Two days ago,
"SIX RUNS IN ONE BALL ... WILL ANSH BE ABLE TO DO THIS... LET'S HOPE... St. Xavier'S PRIDE DEPENDS ON HIM" - the commentator began to chant Ansh's name, though the boy named Ansh least cared about the tension in the air because he knew he was going to hit a huge six.
Ansh... - a 34-year-old lady waved her hand to him, and he noticed it with a smile, taking off his helmet.
She gave him a thumbs up, and he smiled back, feeling a new surge of hope coursing through his veins as he hit the ball, sending it flying out of the ground. For him, the lady's words meant the world. When she laughed, he would laugh; when she was sad, he would be sad; when she smiled, he would smile. It was as if Ansh's whole life depended on her.
"ANSH ANIKA RAO MADE IT AGAIN... HE WON THE MATCH... PRIDE OF ST XAVIER... " - the commentator's voice boomed, the whole crowd cheering Ansh's name, but his eyes sought out the lady's reaction.
She smiled and whispered: "I am proud of you." Ansh read her lips, threw his helmet, and started to celebrate his win.
While everyone eagerly awaited to shake hands with him, he ran to the audience and waved for the lady to come down. She did.
"I am proud of you... Well done, my son..." - she said with pride, hugging him.
"Thanks, mom..." - he said and hugged her.
"Love you..." - she kissed his forehead.
"Ansh... Come..." - his friends asked him to join them.
"Tomorrow, guys..." - he shouted.
"Why tomorrow? I won't mind, Anshu... Go..." - she said in a calm tone.
"Miss Anika Rao... I am going to celebrate this victory with my close friend... Do you have any problems?" - Ansh asked her sternly.
"Of course not..." - Anika replied, wrapping her arms around him.
"Then why are you waiting for? Christmas..." - Ansh said in a dramatic tone, mimicking 'Poo' from K3G, his playful way of bringing a smile to her face. She smiled.
"Let's go..." - Anika said, intertwining their hands, and they left.
Ansh took his phone and directed her to the famous Thai restaurant in Bangalore. She drove her car blindly, trusting his directions. They parked the car before "Rim Naan - the Oberoi," a famous Thai restaurant whose nameplate haunted Anika to some extent.
"Mom... Let's go..." - Ansh asked her.
"It seems to be quite expensive... Shall we go to another restaurant?" - Anika asked him.
"Come on, mom... It's the best Thai restaurant... It's my treat, mom... Let's go, please please please..." - Ansh pleaded, and with no other option left, she went inside along with him.
"Table for two..." - Anika said to the receptionist.
"Name, ma'am?" - she asked.
"It's Anika Rao and Ansh Anika Rao." - Ansh instantly replied, and the receptionist turned her face up, staring at them. They understood, and just as Ansh was about to taunt the receptionist, Anika quickly held his hand, gesturing him not to do it.
She assigned a table for them and asked them to go inside. But Ansh's expression remained downcast. He sat on his chair, and before Anika could say anything, Ansh took the menu and pretended to read it, even though he had no idea about the food names. He was just trying to avoid conversation.
"One Pad Krapow Moo Saap and Gaeng Keow Wan Kai," - Anika ordered.
"Sir, for you?" - the waitress asked Ansh, who became suddenly conscious with the menu, unable to understand anything. In frustration, he closed the menu card, where Anika silently smiled at his reaction.
"Do you have mac 'n' cheese?" - Ansh asked the waitress.
"Sir, it's a Thai restaurant, and we don't serve Italian dishes," - the waitress said, and he frowned.
"Then Naan and butter chicken," - he said, setting the menu card aside.
"Sir, we don't have Indian cuisine either," - the waitress replied.
"What the f***k?" - he whispered, and Anika noticed, but acted as if she hadn't.
"Bring the same," - Anika said to the waitress, who then left.
"Why so much anger over such a small issue?" - Anika asked him.
"Mom... let me ask you one thing... we are living in India, right? How come they don't sell Indian cuisine?" - Ansh asked Anika, annoyed.
"You didn't know this earlier... and you also know I am not talking about this," - Anika said, and Ansh understood that she's an expert in reading his mind. He took a deep breath and moved forward to accept the fact.
"What's the problem, Ma? with this society? Why do they look at us differently? Because you're a single mom? I'm tired, Mom," - Ansh opened up, feeling relieved after sharing it with his mom, who kept her hand on her cheeks, observing him.
"Why are you watching me like this?" - Ansh asked her.
"Don't know how you're going to play for our nation with this anger," - Anika spontaneously replied. He blinked in confusion.
"Come on, dear. Let me tell you one thing, we can't expect the whole world to think like us, right? Some are like us, some are unlike us. That's the difference. We are the ones to live our life, so let us live happily by ignoring them, rather than taking their words to heart... Our hearts are for happy memories, not garbage," - Anika said, sipping her water.
"They think that we are leading an incomplete life," - Ansh said to her.
"Phrase error... A Happy incomplete life... in their language," - Anika replied back to him.
The food arrived, and Anika seemed to enjoy it, while Ansh didn't. He tried his level best to hide his feelings, but failed. Anika noticed.
"Ansh... can I ask you something?" - Anika asked him.
"Ask," - he said.
"What is the meaning of fuck?" - Anika asked him. The food choked in his throat.
"What?" - Ansh exclaimed in shock.
"Just asking... because I know its meaning... I don't know whether you know that meaning or not..." - Anika asked him in a very calm tone.
"Maa... I can't get you..." - he said in shock.
"You said we're both best friends, right? That's why I'm asking... If you don't want to answer, leave it..." - Anika said in a casual tone. But it was kind of a shock to him. But more than a mother, Anika is his best friend. He didn't want to lose his friend because of this topic, so he opened up.
"Gaurav said that men and women used to fuck each other..." - Ansh said in a very low tone.
f"Fuck each other ... for any reason?" - Anika asked him. It's a kind of casual talk between them.
"To make babies... !!!" - Ansh replied.
"Is making babies the wrong thing?" - Anika asked him.
"Nope..." - Ansh said.
"Then why this much shyness... We are living in the world for ages, right? Do they have any surrogacy measures at that time? See... after a certain age, men and women both will notice some changes in their bodies. If they feel free to talk about this, then there will be no problem in our society regarding this well-known conservative topic," - Anika asked him. He laughed.
"I don't know why they are giving this much hype to this... See, Ansh, it's just a term, and it's not a bad word. I don't know why they portray it as a bad word... I heard you say that word a while before. Feeling unwise for the kids who are using them without sufficient knowledge. I don't want my son to be one of them. I want him to be unique... Rest is your wish," - Anika said while eating the food.
"Mom... I don't want to be one of them..." - he said and understood her point.
"Mom... Then why are they raping? First, tell me what is rape?" - Ansh asked her.
"Rape... the most used word in recent times. If women and men both want a physical relationship, it's different, or we can call it mutual. But if any one of them wants that and tries to force other people into it, it's called rape," - Anika said.
"Forcing someone for something is a crime, right?" - Ansh asked her.
"Yeah, it's a crime..." - Anika said.
"Mom... Why are they doing this?" - Ansh asked her.
"There are not just one or two reasons... There are many... First, they can't control their hormones... Then they have a mindset that girls are the weaker sex, so they think they can do anything with them. And some see women as just sex objects. And there are many more..." - Anika explained to him. She felt it was necessary to talk to him about this because charity should begin at home. She must mold him first before pointing fingers at society.
"Mom... God created both genders to support each other, right ... not to abuse them..." - Ansh exclaimed sadly.
"What a disgusting creature we are?" - Ansh exclaimed in sadness.
"See, Ansh, the coin has two sides; likewise, there are many good men in this world, and I will proudly say that you're one of them. So stop scolding them in common, okay? And please, if you don't like the food, don't eat it..." - Anika said with a smile.
"No, Mom ... I like the food..." - Ansh said, and Anika burst out laughing on seeing his condition.
"I can see that..." - Anika said with a teasing look.
"You won the match... I knew it before... but one thing is still unpredictable..." - Anika said to him.
"What?" - Ansh asked her.
"Will you pass your 9th standard?" - Anika asked him with a tense look.
"I will pass with 95%..." - Ansh said with a confident smile. Suddenly, lights in the restaurant started to flicker.
"Even electricity can't tolerate your shock..." - Anika said. And they both busted to laughter.
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