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“I…I…” Aunty looked at Roshni. “We talked about waiting until you came back, but beti decided to–”
“Yeah, I can see her doing that. Aunty, shall we go and check if they are open?” he insisted.
“The lady I talked to mentioned they were open until 5 p.m.,” Roshni interrupted.
Deepak was irked at Roshni and shook his head. “Roshni…well, we’ll deal with it later.” He asked Aunty the name of the person she talked to.
“Ms. Sudha, I think it is Sudha Ranganathan,” replied Aunty.
“How much was the bill?”
“Deepak, it doesn’t matter. I already paid for it, so why talk about it.” Roshni cut him off again.
Sheetal, who was listening all this time, could not be quiet any more. “Roshni, why don’t you understand? Money is money. When Deepak has you on his insurance, why not have the insurance pay for it? Why spend from your pocket?”
“Why should he pay for me? I mean, we still have to do the co-pay, right? So…” said Roshni and looked at Deepak.
“Roshni, the co-pay is not much. Anyway,” he lost patience, “let’s discuss this later.” He tried to change the subject. “I’m starving, so what’s the plan for dinner?”
“I have food for all of us,” Aunty said.
“Great, Aunty, let’s eat. What did you bring?”
Aunty served food to everybody. She had made rice pulav, raita, poories and potato bhaji. The aroma of the spices spread as soon as she opened the containers.
“Mmm.” Deepak inhaled the aroma; he could not resist!
“Roshni, shall I bring this to the bed, or do you want to come over here to the table?” Deepak asked Roshni.
“I’m fine here, thank you. Maybe tomorrow,” she replied.
Deepak took the plate to Roshni and arranged the small table across her lap. He helped her wash her hands and got her settled.
Deepak noticed Aunty served for them but did not serve for herself. “Why aren’t you eating, Aunty?”
“I will wait until you all are done.”
“Why, why do you want to eat all by yourself, Aunty? Please come and join us.”
And without waiting for her response, he pulled out one more plate, served for Aunty, and gave her the plate. Roshni noticed this gesture and was glad he did not treat her differently. She thanked him mentally for making Aunty comfortable.
Deepak thoroughly enjoyed the yummy poories and bhaji Aunty had made. He relished every bite. Every grain of rice was soaked in spices; the raita added the flavor.
He thanked Aunty f
or making the delicious food. After dinner, Deepak helped Roshni become comfortable, and Roshni noticed his attention.
Aunty and Sheetal packed and were ready to leave.
“Aunty, will you please help me with the bath tomorrow? I would feel better; I have not had water on me for the last several days. I thought I could have a bath today, but all was delayed,” Roshni requested.
Aunty agreed, and they left.
Deepak helped Roshni stretch on the bed, and while tucking in the blanket, he said, “Roshni, you should make an attempt to stand up and take a couple of steps tomorrow. Your muscles have been inactive for a few days now, and it will take time to bring back some strength into them.”
“Okay, I’ll try tomorrow. I worry that I will fall.”
“So what? I’ll be there to hold you; don’t worry. You need to try; it will hurt you, but don’t give up.”
