SOLDIER

Chapter 3 - Two Beginnings

One day, Ravish called from the hospital and told his sister that Sanvi was going through labour pains. It was pouring outside, so Prisha and Arjun took Ravish’s second car and drove down to the hospital with Samaira. On the way, Samaira, who was tracing the path of rain drops as they rolled down her window-pane, innocently enquired, “Will the baby get wet in the rain?”

Prisha smiled back at her and assured her that the doctors would take care of her mother and the new baby. The creases on Samaira’s worried face smoothened and she went back to her game.

It wasn’t long before they reached the hospital and went in to Sanvi’s room to see the most beautiful baby boy they had ever seen.

Prisha wondered when it would be her turn to celebrate.

x-x

On a pleasant Friday evening, Prisha and Arjun stepped out for dinner at the famous Indian restaurant run by Barvesh uncle in Garki, Abuja.

The hotel-cum-restaurant had been started in 1995 by Barvesh uncle’s grandfather, who had come to Abuja for work. The walls were a kaleidoscope of northern and southern cultures from the Indian sub-continent: from Warli stick figurines to Tanjore paintings. The award-winning eatery had become a haunt for the many Indians who made their homes in Nigeria and the many other non-Indians who had developed a fancy for food so different from their own.

As Prisha walked in to the restaurant, her eyes went as round as saucers, and she told Arjun, “This is beautiful. It’s almost as if we are back home!”

A front-desk attendant welcomed the couple and showed them to their table. Scrolling through the photos they had taken of the baby boy on her phone, Prisha observed, “Such an adorable child, na? And his eyes look exactly like Ravish’s but his smile is definitely Sanvi’s.”

As they were cooing over the photos, a smart-looking waitress approached their table, dressed in a royal blue sari, and asked them for their order.

“We would like four butter naans and one butter chicken,” said Arjun, without even looking at the menu. The two dishes were their favourites and they would eat nothing else when they went out.

“Yes, sir,” answered the waitress, as she walked away. 

After the waitress had gone, the two were left to their own thoughts. Hesitantly, Prisha asked Arjun whether he had thought about what she told him earlier about adopting Daniel.

“This is important to me, Arjun. I researched the orphanage and it’s a well-funded organization. The children are taken care of well and sent to good schools. The school term is coming to an end and the children will soon be up for adoption again,” she explained. “In fact, the orphanage is celebrating their ten-year anniversary in two weeks’ time. It was reported on Vanguard News. We should attend it.”

Arjun’s face darkened and he didn’t say anything. They had had this discussion many times and he had always refused for various reasons but Prisha’s heart had been set on a child.

“Prisha, I have told you why I disagreed with this many times before. Adopting a child is a long, strenuous process in our country itself; it will be ten times worse adopting a child in a foreign country. At this point, I don’t even mind if we adopt some child back home but doing it here is crazy. We don’t even know the adoption laws!” he said, trying not to sound as frustrated as he felt.

Prisha continued as if she had not heard him. “I already spoke to Ravish and he gave me the number of a family lawyer who could give us more information on the adoption process. I also contacted the orphanage to confirm if Daniel had been adopted yet.”

Almost pleading, she added, “Baby, tell me you want to do this with me. We aren’t the only ones who can’t conceive and we won’t be the first to adopt either. The child may be Nigerian but I already feel a connection with him.”

Arjun pushed his chair back and left the table. He needed some fresh air. Walking towards the exit, he stopped in front of a three-foot-tall flower vase that had been placed in the middle of a small, decorative garden. On its right side, up against the wall, there was a humongous fish tank with many coloured fish in it.

He couldn’t stop thinking of how desperate and determined Prisha had looked as she was telling him about wanting a child. He wanted to make her happy but just the thought of all the subsequent stress terrified him. What if they weren’t ready for a child yet?

As he was lost in his thoughts, he noticed two cichlid fish swimming side by side. One was bigger, while the other was smaller and seemed to be glued to the bigger one’s side. It had to be a sign, he thought to himself. His ancestors were sending him a message: he needed a younger one beside him to guide.

He rushed back to the table. “Do you still have that lawyer’s number?” Though surprised, she handed him the business card her brother had given her. “Let’s go see that lawyer on Monday and he can guide us through the adoption process.”

Prisha was so overwhelmed by his unexpected excitement that she burst into tears of happiness. Arjun hugged her and wiped away her tears. The charming waitress who brought the food to the table was the first recipient of the good news.

“I am having my first child!! Everything is amazing! Nothing can be better than it is now!” squealed Prisha. Assuming that she was pregnant, the waitress congratulated the beaming couple.

The rest of the dinner went by in a blur and the two couldn’t stop talking about their decision. It was the most romantic dinner they had had since they had gotten married, Prisha would tell you later.