Chapter Text
“I want to go back home”
“When you’re ready, take me with you”
A plane back to Cochin, and now I'm driving back to my parent’s home.
It feels so long.
I looked out and I saw a gloomy sky, empty shops and dull buildings.
I turned and I saw my wife beside me,
Her face filled with life and colour.
We reached my home in a few hours and greeted an empty, dusty house. It's not a home anymore. My wife walked onto the front porch, her tired eyes were filled with wonder.
“It's really beautiful, did you live here when you were a child?”
“Until I had to leave for higher studies.”
We picked up our bags and went in, my mother always kept a spare key with me. Our house is spacious with many windows, two floors and always enough people to never be quiet. It was a gift from my grandparents to my parents on their marriage. Now it has lost its charm.
Now, it's dull, dark and dusty. I switched on the lights, only one out of the two bulbs responded. This house needs some fixing.
“Do you mind this for today?” I asked my wife who was already deep into exploring the house.
“Of course not, I love it here” she says while staring into our family picture on the wall.
I walk to her and look at the picture.
This picture was taken when we went to a temple when I was ten years old. I remember my mother telling me about how beautiful the temple was whenever she saw this picture.
I see a happy family and I see my happy mother. I miss her. I miss her so much.
“You looked really cute as a kid” my wife’s voice pulls me back to the room.
“I bet you looked cuter” I turned the conversation to her.
“I don’t know,” she comments under her breath.
“It's getting late already, what do you want to eat for dinner?” I changed the topic.
“I'm not hungry”
“I'm not hungry either.” I said with a sense of relief.
“But you can’t sleep with an empty stomach” she replied
“Oh, so you and I have different rules now?”
“Yes” she said with a smirk
We had dinner at a nearby dhaba. All the playing memories made the food taste bland.
Then we went back home without talking. I liked the silence. And she knew that.
My wife asked me “which bedroom do we sleep in?” while looking around the house.
“Why don’t we sleep on the roof?” I said after a pause.
“The roof?” she replied with slight excitement
“We would have to clean these rooms before using them” i said “and the weather is cool outside.”
We went to the rooftop, set the mattress and lay on it looking at the sky.
Dark sky, filled with freckles of light.
We lay soft, staring at its beauty
Tender breeze carries nostalgia
Of the happiness long gone.
But I look beside me
And see eyes filled with beauty
Of the light and wonder of the stars
Feelings of new found happiness
Overcome me
“We have a lot of work to do tomorrow.” I broke the silence “ so, goodnight” I said and I gave her a kiss on her forehead and turned around.
She slowly wrapped her arms around me. “Goodnight” she whispered.
I started thinking about all the stories my mother used to read to me here. But it wasn’t long until I gave in to my wife’s warmth and closed my eyes.