Broken

Part Seven: Lean On Me

"Ishita, listen"

His urgent tone made her look up again and she wrinkled her brow as she saw how serious, how earnest, he looked.

"Thank you, for last night. For listening to me. It helped, talking about Adi."

"I told you Raman, that's what friends do." She wondered again at the warmth that spread through her when he looked at her in that way. He infuriated her, but he also made her feel so vital, so alive. "What does Adi look like?" she asked hurriedly, to cover her confusion. "Does he look like you?"

"Here" he said, flicking through his phone gallery until he got to the photo he was looking for. He paused for a second, lovingly caressing the photo montage on the screen, before passing his phone over to her. "You tell me if he looks like me. This is Adi"

Ishita looked at the two photos side by side – one of a chubby faced toddler, snug in his father's arms. A younger, chubbier, bespectacled Raman. And the same toddler a few years later, in a football jersey, smiling broadly, his face leaner, looking so much like his father did today.

Her eyes threatened to fill with tears as she saw the pride in his younger face in the photo, reflected in the pride in his face as he watched her reaction to his son's photo. He obviously loved his son so much. How cruel was his estranged wife, this ... Shagun, he had called her... to keep such a loving father away from his only child.

She passed the phone back, smiling tremulously at him, but thankfully, he did not seem to notice her incipient tears as he put his phone back into his pocket.

"He looks exactly like you" she said softly, and he smiled that smile again.

"Ten is such a momentous age Ishita" he said reflectively. "I wish I could do something worthwhile to mark Adi's birthday. I cant call him, cant wish him, cant celebrate it with him, that's true, but I could have done something better than to spend my evening in a bar like I did yesterday. Anyway...ah, here's my paratha."

The waiter had returned with a grin, and put a plate with two steaming parathas on the table before Raman, before withdrawing unobtrusively. Raman called out his thanks and then fell ravenously on the piping hot paratha, oozing with butter, as Ishita stared at him thoughtfully.

What he had just said had given her an idea. An idea that was definitely worth pursuing. But if she told him now what she was thinking, he would stop her. She did not know him well, but almost a week of acquaintance had taught her somethings about him. So she needed to keep her plans a secret from him, to give him a nice surprise. She did not stop to wonder why she wanted to do something for him, she only knew that her heart sang with joy at the thought of making him happy, of being the reason for his smiles.

"Raman, just give me that photo again" she stretched out a hand.

"Kyun?" He asked in some surprise. "Pyar ho gaya mere bete se?"
(Why? Have you fallen in love with my son?)

"Hai toh bahut pyara" she said, still keeping her hand out. "Lekin mujhe uske daat dekhna hai. Woh latest photo mein. He's got a very interesting shaped tooth."
(He is very lovable. But actually I want to see his teeth. In the latest photo? He has very interesting teeth. )

He looked at her in stupefaction and then threw his head back and laughed, bringing up the photo before handing her his phone

"Tum paagal ho, tum jaanti ho? Bilkul paagal."
(You're crazy you know? Totally crazy)

She took the phone, looking at the photo from one angle then another, zooming in,  as thankfully, the waiter came up with another paratha. Then, surreptitiously, while his attention was engaged, she took a quick shot of Adi's photo with her own phone. And then one of him as he gestured to the waiter. It was part of her plan.