The Deep End Of Ecstasy

13. Strings Attached

Saniya's P.O.V

I slowly peeped into the kitchen. As usual, Maa was preparing the breakfast. "Saniya?" she said without looking behind while I smiled mischievously. No matter how much I tried, a childish giggle escaped my throat. 

Now that she knew it was me I jumped on the counter top. "I'm surprised you're home on a Sunday." she remarked and handed me a tray of sliced apples.  "No plans with Bruno?" she further asked while doing her chores.

"Not exactly. I have a guest today." I informed her. 

"New deal?"

"He is coming for Bruno."

"A vet?"

"No. He wants to spend time with Bruno."

She shifted towards me with a jerk. With great enthusiasm she continued to interrogate, "A friend?"

I stopped chewing for a second and replied, "Uhm, yeah. You can say that." 

"That's fantastic! I will be so glad to meet him! When is he coming then?"

"By 4......" I answered, not very sure of her reaction. "Nice." she exclaimed. "Wait a minute, aren't your father and I need to visit your father's friend later this afternoon?" 

I completed chewing the last slice of apple, "Maa, you know why I did that, right?" I said. She nodded her head, "Because your father isn't home." 

"Please don't be upset with me. I'll ensure that he meets you sometime later." I pleaded when she twitched her nose like a three year old. 

"Promise?" she gave me her hand, with her palm facing upwards. I sniggered as I pressed my palm above it, "Promise!"

"What are you guys talking about?" Di entered the kitchen and progressed towards the water pot. "Saniya has a new friend and-" she started but Di cut her off,  "A friend? Sam and a friend? That's ridiculous unless and until its a pet." she remarked. 

"Don't say that Tanya, she's your sister after all."

"I know. But she's also a star. Stars have only business friends. What do they even know about blood relations?" 

I stared down on the tiles blankly. They must have continued to argue but I could hardly hear a word. Like all times, I was lost in that party. Flashes, flashes and more flashes. I tightly shut my eyes to push away the memories. They slowly and quietly went away without causing further problem.

When I was back in the scene, I heard Di saying, "No, she shouldn't be normal. Not being normal is the new normal for her because she is a SPECIAL child at the end." after which she turned to face me, "Right Sam? Everything is so special and high standardized for you, so why desire normalcy now? Isn't that enough?" 

She was looking right into my eyes. Consequently, I couldn't maintain the eye contact. So I again averted my gaze towards the tiles. "Oh I'm so sorry Sam, I just forgot that your credo is 'Never settle', how can I expect you to be happy at less?" that's the last thing she said before storming out of the kitchen.

Flashes kept flickering in my head. All I could do was, get down and return to the solitude of my room once again. 

 Next I got out, was when Ajey had arrived. For the first hour, he was running and screaming through the corridors and through the garden and through the staircase, up and down, with Bruno chasing and Di repeatedly shouting for him to stop.

What was I doing? Nothing. Just sitting on the couch, enjoying the show. At last, I was instructed by Di to stop Bruno. Now that he felt out of danger, Ajey too decided to stop and take a break.