Dhaagey: The Ties that Bind Us

4. a little help

"It smells so good!" Arslan whined as he sat on the kitchen island in the Khan Mansion, the pungent aroma of cumin and coriander permeated the air, along with the sound of the sizzling hot oil as Meerab placed the kebabs she had prepared onto the pan. "Why do I have to wait?"

Meerab rolled her eyes as her cousin whined, he had been whining since she had starting shaping the mixture of spices and meat into kebabs, Murtasim's favourites. The same Murtasim who had stared at her like a man starved the previous night, and then left the house before the sun rose, and had yet to come back.

"They're not for us, they're for her Murtasim." Hamza said from where he leaned against the counter, his words causing Maryam to giggle, and leaving Meerab to wonder if her cousin could somehow read her mind. Not everyone knew that Murtasim loved kebabs, so it wasn't that Hamza was making an obvious connection, she had somehow given it away.

Meerab was distracted momentarily by the sound of laughter hitting her ears, the elders who had congregated in the living room chatting about something apparently amusing. Meerab loved how the house was bustling with conversation and activity, her two mamis and mamus had come to visit, bringing with them a plethora of gifts for their only niece as they always did.

Being the only girl on her mother's side of the family meant that Meerab was doted on and treated like a princess by them. Her mamus especially seemed to have a soft spot for her, for to them she looked much like their only sister who they had lost too early. Her mamis also doted on her for they did not have daughters of their own to dote on, the Shah Haveli was a place where they felt outnumbered by men.

Meerab knew that a part of the kindness of her mother's family towards her stemmed from her father's indifference towards her. They pitied her and had no love for her father. When she was a child, they had attempted multiple times to take her with them, away from her father's home, to raise her. But Maa Begum and her uncle had never agreed to it.

Whenever the Shah family came to the Khan Mansion in Hyderabad, the group always separated into two. The cousins found some space to occupy as the adults chatted. In their younger years they had occupied the gardens of the Khan Mansion, sneaking away to play games. In their teens, they found an empty room, chatting and giggling about things as they discovered a new world around them. And now, as adults, they seemed to have mellowed out a little and just found a place where they could be together.

That day they all happened to gravitate to the kitchen because Meerab had mentioned she was making kebabs. Everyone in the family knew that no one quite made kebabs as well as Meerab did. All the elders claimed they tasted exactly like the way her mother had made them, but even better in some way they couldn't quite explain.

She had only made them so often and perfected her craft because Murtasim loved them. He had always sat in the kitchen when she made them, on the counter beside the stove, eating kebab after kebab with a smile on his face. One serving of kebabs got her golgappas for a whole month, whenever she wished. And once he learnt how to drive, it also meant unlimited trips to wherever she wanted to go in exchange of kebabs, biryani, and kheer.

"Where is Murtasim by the way?" Hamza asked, interrupting her thoughts. She looked over to her cousin to find him looking at the watch he wore on his wrist. It was approaching dinner time but as usual, Murtasim wasn't back.

"Bhai is always working late." Maryam sighed. Meerab held back the urge to nod sadly, she barely saw him.

"Poor Meerab." Arslan teased, it seemed like she was too obvious for they picked up on everything. "She must miss him even though they're in the same house."