April 2005

For the first time in a very long time, Aditya walked inside his house with a smile on his face as he carried the carton of books inside.

The house was in a mess like it always was and Aditya sighed as he tossed some beer cans and empty whiskey bottles away with his foot as he walked in. The lights in the house were turned off, despite the fact that there was at least one person living in the house all the time.

He passed the living room as the sound of snoring reached his ears. It was after 9 pm and Aditya had just come back from his shift at the hotel kitchen and he did not want to deal with cleaning the house in such a tired state. The past few days had taken a toll on him with the double shift at work and then coming home to a constantly drunk uncle.

Sailesh Varma, Aditya's uncle was his father's older brother who was not only an alcoholic but also the reason Aditya had lost the only parent he had. Aditya's father and uncle had been business partners in work but on paper, it was Subham Varma, Aditya's dad who had owned the business. It was an investment firm that they ran together until Aditya's uncle convinced his father to invest in some options that eventually turned out to be disastrous. When the people who had invested in the firm lost all their money, it led to criminal charges against Aditya's dad because legally, it was his and only his company. Sailesh simply disappeared, making sure nothing led to him.

Aditya's dad had to file for bankruptcy just before the arrest and now, Aditya lived with the very person who had sent his dad to jail. If he had any other place to live, Aditya would have gladly chosen it but the only options he had was to either live where the state government ordered him to, or live with his uncle. Aditya had chosen his uncle because he could at least have his own freedom.

All Aditya did now was wait for his eighteenth birthday when he could legally live on his own.

He placed the carton of books on the table and it made a loud thud.

"Aditya?" Sailesh asked, suddenly waking up. "Are you back?"

Aditya didn't answer.

The next moment, Sailesh walked into Aditya's room, still dazed with sleep and alcohol, rubbing his eyes to adjust to the light. "Do you have any money?"

Here was the thing about Aditya's uncle. For a good part of his life, Sailesh had lived on his brother's money and now that he was gone, he lived on his nephew's money.

"No." Aditya said sternly but Sailesh didn't believe him. He reached for Aditya's bag and searched through it. Twice.

"Didn't you get paid?"

"I told you I get monthly wages."

"You must have something on you." Sailesh said and reached for Aditya's pocket.

Aditya held his hand firmly and pushed him away. The half-drunk man stumbled back and hit the wall behind.

"I just need a hundred rupees." he said. "It's for medicine."

Aditya knew it was not for medicine. He knew if he gave his uncle the money, he would go out and buy himself more whiskey.

"I don't have any money."

Sailesh scorned and looked around the room. Aditya's eyes followed. He knew his uncle was looking for something lucrative to sell. But what could he? He had already sold everything in the house for alcohol. The only things remaining were a couple of beds, a worn-out sofa, some utensils that were old and unusable and some chairs.

Sometimes Aditya wondered if living in an orphanage would be better than this. But living in an orphanage would mean he would not be able to go to school as they wouldn't be able to afford it. Instead, he would be sent to some government school where he could forever say goodbye to football. It would also mean that he wouldn't be allowed to work at night. So whatever this was, however shitty it was, it was still better than an orphanage.

"What's this?" Sailesh asked and he reached for the carton. Despite Aditya fending him off, Sailesh opened the box and looked inside.

"You said you didn't have money." he said. "So where did these new books come from?"

"The school gave them to me." Aditya said and in response, and before he could turn away, Aditya met with a thundering slap from his uncle.

"Liar."

Aditya's fist curled into a ball. This was not new. His uncle had hit him a couple of times before too, especially when he was drunk and Aditya had only controlled himself because if his uncle abandoned him, he would have to go to wherever the government allocated him.

Sailesh grabbed the carton, his eyes shining with lust for money. "Look at them." he said. "They're brand new. I bet they'll sell for a good amount."

He was about to pick the carton up when Aditya gripped his hand around his uncle's wrist and tightened it. Sailesh's hand writhed in pain and he tried to break free but Aditya did not budge. He kept pressing with all his strength until Sailesh could not take it anymore and dropped the carton.

He looked up at Aditya and he could swear that he saw his eyes glowing red with anger.

"If you touch these books one more time..." Aditya said through gritted teeth, "I will break every bone in your body."

With that, he released Sailesh's arm and the moment he did, Sailesh squirmed out of the room, believing what Aditya had said.

When he left, Aditya closed the door to his room and picked up the books from the ground.

A small note slipped out one of the books. Aditya picked it up and read it.

It had a phone number and a few words- 'If you ever think we could be friends.'

Aditya smiled and surprised himself. For someone who hadn't smiled even once in over a year, he had done it twice now. And both times because of Vikram.

He glanced at the phone number once more and slipped the note back into the book. He didn't have a mobile or a phone but he could at least memorize the number if he ever needed it.

That night, Aditya went to sleep with a very light heart and a very warm smile.

Three times in one day.

It had to be a record.