I was her playmate at home for every day, and she didn’t forget that even when lot of people were ready to play with her. As soon as she completed her sentence, I seized her cheek with my lips and said “happy birthday khushi” along with a big dairy milk I bought with the pocket money given by mama. For the first time she kissed me back, even when I didn’t ask for the one, as she was joyous on looking at it. As soon as she pulled her chocolate, she started unwrapping it, but mom stopped her in the midway for khushi has to brush her teeth before that. Khushi handed her teddy to me and said “don’t give it to anybody, we will play after my brush” while mom was dragging her towards the living room.
But, mom dragged me as well, coz I too forgot to brush my teeth looking at my relatives drama in the living room. While she was pulling my right arm, I pushed my left hand towards the bed to get the teddy back into my arms, as my little sister asked a little help for looking after it. Khushi allowed no one except me in touching her toys (not even me some times, when we fight with each other), as she was grownup playing with me since her childhood. Mummy dragged me a little far away from the teddy, leaving me no choice that to shout at her to stop dragging me (I hate her dragging me always, just imagine, as soon as I wake up from the bed, she drags me to brush and bath. She does this in functions, theatres, and also on the roads even. I am a kid, not a robot to catch up with her speed. I always shout at her for this, as she hurts my hand every time she drags me with her tight grip).
Hearing my shout, she let me go free from her hand, and I walked towards the bed and picked up khushi’s teddy. I locked her in the cupboard and then I walked towards mom, as she was staying right where she left my hand free from her. I shout at her for dragging me every time, but today, I added a little more voice to it than the regular. I felt sorry for doing that, so I walked to her and disclosed my inner sorry before her for the first time, angling my hand to 900 for her to grip and drag again. Mom bended on her knees, turned my face towards left and planted a strong kiss on my right cheek. “Don’t be sorry, I am sorry for dragging you. I am so mean. I think it’s out of my habit son, but I will try not to do so from now on. You said so many times that it hurts when I pull you along with me, but I didn’t listen to you. Sorry beta, I won’t hurt you from now on.” Said she, with about to escape tears on her eyes.
“Don’t worry mom, it doesn’t hurt me, I just wanted to hide the teddy, coz khushi would kill me and also the person who touches that. Look, nothing happened to my hand” said I, for which she replied with her tight hug.
While everyone was busy with their own work of preparing dishes for the evening party, I and khushi, along with my cousins and some other kids played with toys and balloons, roaming around the house, disturbing everyone with our hide and seek game. We played and played, till the sunset, with lunch and breakfast in between the play, with some chocolates, laddoos, mixtures, and so many other verities along with the play. Large amounts of rice and chicken were being cooked behind the kitchen, while we were getting ready for the birthday party. Dad didn’t celebrate her first birthday grandly, as a far relative died just two days before her first birthday. I heard it secretly when mom asked for a reason for this grand party. Every year, dad celebrates our birthday with only a limited number of people, but this time, as the wedding event is nearby, every relative was present in my hometown, he wanted to celebrate khushi birthday grandly.
Dad always brings new pair clothes for three of us, ignoring whose birthday it actually was. I put on my pair of clothes, a combination of blue jeans and a half sleeves red t-shirt. I combed my hair neatly, powdered my face fair enough as there would be a photo session along with the celebration. Everyone was waiting for khushi, some along with gifts. Kids were looking at the cake box like a bunch of rats looking at the lump of cheese. Tables were arranged on the bungalow as well as in the garden, with a white cloth and dishes over it. There were around two hundred members I guess, from which 25% of them were dad’s and mom’s friend’s families, 25% were neighbor families and 50% of near relatives, from which 12.5% stayed in our home for the wedding whereas remaining 37.5% stayed in there near relatives home I guess. Dad lost his patience on looking at the waiting guests in the garden before our house, which is lit up with a high focus light beneath the tent, while so many ladies were getting ready and torturing khushi to make her look like a little angel among the guests.
Everyone was awestruck, forgetting all their long wait, as she worth it to make people wait a little more than their long wait. My little sister would perfectly fit for an angel, as her little sari added so much weight to her beautiful face. She was smiling at the guests with her dimple cheeks while mom was carrying khushi in her arms towards the stage. I was so lost in khushi’s attire, as I can’t even figure out my mummy’s blue sari at first sight. Khushi spread smile across the entire guests, and the first one to smile was dad I guess, as he was looking at his beautiful daughter in a sari, while her shoulder length hair was dancing at the rhythm of air. I tried to touch khushi’s hand, walking along with mom towards the stage, but she pulled it towards her and stuck her tongue out, for which I acted sad. She ignored me and started to smile at the guests (she was smiling at the presents I guess).
As soon as mom reached the place where cake was arranged, dad pulled khushi away from mom towards him. He planted a tight kiss over her two dimples, for which she replied rubbing her cheeks and her bangles made a gentle clink sound while doing so (she does it every time someone kiss her on the cheeks). Dad almost forgot it was her birthday and started playing with her, ignoring everyone, till mom tapped him over his shoulders and bought him back to senses, only after unboxing the cake and arranging all small candles along with a five shaped multicolored candle over the cake. The candles started to sacrifice themselves to generate enough luminous, among which she looked like a golden kindle.
Khushi blew all the candles even before anyone asked her to do so, when dad bended on his knees for khushi to reach the cake and cut it. The candles might have wished for her bright future silently before they surrendered themselves at the gush of air at them. The cake is a big one, with a red rose and “HAPPY BIRTHDAY KHUSHI” over it, which resembled a little rose pinned to her hair just a little above her right ear. Dad and mom held khushi’s hand, where a knife is wrapped in between to cut the cake. Everyone clapped and a birthday song is heard in background (like a korus in the church when a wedding takes place). Khushi made a funny move before cutting the cake, as she licked it with her finger before cutting, everyone burst into a little laugh. Mom held her other hand this time, with a fear that she would spoil the cake.
Khushi sliced the knife through the cake, as my parent’s hands played a navigator role in directing the knife towards it’s present destination. Khushi tasted her cake again, but, she doesn’t have to lick it this time, as dad plunked a perfect piece of cake to occupy her babbling mouth while mom kept herself busy at dividing the cake into small pieces, to serve the guests. Khushi asked mom to feed her the cake in her unknown language, as every corner of her mouth was occupied with the cake. Khushi loves sweets, and she loves cake too more than sweets and a little less than Ice-creams and chocolates. That love towards the cakes made her chew faster and faster to intake more amounts of cake. Mom stubbed a little amount of cake into her mouth and kissed her on the bulged cheeks.
My brother fed khushi a little more amount than my mother, but, I followed dad, coz I tucked a large amounts of cake into her mouth, to take a revenge on my little devil, as she made everyone to scold me sometimes for her mistakes, which she throws over me smartly and innocently. Even when dad or mom comes to know that khushi did a mistake, they just scold me as I am responsible to stop her from doing naughty thing, as I was her brother. It’s just like a transfer job, and I feel it so as my brother bared me when I was little, so I was left with no choice than to accept every blame and bare my devil sister.
She always shows her tongue to me, whenever I ask for something like a chocolate or her favorite dish, but no one knows about the lies that dance under her tongue. She was innocent, she was decent, and she’s a nice and cute little kid, for everyone. But when u look at her with my eyes, she’s arrogant enough to beat me, selfish enough to book me before mom, devilish enough to eat my chocolates, but, she’s also cute enough to support me sometimes, loving enough to play with me every time, caring enough to stay with me when mom or dad scolds me. Yes, she’s my devil, my cute chubby devil (most of the times).
Before she finished her grinding session, people started to reach the location, to bless her with akshantalu (a mixture of turmeric powder and rice, mixed well to bless someone in every occasion, which is a tradition in Andhra Pradesh) and stubs of rice flowers (just to add some color to the blessing event). Every function looks the same for people outside the family, as they wait only to bless, present a gift, take some food and go to home. Everyone’s mouths might have filled with enough water on looking at the dishes, as everyone started coming towards khushi at a time.
Dad invited every family to participate in the photo session, as no one has to get hurt and gossip at his back that “he didn’t even invite me for the photo”.
The photographer took too long adjusting everyone perfectly with sentences like smile please, ma’am bend your head slightly, sir remove your hands from pockets, kids! stand before your mom, blah blah blahhh… the photographer kept on repeating these sentences, while khushi was smiling at the size of presents. Most of the aunties kissed her cheeks while blessing her a long life, which I guess khushi can’t understand. As soon as a gift reaches her little hands, she tried her best to unwrap it before mom pulls it away from her. In the meanwhile, I was nowhere to be seen, as I was busy with my friends, whom I meet only on such occasions. The moment when a last picture with the guests got clicked, khushi received a green signal to unwrap her gifts, as mom tried her best to hold her for too long.
“Annayya annayya, come, I will show you my gifts” khushi called me with a mixture of excitement and cuteness spread across her face, which I can be able to recognize at her sweet words. She started pulling me towards the bedroom, as if I forgot the way towards our bedroom. Like a driver pushing horn to alert vehicles in front, she horned “move move” with her high pitch voice while she was pushing everyone in the midway with her little hands, to reach her destination quickly. Every corner of her brain tank was filled with the fuel of excitement, so was mine, on looking at my exited little sister in her little sari. She tried her best to run even, but her sari put a break to her legs.
We had a comfort feeling ride among the heavy traffic of aunties and uncles, as we were exited to look at her gifts (I guess “our gifts” fits perfectly in place of “her gifts”). While we were making our way through, people stopped khushi with their hands, which looked like a tollgate, but they paid the toll tax, by spoiling khushi’s cheeks with their damn kisses. Finally, we reached our treasure baring lot of mid stops for kisses and pinches over khushi’s cheek. The gifts were screaming at khushi silently to unwrap them fast. The toys must be waiting for their goddess (khushi) to let them free from the boxes, so that they can play with khushi in this heavenly world, along with their toy family. She felt so happy while opening the big one, which is presented by mama. She tore the cover unevenly with her fingers like a lion. The box reviled an image of a big sized car, whose steering is shifted to a remote controller.
“annayya look, it’s a remote car. Yay yayyy” holding the car in both her hands, she started to jump all over the bed, as she rejoiced to a maximum limit on looking at it. We played with it for some time, till she kicked a gift with her leg by mistake while playing. One by one, we unwrapped every one of them, which were around 20. While we were busy playing with the new toys, mom busted of door open, to call me and khushi for a photo session, I mean, for a family photo. My sister ignored mom and continued her play, leaving mom with no choice than to lift her in her arms and take her forcefully towards the garden. She shouted to let her down, but mom shut her mouth with a toffee, two in one hand and one in mouth.
As khushi was in her sari for the first time, dad wanted to capture her into a frame, just to look at his beautiful daughter in a sari, even when she grows up into a girl. He has a habit of preserving a maximum number of memories and moments into an album. The photographer struggled with khushi with all his patience, to make her pose at the camera like an angel. After her photo-shoot, he captured her along with dad, one while dad kissing her cheeks and other when khushi kissed his cheeks. The photo session continued its journey through mom and my brother, and reached me just after 30 min. from khushi’s first snap. I was busy with my other friends having ice-creams along with them, while khushi was posing at the camera, licking her lips every time she looks at me eating the delicious vanilla flavored ice-cream and sometimes running away towards me to taste her favorite. I fed her with my spoon lovingly, as she always asked me innocently. I made my pose kissing khushi, but the photographer begged khushi to kiss on my cheek, but he failed in his job. So, I was left with no choice than to bribe her with an ice-cream, for which she does anything back then. After a lot of struggle, the photographer clicked what he thought of, with a wide grin across his lips, as his struggle ended at last. In the end, mom called mama, as he was one of my family. The last photo is a family photo, for which dad hugged all of his family bending over his knees. Only Three days in a year he hugs three of us along with mom, which always resembles a picture perfect family.
The train jerked, so were my thoughts, bringing me back to the present, with big khushi still sleeping over my shoulder. I looked at my mobile, as a little sunlight filled along the run, to make me realize it’s time for me to pack up and get down the train, as it would reach my destination within five minutes or so. “Khushi, it’s time for me to get down” I spoke near her ear, caressing her hair with all my love.
She woke up slowly twinkling her eyes, saying “let me sleep for 1 minute, please. I didn’t have a pleasant sleep since you left me” she said adjusting to sleep over my shoulder again.
I woke her up forcefully, as the train can hold herself for only a minute at my station. I tied my shoes, while she was busy packing my luggage. She walked with me, carrying one of my luggage in her hands, to give a sendoff. “ok khushi, take care of yourself for me, and also take care of your luggage for yourself. I will miss you for sure, for one week. But, I promise I will call you regularly.” Said I, hugging her lightly with my left hand.
“ok annayya, take care, and please don’t forget to call me regularly. Ok na. I will miss you.” Said she, with all her sadness clouding her chubby innocent face, which reminded me my little khushi.
I didn’t say about my live dream, as I thought of penning it down to present her what we dreamt for in common. I wish the train journey could extend a little bit. As soon as I reached the exit point of my station, a message tone dragged my hand towards pocket, which read
“love you so much annayya, started missing your presence by my side. Thanks for all your care and love towards your little sister. Take care”
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