Solace In Love (Season 2) ✅

E.3. The Offer

"Sir, please try to understand my situation, I can't leave her with anyone. I have been through a difficult situation ones already, which I have already narrated to you as well.", Said Sidharth.

"Look Sidharth, I'll tell you an unwritten corporate norm. We don't hire female employees for the job you do because we can't afford to let them go on maternity leaves for months and pay them unnecessarily. We don't have to invest in childcare facilities as well. To show the government that we are giving equal opportunity for all genders we do conduct interviews but hire females for lower level jobs only. If we don't give facilities to ladies, how can we consider giving you the facilities, you being a man?", Says his boss.

Sidharth was infuriated learning about the discrimination but right now he had a bigger problem in hand. How would he manage Aadhya and work simultaneously, he thought.

"Place her in a daycare while working, Sidharth. Lot of them do this. You aren't the only person with a baby in the world.", Suggests his boss after observing him lost in his thoughts.

"Hmmm..", nods Sidharth and walks out of the office with little Aadhya.

He googles for a day care centre nearest to his office and visits one. As he entered the centre, he saw a familiar lady sitting near the reception.

"Hi Sana", he greeted her.

"Hi", she greeted him back and looked at the little baby adoringly with a smile.

"What a pleasant surprise! I never thought we will get to meet again. Is your baby also enrolled here?", He asked.

The smile on her face fades.

"I have come here for an interview for a position of baby sitter.", She says looking elsewhere.

"Sorry. It just slipped out of my mind that there can be people with other purpose as well who visit this place.", He said feeling mortified. He observed her forehead which had a small bandaid. It had been 5 days for the incident now.

"How is the wound? I am sorry for that day.", He apologized again.

"I am fine. Please don't embarrass me by apologizing over and over for the same incident.", She said.

"Oh! I am sorry.", He said. She stared at him for apologizing again and he grinned with a sorry face.

Aadhya's cry saved him from further discomfit. He picked up the crying baby and tried comforting her but she was a crying mess. He tried pushing a feeding bottle into her mouth in vein. He placed a sheet on the couch and opened her diaper but it wasn't soiled.

"What's wrong baby? What happened? What do you need?", He asked her in distress.

Sana who was observing him, felt pity looking at his helpless face.

"Can I?", She asked forwarding her hand offering him to hold Aadhya. He looked at her. He was reluctant to hand over the baby to anyone and always denied them but then he remembers of how she risked her own life to save Aadhya few days back.

He nodded and passed the baby. Sana gave a warm hug and patted her back gently while humming softly. He was taken aback to find Aadhya immediately calm down in her embrace.

"Wow! I am super surprised.", He said

"She might have had a bad dream.", Said Sana

"Huh? She is a tiny baby. How can she dream?", He asked curiously.

"Babies do dream! Even the unborns dream in mother's womb. Probably it's just them missing their past life. After all we are all soul. So they just need some love and comfort to calm them when they cry all of a sudden in their sleep.", She said with a smile.