CHAPTER 2: Cats and Knives
A Parent’s Perspective ──────────────────────────────────────────── Dhub Dhub Dhub Dhub. Ramesh Venugopal trudged down the hall in his white night kurta. His destination: the masala peanuts packet in the kitchen. His feet plonked on the wooden floor as he stumbled his way through the darkness. His 50-year-old knees creaked like abandoned doors, protesting at the very idea of waking up. The utter blackness in the hall was broken only by the faint yellow glow coming from underneath a door… Ayesha’s door…?? Aiyyo ! She was supposed to sleep 2 hours ago! What is she doing awake at 1 AM when she has to leave for school at 7? When will this girl learn… He continued grumbling about how she probably was on Instagram or some other kachra* until he reached the door. He took a breath, thinking of what he was going to say, and the masala peanuts he was being denied. *Kachra is trash/garbage in Hindi Boom. He opened the door. Red. A flash of red. And then it was gone. “H-hi Appa ...