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"What happened? I put the cooking on the stove! The girl didn't eat yesterday, so I'm making a few luchis ( puri) for her and your father. I've kneaded the dough and put the curry on the gas!" Siddharth looked at his mother for a moment and said...
"Alright, go turn off the curry! Then I'll tell you! It can't be done like this—you have to listen to everything with a calm mind!"
Arpana Devi frowned at her son once, then went into the kitchen. After a short while, she turned off the burner under the curry, tore off portions of dough, and started rolling them into balls. Just then, she saw Siddharth—fresh from a bath and wearing a sleeveless vest and shorts—walk into the kitchen, place the dough balls on the rolling board, and start rolling them out...
"What are you doing!? Stop it, I'll do it!!"
"Quietly make the dough into balls and set them aside to fry; I'm rolling them out!"
"Ugh... you're something else! Say, where were you last night?! At Raju's flat, right? You didn't eat any of that junk meat again, did you?!"
"No! You just fry them! Otherwise, if the luchis get too soft, they won't puff up!"
Arpana Devi understood very well that her son was dying to tell her everything; that was why he came to help so she could be free quickly. Of course, Siddharth was quite good at rolling and frying luchis and rotis! Siddharth rolled out the luchis in no time, while Arpana Devi fried them up. In about twenty minutes, the frying was done. Storing the puffy luchis in a container, Siddharth washed his hands and led Arpana Devi to his room.
"Now tell me the real story!"
"Your daughter is dating a loafer... here is the evidence!" Siddharth said through clenched teeth, showing her the chat logs and call records on Orna's phone!
"What are you saying?! Oru is dating...! Say, she never goes anywhere alone outside! Then how...?"
"Facebook! They met through Facebook! I mean... Oru is so naive that she is dating a guy through Facebook...! She should have been kept under tighter reins, you know, Mom!"
"Sidhu!! Oru is gradually growing up; she has her own opinions. We can't keep imposing our decisions on her in every matter like this!"
Hearing Arpana Devi's words, Siddharth's eyes flared... Staring into Arpana Devi's eyes, Siddharth seethed, "Then what are you trying to say—that I should just sit back with my hands tied? Mom, yesterday Oru lied to you and went to meet that guy at Sizzling, sitting there holding his hand... and you're telling me to stay quiet...!"
"So what will you do—impose your decisions on her this time too, just like every other time? Will you snatch away everything she likes, just like always?! Listen, Sidhu, I don't want any interference from you regarding this! I will discuss this matter calmly with your father!"
"Oh, and what will you two do then?!"
"We will make inquiries! If the guy is suitable, we will hand Oru over to him!"
"That will never be possible!" Siddharth replied in a cold tone!
"Then what is possible? What you harbor in your mind—is that possible?! Things don't work like that, Sidhu, don't do this! You will suffer, Oru will suffer, her entire life will be ruined! Can you even imagine what will happen to us in society?!"
"Mom!" Siddharth's voice dropped to a low whisper as he looked at his mother with pained eyes! Everyone might be right—you can fool the whole world, but perhaps you can never fool a mother's eyes! He could clearly see that Arpana Devi had understood the feelings in his heart a long time ago! But Siddharth was helpless; he hadn't tried any less to break free from these feelings!
"Try to anchor yourself elsewhere, Sidhu. You are getting older; as parents, we have a duty toward you. If you like someone in your own field, let us know, or else we will try to find someone suitable ourselves! We will get you married to her! After that, we will arrange Oru's marriage! Since she loves someone right now, keeping that in mind, we will look into that boy. If he turns out well, we will get them engaged! Once Oru grows a bit older and stands on her own feet, we will tie the knot between them! But before that, we will get you married!"
Crash! A sudden loud noise shattered the air. Arpana gasped in shock as she saw Siddharth pick up a glass vase from the cabinet and slam it onto the floor! Siddharth's tan face had turned a deep red with rage. What did it matter if he was usually quiet since childhood? His anger and stubbornness were extreme, and as time passed, they only seemed to intensify. Luckily, Chayan Babu had gone to the market this morning, so the sound of breaking glass didn't reach his ears. As for Oru's room, it was four rooms away from Siddharth's.
With trembling hands, Arpana Devi walked up to Siddharth and placed her hand on his cheek, whereupon Siddharth pulled Arpana Devi into a tight embrace...
"I can't take it anymore, Mom. I can't bear this pain, I won't live much longer!"
"Sidhu! You shouldn't say such things, son! That's why I'm saying—we will get you married and bring home a beautiful, lovely bride who will wash away all the sorrow in your heart and love you dearly!"
"I don't want anyone, Mom..." he was crying! Siddharth's voice choked, and Arpana Devi felt a dampness on her shoulder! She realized her son was weeping...!
"No matter who loves me, Mom, my pain won't go away in this lifetime." Swallowing hard, Siddharth released Arpana Devi, turned around, and said, "What did you think, Mom—in all these years, did I not try to break free from this feeling? I didn't even hesitate before taking that ultimate step with many women, hoping someone might leave a mark on my heart, hoping someone might free me from this torment! Now I feel disgust toward myself, but today I have made my decision—it's do or die now! I will handle Oru's matter entirely myself—every bit of it!"
Replying in an excessively cold voice, Siddharth walked out. Behind him, Arpana Devi stood watching him leave with disbelief in her eyes—it felt as though her carefully built home was falling apart!

To be continued........