Chapter 3

Mana

@cynicalities

Ke Raaste Abhi Badal Se Jayenge

Chapter 3: A Hopeful End

After about a week from everything that had happened, things seemed to be going better. Hanuman was keeping his promise, Minnie wasn't complaining. If anything, she had warmed up to him even more as days went by. He didn't know what the mother-daughter had talked about, what Babita had said to finally convince Minnie, but whatever it was, it seemed to have worked. Minnie didn't seem as angry as she was before. He was happy with what he got, he wasn't going to look a gift horse in the mouth.

...

Returning from his job, even as he parked his bike, he could hear Babita and Minnie talk inside the haveli.

"Minnie ye kya karke rakha hai tune? Ab tere Hanuman uncle ayenge to kya kahenge, ye kitni gandagi karke rakhi hai tune?"
"Kuch nahi hoga Babes, main sab saaf kar dungi, tu tension mat le."
"Ke saaf kar degi tu, ke chal raha hai bhai?"
"Hanuman uncle, woh college me ek project tha, woh professor ne bola tha ki pottery try karni hai. To main ye sab le aayi. Lekin woh uthakar upar nahi le jaa payi toh yahi pe arrange kar diya sab. Aap fikar mat karo, main baadme sab saaf kar dungi."
"Nahi, saaf toh tu baadme karegi, pehle yo bata, tujhe aata bhi hai ye sab? Tu jaanti hai pottery, yo matke banana aise?"
"Janti nahi, par wohi toh project hai, ki try karna hai ek baar. Par dekho na, yeh ho nahi raha hai mujhse."

She frowned at the wheel, like it had personally insulted her. He started his usual routine of removing his watch, folding back his sleeves, the like.

"Kyu, ke hua?"
"Dekho na aap, yeh aise wheel ghumake fir uspe iss mitti se pot banana hai. Lekin wheel ghumati hu to uspe kuch karne se pehle hi ruk jaata hai. Ya phir ludak jaata hai. Kya karu main ab?"
"Minnie, abhi toh ghar aaye hai woh, or tune ye kya shuru kar diya."
"Nahi jee, koi baat nahi. Chhori, ruk tu do minute. Main kapde change kar lu, phir dekhte hai kaise ghumta na hai tera yo pahiya. Aata hu main."

If Hanuman hadn't looked up the exact second that he did, he would have missed the conspiratorial smile that Minnie gave her mother. It made him wonder, what were these two up to now? What was happening? He got back to the mess Minnie had made.

"Bol, chhori. Ke problem ho rahi hai tanne?"
"Maine jinse ye laya na, unhone kaha tha ki aise iss dande se pahiya ghumana hai, or phir wo ghumta rahega. Or phir uspe mitti rakhke woh pot banega. Lekin aap dekho na, woh pahiya ghumati hu to mitti ka kuch nahi kar sakti. Mitti pe dhyan du, toh pahiya ruk jata hai. Kaise karungi fir main?"
"Ib ek kaam karte hai, main pahiya ghumata hu, tu woh pot bana. Chalega? Kar sakte hai ke waisa, ya tanne khud hi karna hai yo?"
"Nahi, nahi! Try karte hai na. Aap ghumao wheel. Hum try toh karte hai."

There was that conspiratorial smile again. Really, what was it, he was getting curious. But it was good to see her smile around him again, even if that smile felt like it was at his expense.

Finally, they finished making the pot. Sure it was a little lopsided, and lumpy at places. But it made Minnie happy. And there was nothing he wanted more.

"Dekh, Minnie, ban gaya tera yo matka. Ib toh khush hai na?"
"Veer Balika."
"Ke?"
"Minnie nahi, Veer Balika. Aap se Minnie sunna ajeeb lagta hai, Hanuman uncle. Kitne din ho gaye aapne Veer Balika nahi bulaya mujhe. Minnie mat bolo yaar aap."

So this was what it had been all about. He looked at Babita, but she just smiled at the two of them.

"Gussa thanda ho gaya ke tera?"
"Gusse ka toh pata nahi, Hanuman uncle. I know maine aap se kaha tha humse durr rehne ke liye, distance rakhne ke liye. But maine bohot miss kiya aapko. Aapko pata hai, bohot baar na, main 'Hanuman uncle ko batati hu' aise sochke niche aane nikalti or phir mujhe yaad ata ki main aapse baat nahi kar rahi. Kitni baar toh Babes khud mujhe aapke paas bhejna try kar rahi thi. But aise kaise aa jaati. Isliye ye pura pottery ka plan banaya."

Hanuman turned and discreetly tried to blink away tears, but he had a feeling that he wasn't very successful at it.

"Plan banane ki kya jarurat thi, aise hi aa jati. Main mana thodi karta tanne."
"Aap karoge na baat humse? Gussa nahi ho na aap? Main hug karti aapko, but mitti lagi hai puri, aapke kapde kharab ho jayenge."

That was it. He pulled Minnie into his arms and held on for dear life. She laughed and his heart felt lighter than it had been in days.

Babita put a hand on her daughter's head.
"Aap nahi jaante kitne din se pareshan baithi hai yeh. Aise kaise chali jau unke paas, ab jaungi toh woh mujhse baat toh karenge na, gussa toh nahi honge na mujhpar. Pata nahi kya kya soch liya usne."

In response, Minnie just clutched him tighter. It finally, finally felt like he had gotten his family back.

...

Weeks passed in a haze. Things went back to how they were before. They were happy, yes. Minnie was still bubbly and cheerful around the haveli, Babita still insisted on cooking food for him and Lala, refused to let him make what half-cooked dinner he used to make. But there were also stolen glances. Tiny gestures they made to assure themselves that things were okay. No one was angry with anyone. He wouldn't exactly call it walking on eggshells, it was just a desire to be safe, to be sure. If anything, he blamed it on the issues that were yet to be resolved.

...

One day, Hanuman saw a piece of paper lying on the table downstairs. Seemed to be Minnie's college assignment of some kind. "Psychology Chapter-3" it said on the top of the page. The question on it asked her to describe a fight she'd had with her father.
Should he read it? Was he supposed to? Was it left here intentionally for him to read? Minnie did that sometimes. If she had something to show him but he wasn't around, she would just leave it on the table for him to see when he returned. And Hanuman was curious about this. Out of all the fights Minnie had had with her father, which one had shaken her the most? Which fight had left the deepest mark on her?

Hanuman decided to continue reading. He thought Minnie would talk about whatever had happened in the Khurana household the day the mother-daughter brought Meeta here. It had been terrible to even think about, let alone watch happen right in front of your eyes.

The piece of paper in his hand told a completely different story. It went on to talk about how a fight between Minnie and her father had left them not talking to each other for days. How she had missed him badly during those days, worried that he might not want to talk to her ever again. How she had made a plan to get her father to help her with something, and then had made up with him.

Minnie had written about her fight with him. Minnie had called him her father.

Hanuman looked away from the paper, tried to get a grip on his emotions. It was then he saw Minnie standing close by. She had just realised what he was reading. So she HAD left the paper there accidentally.

She seemed apprehensive about how he would react to this. Hanuman didn't blame her. The last time a piece of paper had said that he was her father, things hadn't exactly gone very well.

But this was not last time. Minnie had accepted him as her father. This was not a time for tears or apprehension. This is was a very happy moment. So he just opened his arms and laughed as Minnie rushed straight into them.

...

But good things never last long. Days later, things looked like they were about to go downhill.

One day, while Minnie was in her usual hurry to leave for college, Babita walked downstairs looking extremely worried and nervous.

"Kirayedarniji, aap itni subah niche? Kuch kaam tha ke?
"Ha woh.. Mujhe darasal... Mera matlab..."
"Babes, yaar, tu kuch bolegi bhi yaa bas sentence start karke ruk jayegi?"
"Minnie!"
"Hua ke hai, koi batayega manne?"
"Woh na actually Babes ko aapse kuch bohot important baat karni hai. Aap late nahi ho rahe na?"
"Nahi jee, late na ho raha main."
"Great! Mujhe toh college ke liye late ho raha hai, main nikalti hu!"

She gave a hug to her mom, ran halfway towards the door, only to run back and give him a hug. And a kiss on the cheek? That was new. She smiled at the both of them and ran off to her scooty.

"Minnie, sambhalke! Dheere jaa beta jara."

Whatever Babita had to say to him, she was very nervous about it. Was anything wrong? Had he messed up something again? He tried to rack his brain, tried to figured out just where he made a mistake. But the huge, warm smile Minnie had given them before she left, and the nervous, shy smile Babita gave him now made him realise that he was worried in vain.

Things weren't going downhill. Things were about to be very, very good.

FIN.

...

Read Chapter 1 here.

Read Chapter 2 here.