Fasaana

EIGHT

It's like I got this music in my mind
Sayin' it's gonna be alright.

*************

"It is not like she is worthy of earning a single penny."

Rizwan's words rang in Zoya's ears as she googled for a job vacancy in the laptop she had borrowed from Aarti. Sehrish was asleep, while Aarti had gone to attend a wedding with Rohit. They insisted for Zoya to come as well, but she refused. She wanted the couple to have their own time without her third-wheeling, and Sehrish might have gotten uncomfortable there as well.

After an hour of scrolling, she found nothing even close to decent. Every good job demanded at least an MBA degree. A random thought came into her mind. Maybe she should get an MBA degree. But she shrugged off this thought as quickly as it entered her mind. She couldn't possibly start studying again. She had a two-month old who needed around the clock care, the university fees, full-time classes, it was way out of her reach.

While these thoughts were running in her head, she had subconsciously googled MBA.

"All I am saying is they could have had garlic mushrooms on the menu." Aarti's crying voice came just a second after the main door opened. Zoya hurriedly shut the laptop when she saw Aarti sobbing.

"What's wrong?" She asked, while Rohit just sighed.

"They didn't have garlic mushrooms at the wedding." Aarti said while wailing loudly. Pregnancy hormones.

"And she has been crying about it since we left the venue. I even tried finding it online but most of the restaurants are closed at this hour." Rohit said while giving his wife another tissue.

"Don't cry. I will make it for you tomorrow." Zoya tried to calm her down.

After a lot of effort, Aarti finally stopped crying and agreed to sleep. Rohit took her inside. Zoya also decided to call it a night. Picking up Sehrish, careful not to wake her up, she went to her room as well. The laptop stayed on the living room table.

Next morning, Rohit had an early morning meeting, so he left earlier than usual. But before leaving, he ordered five packets of mushroom for his wife which arrived within an hour and Zoya started with the cooking.

While Zoya was in the kitchen, Aarti took the laptop kept on the table and opened the flap. And the page opened in front of her was the google search for MBA since Zoya had forgotten to shut it down last night. Aarti's eyebrow raised in surprise as she eyed Zoya working in the kitchen.

Half an hour later, garlic mushrooms were served to Aarti. She took a bite and chewed as Zoya looked at her expectantly.

"It is good." Aarti said with a smile.

"Really?" Zoya asked and took a bite herself. But as soon as the taste hit her, she frowned. The garlic was burnt, the salt was missing, and the mushrooms weren't completely cooked.

"I am sorry." Zoya sadly said, as she remembered all those instances where Rizwan was telling her how bad of a cook she was.

"Hey," Aarti held her hand, "it is not that bad."

"No matter how hard I try, I just can't get one great meal out of these hands." Zoya frustratedly said.

"Come on, Zoya, you're a decent cook. Yes, not very great but it is okay. Some people are just not made for cooking." Aarti knew Zoya was very insecure about many things, cooking being one of them, thanks to her soon-to-be ex-husband. He never left any chance to make her feel worthless.

Aarti put cheese on top of the mushrooms and microwaved it for a few minutes. The cheese added salt to the dish and those extra minutes cooked the mushrooms through. Then they sat down to eat it together.

"Zoya, can I ask you something?" Aarti said while twirling her fork on the plate.

Zoya nodded.

"Do you want to do an MBA?"

Zoya stilled for a second.

"I know you wanted to do it before marriage, but aunty didn't let you. But you can do it now." Aarti suggested.

"I don't know." Zoya said, " Yes, I have always wanted to do it, but with Sehrish, it is impossible."

"It'll be tough, sure, but not impossible." Aarti added, "The classes would be for a couple of hours. She'll be with me."

"It is not a matter of a few days. Two years is a long time."

"So what? In a few months, there will be another child as well," Aarti said while palming her belly, "Both the children would be raised together. And Malti would be there to help me."

Malti was supposed to join work from last month, but unfortunately she slipped in the bathroom and broke her leg. So she was on bed-rest for a few weeks. As soon as she heals, she'll be moving in with them.

"But.."

"No ifs and buts." Aarti shut her, "You've lived all your life according to other people. I think it's high time you do what you actually want to do."

That night, Zoya sat on her bed, staring at her sleeping daughter. Pursuing the degree would be tough, but she was ready to work hard to make her and Sehrish's life better. Aarti and Rohit were there to support them, but she couldn't be dependent on them all her life. She needed a means of income, and she needed a good one. So that she could fulfill all the needs and wants of her daughter. As she would grow up, the expenses would grow as well. The gold jewelry that she had brought with her wasn't going to last forever.

And so, the next morning, she told her decision of pursuing further education to Aarti and Rohit, who were really happy.

The next thing she did was give Rohit her jewelry to exchange it for cash. When that was done, she visited a bank and opened an account in her name for the first time in life. All the cash was deposited there, and she also learnt online banking from Aarti.

Then the books for CAT were ordered from an online shopping app. The MBA entrance test was in five months. And she had to put in her heart and soul into it if she wanted a good college in Delhi. She didn't have an option to choose college outside the city, given her situation.

Here goes nothing.

Bismillah!

▪️▪️▪️▪️▪️▪️▪️▪️▪️▪️

Those who don't know what CAT is, it is an entrance exam for MBA.

Also, there would be no update tomorrow because I've got an exam.

Don't forget to vote this up.

Also, comment, guys.

.
.

Almost forgot, the lines are from the song 'Shake it off'.