My Sister's Daughter - Chapter 14 - Settling In

It was pretty late when we got home. My mum was waiting by the gate, scanning the road for us.. She hugged me tightly, “I’m so glad you came back." I think she was happy that Pia and I were both going to stay near her.

We left all the stuff in the car boot.. there would be plenty of time tomorrow to unpack. I took Pia to her room, and put her in bed. I thought of sleeping in Pia’s room in case she had nightmares, but decided against it.

I settled down on my bed and before my head could hit the pillow, I was fast asleep.

In the middle of the night, I felt some movement in the room. I opened my eyes lazily and saw Pia standing near the door. I put out my hand to her and wordlessly, Pia cuddled in beside me. I smiled as I remembered the last night Pia had slept in my room and I put pillows around her to make sure she didn’t move all over the bed.

The next morning, my mum came in and took Pia away. I stayed in bed, I needed some sleep and besides, I had nowhere to go. By the time I got up, Pia had already gone to school.

I moved all my stuff to my room except the box Pia had labeled. That, I moved to Pia’s room. I was curious to know what she was going to do with it.

I was scanning through the local papers, looking for a job when my mum walked in. She suggested I see the editor. The local newspaper seemed to consist only of birthdays, weddings and obituaries.

I sighed.. something was better than nothing. I fixed an appointment for an interview with the newspaper’s editor. He had sounded surprised that someone wanted to give an interview for his newspaper. What was I getting myself into?

The day passed quickly, and by the time Pia came, my room was almost done. It had been a challenge to add my new stuff to my things when I was little. Every little toy had a memory attached to it. I couldn’t bear to part with it.

As soon as she came, Pia  ran up the stairs to her room. She stopped dead in her tracks when she saw the box. She took one step near it, and then as though she didn’t see it, marched off in the opposite directed. But I knew she was going to open it eventually. 

“How was school today?” I asked her like any normal mother would have asked.

Pia held out a note. I didn’t know how to react. Should I reprimand her for getting a note or should I be comforting?

I was confused about the role that I was going to play in Pia’s life. Was I going to be the cool aunt? Or was I supposed to be a mother? I didn’t want Pia to think I was trying to take her mother’s place. Neither did I want my parents to think I was taking this responsibility lightly. I had to find a balance and I had to find it quick.

My Sister's Daughter - Chapter 13 - About Pia

“Pia??” I exclaimed. “But she was the one who refused to come with me. She said she didn’t want to stay with me.”

“She didn’t say that..” My father corrected me, “She said she didn’t want to live with you in the city.”

“Oh..” Things were a lot clearer to me now. I could imagine the scene in my head. Pia telling my dad she wanted to go to the city to bring me back. The thought gave me the warm fuzzies.

I turned back to look at Pia, who was still sleeping peacefully.

 “She’s a complicated child..” I commented.

“Can you blame her? She’s been through a lot.” There was a long silence as we thought about Pia. What it would feel like to be eight years old and to watch your parents die. I shuddered involuntarily. My father noticed, and gripped my hand. I could feel his strength flow into me and I relaxed a bit.

“You ok now?” My father asked after a while.

I nodded and placed my hands on my lap.

“Does she talk about it dad?” I didn’t have to explain what that “It” was.

 “No. Never. She just runs away when we bring up the topic. But I’m sure she thinks about it all the time.” He paused for a moment, then he said suddenly, “Pia’s very fond of you..”

I looked up, surprised. We all knew that.

“I know dad.” I was wondering where this conversation was leading.

“She probably sees her mother in you.” I didn’t say anything. I had considered the possibility that Pia didn’t actually want me, she wanted a replica of her mother.

My fathers face softened, ‘’I didn’t mean to hurt you Khushi.. I just wanted you to be aware.”

“Thanks dad.. How is Pia doing otherwise?” I was trying to change the topic. Thankfully, my father went with the flow. “Where should I start? Her academics are down the drain, she doesn’t have any friends, her nightmares are very frequent but worst of all is that she doesn’t interact with anybody.”

I sank deeper in the seat, wondering how I was going to get Pia out of it. I was getting quite depressed with all this talk. I needed something else on my mind.

“Tell me something funny dad.” My dad looked at me sharply. On seeing my state, he began

“Have I ever told you about the time you and your sister ran away from home? ” He let out a loud guffaw. I had heard the story before, but suddenly I felt like listening to it again.

My dad told me a number of stories that day.. Each one of them funnier than the other. This  was the sister I wanted to remember. The one who brought a smile to my face every time I thought of her.

In the middle, I turned around to check on Pia. She was wide awake. I had no idea when she had gotten up. I tried to decode the look on her phase face, but I couldn’t.

 I wondered what all she had heard.

My Sister's Daughter - Chapter 12 - Packing

I walked out of my office feeling free and rejuvenated. I knew I had to go back to complete some formalities, but at the moment, it felt glorious to be out.

I had no idea what was coming next.

“Pack, of course” My father had said, leaving me with the daunting task of wrapping up my belongings.

I enlisted Pia to help around and we got right to it.

It took us one week to pack up the pieces of my life that I wanted to take with me. The rest of the stuff was either going to charity or to the dump yard.

While packing my clothes, I found a cardigan which belonged to my sister.

I held her cardigan close to my cheek; old as it was, I couldn’t bring myself to throw it.

When we were kids, I used to wait for an occasion to wear her clothes. Somehow, she always had better clothes or maybe I just thought they were better because they were hers.

I folded it neatly and kept it aside. Soon, I came across a t-shirt which belonged to her. I was never going to fit into it anymore. Maybe Pia can wear it,  I convinced myself and folded it.

Ultimately, I realized I hadn’t thrown anything of hers. But I didn’t want to. It was a part of my life I wanted to hold on to.

I finally finished packing and stood back to see my handiwork. To tell you the truth, the apartment looked more like a home now, with Pia around, even though it was completely bare. Her constant chatter and running around was making the apartment come alive.

“What should I label this box?” Pia was pointing at the box containing her mother’s things.

I hesitated, wondering how she would react if I told her the truth.“Those are your mother’s things Pia..” I said carefully.

Pia touched the box reverently and then proceeded to write “Not to be opened.” on it. I didn’t question her. Those things belonged to her now. And if she didn’t want to open it, I wasn’t going to force her to either.

“All packed?” My dad had just returned from the garage. The car had been given one thorough check.

I nodded. We were ready to leave. One last stop at my office and we headed off in the direction of my parent’s town.

Pia settled down in the rear seat and I sat in the front with my father. All my things had been stuffed into the boot. Nobody spoke as we left the city for the final time. Each of us thinking about what was in store for us.

After some time, my father increased the volume of the radio and started lip syncing. He was trying to break the awkwardness in the car. I chimed in and encouraged by us, Pia joined in. Laughter erupted as we tried to keep up with the rap that was being played on the radio.

The journey was a long one and I suddenly realized that my father had driven while coming too. That was a lot of driving for a man his age. I suddenly felt guilty for putting him through this.

“Why didn’t you just call me?” Pia was fast asleep now and it was safe to broach sensitive topics.

My father said nothing, merely smiled.

“You could have just told me to come and I would have.” I didn’t believe the words myself.

Finally, I gave up the pretence and said what I really wanted to say, “Thanks for doing this dad, thanks for coming back for me.”

 My dad placed his hand over mine and said, “This wasn’t my idea Khushi.. It was Pia’s…”

My Sister's Daughter - Chapter 11 - Work

I got up the next morning and pondered over my dream. What was wrong with me? I was seeing signs everywhere.

I proceeded to get ready for work. I was a reporter with a local news channel and the most important thing in my profession is being in the right place at the right time. Everything else was secondary.

 When I had decided to be a journalist, I had dreamed of being the messenger of truth. I had seen myself covering news which would impact the whole country, even the world maybe.

 I wasn’t even remotely close to doing that. My current job involved interviewing residents who were pissed off with the amenities in their area. But I had been sure, I’d get there eventually. Although now, I wasn’t sure that’s where I wanted to be.

I passed a couple of schools, some parks and some toy stores on my way to office.. Strange, how I had never paid any attention to them earlier. Its not a sign, I reminded myself.

 I kept checking my phone every now and then. Every little sound made me reach out for my phone. Why hadn’t Pia called? Why hadn’t mum called? I contemplated calling home but I didn’t want to make my absence felt.

I pushed my office door open and sighed.. It was back to the grind for me.

While walking to my desk, my editor called me, “Khushi.. I have a new assignment for you.. Come to my office in five..”

I didn’t even hear what he said.. Pia was sitting at my desk!

I walked slowly to my desk, so sure that she was a figment of my imagination. She was scribbling something in her notebook.

I maintained my distance, lest she disappeared. Pia finally realised someone was looking at her and looked up. She smiled at me, as though it was perfectly normal for her to be sitting in my office.

“What are you doing here?” My voice sounded sharper than I had intended it to be. But I wasn’t in the mood to entertain discussions with shadows.

Pia’s face fell and she ran a nervous hand across her nose.

“Aren’t you happy to see me?”

Shadow or real, I was happy to see her. I poked her tentatively to see whether she was real. I pulled my hand back as though it had been burnt. She was real.

 Concern filled my head.

“Why are you here Pia? How did you get here!”

“I got her here Khushi.. ” I turned around to face my dad.

Pia was laughing at my shock. A little smile crept on my face as I realized what was going on. My dad had got Pia down here as bait!  He must have known, I just needed a little incentive to push myself over the fence.

I was glad he came.

“Khushi..  I’ve been waiting for ten minutes!” My editor came by my desk, red with impatience. He saw my family and his frown deepened, “What is this? A family reunion?”

I looked at the broken pieces of my family and nodded, “Yeah.. It is..”

“Lets go Khushi.. I don’t have whole day..” He walked a little ahead and then stopped when he realised I wasn't following him. 

"Are you coming? or not?"

Suddenly, my career didn’t seem so important, my life in the city didn’t seem important. The only thing that mattered most right now was the little girl who had slipped her hand into mine.

Everything was clear to me now. What I had to do. I gathered Pia into my arms and turned to my editor.

“You know what.. I’m sorry, but I have to go now.. I quit!” With that I walked out leaving a very stunned staff behind. I didn’t care too much. I wasn’t irreplaceable there. There were tens of people who would take up my job in a jiffy.

But I was irreplaceable in Pia’s life.