Connected: A YHM Story ✔️

Chapter 6 - The One Where Raman Returns to Delhi

Bhalla House, Delhi - 1:30 pm

Raman rang the doorbell with trembling fingers while he tightened his grip on his suitcase with his other hand. His mother opened the door and instantly, her face lit up to see her eldest son after what seemed like an eternity.

"Raman, tu aa gaya, Puttar! Kitni der baad aaya hai. Chethhi andar aaja, aaj tere pasand ka saara khaana banaaungi. Bhalla ji, dekho kaun aaya hai! Romi, Rinki, dekh to Raman aaya hai!"

[Raman, you're here son! You've come after such a long time. Quickly come inside, I'm going to make all your favorite dishes today. Bhalla ji, look who's here! Romi, Rinki, look Raman's here!]

"Raman, accha hua tu ghar to aaya. Hume laga ki aaj bhi tu apna kaam karke bas nikal jaayega sheher se, humse bina mile," his father proclaimed with a certain disappointment, as he came out of his bedroom with the newspaper in hand. He knew of the troubles Raman had hidden in his heart, but he was always disappointed with the way he had distanced himself from them. Rinki and Romi too had come out of their rooms to greet their elder brother.

[Raman, it's a good thing you've come home. We thought that you'd leave the city after finishing your work without meeting us again.]

"Kaise ho, Bhai? Kaam kaisa chal raha hai Mumbai mein? Aur Mihir kaisa hai?" Rinki asked.

[How are you Bhai? How's work in Mumbai? And how is Mihir?]

"Maa, jab Bhai itne itne dino baad aate hai, to aap to bada laad pyaar karte ho apne puttar nu. Aur jab main raat ko der se aata hoon college se to mujhe to aapse aur papaji se sirf daant padti hai!" Romi exclaimed. He was certainly happy to see his brother, but Romi was more outspoken than emotional. 

[Mom, when Bhai comes home after so many days, you pamper him so much. And when I come home late from college, all I get are scoldings from you and Dad!]

"Tera bhai kaam ke liye bahar rehta hai khotiya," Toshi replied to her younger son as she filled a glass of water for Raman. "Aur tenu bhi pata hai woh kitna pareshan rehta hai."

[Your brother stays out for work, you idiot. And even you know how troubled he usually is.]

"Sab thik hai Mumbai mein Rinki. Kaam, Mihir, sab thik hai. Aur Romi, maa to bas aise hi laad jatati hai. Jab tu apne college ya school ke trips se aata tha, to tuhje bhi itna hi laad karti thi, yaad hai? Tere liye bhi wo itni hi pareshaan hoti hai," Raman said.

[Everything's great in Mumbai Rinki. Work, Mihir, everything's fine. And Romi, mom is like this only. Even when you used to come home from your college or school trips, she used to pamper you a lot, remember? She worries for you just as much.]

Raman took a seat on the sofa as his mother handed him a glass of water. Nothing had changed. His mother was still the ever boisterous and uplifting woman she was. His father was still undeniably his father -- happy to see his son home but disappointed at how rarely he came home. Even his siblings. Rinki was still the shy and ever studious bookworm; Romi was still the outspoken, gregarious but well-meaning brother. In fact, even the house hadn't changed. The interior, the furniture, the decorations, the picture frames, everything was just the same. 

He had repeatedly asked his parents to renovate the house but they refused. While he wanted to eliminate every reminder of his past, his parents tried their best to hold on to the vestiges of their happy family and the time they spent together. So they kept everything the same. 

Well, not everything, Raman thought. He quickly surveyed the picture frames on the wall. New pictures had been added and it occurred to him that he wasn't a part of them. Rinki's annual award function, Romi's graduation, Simi and Pulkit's anniversary, Ananya's birthday, his parents' anniversary. He had missed out on so much.