PART TWO
(read the previous part if you haven't)
xxiv-B| There is a tiny-little-small problem

━━━━ ♛ ━━━━
ISHAAN
━━━━ ♛ ━━━━

I was almost about to leave the terrace when I had seen something very strange. Something, that left me with one more sleepless night.

A person decked up in a black outfit, escaping the college premises. I had tried to catch him but the time it took to reach the ground floor had allowed the person to escape easily.

From the built, it was a man. Tall almost my height, but I couldn't see his face.

Now, at 8 in the morning, I am on my way to the one place where I am petrified to go. My hands shake as I drive to the white bungalow.

In the next ten minutes, I am here sitting inside my parked car staring at the board and the gate across the street.

Before I go inside I dial Kabir's number hoping that he picks up his call.

"Hey!" His voice was cheery as always.

"Hey."

"I am nervous," I say without giving him the chance to question.

"Why?"

"I can't go inside. She-"

"Ish, don't do this to yourself. You know how she'll react and how tender her situation is. Move your ass and go inside."

"Okay." I cut the call not arguing or contemplating the matter any further. I get off the car, locking it and walking towards the huge gate with a whiteboard hanged.

'Nirmala Vridh Aashram'

(Old Age Home)

I walk on the stone pavement, knowing where exactly I am supposed to go.

The home was like a colony, four small buildings facing each other, a small white bungalow, the garden area and the hall.

It was a mini town.

"Ishaan." I hear a gentle voice, stopping me at the entry of the garden area. I beam at the lady, she wasn't very old but her body looks weak, slumped but the face always carries a smile.

"Tripti Ma." I touch her feet conveying my greetings.

"How are you?"

"First class, what will happen to this young Aunt of yours huh?" She laughs and I smile at her words.

Her face's smile suddenly vanishes and she looks at me, her face now holding a soft expression of sympathy.

Which I certainly hate.

"I know what the doctor said."

"Hmm.." I try refraining myself from talking because I can't. I just don't have the strength to discuss it, anymore.

"You are luckily here at the perfect time, she is there." She points at the farthest side of the garden where three wooden benches were aligned facing each other.

I notice some young children in the garden and around those benches.

"These children?"

"School Picnic Visit." She informs as she smiles admiring the little kids running and playing with the other housemates. I know all of them, known them since I was a child.

Ma used to bring me here every Friday to make me spend time with them.

'It will do nothing but increase the sense of vulnerability in you. You'll understand how to find happiness in small things. You'll learn the art of true living.

I slowly walk towards the benches, Tripti Ma following behind.

As I walk towards it, the flashes-the memories hit my mind all over again.

The screams, her weeping, her bruises, the blood.

'We couldn't save her...she had hit her head. There was a lot of internal bleeding in the time taken to bring her to the hospital. We have checked her body..she has whipping scars. We are sorry.'

My breathing is rugged as I try to clear the fog of that dooming night.

'Officer, the incident has-'

"Ishaan there she is." Tripti Ma finally frees me from the chain of my thoughts as I raise my gaze to the lady sitting on the bench.

"Ba-Ba Ba-Ba black sheep have you any wooooooooooooool." She laughs with the children who laugh along.

"M-my choco! Who took my choco! You!" She points at one child and then at the other.

She is sitting with children surrounding her as she talks to them excited and happy.

"Aunty, Mama tells me to not eat chocolates!" One kid complains.

"Hawwww. Come here," her voice suddenly diminishing in a mere whisper.

"Why?"

"Shhhhhhhh." Pausing she keeps her finger on her lips. Looking around as if searching for somebody."Top Secret." She announces and again repeats her sentence.

"Nirmala-" Tripti Ma disturbs her peaceful conversation possibly trying to help me when all I do is just stare at the lady in front of me.

"Nirmala see who is here?"

Her gaze shifts from the children to me and her eyes widen while she stands clapping her hands.

"Ish Ish Ish..choco?" She waddles towards me her eyes filled with expectations.

I smile at her, removing the three bars of chocolate I had bought on my way.

"I have them-"

"Yesh-yesh." She claps her hands in joy looking at me.

"But I will not give them to you," I announce jokingly when her eyes tear up almost immediately.

Her lips pucker out and shiver, hands tremble as she starts taking deep breathes noisily.

"You want them?"

Nodding her head violently, her gaze again on the chocolates I am holding in my hand. Her tongue sticking to the corner of her as she drools at the sight of these chocolates.

"One condition," I speak gesturing the number one with my finger.

"I want a hug, first." And immediately she throws herself forward, her hands around my torso.

I hug her back, resting my chin on her head. I whisper," I miss you Ma."

Like a timer, she springs back and snatches the chocolate from my hand, quickly peeling off the wrapper and munching it.

"Nice?"

"Very. Yum. But-" She stops eating and looks at me confused.

"Who you?" She examines me.

"You know me.." I try.

Her eyes narrow upon me, and then at the chocolate.

"I no know you." She whines and stamps her feet on the grass. She looks irritated and troubled as she puts pressure on her brain to recognise me.

"You don't know me." It comes out more like a question than a statement, I intended to make.

"Nirmala go sit with them." Tripti Ma guides her to the bench and Ma starts eating again.

"Ishaan, I want to talk to you." She looks at Ma," Not here."

I follow Tripti Ma, glancing back the only family I am left with.

I want to be here, stay with here want to do nothing but stay here. I don't care if she knows who I am but I want to be with her. Near her, talk to her, listen.

Just be near her.

"Ishaan, she is doing well here. I know the doctor said that her becoming back normal is almost not possible. But, she likes it here. An entire year and she has found her peace here."

"Peace." I sigh and continue, "I hope she has it. She saw her daughter dying in front of her, she was tortured, beaten ruthlessly. She doesn't remember a single thing of her life. How can she be at peace, Tripti Ma."

"It pains me to see her like this, it hurts..you know it hurts when she doesn't recognize me when I am like an ordinary stranger for her. It pains. It pains badly. I failed her, didn't I?" I continue.

"Ishaan your mother has been a warrior all her life. How can you think that she isn't strong enough to face everything and anything? She was a pillar of your family when your dad had died serving for the country. She always held her head high-proudly. Your sister ran an NGO and her son is an officer. Which mother would not be proud of her family?"

"Niharika died when I could have saved her. Saved Ma from this phase, from this pain."

I didn't.

I failed.

"Stop giving yourself the credit for everything. Niharika died because she had challenged the gang by saving the children those goons were trafficking. Your mother was kidnapped because the goons wanted to take revenge from your sister. You being after them was never the reason behind the happenings of that night. Your sister's death was a brave one. She died for those young souls, Ishaan. She saved the lives of those young souls. You think, your mother would have blamed you for this if she was mentally and physically fine?"

I look at her silently. I have no words to describe the guilt, hurt, the sadness I feel.

"Ishaan, your mother built this home for people like us-who have nowhere to go in our old age. Now, your mother lives here with us not because she doesn't have a home but because the years she had spent making this beautiful home for us, she contributed every single thing she owned. This place is our home, but for her, it is her baby. She finds peace hers because this place has her soul. Your mother has you and this home and I know she'll live very happily here no matter what."

━━━━ ♛ ━━━━
INAAYAT
━━━━ ♛ ━━━━

"So guys we'll be almost reaching the farmhouse. Also, my grandmother is extremely strict about her rules. For her, a new day begins at 4 AM only and not at 12. So once we reach you all can relax, eat, we can spend time and sleep cause the real celebration would be tomorrow morning." Garima tells us as I look at her with my heavy eyes.

I have slept the entire journey while the others sang, talked or ate. I love my sleep and would never lose any opportunity to grab it.

Currently, I am sitting next to Garima who is squished between Mishti and me.

Nikhil had taken the passenger seat while Ishaan and Sameer were thrown back, not literally.

True to his words, Ishaan hadn't attended the college today and reached the campus only when our cab had arrived.

For a change (Thank God for that) he had shaven his beard not completely but a little more than stubble and very less than his usual look.

"Here it is," Mishti announces giddily. She is very close to her maternal grandmother. It was her grandmother who had brought her up as both her parents are working.

"Am-mama." She beams and I don't fail to notice the word she used to address her grandmother.

[Ammama- maternal grandmother]

The car stops outside the gate and we all get down. The driver helps us getting our luggage from the roof of the car.

Mishti and Garima guide us inside the huge property. A farmhouse is a refreshing place. It is on the outskirts of Mumbai which saves me from getting caught in my city.

It has a huge garden area filled with varieties of different coloured flowers and trees. I am admiring the beauty when Mishti calls my name and I see how I am the only one at the gate while others are in front of the farmhouse' door.

I walk towards them receiving a mock gaze from Ishaan which I return with a sneer.

The door opens and a lady comes outside and suddenly I cannot breathe anymore.

Mishti and Garima hug her tightly while I stand there with my eyes as wide as an owl's.

"A mamma, these are my college friends," Mishti says as she starts introducing us to her grandmother.

"And this Aayat." She says pointing at me.

The lady looks at me, shocked like I am. Her mind probably has a thousand questions and I don't even have one reply to answer them.

"A-ayat?" She repeats my name as a question.

Gulping I nod my head, "Yes."

"I see." She says her face stern and a crossed look adorning it now.

"Come inside, please." She warmly welcomes us but my legs feel like they are stuck to the ground. I stare at her, the lady. My mind scared and worried.

Slowly everyone enters the house, and I start moving as well, but I fail to notice the small step at the entrance and almost plant my face on the ground.

A hand encircles my waist and stops me from hitting the ground. I am pulled back up slowly and Ishaan looks at me holding back his chuckle.

"Don't laugh. I need to tell you something very important." I whisper so that nobody hears it.

He passes a questioning gaze but still agrees.

"You both go and get freshen up in your rooms, I'll show your friends their rooms"

Mishti and Garima walk towards the left corridor while the lady then guides us to the right one.

One by one she shows us our rooms, Nikhil and Ishaan share one room while Sameer and I get our rooms.

I quickly shut the door behind me, not sparing a single look at the lady whose glare was on me the entire time she allowed us our rooms. I walk from one end of my room to the other, almost pulling my hair at my fucking good luck.

I wait for Ishaan because I am sure his curiosity will bring him here soon, it is like the time was waiting for me to say this when there is a knock at the door.

I quickly open it and pull Ishaan inside the room closing it back again, almost woman-handling him.

"What?" He asks.

"Uh-"

"Say?"

"There's a small-tiny- minuscule- little problem." I start and he lets out a frustrated groan.

"Now what?"

"Mishti's grandmother-"

"Yeah.."

"She is my actual like a real like the previous-"

"Say Inaayat."

"She is my universities' principal. And she for sure knows that I am not Aayat."

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What is an unusual thing you did this lockdown?

I personally, chopped my own hair short.

*shhhhhh*

FACT- mumbai was never on my plot schedule but here we are. Might as well use my own city's knowledge in my book.

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