A/N: please comment lovelies! also sorry for any typos!
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2 years and a half later of Mullai moving to Chennai,
There are days in your life where you watch life happen to you as though you were a mere spectator. A third person. His dad passing away was one such event. He had the numb feeling back. The same feeling that came over him when Mullai had left. The first half of it was him frozen in shock, watching his whole life get upturned.
There was this murmur.. the murmur of consolation, the silent sniffles of people crying, the soft taps of footsteps by everyone so meticulously not to make a distracting sound. The sudden bursts of his mom's tears. That's what made him whirl around and run away.
He was in the store room crouched with his hand around his head when Mullai found him.
"Kathir..", it was a soft melodious whisper that made his heart shake from the dull beating,
He looked up to see her beautiful face worn with sadness and hurt. But it wasn't the pity he saw in other people. This was different it was as though she was feeling exactly as he was... it wasn't faked or temporary or as superficial as other has been. Mullai had said Pandian appa which had then been corrected into mama... she lost a parent too in a way.
She sat down next to him and pulled his head to her shoulder and put an arm over him.
"Azhuthuru Kathir.. sogatha ulla vechika kudathu..", that's all she said, he didn't even get a second to ponder how she sounded so matured all of a sudden... what happened to his childish and pure Mullai.. had 2 years really changed that much? What else changed in her.. this was the first time he was seen her since she had left.. He hated that his dad wasn't here to welcome her back.. Pandian had loved her like his own daughter..
Before he had could think of any of these.. he had already succumbed to thoughts of his father.. lost in silent tears and head huddles together, they both fell asleep in each others arms...
*
College first year for Mullai, end of semester, 8 months later,
It was a surprising sunday.
Because it was a sunday that Kathir was home. And was watching TV.
Everyone did the math, and stated that it was the laziest sunday for him since well, since three years, Keerthi called it a medical miracle. Dhanam had run off into the kitchen with Kathir's favorite menu,
He was starting to have a smallest of smiles seeing how everyone had noticed his absence. It was nice to know he was missed.
That's when the phone rang, the landline.
He had nudged keerthi on the bum with his heel in motion to answer is the most brotherly way possible. Keerthi had started fake crying to their mother that Kathir had kicked her across the room in the most sisterly way possible.
Which meant that Kathir was the one who got to the phone,
"Hello.."
"Hello?" she clutched the receiver,
His heart stopped for a full minute. He was sure of it.
She called back. He blew out a breath slowly. She wasn't calling him herself she was returning his call but still anything was a win at this point...
