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“Mummy said we can’t shout if it’s before eight o’clock,”announced Amisha, standing proprietarily in the doorway. “Bad Auntie Wee.”
“It’s an emergency!” Reeva pushed past her niece into the bedroom. Sita was lying in bed with Alisha sprawled across her, playing with what looked like toy soldiers. Even in her state of crisis, Reeva felt a pang of envy. Her sister had two tiny beings who adored her. While all she had was two less-than-tiny bald patches. But now wasn’t the time to dwell on her empty womb. She scrambled onto the bed, brandished her ruler, and looked wildly into Sita’s eyes. “I need your help. I think I have more bald patches. You need to measure them.”
Her sister opened her mouth as if to say something sarcastic, then closed it again. She took the ruler. “Okay.”
“Alisha, can you budge over please?” asked Reeva. “Mummy needs to check something for me.”
Alisha obediently rolled over to the other side of the bed, watching wide-eyed as Reeva sat in front of her mum, who began methodically parting her hair. Amisha came and sat next to them to join in the viewing of the unusual seven a.m. event. “Auntie Wee has nits?”
Sita let out a snort. “Worse, Meesh. She’s—”
“Don’t tell them!” cried Reeva. “I don’t want anyone to know.”
“Reeva, they’re only five years old.”
“Yeah, which means they’ll tell everyone! In fact...” She sat up straight. “Can you ask them to leave?”
“No, I cannot! You’re being irrational, Reeva. Calm down.”
“Calm down? How can I calm down?! I’m losing my hair! Oh god, I said it out loud, and now they’re going to tell everyone, and Nick will find out—though how can he not when it’s literally so obvious, and—”
“Reeva, breathe,” said Sita. “You look like you’re about to have a heart attack.”
Reeva looked miserably at her. “Just tell me how bad it is. Go on.”
“Well, the one at the back is seven centimeters. And the other one is four centimeters. And I think there’s another tiny one, but it’s really small. Only like one point five centimeters. Then there’s obviously the big one you know about. Which is nine point five centimeters.”
“What?!” Reeva grabbed Sita’s shoulders. “Are you telling me I havefourbald patches? That’s... twenty-two centimeters of baldness!”
Sita lowered her eyes. “I’m sorry.”
Reeva burst into tears. She hadn’t cried like this since everything ended with Rakesh, and now she felt like she’d never stop. She was exhausted. Weeks of tonics, creams, and monitoring her patch daily—only for it to multiply across her entire head. She couldn’t cope anymore. “I’m so tired,” she sobbed, pulling the duvet up to her face and wiping her eyes with it. “I’ve tried so hard, and it’s... all... going... wrong.”
Sita looked at her, aghast. “I... Reeva. It’s... okay.” She reached out an arm and awkwardly patted her sister’s shoulder. “It’ll be okay.”
“It won’t,” she wailed in response. “I’m losing my hair. I’m going bald. Nick’s going to leave me and I’m going to be alone again. I’llneverhave kids!” Her sobs intensified, and her shoulders began shaking. “And Dad’s gone, and I know he would have been there for me. But he’s not, and Mum’s AWOL, and everything’s a nightmare. And I’m... so... sad.”
Sita turned to her daughters. Alisha was sucking her thumb,calmly watching her aunt, while Amisha was nonchalantly playing with the soldiers. “Girls, why don’t you give your Auntie Ree—I mean Ree Masi—a hug? She’s a bit sad.”
“Noo,” said Amisha. “I’m playing.”
Reeva cried louder.
“Why is she sad?” asked Alisha curiously.
“Because I’m goingbaldand no one cares and I’m sotiredof trying to be perfect andfailingall the time.” Reeva half shouted and half sobbed at her niece. “Look!” She tilted and shook her head. “They’re everywhere!”
Alisha looked with interest at her aunt’s scalp. “Auntie Wee’s head looks like Eugea Y’s head.”
“Who’s Eugea Y?” sniffed Reeva.
“Uh, just, no one,” said Sita. “It’s not a thing.”
“U-G-L-Y!” shrieked Amisha. She pushed her soldiers off the bed and dived under the covers, reappearing with a Barbie doll. Her long blond hair had been hacked off, so she was now bald in parts. The remaining hair was standing on end and coated in what looked like glue. She looked like she’d had an electric shock.
“Uh, they call her U-G-L-Y, as in ugly,” explained Sita. “They think it’s funny that it sounds like a name. Eugea Y.”
Amisha held the doll up next to Reeva’s head. Alisha nodded. The twins spoke in unison: “Same.”
