Chapter 10
Shaurya was cutting fruits in the kitchen while Siya sat on the slab beside him, instructing him, and he, like a good friend, followed all her instructions.
"Alle... cut small small pieces, uncle...", Siya instructed.
"Okay, okay... sorry", Shaurya said, cutting it into two. "Is this fine ?", he asked.
"Aul chota (aur chota / even smaller)", she said, and he cut it again.
"This should be fine", Shaurya said, slicing the apple piece once more.
Siya slapped her forehead.
"Isse bhi chota ? (even smaller than this ?)", Shaurya asked, surprised.
"Yes... this small", Siya said, showing with her fingers.
"Siya bache... apples aren’t diced this small. Have it like this, I’ll help you eat...", Shaurya said, but Siya shook her head.
"No... mumma cuts it into small small pieces... Mumma scolded Licha aunty badly because she tlied (tried) to feed me like this", Siya said, pointing at the slice in his hand.
"Okay... okay, I’ll make it smaller...", Shaurya said, dicing the slice further. Finally, Siya was satisfied looking at the size. Shaurya sighed in relief, but it was short-lived.
"Eww... this is vely haad (very hard)", Siya made a face as soon as she put it in her mouth. She looked around, searching for a place to spit it. Shaurya smiled at how well-mannered she was for her age. He extended his hand, asking her to spit it out, as he couldn’t find a tissue or a cover.
She shook her head—her mumma had told her it was bad manners.
"It’s okay, bache... I’ll throw it and wash my hands...", Shaurya insisted, and she complied, unable to tolerate the hardness and raw taste. Akansha always gave her boiled apples to help her chew and digest.
Shaurya returned after washing his hands.
"Mumma gives choft (soft) apple", Siya said.
"Huh ?", Shaurya looked confused.
"Choft... choft...", Siya repeated, acting it out. Then Shaurya realized she meant soft. God, understanding a four-year-old’s vocabulary was sometimes difficult, he thought.
"How does she make it soft ?", he asked. “Did she mean rotten?” Shaurya added playfully, the thought slipping out before he could stop himself. He realized his mistake the moment he saw the little girl glare at him.
"My mumma doesn’t give me lotten (rotten)... you ale (are) bad... don’t talk about my mumma like that... Siya doesn’t like it, she will get angly (angry)", Siya said, upset.
"It was supposed to be a joke, Siya bacha... why would I say anything bad about your mumma? I know she is a wonderful woman... I’m sorry.
..", Shaurya said. Siya nodded, forgiving him for now, though she was still upset. She couldn’t tolerate anything against her Mama Bear; she was very protective of her.
"Sorry, Siya bache... forgive me this one time. Don’t be angry with your friend, please.
..", Shaurya said, holding his ears. This time Siya giggled at his gesture.
He smiled back and mentally noted not to slip like that again.
He cursed himself—he was always mindful of his words, but this one lapse nearly cost him his bond with her.
"Okay, so how do I make this soft? Any idea ?", Shaurya asked. Siya blew a raspberry, signaling she had no idea, and he chuckled. Just then, Mrs. Sudha walked into the kitchen.
"Ah! Thank God you are here, Mrs. Sudha... please tell me how this apple becomes soft...", Shaurya said, explaining the situation. Mrs. Sudha laughed.
"You have to boil it, Shaurya. Simple... let me do it", she said.
"Boiling an apple ?", Shaurya asked, baffled.
"Why are you reacting like this? Considering your culinary skills, I thought you knew this...", Mrs. Sudha remarked. He was, after all, a great cook who experimented with different cuisines whenever he got time.
"I’ve never heard of boiling an apple though", he replied.
"Children her age can’t digest raw apples easily.
They’re hard to chew and digest, so many mothers boil them.
Cooking the apple breaks down the fiber and makes it easier to digest, avoiding stomach aches", Mrs. Sudha explained while preparing it.
Shaurya watched keenly, noting it for future reference.
He shook his head at himself—learning this as if he had a family in the future. He had lost that chance when he lost his wife. The hope of having a family now rested only on finding Akansha, seeking her forgiveness, and bringing her back into his life—which, at that moment, felt far from reality.
Not knowing that the future he longed for was sitting right in front of him, making faces at the apple slices he had cut.
Mrs. Sudha gave the finely diced, cooked apple to Siya, and she had it happily. Shaurya smiled in contentment.
"Thank you, Mrs. Sudha...", Shaurya said.
"Yes... thank you aunty...", Siya said, giving Mrs. Sudha one of her wide smiles. Mrs. Sudha’s eyes suddenly widened at the striking similarity between the child and Shaurya, but she quickly shook the thought away.
"It’s nothing... no need to thank me. In fact, I should thank you, Siya beti... because of you, your friend stepped into the kitchen after a long time. Otherwise, he got so busy that he forgot his favorite hobby completely...", Mrs. Sudha said.
"What?", Siya asked, confused, not understanding the remark.
"Siya bacha... the thing is, I like cooking a lot, but because I am busy with office work...", he started.
"Boling(boring) meetings?", Siya interrupted. Shaurya chuckled at her words; she remembered what he had said that day.
"Yes, because of the boring meetings, I couldn’t cook much, so Mrs. Sudha is upset", Shaurya said.
"Oh! it’s okay... when you get time, then cook aunty’s favolate(favorite) food, she won’t be upsettt, collect(correct) aunty?", Siya said, just like her mumma.
"Correct, Siya beti", Mrs. Sudha said, smirking at Shaurya.
"Mrs. Sudha... aap bhi na... using my little friend against me, huh...", Shaurya said, and the elder woman laughed.
After Siya finished her fruits, they both went back to the office and played for some time.
In the evening, Richa came to pick Siya up.
Shaurya specifically warned his security personnel not to allow Richa inside, even though she had come to pick Siya up.
He was well aware that she wouldn’t leave her investigative instincts aside, and he didn’t want to risk anything.
Since it was evening, he didn’t have to worry about the heat.
He asked Shweta to take Siya to the gate and hand her over safely to Richa.
"Bye Siya bache... will meet you soon...", he said, and Siya nodded, kissing his cheek and hugging him tightly.
"Bye uncle...", Siya said and went with Shweta. Shaurya didn’t want to let the little girl go. No matter how much time he spent with her, he wanted more. He couldn’t bring himself to let her go.
He felt a strange connection with her. With Siya, a little piece of his heart, which he thought he had lost along with his wife, seemed to return to him.
He prayed to God to let him have at least this little girl in his life.
Richa picked Siya up, and they both practiced what to tell Akansha on their way. They reached home, and Richa immediately informed Shaurya of their arrival via text, as his secretary had asked her to. They both sighed in relief when Akansha wasn’t home yet.
"Okay... little girl, tell me, what did you do all this time?", Richa asked Siya after they settled down and changed into their pajamas.
"It’s seclet(secret), I won’t tell you", Siya said, and Richa made a ‘Haww’ face.
"Hehehe... I will tell you, I’m joking befole(before), hehe", Siya giggled, looking at Richa’s expression.
"You little mouse...", Richa said, tickling her. Siya had just started narrating what they did the whole day when Akansha walked in.
Siya jumped into her arms. Akansha quickly detached herself, saying she hadn’t freshened up yet. Richa asked her to go freshen up while she made something delicious for dinner. Akansha was very tired and couldn’t refuse the tasty food her friend cooked.
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Days turned into weeks, and weeks into months.
Akansha felt relieved that her life was moving smoothly, without any interaction or involvement of Shaurya.
She was also glad that Siya had stopped asking to meet him.
Akansha silently thanked God, believing her daughter had completely forgotten about Shaurya—or so she thought.
Richa helped Siya meet her friend Shaurya from time to time. Though those meetings were occasional, both Shaurya and his little friend made sure to make the most of every moment they got together during those months.
Akansha was also relieved that her unsettling neighbor, Shekhar, hadn’t bothered her at all. In fact, she learned that he hadn’t been troubling his wife or daughter either. His wife had mentioned this when they met at the vegetable market a few weeks ago.
"How are you, Kavita ji?" Akansha asked.
"I'm fine, Akansha," the lady replied with a genuine smile.
"Good to see you smiling like this after a long time, Kavita ji. How is Sneha?" Akansha asked.
"She is good too," Kavita answered.
"Did she save my number in her phone or not?" Akansha asked further.
"Yeah, she did... she respects you a lot for thinking so much about her, and I do too. But you don't need to worry anymore, he is behaving nice with us these days," the lady said.
"These days? That means you do agree that he used to abuse you at one point in time, huh?" Akansha asked, and all she got was silence in reply.
"I don't understand how you can live with a monster who tortures you and your daughter... anyway, take care and protect your daughter. Let me know if you ever need any help," Akansha said.
After getting a nod, she left from there.
She sighed before getting back to her work—packing lunch for herself and her daughter. She silently hoped Shekhar wouldn’t hurt his wife or daughter in any way, or she would personally break his bones; she swore it.