Project Heart(h) ✓

Chapter Seven

Jealousy flared in the pit of Junak's heart. After the first day of his grandfather asking about his education in order to make small talk, he and Junak ran of topics to talk about. The common threads between them were frayed and sensitive and neither was brave enough to bring those up.

But that was where Niribili stepped in, filling the awkward silences with casual queries and remarks to the point that now it felt like she and Grandpa were family while Junak was the outsider.

It hurt. More than Junak had anticipated or even understood.

He sat in silence while the others conversed. When Priti, the cook, brought him a bowl of jolpan, he sat eating in silence.

From under the table, Banhi lightly nudged him on the shin. He looked at her and he knew she knew that he was upset. "What's the game plan, today?" she asked, voice low so as to not interrupt Niribili and Grandpa.

"I'll work on the song. You?"

"I think I'll shoot a few scenes around the village."

Junak nodded. "Were you able to charge your stuff last night? My phone is almost dead."

"I brought spare batteries and a power bank. You can go grab them from my bag."

"Thanks." From the corner of his eyes, Junak felt Dikhou's gaze on him. He looked up and the other boy's gaze flitted away immediately. As Junak watched, he picked up a spoon and focused on the food. He was wearing a sweatshirt that morning and his hair was slightly wet and glistening in the daylight.

Junak found his heart racing in his chest. He ignored it and got back to eating.

Around five minutes later, there was the scrapping of the chair on the floor. Junak looked up to see Dikhou rising to his feet. He uttered the formal etiquettes of leaving the table, then turned to Junak. "Are you coming?" he said.

A "Huh?" slipped out before Junak could consider coming up with a better response.

Dikhou walked away from the dining table. On a bamboo stool near the door, a dhool was sitting. He picked it up and slung it over his shoulder. "You said you wanted help with your song?"

As much as Junak disliked Dikhou, his attention was a welcome change. He got to his feet, emptied the bowl of jolpan in three hurried spoonfuls and turned to leave.

"Lunch is at one," Grandma called after them as they left the room. "Dikhou, you also join us, okay?"

"Okay, aita," both chorused, unintentionally, then scowled in annoyance.

They did not talk as Dikhou led Junak through a small alley, off the main road. On either side were small houses with big yards. People were all busy with their work – men taking cows to fields, women washing clothes, men making bamboo accessories, women weaving cloth. Children were playing, while older people stood on the road talking to others.

A few people – mostly women – hollered a greeting at Dikhou as they walked past, but by and large they were left alone.

The kids, on the other hand, were really excited to see the both of them.

"Junak-da, Junak-da!"

Junak looked to his left to see a young girl on the other side of the fence. She was wearing a woollen scarf that had previously belonged to Junak. He smiled. "Hello. Are you liking the scarf?"

She nodded, then her expression fell. "You... do you want it back?"

"No, no, it's yours now."

Her face lit up again. "Thank you. Ma asked me to invite you for lunch one of these days." She wrung her hands and shifted from side to side. "Will you come?"