We have embarked on the story of Rohini and Vikram, and a super talkative grumpy parakeet – Keezo. To read the previous part of the story, click here.
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The day felt heavy on Rohini’s shoulders, she could not brush away the stress from her body, and her mind was replaying small instances of Vikram looking at her with a deep penetrating gaze. She was irritated with herself for acting like an amateur today.
What would he think of me, I made a fool out of myself today. He is after all a guardian and a well-established lawyer, my entire life I haven’t acted so foolishly.
It was around 9 pm when her phone chimed, expecting a message from her husband she picked up and unlocked it to find an unknown number. Strangely, no one messages her this late, and that too on her personal number.
It was lovely meeting you today, Mrs. Kaushik, I am looking forward to our meeting tomorrow. Regarding ‘Krisha’s future’, of course.
Vikram! How does he have my personal number? She was stunned and reread the same message many times before replying.
How did you get this number… she wrote only to delete it. Why are you messaging me at this time … deleted it again. I never shared my personal number with you, how did you get it? … nope, deleted.
Thank you, same here. Looking forward to discussing more about Krisha. I will have her questionnaire report ready by tomorrow. Regards, Rohini Kaushik. Roh’s Academy. Rohini.
I have already done too much damage with this man, I don’t want to aggravate more by acting childish, she thought to herself. It is just a regular meeting with a guardian, like many I have had in the past. But her anxiety is getting the best of it. She considered taking it slow or chucking it out altogether.
CHOY! CHOY! CHOY! Keezo was screeching as usual in the morning for his food.
“Veenu, give him some choy please, don’t cut it into smaller pieces so that he can keep busy and stay quiet for some time. I am already having a headache”, protested Rohini from the living room.
The caretaker fed Keezo and brought some herbal tea for her when Raunak called.
“What happened Ma, you looking dull today. Where is that sexy smile of yours, babe?” Raunak teased her on the video call.
“Don’t you start today; do you know what this dinosaur-bird of yours done yesterday? He was screaming ‘Hot Maal – Hot Maal’ in front of a guardian” she complained to her son.
“So what? That’s a fact, FYI… only you don’t acknowledge it,” Raunak quipped lovingly.
“Shut up, would you! It’s not good for my reputation, and concentration, … aaand my peace of mind.”
“Come on Ma, you never had a problem concentrating on your students and their stuck-up parents, what was so special yesterday?” asked Raunak gauging her discomfort. “Tell me what happened, what made you so upset?”
“It’s nothing, oh yeah, before I forget, do we have permissions and papers for Keezo’s adoption if we don’t then it could be a big problem, wildlife conservationists can sue us and take Keezo away.” She informed Raunak as a matter of fact.
“Woah… woah, slow down… what papers you are talking about? You know well, I bought him from a forest guy and they cannot read shit. There is no need to panic okay! And who told you all this unnecessary stuff, by the way?” he asked.
“Vikram told me about this yesterday,” she answered almost instantly. “I mean the guardian who came yesterday told me about this, he is a Supreme Court lawyer and he knows it’s illegal to have exotic birds without a proper license.”
“Oh Fishhhh…. Ma. I am so sorry; I wish I was there or Dad was to take care of this thing. I had no clue, look everyone has pet birds at their homes, so I thought it would be cool,” Raunak was rattled.
“Don’t worry, I will get this sorted for you. I know whom to ask,” she assured her son.
“Keezo…. KEEEE..ZOOOOO, no calling MOM HOT MAAL, Okay,” Ruanak winked at Rohini while yelling for his bird.
HOT MAAL! HOT MAAL! HOT MAAAAAL! Keezo immediately shouted back to them.
They both laughed at the bird and just like that Rohini was ready to face the day. Raunak is her lifeline, her daily dose of life and energy. Only her heart knows the pain of living far away from her only son. In fact, Kaushal’s absence has become a habit for her, but it is Raunak she misses terribly.
Vikram arrived sharp on time, this man has maintained a good streak of punctuality, probably the work hazards, she thought to herself.
Casually dressed in denim and a polo-neck t-shirt, Vikram looked good. The man is handsome on every front, and he knows how to dress well. It is clearly an effortless styling. In causal cotton pants and a loose shirt, Rohini was also styled for a better day.
She had decided earlier to take it easy today, the man sitting in front of her was intimidatingly charming but she had seen enough life to lose her wits. So, today she was prepared for Vikram.
“Mr. Sethi, I have got the results of Krisha ’s questionnaire and I am afraid to say, she has to take a couple of more sessions with me. There was a clear set of questions based on interests, choices of career, some psychometric parameters, and future aspirations. Her answers were ambiguous in some context.” Rohini said while showing Vikram a line diagram on her laptop screen.
“As you can see, she has shown keen interest in music and instruments, and she referred multiple times about the same, but her future aspirations are that of a law degree from a renowned foreign university. However, her other answers also clash in the same regard,” Rohini knows how some parents push their children to pursue a certain degree despite their clear disinterest. She doubts if this is the same case here.
Vikram was listening to everything very keenly and with deep interest, he was impressed with Rohini’s work acumen, because he knows the case with his niece. He liked the fact, Rohini deciphered the discrepancy through a simple questionnaire.
“I must say, Mrs. Kaushik, you have stumped me with this information,” he replied in his usual swag. “I am glad to know, my only niece is under the right guidance. Impressive!”
Rohini didn’t like the tone he set in their early interaction, “Why, thank you? But I must remind you, this meeting is not about me being a good/impressive counselor, it is about Krisha, YOUR NIECE choosing the path of her choice and not being forced to do something she doesn’t want to.”
Vikram was smiling now, and Rohini was kind of irked. Why do his reactions boil her blood, and get a ruse from her so easily?
“Yes, indeed! That was the reason I wanted to meet with you alone today. I feel Krisha is under pressure to follow her parents and family. As you can see, we are a family of attorneys, her mother is a corporate lawyer, her father is a senior legal advisor at a multinational and I am, well you know about me, already! So, I think, she is misguided to follow us despite her keen interest in music.” Vikram’s tone shifted to caring or more defensive. Clearly, the man loves his niece and thinks about her in good spirits.
“In that case, we need to work around Krisha, as there are many options to pursue her interest and have a prospective future. Let me book her a slot next week, and you can drop her here if you cannot accompany her.” Rohini is happy to see a guardian wishing their children to follow off-beat career choices. She usually sees parents forcing the kids to follow more ‘suitable’, ‘employable’ fields of career.
“Gladly, I will try to accompany her, but if not, will do as you advised, thank you for understanding the cause here. We don’t want her to lose her dreams, as a lawyer myself, I know there is no fun in black robes and dirty open-secrets.” He replied with a deep sigh.
Rohini is happy to see a more human side of Vikram, she was intimidated by his penetrating gaze yesterday, but today, she was kind of enjoying his company.
“Well, I would love to spend an entire day with you Mrs. Kaushik, but I got to go, duty calls,” quipped Vikram with his signature smirk.
“It is Rohini! And I am glad to be of help, Mr. Sethi” she replied.
“Only if you call me Vikram, Mr. Sethi was my late father,” he winked at her while offering her a hand.
“Done!”
They both were leaving the room, when Rohini remembered to ask him about the bird’s license. “I need a small favor from you, Mr. Se… err… Vikram,” she said sheepishly.
“It will be my honor to be of some help, please tell me how can I help you, Madame,” Vikram replied jovially.
“You mentioned the exotic bird’s license, well, I checked with my son and he doesn’t have any such documents. In fact, he was not even aware of such perquisites, so if you could guide me on how to go about it, that would be a great help.”
Vikram was more than happy to grab this opportunity, “with pleasure. I will get the guidelines read by my staff and let you know what needs to be done next, will that work?” he asked.
“Oh! Thank you, please connect me with the person who can help me with this, I am sure you are too busy for such trivial stuff,” she rendered.
“All your lines will be routed through this system, Madam,” he gestured towards himself and smiled with a wink. “Don’t worry, I will get it sorted in no time.”
“Thanks again, and please let me know the fees. I know time is valuable, and I do not want to waste yours,” Rohini said with determination in her voice.
Vikram gazed at her for a few moments before moving towards the sundeck, he found Keezo lazing around on the swing. Seeing Vikram, he hopped on a higher swing and started making funny voices.
“Hey buddy, your mom here wants to know the charges for legally adopting you, what should be my fees, Keezo, any suggestion, huh… let’s say, how about a dinner with me?” he replied very casually keeping his eyes fixed on the bird.
To be continued…
This post is a part of Blogchatter Half Marathon 2024
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3 Comments
Nice to know about the wildlife laws being put in place for adoption of birds. I hope Rohini and Vikram do have that dinner.
As it is an exotic bird, and as per my research, such species need special licenses. Thank you for stopping by.
Why am I rooting for them?