A Heart of Stone with a Coat of Gold

Rechristening

This will be a short chapter. Apologies for it.

Jiju - Brother in Law

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Reema eyed the man sitting in front of her quietly as she drank her milk. It had been a few days and she was accustomed to him and his habits. Even her initial hesitation was slowly evaporating. Neel sat across, reading a book and smoking with Aryan in his lap, the kid flapping his arms happily like an odd bird. Anu was in the bathroom taking a shower. The girl kept on eyeing the kid for some more time, till she could have it no more.

"Jiju?" she said timidly. The man looked at her with his blue eyes. "Yes?" came the curt reply from her brother-in-law.

"Can I hold him?" She asked pointing to the kid. He stared at her quietly and then finally said, "Here." He handed over the kid to the little girl. Aryan seriously didn't mind. He spouted some incoherent words and continued in his exploits to fly, the launchpad now being Reema rather than his father.

The girl got bolder with her sudden victory. "Jiju?" she said again. "Yes?" he answered with a sigh. "Why you are so old? I don't feel like calling you Jiju. Can I call you Uncle? It seems better."

The man glared at her but the girl didn't notice, engrossed in playing with the kid in her lap. "You can call me Sir if you have a problem with calling me Jiju." He answered in a cold tone.

The girl shook her hand holding the tiny hands of the kid. "Sir is what we call our teachers." She thought for a while. "How about Heathcliff?" she asked, looking at him hopefully with her puppy eyes. At the same instant, Aryan started jumping in her lap, clapping his hands, in a display of agreement and applause. "Heathcliff it is. Even Aryan agrees." She muttered with a smile.

"Don't let him fall," Neel shouted behind and left the room. He had a big frown on his face.

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Anu sat in her bedroom thinking about yesterday. Both of them hadn't spoken a word since the altercation. She, however, had been trying to decide her further course of action. Should she directly confront the man and tell him she knew? And that she thought how weak and cowardly he was acting. No, she decided. If Shruti hadn't been able to do that in 10 years, she couldn't do it in a month. He was too stubborn. The fool was too much of a man in his own words.

The doorbell rang and Neel answered. He came back with a few brown packages in his hand, which looked heavy. "Anu?" He called. She stepped into the living room. He handed over the packages to her. "These are some of the books for preparation. And sign up for a test series online." He said handing over a credit card to her. "You already know the pin." 

Anu glared at him. Finally, she accepted the books and the cards, without a word. Neel honestly looked surprised. He had expected some resistance at least. She placed them on the table. She took a deep breath and spoke, not directly looking at him. She was still too angry. "Sit" she gestured to the table. "We have to talk."

Neel stared at her for an instant, then sat. He took out a cigarette and lit it, waiting for her. "What is in it?" She asked noticing another package on the table, one which Neel hadn't handed to her. "Just some second-hand novels," he answered tersely.

 Anu noted it. When she had been going through his bookshelf, all the books were flimsy and yellow-paged. Not a single book with white pages. She had been surprised, surely the man could afford newer ones. She pushed the random thought at the back of her head and continued.

"I will give the exams but I have a condition." She told him, her elbows on the table, her fingers crossed. 

"What?" He asked as he took a puff.

"You will not pay the fees. I will take a loan jointly in your name. Then I will pay it when I am earning." She took a deep breath. "You are a smart banker, Neel. Surely that's a better investment. Wouldn't you agree?"

Anu looked at him directly in his eyes. She expected to see some anger, some reluctance to her offer. On the contrary, he looked simply amused.

"Fine," he said and got up to leave.

"Wait. I have some more." She continued. He looked puzzled. "It's Reema. She needs to continue her schooling."

"You have my credit card. Find a school and pay the fees with it." He said, his tone sort of matter-of-factly.

"That's it. I have my home which I am going to sell. Reema's education will be on that money. I just need some help in finding a good school." She said, the determination evident on her face.

Neel was shaking his head, as if unable to believe the woman sitting across. 

"I will ask some of my friends." He said and ambled to the exit, leaving behind a cloud of smoke. He looked back as he left. Anu's face was hazy. 

When it cleared, if Neel had been there, he could have seen Anu smiling.

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