This one is for arshibarun, CSD ki demands queen :D ❤
--*--
The 30-minute ride to the hospital with Kavish in Khushi's lap and Arnav driving as fast as he could, was most excruciating drive for them. Chiku was crying continuously, and his helpless parents tried in vain to soothe him. Khushi was continuously wiping his face and eyes, but fresh tears were replacing them and Arnav was cursing a 'dammit' every minute that it was taking to reach the hospital. In the meantime, however, he had called Dr. Sinha, Chiku's pediatrician who had already gone home for the day and Arnav's request-cum-demand made him rush back...he understood though, parents in this situation often behaved the same way.
Kavish had bruises on his forehead and both arms and knees, but most worrying part was he had fallen over his right arm and so far, he was not able to move it even an inch!!!
As soon as the car pulled and stopped in front of hospital's main entrance, Khushi opened the door and rushed with chiku in her arms. Any person who would have wondered how a frail looking woman was able to carry a 6 years old in her arms, didn't know anything about the strength that a mother has!
Chiku was still crying because of the pain, and little bleeding through the scratches. And his arm that had been under the weight of his and his cycle's, had started showing swelling too.
"So, champ, cycling huh?" Dr. Sinha asked as he made Kavish seat on the chair near him and observed his bruises with a closer look. A nurse had promptly come to stand beside him with a tray that contained medical equipment and medicines
"Shh, boys don't cry beta." the nurse said trying to calm him while Khushi was also wiping his face still and Arnav just rushed in after parking his (dammed) SUV! But sister's (nurse's) remarks irked Dr. Sinha it seemed.
"What rubbish sister Maya? Anyone in pain can cry. Champ, don't worry about tears, I cry too, and see your mummy-papa are crying too! It's ok, hmm?" He rebuked the nurse and indicated to Arnav and Khushi who looked miserable and in tears themselves! And then Dr. Sinha once again addressed Chiku while dressing his wounds, "Now tell me, if it pains when I lightly tap with this on your arms ok?" he said to check for any other possible fracture before going for an X-ray. As the guidelines went, they didn't expose kids to X-rays unless extremely necessary as the rays can be harmful for kids (anyone for that matter).
"Careful!" Arnav shouted as Kavish shrieked in pain when Dr. Sinha tapped on his right arm. Dr. Sinha only gave a curt nod and continued doing his work.
As expected, except his right arm, Kavish didn't wince in win when tapped anywhere else.
"It looks like we have a fracture here, in his right arm" Dr. Sinha informed Arnav and Khushi and although, they were informed of their son's broken bone, they clearly felt the pain of their own hearts breaking...
.
.
An hour later, Chiku's right arm was covered with a blue colored cast (coincidentally, it was chiku's favorite color!) and Dr. Sinha was giving tons of instructions to all 3 of them. 'Don't strain the right arm', 'Eat lot of calcium and vitamin D rich food', and 'plenty of rest' being a few...
Looking at Kavish's sulking face and his parents' wary looks, Dr. Sinha tried to make some amends to make the mood lighter. He called Kavish near him and pulled something from his pen stand,
"Hey champ! tell you what? you can make this cast look cool! You know how? like this!" saying so, Dr. Sinha quickly doodled a smiley on his cast and handed the maker to him, ruffling his hair.
Chiku finally smiled a little and Arnav and Khushi did too, seeing him forgetting his pain for a while.
--*--
As soon as they reached home, family surrounded them and bombarded them with questions, "kaise hua?" "Is it paining?" "How many days will it take to heal completely?" and so on...
In the meantime, Chiku climbed down from Arnav's arms and ran towards bathroom. and just as he reached there, he realized one major limitation of his new 'cool casting'.
"Mamma" he called Khushi who was just behind him to check on him and gestured for her to bend to his level looking around nervously so as no one listens to what he wants to say, and whispered in her ears shyly, "my pants...".
Khushi smiled and picked him and carried to the washroom. Slowly putting him down, she undid his pants buckles and then chiku quickly ushered her out "aap bahar ruko (you wait outside)." And Khushi restlessly waited outside...who will tell her son, he will always be her baby and need not be shy in front of her?
When he was done, Khushi again helped him buckle his pants and kissed his forehead lovingly. She then took him to his room while also looking for Arnav who was not around. Sighing, she told Mamiji to take care of the twins' dinner...
--*--
"Chote, what are you doing?" Nani asked Arnav, watching him pick Kavish's cycle and heading out
"Throwing this damn thing out!" Arnav said angrily, behaving his impulsive best
"Achha? with that logic, we should throw your basketballs out, hai na? You have been injured in the past, while playing it. What are you talking Chote? Girna, chot khana ye sab khel-kud ka hissa hota hain (To fall, to get injured is a part of playing). Hum nahi keh rahe hain ki jaan-bujh kar chot khao par chot ke dar se koi seekhna nahi chod deta na (I am not saying to get injured knowingly, but you cannot quit learning because of the fear of getting harmed, right)?"
"Sasuma ij(is) right. You and Aakash bitwa have had so many marks of injuries on your knees and arms. But we never asked to stop playing, we asked to be careful...samjhe?" Mamiji too added and Arnav left from there, albeit leaving the cycle as is...
--*--
"Mamma, are you angry at me?" chiku asked as Khushi helped him lie down on the bed.
"no baby, kyun pucha?"
"Because I didn't listen to you yesterday and... this happened." he said looking down and then continued, "It's a very bad cycle. I will never ride again!"
When he confessed, he had made a mistake that he did wrong by sneaking out despite her refusal, she had felt proud of him. But next moment, when he blamed the cycle, she needed to correct him.
"Ye aap galat keh rahe ho beta (this you are saying wrong). It was not cycle's fault that you lost your balance, right?"
"But-"
"Your mamma is right baby." Arnav said coming inside his room and seating near them on the bed. Nani and Mami's words had made him introspect and realize his son needed to take right lessons from this ordeal not wrong ones...
"Papa..."
"You like cricket right and want to become a cricketer when you grow up? Then you must know, all these sportsmen face so many injuries, so many troubles to get there. It's a part of learning Kavish" Arnav said and Khushi added more to it,
"Bilkul sahi (exactly) and this doesn't mean you play risky or knowingly ignore safety. With every sport, you have to take safety precautions. Jaise cycling karte waqt dhyan hamesha raste pe aur raftar limit mein rakhni hoti hain (like, while cycling, you have to keep attention on the road and do not over speed). But importantly, you have to listen to your parents when you are so small, hai na?" she asked caressing his hair and he nodded. After all, he was their good baby!!!
--*--
In the next few days, Chiku loved getting all the pampering and attention from everyone in Raizada household. He was never scolded for anything, he was allowed to watch TV for as long as he wished, he would get away with munching on his favorite snacks and jalebis without much ado from his parents and lastly, they were all the time fussing over him...only sometimes it had side effects too.
"ye kya hain (what is this)?" he asked as Khushi came with a glass of some yellow looking liquid!
"haldi wala dooth. isse aapki chot jaldi thik ho jayegi (turmeric milk. This helps in healing faster)" Khushi said, bringing the glass close to his mouth but he turned away
"no mamma! I don't like having it." he said, hoping like all other things he was getting discounted on, he would be able to get away with this one too.
"Chiku! Pi lo chup chap (drink it without fuss)." Khushi said sternly and Chiku realized, he didn't always have a choice...
.
.
Arnav worked from home next few days and so did Khushi. One of them constantly stayed around Kavish for anything he may need. Since it was his right hand, he needed help with almost everything, right from eating food to washroom visits to bath...and either Arnav or Khushi stayed around for that.
But one of the sweetest moments were when they found his sisters understanding his pain and being around him.
"Bhaiyya, mooh kholo (open your mouth), aa-" Aru said, as she had brought what looked like chocolate bar with her and was trying to feed him a piece of it.
While Pari didn't do such thing, she was trying to doodle something on his plaster. And, as Arnav and Khushi approached near their kids and took a closer look on the cast, it looked like a smiley she had tried to draw!
Khushi wiped her tears (happy ones) and Arnav picked Pari in his arms, kissing her cheeks to tell her how much proud he was of her silent affection!
Amidst the tale of broken bones (and hearts), Chiku and his parents learnt many lessons about life, patience, and persistence...
--*--
A/N - Hopefully, it turned, ok? Do let me know please.
That 'boys don't cry' bit is inspired from an old Madhuri Dixit ad I had watched. In general also I dislike the way there are things said 'ladke rote nahi(boys don't cry)' or 'mard ko dard nahi hota (men don't feel pain)' bulls*it about men! Men are as much human and entitled to pain and tears as us all! It has nothing to do with masculinity 🤷♂️