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Chapter 13: Crinkling emotions

"Did you order them for Fariha already?"

"Of course I did, you're going to love all of them."

"And what quotes do they contain?" Raiyyan asked.

"Just some facts," Ahmed replied in a matter of fact tone.

"Like what?" Raiyyan prodded, his lips twitching in a smile.

"One romper has 'I get my good looks from my Chachu' and the other one is, 'If you think I'm cute, you should meet my Uncle'. There are many more, but I'll let that be a surprise." Ahmed said, and while Raiyyan thought Ahmed was really funny for doing this, he adored the bond he was developing with his daughter. If anything, they were going to make the cutest Uncle-Niece pair in the family.

As Raiyyan and Ahmed continued their conversation, now with Fariha in it, as she cooed and giggled, Tam walked out of the kitchen.

"Ray," she called, "Can you get me milk from the grocery store? Hurry up, before it shuts down. I just heated the fresh milk we had in the fridge and it happened to curdle."

"Why don't you ring the supermarket and ask them to drop it home?" Raiyyan suggested, unwilling to go out and purchase groceries.

"They're not answering the phone," Tam huffed.

"Oh!" Raiyyan exclaimed, turning to look at Ahmed, and the guy in question rolled his eyes.

"Of course," he groaned. "Your mum and dad give me a lot of work, Far, you must remember this when you grow up. One night, when it was very dark outside, your Chachu still went in the biting cold just to get milk for you. Never forget, princess, never forget."

Raiyyan and Tam exchanged a laugh at Ahmed's hilarious dramatics, and on his way out, Zainab, who had just come from her room, asked, "Ahmed, you're going somewhere?"

"Yeah Mamma, to the supermarket."

"Very well," she nodded. "Please pick paneer on the way. And eggs too. And tell Raju to add two kilograms of semolina to the grocery list I gave him this evening."

"Sure," he answered sarcastically, "Ask Abbu if he too has some work he wants for me to finish on the way, because obviously, what started as my short trip to the store to fetch milk has now turned into the job of a delivery guy. And hold on, why do you want paneer? Please don't make palak paneer again for breakfast tomorrow, I'm tired of it," he complained.

Not adhering to his request, Zainab replied, "For someone who can't cook, you do deny a lot of food served to you."

"No one listens to me in this house," he moaned, and just as he reached the door, he heard his name being called again.

"I can't hear anything," he sang, as he proceeded nonetheless.

"We're not asking you to get anything more, Ahmedi, don't worry," Tam clarified, grinning. "Here, take this cloth bag, get all supplies in this, don't accept the plastic bag they offer."

Obliging, he caught the bag Tam threw his way and walked out.

Throwing the hood of his jacket over his head, Ahmed made his way to the supermarket on foot, considering it was hardly a few steps away from home. However, just as he was about to climb the six broad steps to the store, someone at the turning point caught his attention.

He paused for a moment, jerking back to verify if the sight before him was real. Rufaida standing by the end of the lane, helplessly waiving at the few autos that passed by was not what he was expecting when he walked out of home that night. He glanced at his watch, his eyebrows shooting up when it dawned on him that she was indeed all alone, helplessly looking for a means of transport at this odd hour.