XXIII

"What are you doing to yourself??" Sunita stared open- mouthed towards Rakesh as he blurted out, "you used to be such a strong woman!!......what happened to you.....we are so happy together......and you are loosing over just one shortcoming in our lives?!" Rakesh paused for a moment. Sunita was still gasping at him.







Rakesh turned around, "I'm sorry i lost my cool.....I know you are going through a rough....very rough patch.....but it just.....it just feels like..." he paused, Sunita was still staring at him point blank, " it feels like I'm not doing enough.....we are together, happy, even after so much we went through....." he turned around and pulled Sunita into a hug, "I love you.....I hate seeing you this way". For 10 minutes both of them didn't say a word, they could just hear each other's heavy breathing

Sunita broke the silence, "I love you too Rakesh............thanks for being there f....""Shhhh...."Rakesh interrupted her,"no thanks and please" as he pulled her more tightly towards him. Sunita pushed him away, "hey, mumma must be waiting for us inside!! We forgot about her!" Rakesh sighed, "Yeah...I wish" Sunita nudged him in his stomach, by her elbow, "Hey!!" as they laughed and went inside.

"Oh ..there you are....I was getting worried" Mrs Devi said with a sigh of relief." Its okay mumma, we are good now...lets eat....I like this choupsey.....we should come her often!" All three of them laughed and finished their meal.

XXII

"Hmmmm....I love the smell of Chinese spices...." said Mrs Devi as Rakesh held the door of the restaurant for her, " hurry up Sunita...I'm feeling hungry!" she grabbed Sunita by her elbow. Sunita followed her inside the restaurant.




"Table for three please!" said Rakesh to the waiter waiting next to the entrance. The waiter led the three of them towards their table. They sat down and glanced at the menu. "What will my darling have?" Mrs Devi asked Sunita, "the regular?" She smiled and turned towards Rakesh, " you know Rakesh, when Sunita was young and whenever we had plans to eat out.....she would always insist on going to some Chinese restaurant....and she had the same order every time! " she paused to chuckle, Sunita smiled too. "She would always order American Chopsuey, she just loves it!" " Well, I never knew in so many years!" Rakesh exclaimed, "I'll also have chopsuey today!" Mrs Devi laughed, "Fine, lets all have chopsuey today!" All three of them laughed as Rakesh ordered three chopsuey for the table.

While waiting for the order to arrive, Rakesh was telling his mother in law, the regular course of his job, while she gave comparative responses about her garden plants. A family occupied the table next to theirs and they were a family of four, two young kids. The younger child smiled at Sunita. Sunita couldn't help but smile back at her.

The young girl got up from her seat and came to Sunita. She playfully touched her and smiled. Sunita called her near and started talking to her, where she lived and about her school. Rakesh and Sunita's mother also started interacting with the kid. Their order came, the girl also liked choupsey, she took some from Sunita's plate. Suddenly the child's mother came and said, " Garima....I think you have troubled aunty enough, now lets go and finish our dinner, and let aunty enjoy her meal too....come beta" Garima waived tata to Sunita and returned to her table.

Sunita had tears in her eyes, she just couldn't finish her meal. Rakesh and Mrs Devi insisted her to eat a litlle more, but Sunita couldn't continue any further. Rakesh got up and asked Sunita to come with him, get some fresh air outside the restaurant.

XXI

"It's actually a very caring act on her part " Rakesh nudged Sunita bringing her back to the present time, " coming all the way down here, after how we treated her last time and how she had left the house in anger"

"I know that Rakesh, she is my mother, but I don't want to listen all that superstitious talk again, especially not now" Sunita replied, stirring sugar in the freshly prepared tea.

Sunita and Rakesh went back to the living room, carrying tea for Mrs Devi. "So Rakesh, how is your work?" "It's fine maa"  all three of them didn't know exactly what to talk about.

"Let's go to that new Chinese eatery nearby, that opened 2 months back" Rakesh suggested, a little excited. He thought it would be a good change for Sunita, and three of them might be able to get rid of the awkward silence also, for some time at least.

"Yes, let's try something new, I haven't had Chinese since years, it feels!" Mrs Devi agreed immediately giving Rakesh a wink, she had understood his plan.

"I'm not sure.....lets just stay indoors" Sunita tried to withdraw, she feared doing anything new. "Com'on Sunita, let me treat you both for the new hairstyle I got!!" Mrs Devi chuckled, "doesn't it look fabulous on me" Rakesh and Sunita both had smiles in their faces, and Sunita gave a little nod. Rakesh gave a sigh of relief.

XX

"Superstitions.....superstitions.....superstitions...... is that all you got Mom?" Sunita lost her patience, "I just cleaned a dead animal and all you have for me is this one line....she killed it!"

" Sunita....grow up....open your eyes.." Mrs Devi took Sunita by surprise as she took hold of her both arms in her grip tightly and shook her, " this is what I have been saying since the first day I stepped into this house.....this is what guruji was saying......don't you and Rakesh realise this?"

Sunita paused for a moment, almost giving in to her mother's tight grip, then she shrugged her hands off her, and spoke in a determined tone, "Maa, I and Rakesh, we have no idea who this "she" is, what you both have been talking about. Also we have absolutely no interest in any sort of superstitions, so please just......"

"Just shut up?"Mrs Devi didn't let Sunita finish her statement, " this is what you and Rakesh want me to do, right?.....Sunita I hadn't expected this from you at least." Before Sunita could say anything, Mrs Devi left the room.

Next morning, Rakesh and Sunita went to see her off to the railway station. She didn't want to stay a minute more in that house.

XIX

After a few days, things became normal. Mrs Devi and Rakesh were still not very comfortable around each other, but somehow they were co-existing, with Sunita handling the environment by making their favorite dishes.

"Sunita, the smell is stronger today!" said Mrs. Devi after her daily morning Puja, " I can sense, she is not happy....something's about to happen". "Mom! please don't start again!" Sunita snapped, " I really don't want all that episode to repeat again"

" Sunita...you just never listen to me!" Mrs. Devi took Sunita by both her arms, making her pay attention to her words, " concentrate and smell! You will feel her....feel the smell getting strong". Sunita closed her eyes and and made an attempt to smell, just for her mother's sake. She smelled something really queer, and shook her mother, " whats that smell Mother?!"

"See, I told you....", " Wait...its coming from that side..." Sunita dragged her mother towards the balcony. "Wait beta, let me consult Guruji, she ...whosoever she is might attack us....what will we do then!!" " Oh God Mother!" Sunita exclaimed, rather unpleasantly, "just come with me" She dragged her by her arm.

"Its getting stronger...we shouldn't..." feared Mrs. Devi. Sunita hushed her and proceeded covering her nose with her handkerchief. They entered the balcony. The smell grew multi fold and became unbearable.

"She killed it.....what a bad omen!!" Mrs Devi shreiked in horror. Sunita rushed to bring a broom and dustpan. " Mom its a dead cat in our balcony, no "she" killed it, now you go inside, I'll clean it up"

"Sunita.....cat's death in your balcony......don't you realise what it means...." Mrs Devi shook Sunita by her shoulder. Sunita glared at her, symbolizing her to leave the place, "Ma, its a dead cat, let me just clean the place"

XVIII

Delicious aroma filled the house. Mrs. Devi could smell her favorite gajar ka halwa (carrot halwa) even through the strong smell of her aroma candles. She wondered from where the strong smell of freshly made halwa was coming.

Rakesh paused his favorite song in his mp3 player, his mouth started watering as his nose tickled by the smell of his favorite kachoris. Since the morning, thanks to Guruji's arrival, he hadn't had anything to eat. His stomach growled by the enticing smell of kachoris.

Mrs. Devi couldn't resist further, she paced up towards the door of her room, but then stopped, she just recalled she was angry. "Yeah, I'm angry...still I can go to the kitchen....it doesn't stop me from going there" Mrs Devi said to herself, justifying her act of getting attracted towards the smell of halwa. She gave up her control and rushed towards the dinning hall.


Rakesh couldn't control anymore, neither his stomach nor his watering mouth, he had to have kachoris. He rushed towards the kitchen. As he stepped inside the living room, he stopped seeing his mother in law on the other end of the hall.


Mrs. Devi also stood on one foot, her left foot almost still in the air. She had hastily stepped towards the dinning table seeing the halwa, but then didn't set her other foot down seeing Rakesh. " The halwa is towards this end of the table, and Sunita is also sitting, I should join her.....also why was I angry at Rakesh, again" thought Mrs Devi, and without looking at Rakesh she sat down at one end of the table.

Rakesh also hurried along towards his end of the table, and gave Sunita a wide smile. Both of them attacked the kachoris and halwa. Sunita smiled to herself, MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!