Did You Get Your Period?

CHAPTER NINE.

"You're right Shweta. I made sacrifices. I gave up my entire life to take care of the two of you and balance my career. And it's tough being a single mother and doing all these things. Do you have any idea how scared I was when I saw you at that medical store buying that pregnancy test? I've watched mothers die during deliveries but nothing scared me as much as you did that time. Do you know why?"

"Because if there was anything I've wanted to do correctly in all my life; it's to parent you both right. To be both your mother and your father. And I was scared that I failed you. That I couldn't be enough. I don't want you to ever go through something as I did. As for it being 'just sex' as you put it, I can assure you it's not. Don't you think I haven't noticed how much you've been moping about that boy lately? I don't want you to get so involved with him or so involved in things like love and romance. Those things can wait until you have a stable job and are financially secure." Seema says, her voice calm.

The girls know this voice. It's the voice of the professional reasoning with hysterical patients. What their mother is feeling has been hiding well and disguised under that cool demeanor. The condescending tone, the holier-than-thou attitude; none of it sits well with Shweta. Those things and the absolutely maddening way in which Indian parents assume that anything their child says is extremely irrational. God forbid any rational argument to take place without being branded as too sensitive and over-emotional.

"Stable enough and financially secure? It's not going to happen until I'm thirty-two! So, you want me to wait until I'm in my thirties before I do anything remotely teenager-like?" Shweta says, her voice rising.

"Teenager-like? Riddhi's a teenager. Your sister was a teenager! None of them ran around with boys and looking for pregnancy tests!" Seema says, angrily. This statement causes Shruti to look away cringing but both her mother and Shweta are bursting with rage to notice.

"Riddhi was there at the store," Shweta says, obstinately.

"Don't be ridiculous! You know exactly what I mean. And all this love drama that you're doing, what is it going to amount to? A good job? You're barely getting good grades, as it is! And you think this tomfoolery is going to secure you all that? Don't you have any dreams, Shweta? Or do you want to sit in a house looking after seven babies while you're pregnant with your eighth?" Seema says, the vein on her jaw twitching with rage.

Shweta's mouth falls open. "Dreams!? How has this got to do with any of my dreams? Of course, I want to be successful and financially independent! But Vaibhav's not a distraction, you know. If anything, you'd have noticed that I scored in the nineties in two subjects more last month! And that was after I met him. But it's not like you notice anything that's good."

"All this is stupid. Must you really act so obtuse? These exams aren't going to count for a penny in your college applications! You need to focus on your boards; that's the only one they see. And considering how you've been moping, you'll barely get by with seventies in your boards!" Seema fumes, her eyes darkening as she speaks.

"How can you say that? Must you always have such a low image of me? And besides, you're so biased! Just because Vaibhav is a boy doesn't mean our relationship is entirely sexual! He's like my best friend! He knows me so much better than you do. And aren't you shaming me for having no dreams? Do you even know what my dream is? Or where I'd like to join after my twelfth?" Shweta says, now shaking.

"Oh, no. I don't. Why don't you tell me about this dream, then? Did you tell me? I don't have the seventh sense of mind-reading abilities that you clearly expect me to have, you know. Kindly enlighten me about this dream that your boyfriend is so supportive about." Seema says, sarcastically. She's glaring at her daughter at the same time.