A Pocketful Of Sunshine

Chapter 8

It was twelve-thirty in the afternoon when the carriage carrying Selena, Selvamani, and Mayamma entered the 'Bethlehem Farm' gates. Selena noticed a brand new black Fiat lying on the porch that announced the arrival of her uncle and family.

'Oh, God! Mayamma, Uncle Richard, and family have arrived,' Selena jumped off the carriage and rushed towards the house carrying her bag. Mayamma ran towards the kitchen door and sneaked inside while Selena walked towards the front door. She suddenly realized that she had the roses given to her by Shyam. To avoid unwanted attention that might lead to unnecessary questions, she quickly put the same in her bag and opened the door.

As she entered the house, she could hear the loud talk and laughs from the parlor. She strolled towards the parlor and saw a middle-aged gentleman in a three-piece suit standing near the fireplace with a glass of whiskey in his hand. He had a handlebar mustache and had combed his gelled grey hair neatly.  Selena identified the gentleman as her uncle Richard. A lady in a red sari was sitting on the couch with her hair styled like some movie star with red roses attached to her hair right above her right ear. Sitting next to her on the sofa was a fat girl with two pigtails dressed in a frilly white frock munching cupcakes, while another girl in her early twenties sat next to Mrs. Alexander dressed like a model. She wore a peacock blue tight churidar kurta (a type of Indian attire) with her hair in a stylish bun with no flowers on it, unlike the older lady she identified as her uncle Richard's wife, Martha. On sensing Selena's arrival, Glory gave a friendly bark and ran towards her, wagging his tail and diverting everyone's attention.

'Here comes our darling Anna,' Mrs. Alexander announced proudly and smiled at her.

'Hello everyone, I am sorry I got late at the market,' she apologized and walked towards Mr. Alexander, sitting on his favorite armchair. She sat on the chair's arm as Mr. Alexander patted her back lovingly.

'Anna, that's your uncle Richard,' Mrs. Alexander introduced Richard to Selena, who smiled and nodded.

'Hello, Uncle,' Selena greeted with a smile.

'And that is your aunt Martha, and those are your cousins Sophie and Sarah,' Mrs. Alexander introduced the rest of the family. Her aunt and cousins seemed less interested in her and gave a curt nod.

'So how are you, Selena?' her uncle's voice boomed from the corner of the room.

'Very well, Uncle Richard,' she replied shyly.

'Mamma, don't you think Maria looked exactly like Selena when she was her age?' Richard observed after giving a hard look at Selena.

'Yes, Richard, she does remind me of Maria,' Mrs. Alexander wiped a tear that just came up in her eyes hearing the name of her dead daughter.

'We no more call her Selena. We call her Anna,' Mr. Alexander patted her back again and looked at her lovingly.

'That's what we called Maria,' Richard replied with a smile and took another sip from his whiskey.

'Hope she doesn't acquire the qualities of her mother, though,' Aunt Martha commented sarcastically, which offended Mrs. Alexander, who tried to defend her daughter. Finally, however, Mr. Alexander gave her a stern look that forbade her from saying anything further.

'Anyway, time to have lunch. Let me check if Mayamma has set the table,' Mrs. Alexander excused herself and went to the kitchen.

The telephone ring broke the awkward silence in the parlor. Mr. Alexander got up and answered the phone.
'Hello, Yes son... how are you?... Yes, Anna is right here,' Mr. Alexander cupped the telephone speaker and called out, 'Anna, it is your father on the other side,'
'Father! Oh, wonderful,' Selena got up and ran excitedly towards the telephone and took the phone receiver from Mr. Alexander.
'Father... Father... How are you? I am so sorry I couldn't speak to you the other day,' she spoke excitedly with tears in her eyes. Selena continued with the call while Mr. Alexander returned to his seat and talked to his son and family.
'So, Sophie dear, how was your term in London?'
'It was great, Grandpa,' Sophie replied with a fake British accent and smiled at Mr. Alexander as she picked a cookie from the plate on the wooden center table.
'I am sure you had an exciting time studying there,'
'Oh yes,'
'More than studies, she learned a lot about social etiquette and how to conduct herself in public,' Martha added and gave a proud expression looking at her daughter.
'By the way, father, we have good news to share. Sophie got engaged to a very charming young man. His name is John he studied at the same college as Sophie's back in London. We are thinking of a formal engagement ceremony around New Year's. What do you say?' Richard said, dusting the tobacco from his smoking pipe into the ashtray and pulling out a tin from his coat pocket to refill.
'Engaged?' Mr. Alexander exclaimed, 'So soon? Isn't Sophie too young to get married?'
'Come on, father, she is twenty-one now, and I got married to your son when I was barely eighteen,' Martha chipped in.
'Moreover, father, John is a good boy,' Richard remarked, puffing from his pipe.