A True Indian Cinderella

Grandpa- Chapter 17

"Meeya! You have grown! Do you want to learn English?" An old man's voice creaked. I looked everywhere. But he was nowhere to be found. But I remembered the phrase 'do you want to learn English'. It was from GRANDPA, my father's father. He appeared from this dusty room that no one used downstairs. 

"Grandpa!!!!!!!! Assalam Alaikum pa. How are you!! I missed you so much!" I exclaimed in joy.

"I'm as healthy as ever! Do want me to tell you a story in English?" he asked as he hugged me.

My grandfather is the coolest grandfather. He worked in Singapore since he was a child. So he was there during the Japanese occupation and in the early 30s and 40s when Singapore hadn't gotten her independence. Out of his 5 children, he only brought my dad to work in Singapore and that is how my Dad settled in.  But due to some circumstances, my grandpa was kicked out of that country as the immigration rules changed. 

"You know I lived in Singapore for a very long time?" he repeated this fact over a billion times whenever I visited him. That's when I knew that he was becoming old. His age that time was 90. He was still a healthy man with white hair that gardened his head. With freckles and wrinkles that twirled and twisted his glowing skin. His backbone was curved like a protractor that I used for maths lessons. He could barely stand. But he was as bold as ever and always loves  to sit on the wooden plank swing in the hall. 

"Sit down beside me, I'll tell you everything" he gently said in his most fluent English. That was a factor that lacked in all the Family members as all of them could only speak Tamil.

As I was going to sit I heard mumbling from the back. A few ladies walked past me as they giggled at me. Did I look that hilarious to them to worth a laugh? I sat beside him, confused. He started to tell all his good old stories. The stories were interesting but the clock was ticking. My stomach was growling in hunger. No wonder they laughed at me, I was a scapegoat to listen to his stories that ate up 2 hours already. I sat there and just waited for him to finish his stories. 

"Meeya!! Mom is calling you!" Saya called me and I was so thankful and happy she did because I was starving. 

"Oh pa Amma is calling I better go! Tomorrow you continue ok!! Bye !!" I waved and dashed to the kitchen.

"hahahah, now you became the scapegoat haha. grandpa will everytime trap a person to tell his stories you know. We will always escape from him. haha, today you became his victim. By the way, your mom did not call you, I just wanted you to come and eat." Saya laughed as she teased me.

After enjoying the meal, we washed hands and went upstairs to go to sleep. This time I was not gonna sleep with my mom but with Saya and other cousin sisters, on the black granite floor with our mats. We laid our mat and settled ourselves into our blankets. It was just 5 minutes and Saya was already fast asleep.

Eleven o'clock morphed into twelve and then one. The time trickled by, marked only by those changing glowing numerals. My mind was blank; where there should be dreams, was a heavy blackness. My eyes were as stationary as the silhouette of the chairs beside me. I close my eyes and they almost sting, opened too long I guess. After some moments I recall the old Singapore tale and let it mull around my head. Perhaps this old story could pull my thoughts into the randomness that was a prelude to sleep and dreams. "Japanese soldiers surround the house. Inside is Grandfather with his tales of the war...", I drifted to sleep.

"You are adorable when you sleep" I felt fingers that crept on my head as a whisp of air flowed through the mouth of the person. The fingers soon left a trail along my forehead...nose...mouth.