Iraade

chapter -9

The next morning, sunlight filtered through the curtains, gently waking me. As I slowly opened my eyes, I noticed a pillow wall between Mr. Taragi and me. We had clearly kept our distance through the night, and our pillows were neatly aligned, creating a clear separation between us.

The clock read 7 a.m. I decided to stay in bed a little longer, enjoying the quiet and the calm start to the day. I could see Mr. Taragi was still asleep, his back turned towards me.

A knock on the door broke the silence. I heard Mr. Taragi stir and move, his footsteps indicating he was getting up. The familiar aura and strong perfume of his mother signaled her presence even before she spoke. Through the door, her voice came gently, "Yeh tum dono ki chai aur yeh Divyanshi ke liye kuch kapde hain jo Mishra abhi de kar gaya. Aur yeh tumhara phone hai."

("This is tea for both of you and some clothes for Divyanshi that Mishra just brought. And this is your phone.")

Mr. Taragi responded groggily, "Aap kyun itni tension le rahi hain? Jo kisi servant ko bhej dete, wo sab kuch le aata."

("Why are you so stressed? You could have sent a servant; they would have brought everything.")

His mother replied, "Kyuki mujhe Divyanshi se kuch baat karni thi. Utha do usse."

("Because I needed to talk to Divyanshi. Wake her up.")

Mr. Taragi said, "Aaj aap utha do, kal se main utha dunga."

("You wake her up today; I’ll wake her up starting tomorrow.")

I stayed in bed, listening to their exchange. It seemed Mr. Taragi’s mother wanted to discuss something important with me.

The door opened, and his mother gently called out, "Beta, utha ja."

("Dear, wake up.")

I opened my eyes and saw her standing there with a packet. I sat up and she handed me the packet. "Jeevan chahte the ki aaj ek choti Puja ho. Tum yeh pehno, if you are alright with it, and come down as soon as possible."

("Jeevan wanted a small puja today. Please wear this, if you’re alright with it, and come down as soon as possible.")

I replied, "Ji, jaroor ma. Par iski kya jarurat thi?"

("Yes, of course, Mom. But why was this necessary?")

She said, "Jarurat thi beta."

("It was necessary, dear.")

After she left, I saw Mr. Taragi with a fresh towel in hand. I quickly grabbed the outfit from the packet and went to the bathroom. As I was about to shut the door, Mr. Taragi, who was already moving about, managed to hold it open.

He said, "Dekho, I need to freshen up first. I have important work and woke up first. Let me go first."

I insisted, "No, see, I don’t want to be late on my first day. Please, please," and gently nudged him aside. He laughed and stepped back, allowing me to close the door.

From outside, he said, "There’s a packed brush I kept there last night for you."

I replied with an "Okay," and began changing into the outfit his mother had given me.