as lowly as me, could say anything against your precious can crumbling game..." He was fiercely interrupted by Sanam and Zoya together.
"IT IS NOT CAN CRUMBLING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
"OUCH!" Asad shut his ears to the deafening noise.
"It is Candy Crush for God's sake." They said, visibly calming down.
"Ya. Ya. Whatever. Dinner's ready. Finish that and play your can... I mean, candy game." Asad said.
They went towards the dining table. "Where is Seher?"
Ahm, let me call her." Sanam said. Asad nodded. After a few moments, when Sanam still hadn't gone to call Seher, Asad looked at her questioningly, "Go. What are you doing here still?"
Oh, Seher is coming. She is doing some homework."
When Asad still wasn't convinced, Zoya had to step in, "Allah Miya, Mr. 17th century husband, she just texted her. How else do you think she'll know what Seher is upto?" Zoya dramatically facepalmed.
"Does that mean these girls have their phones while they study?" Asad asked his wife while looking at Sanam. "I thought there were some conditions under which we got them phones and one of them was, NO PHONE WHILE STUDYING." Asad reprimanded both of them.
"Ahm, we still study and that's the point. See, the point is, keep the distracting object close to you but don't give it the power to destroy you." Sanam justified her point.
"Mashallah! Augustus Waters!!!" Zoya blinked her eyes dreamily while cupping her face with her palms. Asad rolled his eyes at his ridiculous family. This was another obsession these people had. TFIOUS. God knows what that stood for.
"Hey peeps! I am here!' Seher entered.
"Wow. South Indian khana. What's special?" She asked.
Your Mom missed her dance teacher actually. In his memory." Asad grinned.
Zoya looked at him as if she had someone pointing a gun at her. "Mom, from when did you need a dance teacher? Aren't you THE Zoya Farooqui? Someone who can do anything?" Both sisters piped in.
"Of course! Zoya Farooqui can do anything!" Zoya announced, causing Asad to laugh, his wife, hadn't changed one bit in eighteen years of marriage.
"See, your Dad, isn't as awesome as me, unfortunately. HE needed a dance teacher for the Sangeeth. So, we got one for him."
"And, your Mom, didn't even let me learn from him!"
"Well, he did more than just teaching you..." Zoya replied, subdued, reminiscing old memories.
Sanam and Seher looked at each other with a What is happening' look. This happened so often in the Farooqui-Khan house. Any conversation including everyone would suddenly become private and these kids would never know. Their parents' stories never ended.
Throughout dinner, the banter continued, ranging from who would cook the following week, who would clean up dinner, who would wash clothes and who would do what and when.
As Asad watched some news without noise, he heard Seher yelling, "Give me a life. I lost so many! And I need to complete Level 329!"
And Asad groaned. Crazy family.
The End.
Anupamaa
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