Hiking with friends in cycle is one of the most funs to associate with nature.

IDIOSYNCRASY

IDIOSYNCRASY

Peeping through the magnificent casement of the royal sweet shop, the poverty-stricken kid, Athoo had never seen his eyes brimmed with daze. There was a surprised silence. The wide gape of his lips prolonged until interrupted by the screech of the dog.

Athoo gawped at the superior attires of the people goofing around there. He looked awkwardly at his tattered shirt, shabby pair of trousers and naked feet. He symbolized himself with the dog, as both had no paternal care, no good apparels, and neither food at appropriate time.

He had a great craving for ‘halwa’, which is one of the India’s most appetizing sweet confections and expensive as well for an orphan kid under below-poverty line could afford. Ignorant of coarse-treatment waiting inside, Athoo sneaked into the sweet shop with a knack. He got amazed by the flamboyant lights. His eyes wandered around the shop. His little frenzy eyes were insufficient to gaze at the entire shop.  His bare feet sensed chillness when they met the floor of the air-conditioned shop.

On seeing the ‘halwa’ box, a wistful smile leaked off his lips. His longing hands touched the glass cage with ecstasy in eyes. “Hey... dirty boy… What’re you doing here? What do you want, huh?” the supervisor yelled in a stern voice. Yet, his eyes were glued to the royally packed ’halwa’ box. The exalted fingers of the little boy pointed towards the ‘halwa’ box. “That costs rs.351. You have it?” Athoo nodded. “Then why do you come here? You’re just messing the atmosphere. Go come with money. Boys! Swab up the glass”, the supervisor pointed to the glass, which was finger printed by Athoo.

His chillness muffled feet were warmed by the sun, when he was evicted from the shop.  He stepped out of the shop musing on his experience at the sweet shop. Athoo wended his way along the road with his dog, sweeping over a tiny stone. The stone came to his standstill under the foot of Dhanya, Athoo’s dumb neighbor and an affable pal. She moved her hands up and down in the air, the language that Athoo could translate. She yelled at him first and asked him to come soon.  Both set of their way to their area. The girl’s two long plaits followed her leaping unsteadily in the air and Athoo did follow her plaits. 

Dhanya’s mother, who looked after Athoo, was waiting for them to arrive. As he came, she dressed up Athoo with pretty good attire they had and made him look tidy. A wealthy couple who suffered without children was going to adopt Athoo. As Dhanya’s mother was financially very backward, she could not look after Athoo along with her own daughter Dhanya. 

Little children did not know about these things and they relished their sport-mood. On auditory perception of the car horn into their slum, all the children of that slum crowded around the car, jostling each other. The couple, whose store rooms were much larger than Dhanya’s home, entered Dhanya’s house. Athoo was running inside Dhanya’s home being chased by Dhanya. As he saw the rich couple,” Aunt! Someone has come home”, he cried and went inside. The rich couple was treated with fresh water, the only thing the poor woman could serve. 

Later, Athoo was heckled in the midst of his earnest ‘hide & seek’ game, to meet the couple.  He carelessly came into the scene. “What’s your name?” the rich lady asked him in a juvenile slang, putting a wide smile on her face.  He just looked at Dhanya’s mother. “Tell them your name”, she insisted. “Athoo”, he said without much interest and moved his attention towards mischievous Dhanya. “So sweet!” admired the rich lady. Athoo continued his naughty and playful facial expressions to Dhanya, behaving as if there were nobody else in the room other than Dhanya and Athoo.

The adults swapped some conversations with them. And finally, the lady asked Athoo, “Athoo, you wanna come with us?”

 He nodded without thinking. He gradually lagged back and hid himself behind his aunt, his fingers gripping the edge of her saree.   

“Why baby? We shall buy you anything you like. Come with us, darling.”The lady offered.

“Anything?” he asked curiously peeping with one of his eyes from behind aunt’s saree.

“Yeah, everything”

His idiosyncratic question tickled her heart giving out a chuckle through her lips “Halwa?!”

“Of course, honey”

The couple entered the car with Athoo.

#Jaye