Sapno Ka Shaher

New Propositions

"Kitna ho gaya iska?"

"Sattar rupaye sahab..."

Rakesh took his wallet and happily paid for what was in the paperbag. Had it been his past-self, he would have heavily bargained with the shopkeeper. Well, he wouldn't have purchased anything worth seventy rupees in the first place itself. But he has been happy since yesterday. And whenever he's happy, he does only one thing. Purchase something for Naina.

On his way back home, he kept humming his favorite Kishore Kumar songs and lost in his own thoughts. Naina would be so happy to see this. He mused. How much he likes to see her expressions whenever he gets her something from his own money. For all those colorful pens, pencils, the stationary, the diary, the dress; he had seen her getting overwhelmed with happiness. That lone happy tear in her eyes that she would try hard to hide from him, gave him ultimate satisfaction. He had missed being the reason behind his daughter's happy face since her childhood. Since Naina was a kid, he had only given her tears, punishments and apathy. But he had left all the things that happened in the past behind. He had left his unwilling personality behind. He wanted to be a doting father to Naina... and Sameer too... And he was trying very hard to become one.

He entered the house using his key and recognised that Naina was in the kitchen. She instantly came to him and he forwarded the paperbag towards her. He was keen to know her reaction.

He smiled brightly, "Naina yeh tere liye-"

But his statement was cut in by Naina's accusing tone, "Papa... aapke paas itne paise kaha se aaye?"

Naina's voice was sharp and blunt. This made Rakesh's hand holding the bag stop midway; his smile faded and a frown covered his face instead. "Kaunse paise?" He asked.

"Wahi... jo aapne almaari me apne kapdo ke beech chhupa ke rakhe the..."

Rakesh kept the paperbag on the glass table and heaved. All his happiness and excitement had died down. "Kuchh chhupa ke nahi rakha tha... galti se kapde rakh diye gaye honge uspar..." He replied plainly.

"Papa yeh sau-do sau rupayo ki baat nahi hai... poore char hazaar rupaye hai... itne paise kaha se aaye, Papa?" Naina was firm on asking the source of money.

"Woh... bank se laaye the maine..." Rakesh avoided looking at Naina.

Naina was folding the dried clothes in the afternoon as the sun had come through the skies after many days. She arranged her and Sameer's clothes in their almirah in the bedroom and came back to the living room for Papa's clothes. As she opened the cupboard, she found it a little messy and thought of setting it right. After arranging his t-shirts and pants, she found a white envelope under some clothes. She certainly wasn't expecting to find eight notes of five hundred rupees when she opened it in curiosity. Wondering how this much money was found in such an envelope, she searched for the bank passbook to verify her doubt. But there wasn't any entry in it. At this time of the month, they could not have the amount of four thousand, as Rakesh Papa himself was maintaining the expenses.

Her bewilderment had soon turned into many questions regarding the money. What can be the source of this money that was presented in a white envelope? Did someone give it to Papa? Did he borrow money from someone? But borrowing money wasn't the case now. None of Sameer's or Papa's bank accounts lacked money that Papa needed to borrow from someone.

So what could it be?

Her mind was constantly directing herself to Papa's alternate day outings. Because it was the only option that was quite evident. And it worried her more than anything. Why was Papa so adamant on not sharing about where he goes, what he does? Why was there so much suspense around it? Both her and Sameer had been ignoring it for quite long, rather she used to defend her father against Sameer. But now it seemed to go overboard.