The Visit!

It was a lovely morning, the weather had turned up to be windy and cloudy but it was a pleasant morning. Everything felt great all of a sudden, the chirping of birds, and the merry of kids (from distant houses), the hustling of leaves and the dance of the wind. I too was dancing while making breakfast. I enjoyed living alone, far from the crowd, on the outskirts of town with a beautiful backyard and trees and flower beds all around. My curly hair danced on their own beat as if they were playing on the wind swirls.

There was somebody at the door, the constant ringing of the doorbell could not spoil my mood or make me yell in frustration (which I usually did). I was happy after a long time, a very long time it had been for me (Life becomes difficult to live when you get all alone, when somebody you want the most is no more with you). I felt numb as soon as I yanked the door open. I felt as if I was struck by thunder or lightening or something.

“This has to be…….. Oh!” , I heard a young boy’s voice but he did not complete the sentence he was about to say. I didn’t see his face as my eyes were fixed on the face of the angel. I couldn’t believe he was actually standing there after all. I was gaping. I don’t know what kind of emotions and feelings were rushing inside of me, I don’t know how much faster my heart was pumping and the blood was racing in my veins.

Was I stunned? Yes, of course! Was I happy? To be honest, I think I did scream happy in my heart. Was I Hyperventilating? Definitely!! And then I came back to life when I heard a child’s cry! And that was the time I realized that he was holding a baby! A baby!! Was I upset? May be. Was I freaking out? Yes obviously! Was I awestruck? That’s an understatement!

“Uh……. Uh…….. Hi!”, said the boy holding the baby!

“I think we’ve got the wrong address!”, said the younger one.

“Definitely!”, I said automatically  in an awe.

“Hi!”, repeated the boy.

“Noah……. Dyllan…… what are you……. Guys doing here?(Dyllan was the guy I loved and Noah was his cousin) There was silence for starting few seconds but it was broken by the cries of the baby. “I’m sorry but he has been crying. We were looking for his nanny. I guess, we’ve got the wrong address.”

“Well, where is his………. Mother??” Was I furious? May be. Was I Cursing? May be….. a little! “She’s stuck in the traffic.”, answered Noah while Dyllan was trying to hold the crying baby still. “How long has he been…….. crying?” “I got my answer!”, I said seeing their expressions. The baby leaned to me. “Oh….. no….. oh baby!”

“ He likes you already!!”, said Dyllan happily and half relieved. “I can’t do this.” “Oh, you are good with kids. You love them.” “I haven’t really handled one all by myself especially one this……. Cute and small. He’s so fragile!”, I half shouted.

“Please!?”, the boys urged.

“Hey baby…… let’s get inside.”, I turned slowly… followed by the boys. “Well, you better start looking for his nanny!”, I said sternly. “Already on it!”

“May be he is hungry!”

“Well what does he take?”, I asked, completely blank I was that time.

“Here…” Dyllan handed me the paraphernalia. After the child was fed, he fell asleep in my arms. That took around an hour or so and a lot of furious looks thrown at Dyllan, some silent yells and a hell lot of patience! It was silent finally. Dyllan sanked into the couch while I was rocking the baby in my arms. “He looks so beaut…….. when he’s asleep……(I frowned at him thinking how could someone say that about his own kid) I mean, when he is not crying!”, he said when I settled the little one in the bed carefully. “He looks like an angel!”

I sighed. We both sat aside silently. “I didn’t know you were still here.”, he said softly. “Likewise.”

“How are you?”, he asked as if he could not judge it through my eyes. Oh, he asked the wrong question at wrong time. I didn’t say a  word. “Any luck?”, I changed the topic the moment I saw Noah entering the room. “Nah! Sorry to bother you though!”

“I asked you something!” “I am hungry….. did you guys eat anything?” I looked around and could tell that they hadn’t. “I’ll go get something then!”

I was in the kitchen preparing more food now to eat. “This place is just like the previous one……things are still the same! ” “Not really.”, I said sarcastically. Suddenly it was getting hot inside me. I pulled up my hair but he interrupted saying, “I like them opened!” and the very moment I pulled up my hair into a tight bun!

“Are you upset?” And I was thinking how he could ask so casually as if nothing happened. As if the past few years never passed in reality. “Why would I be upset?”, I lied ofcourse.

“What’s wrong?” Oh, now I was at my peak ready to burst the moment I heard him ask the question.

“You……. You were gone! I was here! Right here! And now out of the blue…. You show up at my door……. With a baby! So of course I am upset!!!”, I yelled.

“He’s not my baby.”, he said half smiling. His lips were not curled into a smile but I could see his eyes alighted with that notorious smile he occasionally carried.

“Then why the hell are you with him? Why are you looking for a nanny?”

“Because he’s my brother’s child!” He broke out into laughter.

“Oh! So he’s not……. ”

“No!”

“I thought…… oh…… shit!!”

“You are still crazy, you know!”

“You knew I would think that….. you didn’t clarify!”

“I wanted to see you react because otherwise you would not have talked properly”

“Oh I hate it when you do that! I hate you!!”

“And I still love you!” Was I silent? Yes (from the outside). Was I screaming? That would be an understatement!

What about the baby? Well , later in noon, I did meet his parents and the nanny because of whom it all happened! The weather had turned me up again……Was I smiling? Hell yeah! Was he really there? No he was in my fantasy. I was day dreaming. I was shaken by Angelica sitting right besides me in the Orientation programme!