Our Little Home

25

6 months had passed since Aravind had joined the new company. The job was a fuel to his workaholic soul. This time around he was very conscious about the time he spent with his family. Every Saturday, he would take Sivu to the restaurant and they would help around in the kitchen. Sunday was their day to either spend at home together or go out for cinema and eat a hearty meal. Of course, they wouldn't miss their balcony conversations for anything. Aravind would go on and on about his day, and Sivaanya would sit shocked every time to see how the silent Aravind becomes super talkative when it comes to the things he loves. 

Feeling bored to stay home all day, Sivu had taken a new job at a local nursery to teach little kids how to draw and paint. She absolutely loved it there! She couldn't deny though that the little kids were always up to some mischief and it was exhausting to run behind them on some days. Their night conversations would be filled with the mischiefs of the kids, especially on the days when they would work on painting, as Sivu would return from the nursery with clothes filled with beautiful and tiny hand prints. 

Around 2 months back, Aravind got a little promotion at his workplace which did take a toll on their dynamics. Financially, they were in a much better position and were able to pay off their car loan - something Aravind took even before they got married. However, their time with each other drastically decreased. His time of return went from 8 pm to 11 pm, and sometimes he would return at 2 in the morning. He woke Sivu up to speak with her for sometime in the initial days but later, he felt bad doing so and the couple decided they would spend time with each other during the weekend. 

That didn't last long either when he began working from home during weekends. They would talk during their work breaks and those conversations would last few minutes.

Today, Sivu was eagerly awaiting his return as she had something really important to share with him. A few weeks ago, an eight year old with hearing disabilities had joined her nursery. She refused to speak with Sivu and sat in the corner without doing anything. Today, the little girl remained quiet but give Sivaanya a little star sticker in her hand. Sivu didn't remove it and kept it safe so that she could show Aravind. 

When Aravind walked in, his face looked a bit gloomy but Sivu was too excited to notice it. She immediately ran to him and began tapping his hand, as she conveyed she had some super exciting news. 

"Sivu, please aprom pesalam. Enaku romba tired-a iruku!" 

"2 mins please, Aravind! Na ithu mattum soluren, athuku aprom-ne thungu. Na disturb panna matten."

"Sivu, please! Enala mudiyala, romba tired-a iruku. Nee day fulla summa irunthutu, ipo yennaku tired-a irukum bothu disturb panatha!"

"Na onum daily fulla summa- la ila! Ipo yenna unaku prechana, oru few mins thana ketten. Onnum thevala poi thungu, ana aprom vanthu pesatha." she said, raising her voice a little. 

"Ipo yethuku ipdi kathura. Chumma, daily ethavathu noi noi- nu pesita iruka." he yelled, and walked to their room, slamming the door shut. 

Sivu flinched at the loud noise. Feeling overwhelmed with an unknown frustration and the loud noise. she screamed loudly, before jumping on the sofa, stuffing her face on the pillow as drops of tears began rolling down her eyes. She eventually slept in few minutes and woke up to Aravind sitting on the dining table, eating dinner. 

She felt his gaze on her, as she sat up on the sofa. Ignoring him, she went to get refreshed and walked to the dining table. He kept a plate for her and served few pooris and kept some gravy in her plate, before asking her to eat. She glared at him, and took the poori and gravy from her plate and kept it back in their respective boxes. 

Walking to the kitchen, she took the dosa batter out, made few and placed it in her plate along with some gunpowder. All this time, Aravind kept looking at her, but she ignored him and sat in the other end of the table. 

"Sivaanya, sorry ma!" "Sivu, pessu ma! sorry!" "Sorry, sorry please! Romba sorry, inime ipdi panamatten!" 

His pleas went ignored, as she remained quiet and continued eating. Her teeth grazed her lips, trying to control the tears from falling down. Aravind walked closer and held her hand, before whispering an apology. She pulled back her hand in urgency and stared at him. 

"Sorry ma, inime ipdi katha matten! Yetho oru tension unmela katiten, thapu than ma! Sorry"

"Yen kita ethuku pesura, na than vetla vetti-a iruken! Sir romba busy, neenga vittuku vantha yarum unga kuda pesakodathu, neengalum pessa matinga. Seri neenga tired-a irupinga-nu, nanum yethum pesama irunthu, oru nal.. one damn day.. excited oru vishyam share pannanum patha, yenna pechu!" 

"Ma, sorry ma!"

"Acho, neenga yethuku sorry solringa! Neenga busy ana alu, na apdiya! Na than romba sorry, inime-na ethuvum pesala. Neenga ungalku pudicha madri, vaanga aprom poi thunuga! Oru six months-a intha walls, aprom room-la iruka teddy bear, athuku koda than pessitu iruken, athey madhiri oru ten years enala iruka mudiyum!"

"Sivu, theriyama panten! Enaku teriyum konja nalla na namba relationship-a romba compromise panten, iniku than na realise pannen! Sorry ma, na yetha panna matten promise pannen-no athuvey na panniten! I am really sorry, oru last chance kodu ma!" he spoke and knelled down in front of her. 

She burst out crying and jumped into his embrace. He began whispering apologies, while caressing her hairs. Her whimpers constantly became louder, making him concerned. 

"Oii, sivu ma! Azhatha, please! epdi mochu vangathu paru!" - he dragged her out of his embrace and wiped her tears, placing a kiss on her forehead. 

"Sorry di! Nalliku ne leave potudu! Enala leave poda mudiyathu, athunala oru 2 hours-na poitu vanthuren! Aprom nalliku full day namba jolly-a irukalam!" 

"Last chance! Ithuku aprom epdi yetha achuna, una balcony-ku amchiruven!"

"Seri di, chella kutty!" 

xxx

The next day dawned and Sivu excitedly bid goodbye to Aravind. Once he left, she wanted to surprise him so she learnt a few recipes and quickly made them. She went around the house and searched for a nice blanket that she laid on the table. After placing a few candles and keeping all the dishes on the table, she waited for him to come back. 

Around 20 mins later, she received a message from him stating that he would be home in 20 minutes. She went up and got dressed in a black, satin cocktail dress, and sat on the sofa, waiting for him. 

30 minutes had passed and he wasn't home. She tried calling him but simply heard the usual 'switch off' message. Anxiousness built in her as her mind started building up the worst possible situations. Tears began rolling down, as she feared these situations especially since it had been an hour since his last message. 

The food in the table was long forgotten, and the candles had exhausted themselves loosing their light. Her outgoing calls to Aravind, reached a startling amount of 100. Her heart was pounding loudly, while her tears never stopped rolling down her cheeks. She immediately called Rakshan and asked him to come home, as she couldn't bear the anxiety and felt like she was starting to get panic attacks. 

When the door bell rang, she ran to the door, praying it was Aravind but when Rakshan was outside the door, she collapsed into his embrace and began crying. 

"Papa, azhatha ma! Avan vanthuruvan! Parru lunch time achu, innum nee yethum sapadala! Va ethavathu sapru!" 

"Ila anna! Avaru varatum! Enaku romba baiyama iruku! Ithu varikum phone-la edukama irunthathu ila! Nee enkoda konjam iru, please! Sorry anna, una romba disturb panren!"

"Ada chi! Adichen-nu vechiku! Seri, inga va enmela sangiko! Ethum ila, avan vanthuruven! he spoke, consoling her; while she kept crying in his embrace.

xxx
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