Chapter 2
"Mama bear... Mama bear... Utho na... (Wake up), the alarm went off... See," a little girl was seen trying to wake up her mother.
"Sone do yaar, Siya... (Let me sleep, Siya)," an extremely tired Akansha said.
"Siya? Mama bear... You should call me baby bear..." the little girl, Siya, puffed her cheeks angrily at her mother. It was their rule that whenever Siya called her Mama bear, she had to respond with baby bear.
Akansha’s sleep vanished the moment she heard the annoyed tone of her daughter.
"Okay... okay... I woke up..." she said, sitting up in bed and leaning against the headrest. "And I am so sorry, my baby bear, that I called you by your name," Akansha said, pulling her little girl into her lap.
She peppered kisses all over her face, neck, and stomach, making the child burst into giggles. A wide smile formed on Akansha’s lips at the sight of her baby laughing so freely.
Siyakriti, her four-year-old daughter, was her whole world.
Akansha had found out about her daughter’s existence when she was at the lowest point of her life and had lost every will to keep going.
The moment she learned she was pregnant, it felt as if a new force awakened within her ruined life and pushed her to make the best of what remained.
So she left everything behind and followed the light growing inside her.
Not once had she regretted that decision.
She had faced many struggles during her pregnancy, and especially while giving birth to her daughter. It had felt as though she almost died. That was why she believed that on that day, not only was her daughter born, but she herself had been given a second life.
Until the day her daughter was born, her past had continued to haunt her.
Thoughts of that one man had never left her mind.
She still loved him then, but after everything she endured that day, all that love had turned into hatred.
She had promised herself that she would never let even his shadow fall upon her daughter.
Siya was currently in Junior KG, also known as LKG. She had recently been promoted from preschool, but her knowledge was far beyond her age. She was a quick learner. If she read or listened to something with focus, she would remember it instantly. She was an exceptionally sharp child.
Akansha loved her daughter to the moon and back. She loved everything about her—except one thing. Siya was the exact replica of her father, constantly reminding Akansha of the one chapter of her life she could never erase, no matter how badly she wished to.
"Mama bear... We are getting late for school... Goooo..." Siya said.
Akansha shook her head at her daughter and got out of bed.
"Okay... now you sleep for some time. I’ll wake you up after I finish making breakfast," Akansha said, making her daughter lie down and tucking her into her unicorn duvet.
It had become their routine. Akansha could rarely sleep through the night, as the nightmares of the life she had lived refused to let her rest. She usually fell asleep only in the early hours of the morning and often missed the alarm.
So little Siya had taken it upon herself to wake her mother every day.
The little girl was a light sleeper, just like her father, and like him, she woke up instantly at the sound of an alarm. Whereas Akansha had always struggled to fall asleep, and Shaurya had once helped her sleep by—
Akansha immediately scolded herself for thinking of him again.
"Only cooking, okayy? You will not take bath before me," Siya warned her mother, pulling her out of her thoughts.
She would throw a hell lot of tantrums if her mother took a bath before her.
Akansha tried to accommodate her daughter's every wish, even if it was silly, but sometimes situations and time did not permit it.
On such days, she would freshen up before her daughter, and those were the moments when her sweet and adorable little girl turned into a monster child.
But Akansha knew exactly how to handle her then.
"Siya... Not today... Now sleep," Akansha said strictly, which immediately stopped her daughter's whining. "That's like my good baby." Akansha kissed her daughter's forehead and slowly ruffled her hair, lulling her back to sleep.
It was only 6:10 AM. Akansha sighed deeply before freshening up and moving to the kitchen.
She made herself a strong coffee and sat in their balcony, sipping it while enjoying the morning breeze.
These two hours, when her baby slept and left her alone, were when Akansha took time for herself.
It was her me-time before the race of the day began.
She then walked to the kitchen, washed the mug, and started preparing breakfast. She was not an excellent cook, only an average one.
In fact, she used to be terrible at it, but for her baby and for survival, she had learned a few dishes and kept repeating them.
Her daughter often taunted her for it, but Akansha could do nothing.
Cooking was one skill she could never master despite multiple attempts.
Her whole life had gone into earning for her family by doing various odd jobs, so she never got the chance to learn cooking or household chores from her mother, nor had anyone cared to teach her.
All she had been was a money-making machine for the people she once called family.
Maybe that was why she had fallen in love with Shaurya so easily, letting her guards down.
But he had betrayed her in the worst possible way, shattering her completely while at the same time building a new her.
Akansha soon finished breakfast and packed lunch for both of them before waking her daughter up.
She prepared a bath for her, and Siya kept playing in her mini tub with bubbles, purposely throwing them at her mother because she was angry that Akansha had freshened up before her.
"Siya... Baby bear, don't do this now... We are getting late," Akansha said, but her daughter blew more bubbles at her, which landed on her face and dress. Siya giggled mischievously, making Akansha chuckle too at her little girl's antics.
"Hehehe, mama bear, take a bath now, or else you'll shmell like soap..." Siya giggled. Akansha shook her head at her daughter's tactics. Such a naughty child she had, exactly like her father. Akansha, bl**dy stop thinking about him, she scolded herself inwardly.
"Okay baby bear, I will... But let me help you first," Akansha said, and Siya bobbed her head frantically.
"Yayyy yes.... I am first, mumma last," Siya cheered, and Akansha nodded, confirming her victory. The little girl was delighted that her mother had acknowledged it.
"Okay, which one do you want to wear? This or this?" Akansha asked, holding up two dresses.
"Bue one... Oonicon... I love Oonicons," Siya jumped excitedly.
"Yes, I know... Now stop jumping, darling.
Let me help you wear this," Akansha said with a soft smile.
Siya giggled at how much she was troubling her mother.
Akansha shook her head fondly and dressed her in the frock after applying baby lotion and baby powder all over her body.
Then she tied her short hair with a matching rubber band filled with unicorns ??, making the little girl the happiest.
After getting her daughter ready, Akansha went for another quick bath. Once she was done, both of them sat at the dining table.
"Nooooo," Siya whined, looking at the mashed vegetables, cereal, and milk placed before her.
"Siya... Come on, eat," Akansha said, holding the spoon in front of her daughter, who kept shaking her head. But one stern glare from her mother was enough, and she quickly finished her meal.
After feeding her little girl, Akansha had her own breakfast, and then both of them began their journey to school.
"Mumma... Can we pwease buy a auto likshaw?" Siya asked her mother while hopping into the rikshaw Akansha had booked for their ride.
"What? Why?" Akansha asked, surprised by her cute daughter's request.
"So that we can go to school on oul auto," Siya said proudly, as if she had just found the solution to all their problems.
Akansha laughed at her daughter. Any child would ask for a car or a bike, but her daughter wanted an auto.
"But I don't know how to drive an auto," Akansha said.
"No ploblem mumma, we will buy drivel uncle alcho...," Siya said, shocking her mother. Well, she did not stop there. "Uncle, will you come with us? My mumma will buy you," she added, giving Akansha a mini heart attack.
Luckily for her, the driver was an elderly man. He only gave a polite smile and ignored the little girl's comment. Otherwise, it would have been even more embarrassing than it already was.
"Siya... Be quiet," Akansha said sternly, and that immediately calmed the little girl.
Her daughter's little stunt brought back some unwanted memories in Akansha's mind.
"This tastes amazing... Bhayya, give one more plate," Akansha said.
"You had enough. You'll fall sick," Shaurya stopped her.
"No one will fall sick because of Aloo Tikki, Shaurya," Akansha argued back.
"I am not paying for that..." Shaurya said, looking at the new plate of Aloo Tikki the vendor had just handed to Akansha.
He knew very well that she had left her wallet at home, and he was her only source of payment.
"Give it back, Akansha," Shaurya said, but Akansha shook her head and started eating one by one.
"Bhayya, I won't pay for this," Shaurya added, hoping the vendor would stop serving her.
Akansha leaned closer to Shaurya and whispered, "Huh... If I had known earlier, I would have made this Aloo Tikki wala bhayya my boyfriend. You are useless anyway, can't even buy me one plate of Aloo Tikki," she taunted him.