once in a blue moon (Completed✅)

3♥️

Anita was busy during the morning and even afternoon teaching women and kids the art and crafts she learnt from her mother, that inturn helped her earn a few extra bucks that she used in saving  for future use mainly for Lekha for whom she wanted to buy costly jewelry and gift it during her marriage.

During summer vacation Anita made sure to spend sometime with her in-laws even though Rama Rao opposed to it, she kept saying, "I anyways don't have my parents alive now, I want our kids to spend some quality time with your parents and their cousins, at least once a year! I do not wish to deprive that love and affection to both our children and also your parents who I am sure must be missing playing with Jatin and Lekha too!!"

"But Anita you know how they look at Lekha, which actually hurts me!" said Rama Rao justifying his unwillingness.

"I know that but do you want Lekha to grow up without any interactions with her grandparents, Uncle, Aunt, cousins and also later in the future if she questions me that why did I not allow to know about her grandparents, what am I going to reply to her?!" she explained.

"But still..."

"You just don't worry, I will take care of Lekha during our stay and will not let her get hurt, is that okay?!"

Anita's reasoning was more heavier and over powered Rama Rao's emotions which made him to agree with the plan of visiting his parents during summer vacations and so for that he made sure he too spent the time with them at Bangalore with his younger brother Krishna, with whom his parents were now spending their time. He kept monitoring and turned kind of over protective towards Anita and kids.

Inspite of he being protective, his mother Lalitha once said "Lekha kosam baaga dabbulu daachandi raa, baaga ekkuva katnam este kaani yavvaru pelli cheskodaaniki vappukoru (save lots of money son, you need to give a huge dowry to make one marry her)"

"Amma enduke nenu ekkadi raavadaaniki ishta padanu, Anita cheppindi ani vastunnamu (this is the reason why I don't like to visit you, just because Anita insisted I am visiting)" said Rama Rao angrily that evening during their stay at Krishna's home.

"Amma, will nobody marry me?" asked the young eight year old Lekha looking at her mother, innocently.

"There is someone for you waiting my darling, but first you need to grow up into a beautiful young girl, it's only then you'll find him!" Anita replied pushing a few loose strands of her hair behind her ear.

"If so then why is grandma saying that nobody will marry me?!" Lekha expressed her doubt again with tears in her eyes that were beginning to overflow on her soft cheeks.

"Your grandma doesn't know anything my dear, come let me tell you a story!!" Rama Rao intervened before Anita could respond to Lekha's question. He lifted Lekha in his arms, walked out into the balcony and sat on a chair, made her sit in his lap, wipped off the tears and he continued, "let me tell you the story of once in a blue moon. There was a huge palace in the cold mountains that touched the sky. In the palace lived a Princess who was young just like you!!"

"Is it daddy?!" Said Lekha sniffing in.

"Yes my dear. Everybody in the palace used to say that the Princess is ugly behind her back but the Princess ignored everybody and she grew up into a strong beautiful young lady and the time came when she was ready to get married. So the king organized a parade of all those eligible Princes' who were suitable for her but all of them rejected her saying that she was not beautiful!!"

"So what happened daddy?!" Lekha enquired pretty curiously.

"The Princess was very sad and she rode away on her horse to a far off place where she could spend some time alone. All the roads were empty since it was a very rare night, it was the moon people were scared about, it was once in a blue moon which was round and big and red in colour but gave a blue light. Reaching the top of the mountain with the help of that blue light coming from the red moon, she sat on a rock that evening and kept looking at the big round moon!!"

"Wasn't she scared of that moon daddy?!"

"No darling, it was a special night when the sky glittered with the blue light of moon and she continued looking at it thinking about her mystery Prince, suddenly a handsome, young man appeared right in front of her, asking her if she was okay as he could see tears flowing down her cheeks in that moon light!!"

"Is he the Prince daddy?!"

"Yes that's right!! He told her that he missed the parade since he wanted to have a good look at the rare celestial phenomena and ended up admiring the beautiful red Moon and he also told her that he did not believe in any myths surrounding the blue moon's night and also he was not interested in listening to all that gossips about the Princess that spread across the country, so he stayed back and was waiting for the dawn so he could meet the princess alone in her castle. It was then she told that she is that ugly Princess and she could not control her tears again. Hearing her, he immediately apologized to her. He then said that the Princess was so pretty and wished to marry her!!"

"Wow daddy, the Prince finally came!! But why did the other Princes' say that she was not beautiful?" Lekha asked.

"It is because they could not see the real Princess, all of them were blindfolded, they were listening to the gossips about the Princess that she was ugly and did not wish to see the true self of the young lady that how beautiful, kind and soft hearted she was, but the Prince whom she met later could see the real beauty of the Princess in the Moon's light and it also helped her to see how brave and strong the Prince was. It was few days later the Prince and the Princess were married and lived happily ever after!!"

"Wow daddy, this is the best story I have ever heard from you!! So what happened later daddy?" Lekha said smilingly and hugged her father.

"From then on the King realized that he needed to educate the people in and around his kingdom, he so then announced that whenever a couple see each other right after looking at the rare red moon with blue light, would fall in love and live happily ever after!!"

"How do you know all this daddy?" Lekha's questionnaire was unending.

"I once met a man when I visited Norway, he lives up in the cold mountains. He gave me a book to read that contains this true story and and also told me to keep it a secret!! But I could not see you sad and so shared my top secret with you, so will you be able to keep this secret just between us both now!! You pinky swear?"

"Wow daddy, I promise to keep this a secret for life, I pinky swear it" said Lekha crossing her right little finger with her father's and continued "and daddy, when I grow up, I would go there to meet that person and thank him too!!"

"Yes my darling, but for that first you need to become strong and so let's go inside and have our dinner! Alright!"

"Yes daddy, I am going to become  strong and beautiful!! Yay!!" cheered Lekha and walked back inside the house.

"That was a lovely story you narrated!" said Anita who was listening to it right from the beginning standing at the door.

"Yes I had to, since those words my mother spoke would pull down Lekha's self esteem pretty badly! And I would never want that to happen to my kids especially Lekha!!" expressed Rama Rao.

Jatin being a teenager was learning how strong his parents were, 'inspite of so many obstacles, they both are sticking together in our upbringing...'  he thought and felt proud to have such suppotive parents.

***

So guys, did you love the story told by Lekha's father?
If you've enjoyed reading this part too then please touch the star and also drop in a few comments in the box below.
Thank you
Sujatha.