Free I don't Wear Sunscreen by Kavipriya Moorthy Page B

which he gave her a
puzzled look.
    “ I didn’t notice you dad!
What were you asking, huh.? Did you say something?” she looked at
him, trying to gain her balance.
    “ I asked whether you want to
take a flight or train dear, is something wrong with you?” he asked
in a concerned voice.
    “ You have money, dad?” she
asked back.
    “ What question is this? Just
tell me your preferred mode and that would do,” she had hit his ego
in the right spot, which turned him angry.
    “ Sorry dad, a flight would
make things easier. I don’t want to use train anymore,” she
answered, not meeting his eyes. .
    She thought about the furious dream she
had and went outside. She saw her dad talking over the phone to his
friend to check flight schedules.
    “ Flight rates are high now
Laksha, I am trying my level best, don’t worry. I will make sure I
arrange a ticket as soon as possible,” her dad told her, noticing
her walk outside the room without looking back.
    “ I am still okay with train,
if you or mom accompanies me,” she replied and turned to see if he
looked at her, but he didn’t.
    “ I will go with her,” her
mom answered. “It’s been a long time since I visited Mumbai,” she
said.
    “ I will book the tickets;
you’ll pack your bags. When do you want to return?” he asked her
mom and moved close to her. Laksha walked away quickly.
    ***

Chapter Nine
    “ Hello, I’m calling from VE
interiors. Am I talking to someone from Laksha’s
family?”
    “ Yes, I am her father,” the
voice responded.
    “ Sir, sorry to inform you
that Laksha has been admitted in the hospital. We checked our
records and your number was given in her emergency
contacts,”
    “ What? What happened to her?
Is she alright?”
    “ Sir, please calm down. When
can you come over?”
    “ I’m in Chennai right now,
but her mom is in Mumbai. I will contact her, but please tell me
what happened!”
    “ Sir, can you please send
someone immediately? I don’t know what really happened; I am just
calling as per my instructions,”
    “ Fine! Please give me the
hospital details, I will send her mom right away.”
    ***
    “ She is all right now, we
will discharge her tomorrow. Please make sure you give her the
tablets regularly. If this happens again, we will have to do some
tests,” the doctor on call informed Laksha’s mom and moved
away.
    Laksha didn’t have the courage to look
at her mother. Though the lady knew what the issue was, she was not
ready to ask Laksha about it.
    “ I’m bored of this Horlicks
mom, can you please get me some coffee?” she asked her mom a little
angrily.
    “ Shut up and sleep, will
you?” mom said, raising her left eyebrow, which a lot of people
can’t do.
    The day was filled with silence and
small talk, and nobody asked Laksha about what had happened. Though
her mom was confused and almost on the verge of questioning her,
she kept thinking over again and again about Laksha without
spilling a bean. When her father called, she calmed him down and
explained that she would stay with Laksha for some time. She also
asked him to cancel her return tickets.
    “ Tell me what you want to do
Laksha, do you want to talk to me about something? Or do you want to do something
different today, ” her mom asked.
    “ Hmm. Now that I have lost
my job, what else have I got to do? I don’t know what to do,”
Laksha finally said what was on her mind, sipping the hot coffee
with extra sugar and looking out the window.
    “ What made you behave like
this, Laksha?”
    “ Love, mom. Love for my job
and my career. I saw my career progression happen in that office. I
don’t know why I shouted and screamed like a wild cat when the
receptionist didn’t allow me in. I wanted to meet Saurav and ask
him why, but she said I could not, because I’d got a pink
slip,”
    “ Well, she did her
job,”
    “ I did too; do you know how
hard I worked? Don’t talk to me about my job,” with that, Laksha
screamed again. Her eyeballs moved