Roshni Means Light [Short Story]
She had her back to the room when I entered. She was playing with her toy car, zipping it back and forth on the carpeted floor while making noises that of a race car. She was dressed in a purple onesie, and her curly hair was tied into three ponytails. The minute I saw her, my heart felt like it was melting. Dev walked into the room a minute later, and we stood there by the doorframe, taking her in.
As she was crawling after the loose car, she noticed us. She sat back on the carpet floor, looking confused.
“Roshni, would you like to meet my friend, Piya?” Dev asked her.
He pointed to me and iterated, “My friend.”
She looked at me, and our eyes caught each other. I gave her the biggest grin I could muster and whispered, “Hi, Roshni.”
She became shy all of a sudden. She got on her feet and tottered over to Dev, burying her head into his legs.
“Oh, baby,” cooed Dev, lifting her into his arms. She continued to bury her head into his neck.
We went downstairs, and Dev’s mother greeted us.
“You are joining us for lunch?” asked Asha.
I paused. Seeing me hesitate, she said, “You are joining us for lunch. Dev told me you liked aloo parathas, and I made it for you.”
I smiled and nodded. Asha’s warmth, Dev’s presence, and Roshni’s cute giggles were hard to say no to.
Roshini was still in Dev’s arms, and they were busy chatting about something.
“Dada, but…but…I want to go!”
“You can. But first, you will have to eat. Then take a nap. Then, once it is not so hot outside anymore, you can go to the park.”
She pouted and shook her head. She saw me looking at her, and became quiet.
I went to sit beside Dev, and he tried to get Roshni to talk to me.
“Would you like to say hi?” he asked. Roshni gave a small wave but otherwise, did not utter a word.
“Hi, Roshni,” I said. I was stumped on what else to say to a three-year-old.
“I love your purple dress. Purple is my favorite color.”
She let out a giggle in response.
“What is your favorite color?” I tried asking.
She did not respond. Instead, she looked at me curiously.
Dev asked me something, and soon I was engaged in a conversation with him. After a few minutes, Asha came out of the kitchen to announce that lunch was ready. We moved to the dining table, and Asha patted the chair next to her.
Dev was trying to get Roshini to sit in one of the chairs, but she was wiggling out of his hands, trying to get out. Dev eventually gave up and let her squirm out of his grasp. She ran down the two steps that led to the hall and plopped herself down in front of a toy.
Soon, we were engaged in conversation of our own as we ate. The aloo parathas were delicious. I ate an extra one just for the effort Asha had put in.
I was fishing the pickle out of the box when I noticed Roshni standing beside me. Not knowing what to do, I let her make the first move. She sidled up to my chair and tried to hoist herself up. I lifted her up and onto my lap. She looked up at me and smiled. She then tore a piece off my paratha and stuffed it into her mouth.
“Would you like some curd?” Asha asked her. “Piya, give her a piece with some curd. See if she likes it?”
I did what was asked, and eagerly looked at Roshni to see if she liked it. After swallowing the piece, she looked at me and pointed to her mouth. I couldn’t help but laugh. I looked over at Dev and grinned. When Dev and I were getting serious in our relationship, his biggest worry was how Roshni would get along with me. I was worried about that too. Today, having her voluntarily sit on my lap and ask to be fed felt good. It felt like a small victory.
In between chewing, Roshni pointed to my kurta and said, “I like green.”
