Broken

Part Seven: Lean On Me

She waited until after he had finished breakfast, when he was waiting for her to join him in the group gathering by Raju Guide's side, to tell him that she wasn't joining him on the walk that day.

"But why?" he asked concerned. "Arent you feeling okay? Doctor ke paas lekar chaloon mein?" (Shall I take you to the doctor?)

"No" she said with a smile, as her heart leapt at the concern in his voice. Why did it matter so much when he seemed to care? "I'm fine, mujhe bas town se kuch cheez lena hai, aur thoda rest bhi karna tha. Kitni exercise ho gayi in cheh saat dinon mein. I'll just spend a relaxing day, go to town..."
(No, I'm fine. I just need to buy some things in town. And I want to rest a little bit too. We've done so much exercise in the past week. I'll just spend a relaxing day, go to town...)

"And how will you go?" he asked, concern still evident in his voice. "I'll drive you."

"No Raman, please" she said firmly, willing her eager heart to calm down. "Aap apne walk par jaiye, please. Kal bhi aap is tarha se aa gaye theh..bechaara Raju naraaz ho jayega agar hum dono nahi gaye. Mein ne taxi call kiya hai, aati hi hogi. Aap jaiye, please."
(No Raman, please. You go on the walk, please. Yesterday you left early too. Poor Raju will g upset if both of us don't join him. I've called for a taxi, it must be coming. You go please.)

So he had reluctantly left her, joining Raju and informing him loudly that he would be his boyfriend for the day. He had turned back to wink at her as Raju had guffawed nervously, and she had blushed as she remembered the misconceptions that  she had been harboring about him, the nonsense she had blurted out to him on the previous day. She hoped what she was going to do for him today would go some way towards being an apology for her uncharitable defamatory thoughts about him.

She waved goodbye as the group moved away and then headed determinedly towards the Managers office. It was just after 9 am, but she had so much to do. Raman would be back in four to five hours, and everything had to be organized by then. First things first though. She needed to get Mr Lobo's permission, enroll his assistance, and then she needed to make things happen.

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Five Hours Later
2pm

Ishita looked with satisfaction at her handiwork.

She had taken over one of the activity rooms in the hall, and with the enthusiastic support of Mr Lobo, had coopted a few of the staff to help her. She had not been able to find everything she needed in Shimla town, and her budget had been quite limited, but it would do, she decided, as she cast a critical eye over the decorations.

There was a large iced cake and snacks on the table, and balloons and streamers decked the walls.  A bunch of gaily decorated presents were heaped on the side. The presents were just inexpensive toys, books, tennis balls and dolls that had cost just a few rupees each. But she knew they would give much pleasure to the little guests who would join them in a couple of hours.

First though, she had to go and pick up her present for him. The artist she had given the commission to this morning had assured her that he would get the painting finished by 3pm. It wouldn't be anything great, she knew, but she had heard about the quick portraits these talented men were able to churn out in a mere hour or so, while their subjects posed for them at the various Shimla scenic spots. She had asked Mr Lobo when the idea had struck her this morning, and he had been able to put her in touch with one of those street artists. It had been challenging negotiating a price - but she had finally managed to get the artist down to an amount she could afford. Although even that was a lot for her and it meant that she had would not be able to pick up any souvenirs for her family, she realized with a pang.  Still it was for a good cause, she told herself, not daring to analyze her motives any deeper than that.