When you smile

Chapter 42

Dev's P.O.V.

Feeling the satisfaction of progress, we eventually return to the yard. I step off the bicycle, and my dad claps me on the back, his pride evident in his smile. "You did great, kiddo. I knew you could do it."

I return his smile, "Thanks, Dad."

As we share a moment of camaraderie, a voice from the balcony calls out, "Well, well, looks like we've got a new cyclist in the family!"

Turning towards the sound, I see my mom and Raj seated on the steps, the photo album still open in front of them. Their laughter is infectious, and I can't help but chuckle at their antics.

Raj grins mischievously, his eyes sparkling with playfulness. "You know, Dev, I've seen a lot of things, but you on that bike... that's something else."

I feel my cheeks heat up, and I playfully roll my eyes at him. "Oh come on, it's not that amusing."

Mom's laughter fills the air, her eyes twinkling with affection as she joins in. "Oh, Dev, you'll always be my little adventurer."

I can't help but smile at her words. "Yeah, yeah, I know."

Raj leans in, his voice dripping with faux seriousness. "You're not fooling anyone, Dev. We all saw the dramatic swerve you did to avoid that pebble!"

I glance at him, my embarrassment turning into amusement. "Alright, fine, so maybe I overreacted a bit."

Raj lets out a triumphant laugh, clearly pleased with himself for getting a reaction out of me. "Ah, the legendary pebble incident-surely it will go down in history!"

My mom chuckles, flipping through the pages of the photo album. "Speaking of history, why don't I share a few tales from Dev's adventurous childhood?"

My eyes widen, and I shoot her a playful glare. "Mom, no, not those stories."

Raj's grin grows wider, clearly intrigued. "Oh, come on, Dev, now you've piqued my curiosity."

Mom's laughter rings out as she begins to recount some of the more embarrassing escapades from my childhood. Stories of how I once tried to rescue a squirrel from a tree, only to get stuck myself. Or the time I was convinced that our late family cat understood my secret language.

Raj's laughter mingles with my own embarrassment, and I can feel my cheeks burning as Mom paints a vivid picture of my younger self. "And then there was the time he tried to build a rocket ship out of cardboard boxes, convinced it would take him to the moon rabbit!"

I bury my face in my hands, unable to believe that she's actually sharing these stories. Raj's laughter is infectious, and even my dad joins in, his smile warm and genuine.
And then, as Mom reaches the end of her storytelling, she fixes me with a mischievous grin. "Oh, and I can't forget the time Dev tried to make breakfast for us all, and ended up with a mess that took hours to clean up!"

Raj's laughter is uproarious now, and I shake my head in mock exasperation. "Alright, alright, you've had your fun."

Dad joins the lighthearted exchange, a mischievous twinkle in his eye. "Speaking of little mess, did I ever tell you about the time Dev decided to paint the living room walls... with his chocolates?"

I groan, feeling a mix of embarrassment and amusement. "Dad, seriously?"

He chuckles a warm sound that resonates with shared memories. "Oh, it's true. I walked in to find the walls smeared with chocolate and three-year-old Dev sitting in the middle, looking like a chocolate-covered Picasso."

Laughter erupts from all of us, the anecdote painting a vivid image in our minds. Raj claps me on the back, his grin widening. "Okay, that's pretty adorable."