(Mature Language 18+; Double Update: Chapters 36 & 37)
"MOMMY!"
To say her heart stopped for a second would be such a great understatement. With confusion and shock laced on her face, she looked over her shoulder only to find a little girl around 4 years hugging her like her whole life depended on it.
As she tried to turn around, the little girl stepped back with a wide cheeky grin playing on her cute little face. But the instant she saw Mahima's face, that huge smile just vanished into thin air like it never existed.
And just in a flip of a second, tiny tears formed in the little one's eyes. With tears pooling in her sparkling pretty eyes, the little girl bit her lower lip and shook her head mildly as if lost in her own set of thoughts.
Of course Mahima wasn't blind. She could clearly see those tears and her heart pinched in great pain. She wondered what must have caused the little girl such a pain that her eyes turned glossy.
Maybe she came out with her parents and got lost in this huge store? Maybe that's the reason she called her 'Mommy' just a while back? Yes, maybe that was the case.
No doubt this girl looked no less than a princess dressed in white frock that reached an inch just above her knees. And her long black hair was neatly done in a ponytail. Her chubby cheeks and rosy lips only screamed how cute she was and how much god took all his time in creating this doll.
With the desire to become a mother enveloping her mind, heart and soul every single day, she really couldn't help herself from tending towards this little girl. Plus, those pools in her eyes were not really helping the case.
Deciding she had to help this little girl finding her parents, Mahima went down on her knees and cupped the girl's face ever so lovingly asking, "What happened dear? What is your name? Where are your parents? Are you lost honey? Don't cry sweetheart!"
But all she got in response was silence!
Now, this confused Mahima more than ever. How was she supposed to help this little one if she kept quiet? What was she supposed to do now? Maybe search the store and even leave a message at the counter? And if it still doesn't help the case maybe involve the police?
Her heart pinched wondering how shaken this girl must be without her parents around.
Her revere of thoughts broke when she heard someone saying, "Kitty!"
As she looked in the direction, the girl turned around and ran towards the man. Of course the way she hugged his thighs and he heaved a great sigh of relief, Mahima easily figured that he must either be the girl's father or some relative.
"Sweetheart, what did I tell you about running like that?" The man dressed in black jeans and blue t-shirt asked hunching down while the little girl looked at him and replied softly, "I am sorry 'dad'! I thought I saw mommy."
The instant Mahima heard the word 'papa' from Kitty's mouth, she knew she was right about their relationship. Heaving a sigh of relief and feeling happy for the girl, she decided to make her way towards the cash counter but stopped when she heard the man's voice again.
But this time, it was directed for her.
"Excuse me!"
"Yes!"
As she stood there looking at the father-daughter duo, the man picked up the girl protectively in his arms and walked towards her.
"Hi, I am Nicholas and this is my daughter Kitty." He introduced stretching out his hand for a quick handshake but Mahima being the shy girl that she is, she politely smile and joined her hands saying, "Namaste! My name is Mahima."
Looking at Kitty, she smiled brightly and greeted, "Hello Kitty! How are you? You are so beautiful like a princess."
Kitty smiled softly and looked at her father not before greeting back, "Hello! I am fine. Thank you."
Needless to say, Nicholas was amazed by Mahima's polite greeting. With a wide toothy grin playing on his face, he asked, "Namaste? That means... Are you from India?"
Now, one mere mention about the country she was born, she couldn't stop that wide smile taking room on her pretty face. Nodding her head excitedly, she replied, "Yes, I am from India."
"Wow! That's really nice. Actually, my wife is also from India. She is from Pune." He said with the same bright smile intact on his face while she raised her eyebrows in pleasant surprise saying, "Pune? That is close to my village."
Yes! The city 'Pune', also called as the oxford of the east was only a few hours away from her village just like Mumbai. In fact, closer than that!
"Anyway, thank you so much!" He said only to get a super confused question from this woman, "Thank you? But what for?"
"You were trying to find her parents and didn't ignore her. Thank you so much for that and I am really sorry that she called you mommy." He said looking at Kitty for a few seconds who was now busy staring at the cute little teddy bear in the toys section while Mahima shook her head saying, "No, it is fine. It happens. No problem."
As she looked at Kitty with a soft smile, he cleared his throat and said, "Yes, ah... It never really happened like this. Actually, her mother used to wear sarees too so, she just got confused. I am so sorry for the trouble."
"No problem. It was not trouble at all. I can understand." She replied shaking her head but for some reason she couldn't stop herself from thinking about the word 'used to' in his previous statement.
As far as her English was concerned, she knew this word is used to refer to past. So did it her mother doesn't wear sarees anymore or was there any other issue? Plus, the tears in Kitty's eyes a while back just grew up her inquisitiveness more and more.
Unable to control herself she blurted out even before she knew what she was about to say, "Where is her mother? Is she shopping too?"
Of course she wasn't a fool. She could clearly see how that bright smile on Nicholas' face faded away just in an instant. She understood she had crossed a line for sure.
Oh! How much she wanted to hit herself for not keeping her inquisitive questions to herself. And what pinched her heart more was how Kitty turned her head and hugged her father like her entire life depended on it.
Why? Just why did she have to ask such personal questions and make this poor man and this poor little girl uncomfortable? Why?
Biting her lower lip, she chided herself for a few seconds and finally gathered up her courage and confidence to speak.
"I am sorry. I shouldn't have asked..."
And even before she could complete what she was saying, Nicholas looked at her saying, "No, that is absolutely fine."
Gently running his fingers on Kitty's back, he said in a pain stricken tone, "My wife passed away a few months back. And it's been very hard on us. Especially Kitty. Maybe that's the reason, when she saw you in saree, she thought her mother was back."
To say Mahima's world nearly stopped would be such a grave understatement. She couldn't even understand how difficult it must be for this little girl to have lost her mother in such a young age. For sure even she had lost her mother when she was born but that was different. She never really met her mother or had known her in person.
But Kitty?
She did meet her mother, spent time with her, played with her and then suddenly... she just lost her forever. How painful that must be?
She could feel tears pooling in her eyes. But for some reason, her heart felt better thinking how Nicholas was taking care of his daughter unlike Santosh who just blamed her all her life. This man really cared and loved his daughter. At least, that's a good thing right?!
"I... I... I am sorry... I..."
She was actually running out of words. How was she supposed to comfort them? How painful this was! She has such a golden heart, that she was worried about their pain, some stranger whom she just met? Why was she so innocent and good?
"It's okay! Please don't apologise. Anyway, we should get going." He said clearing his throat and looking at Kitty he continued, "Kitty, say bye."
"Bye!" Kitty looked at Mahima and waved while Nicholas shot her a soft smile and thanked her again, "Thank you again. And, it was nice meeting you. Bye!"
Just when he was about to turn around Mahima stopped him saying, "Wait a second. Please!"
"Kitty?"
As the girl looked at her, Mahima smiled and asked her, "Do you like teddy bear?"
Of course, she wasn't blind! She had seen how Kitty's gaze was stuck on that pink teddy bear a while back. One mere mention about it and Kitty's lips curled up wide.
"Tell me, do you like teddy bears?" She asked again with a naughty grin playing on her face while Kitty gave her a huge goofy grin and nodded her head saying, "I love teddy bear."
"So, take this cute little pink teddy bear as a gift from my side." Mahima said passing her the same teddy bear that caught the little one's eye sometime back while Nicholas scrunched his eyebrows and shook his head saying, "Please, that's okay. You don't have to do that. We have already troubled you..."
"No please! It is just a gift. No trouble at all. You look really nice when you smile Kitty." Mahima said when Kitty looked at her dad as if asking him the permission to accept the gift.
Now, how was he supposed to say 'NO' when his cute little daughter gave him those puppy eyes?
As he gave in, Kitty took the bear and thanked Mahima.
"Again, it was really nice meeting you. Thank you so much for the gift." He said politely while Mahima nodded her head and caressed Kitty's fingers saying, "It's okay. It was nice meeting you and Kitty. Bye!"
"Bye!"
And as Mahima made her way towards the counter to pay for her things and the teddy bear too, Nicholas stood there with a heart-warming smile playing on his face for the first time in months.
* * *
That evening Mahima was sitting in their room doing her homework. Ms. Demos had given her a huge comprehension passage to read followed by a few questions to answer. Unlike every other day, today she was finding it very difficult to concentrate.
No matter how much ever she tried, she couldn't stop her mind from drifting back to Kitty and Nicholas. Especially Kitty! Yes, she has been thinking about them since she left the store.
Being in a similar situation in the past, she could understand how hard it must be for this little girl to live without her mother. She couldn't even imagine what must have gone through that girl if she didn't have her father with her. She would have been all alone in this world.
Of course the scariest thought struck her mind. What if Nicholas remarries and the step mother treats Kitty badly just like Usha treated her all these years? She knew she was completely overreacting but she couldn't stop those scary thoughts crowding her mind.
She knew it was not her business to meddle into other's matters but at the same time she wanted to go and hug the little girl and comfort her. She just wanted to take Kitty's pain away.
With each passing minute she felt like she was losing her mind. She just wanted to hug Eric and tell him everything. After all he will understand her point of view and maybe take those scary thoughts off her mind. Right? She desperately wanted to talk to her husband and what is wrong in that?
And as if Lord Shiva had just answered her unspoken plea, Eric opened the door and entered their room. But unlike every day, he looked like he was in foul mood. And she understood it was for the best not to bombard him with her scary thoughts. She would never want to trouble him at any cost.
She knew he had been extremely busy for the past few days and to be honest, she wished she could be of some help to him.
Yes, one looked at her husband and all her worries took a back seat. He was always her top priority. No matter what!
"Hi!" She greeted giving him a warm hug and dropped a soft kiss on his lips like every day while he smiled and kissed her back not before saying, "Hey sweetheart! I missed you."
"I missed you too." Cupping his cheek with her palm, she smiled at him and asked in a caring tone, "How was your day? You look very tired. Is everything okay?"
"Don't ask baby! I am very tired. The design team messed up. So, we have to work all over again." He replied giving her a quick kiss on her forehead and walked to the drinks section in their room to fix himself a stiff drink.
"You are drinking now?" She asked crossing her arms across her chest while he poured himself a drink saying, "Yes, I have a damn freaking headache. I need a drink."
Rolling her eyes, she walked towards him and took the glass from his hand saying, "Drink is not the answer for headache."
"Well sweetheart, to me it is an answer. So, you better give it back to me unless you plan on drinking it." He said stretching his hand to take the drink back from her but all her got was a stern look from his beautiful wife.
Placing back the glass on the table, she held his hand and walked him towards the sofa.
"Basa! Me don miniuta yeti ahe!" (Sit! I will be back in 2 minutes!) She said walking towards the bathroom while he rolled his eyes and unbuttoned his shirt muttering, "This darn woman will make me go crazy one day."
After a few minutes, she entered with a small cup in her hand not before rolling her eyes at him when she saw him shirtless. Of course leave it to him and this shameless man will roam around naked. He never really bothered to wear a shirt when he was home making her hormones go crazy looking at his wide well-built chest.
"What's that?" He asked pointing at the cup while she placed it on the low table saying, "Warm Oil!"
"WARM OIL? Are you crazy? You want me to drink that?" He let out his worry in a horrified tone only to get a dirty look from her.
"What? Stop giving me that look. I am not drinking that sh*t!"
Completely ignoring his unnecessary tantrum, she poured a little amount on her palm while he watched her with confusion etched on his face.
Rubbing her palms together she spread the oil and applied it over his scalp saying, "This warm oil on your head will relax your body and your headache will be gone in no time."
As she gently massaged the oil over his scalp and hair, he sat there like an obedient boy letting his wife take the charge.
And as seconds ticked by, the man who complained about 'freaking headache' thoroughly enjoyed the oil message that cooled his mind like never before.
True! A good oil massage can do wonders!
When she was done, she moved away to wash her hands and to place the cup back in the bathroom. A few minutes later when she returned, a wide smile took room on her beautiful face seeing one of the most precious sights of her life.
Yes, her husband was sleeping like a baby with his head thrown back and mouth open!
* * *
So, how was the chapter? I hope you all like it? What do you think about Nicholas and Kitty? Do drop in your views. Thank you so much for your votes and comments.
NOTE: Next Chapter (Ch. 37) is out! Please check!
Much Love,
Manasa DVLK!!