The Lustre [On Hold]

chapter twenty-seven

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chapter twenty-seven • so many years... wasted.
Z A R A A U R O R A M A L H O T R A

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"That's so silly!"

Ugh, I've been hearing these waves of laughter back at the kitchen counter because apparently, my mother-in-law decided to bring in some other friends of hers. They've been gossiping about poverty and it's really pissing me off.

It's such a pity I was suddenly hungry in the evening and I wanted to make some pasta for myself.

"Oh my! Is that your daughter-in-law?" One of her friends spots me. Just great.

"Oh yes, come here, Zara. Say hi to my friends." Mahima asked me to greet those three other onion aunties and I did even though I hated it.

"Hey, guys."

"Hi, Zara. Anyway, aren't you the princess of Uttar Pradesh? You seem so simple." One of them comments.

I don't know if that's a compliment or an insult so I just smiled.

"Yeah, I expected her to be a lot more fancy but she seems like a simple girl. And it's a good thing, don't get me wrong." Another one makes another comment.

I just fake smiled. "I'm gonna make something for myself. Be right back."

I found an excuse to walk away and started talking to Karina. "What are they doing in the kitchen?"

"They asked me to make them some light refreshments so they're waiting for it, bhabhi." Karina looks so annoyed. "I really can't take it when Mahima Ma'am brings her friends. They talk crap about everyone all the time."

"How often does she bring her friends over?" I ask.

"Once a month, bhabhi. Usually, she would go to their places. So, only once a month her friends would come over."

Oh, so that means these past three months I've successfully avoided them but unfortunately this month I couldn't.

"Whatever." I roll my eyes. "You continue, dear."

"Alright, bhabhi. Do you need any help?"

"It's alright, Karina. You can focus on their refreshments." I started preparing the ingredients for my pasta but I got truly distracted by the topic they were gossiping about.

"You haven't told us the love story of your son and your daughter-in-law."

"Oh yes!" I hear Mahima's voice. "I don't know much because Raj doesn't share much with me. But I'll let you know from my perspective."

"Sure!"

I became extremely invested. I wanted to know what our love story was like from her point of view.

"So, my son who has never fallen in love before, never goes to girls, never dated anyone, became different one day. It went on for weeks. We suspected something from him and tried to find out. That's when we saw his painting. He painted Zara, my daughter-in-law."