Grades & Gems
She fed the boys breakfast got them ready on Sunday DID NOT tell Amma Mukund stayed over at Sam's after poker along with Makarand
She wondered if Manya and Makarand were "sexual" now
AYYYO!!!
HOPE HE DOESNT BREAK HER HEART BY HAVING SOME SECRET AGENDA
YA LIKE "THATS" THE MOST IMPORTANT THING SHE SHOULD BE WORRYING ABOUT?
"PAAVAM LET HER DISTRACT HERSELF NO
WHATS YOUR PROBLEM?
OK I NEED TO NAME THE THREE OF YOU AND GIVE YOU VOICES AND OUTFITS
I AM GETTING CONFUSED
ARE ALL THREE OF YOU ON BIRTH CONTROL?
IF NOT I SUGGEST GETTING IT
I CANT AFFORD TO HOUSE MORE THAN THREE
I KNOW I HAVE A INFLATED HEAD
BUT THREE IS IT
She went up with her coffee, he was asleep face down on the bed in a different set of clothes
He stirred, like he knew he was being ogled at.. she walked out leaving the door exactly how she found it
She worked for two hours, began the model work and installation Ashwini was returning Wednesday
PHEWWW!!!
She had written to her privately apologizing for being gone so long, she said she had "chocolates"
II didnt read anything afterwards
She still had a bunch left from the girle hiker backpack he gave her
She had to return the Rs.1000 she borrowed, she pulled it out of her purse and put it away in the "safe"
Did her finances, showered changed into a Loft pencil skirt in purple and a uneven edge blouse with lil elephant patterns on it
Walked down to check on the boys, they played by her veggie patch, Mahavir was "harvesting" whatever he could find
"No Shravu, dont pull" she scolded
"Chithi, when it grows tall enough can we just climb up to the second floor using that?" he pointed to a flowering lavender like vine
MONKEY... STAIRS DONT MEAN A THING TO YOU DA
"Hey what is Amma telling me" she scolded
"WHATTT?" he demanded
"Marks in two unit tests"
His face paled
"Lets make a deal seriya?" she asked
He nodded
She sat on a plush rattan yard sofa, held his wrists... "Everytime you get anything below 20 on a Unit test, u cant come to Chithi's" she said
"THATS SO UNFAIR, NANDU CAN AND I CANT?"
"AYYYO!! NANDU NEED NOT EVEN BE IN SCHOOL
HE COULD GET BY JUST SHOWING UP
TAN HAS ENOUGH MONEY TO FEED TEN GENERATIONS FORWARD
AKKA AND ATHIM ARE DEPENDING ON YOU KANNA
"Umm.. well the rule applies to him too" she said fairly, explained the importance of
keeping grades up, and how doing good in school will give them enough moolah to "buy whatever they ever want"
Nandu ran over
"What rule?"
"We get anything less than 20 Chithi wont allow us inside MM" he said smugly
"YESSS I can I can I can" Nandu bragged
"NANDOOO" II warned
He quietened
Shravu began to cry, she gathered him on his lap and rocked him
"Azhaada kanna... lets put a layer of reward on it, not only can u come to Chithis she will
also buy/take out or make your fave treat, u can pick a new one each time" she smiled
"Can I have Baskin Robbins vanilla ice cream with hot fudge and whipped cream?" Nandu asked
"I want Gems" Shravu said
She hugged him tighter her eyes filling up at that mundane demand..
"YESSS LOTS OF Cadbury Gems "
Her husband was clanking his esperesso machine, filled his cup with the steamy concoction... and turned
She quietly wiped her tear, and looked away
He wandered over to the backyard sliding door, and leaned
The boys were narrating a "morning of bug catching"
She had given them both a glass jar, and tied the top with scraps of cheesecloth, with holes in it
Nandu had a bigger stash...
MM was like a rain forest, or like Deer Park, always lush and moist, with tons of greenery
There were all sorts of creatures
The boys pointed to their jars... there were stalks of leaves embedded in between the creatures, lady bugs caterpillars, even a snail
"Do u want to take it home so u can take it to school tomorrow?" she offered
"YESSS" they chorussed
"Lets take pictures and write a word or two about them?" she asked
AYYYO NO CHITHI" Shravu was ALL ACTION no class room type studying
"Please da, your teacher is going to be so impressed" she begged
Nandu spotted Uncle R, umm.. well she spotted too but she didnt want to spot him
"Uncle R IS HERE" he shouted
The boys abanadoned her lap... R&B looked embarrassed by the attention he got from kids
The couple exchanged a look...
She tucked her imaginary lock behind her ear and sorted the carrots Mahavir had pulled out dusting the dirt off it, it was soggy after all the rains
"Bhayya main yeh D II lekar jaoon?" she asked
He looked at her like
LADY, AM I THE BOSS OR ARE YOU?
"Dho denge na pehle" she sang in his Bihari voice
She nodded
The boys ambushed her husband
"U guys should do finish your project" he coaxed
"U SAID WE WOULD GO PLAY LADDER TOSS" Shravu shouted
He nodded
She walked around the property avoiding him, making a trail of dirt foot steps in the lounge and formal dining
Ranjan watched as she picked up a cleaning mop and swept
"Help ki chhutthi hai kya?" he lowered his news paper to stare.. a quiet MM Sunday, she LOVED those
She chuckled
"Koi kaam nahi karen hum?" she asked
"Daftar kis waaste jaate ho?" he counter argued
"I cant win with u" she smiled
"Uth gaya tera miya" he informed
"Oh?" she lied
He knew she was lying, a minute later when her husband walked by with the boys, and they both exchanged a "look"
"Chithi can I go for tennis to DLTA" Shravu asked
"No kanna u have homeworks and redoing those unit test questions" she reminded
Her husband leaned on the stair rail hands in pockets
"So I cant go?" Shravu was upset
"U can play ladder? toss? but ya" she smiled
"THATHAAA" Shravu yelled
Ranjan smiled smugly "Aaja puttar" he set his newspaper aside
Shravu ran crying
"Meri gal sun raje" he begged
He explained quietly why needs to focus on school and get his home work done
He looked at R&B "Shaam ko le ja" he ordered
He nodded, looked at his wife "See now Shravu is happy, Dad changed the plan"
She wasnt in any mood to smile... she looked away
Ranjan caught that
The boys played ladder toss, she ate brunch, paranthas... and left for D II
Ranjan went off to work
The reporters were still around, one ran up to her Toyota window and tapped as she paused her car to tune her Sun FM
it was hot and sunny... but they didnt care... she didnt care either
"I got all the attention I could handle last nite" "I dont need any more" she cursed as she turned from the gate merging into Nyaya marg
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