Page 103 of Made in Mumbai

“We will talk later…”

“I said I am fine, Kumar bhai. What else?”

“She left a letter for you. It got delivered to me today.”

“Hmm.”

“I will send it you when you are in the right frame of mind.”

“Send it whenever, it doesn’t matter. Now I have to go back to M and MM. I’ll call you back soon, hmm?”

“Hmm. Go.”

19. Pyaar Mujhse Jo Kiya Tumne Toh Kya Paaogi

Sleep was an alien concept. Night? What was that? Gautam couldn’t feel his face after seventeen hours of no sleep. He had gone without it for longer before, during his truck driving days and then again during his starting up of GK Textiles. But now, his body just worked like it was half of itself.

“It’s the age,” Maya laughed, her own eyes droopy after the night of bawling they had had.

The last month with MM had been… interesting. They would fall in love with her in the morning with all her cute smiles and yawns, then begin to question the existence of children by night, only to fall more in love with her the next morning. Their house was a mess, even after Gautam had doubled up the shift of his cleaning staff. The food, thank god, was regular, fresh and delicious thanks to his cook. He had gotten Dr. Rekha to give him a mix of scientific and old-school remedy diet for Maya and she was choking it down between feeds, nappy changes and power naps. He, on the other hand, was the backup that was always ready, working from the sofa of his hall to take over from Maya whenever she was overwhelmed, which was often.

Gautam had realised that she wouldn’t show how distressed she was in the first few days, thinking it wasn’t his job to help her with this. So Gautam had begin to hover around her, pick up MM whenever she was down, just seamlessly merging into Maya’s routine with her baby. And within a week Maya had begin to let go. Trust him. Rightfully order him. It had come to a point where she snapped her fingers at him and pointed to the baby cot whenever MM cried and she knew it was nappy change and not feed.

Gautam had fallen prey to that the first few times, the naive man he was. Then he had learned to identify the types of cries too and nudge her for alternate nappy changes. Like right now.

“You,” she snapped, vegetating on the sofa. “Your turn.”

“In your dreams!” He snapped back, becoming half-Maya in his sleepless state. “I went two hours ago.”

She stomped her foot and stormed away, making him chuckle in his sleep. His eyes were closing when Maya screamed his name. He straight up sprinted, his heart in his mouth as he stopped just before the cot in Maya’s room.

“What’s wrong?”

“She is following me with her eyes!!!” Maya was jumping, MM’s eyes fixated on her mother. Gautam let out a breath — “Say that out loud along with your scream next time, M!”

“Shit, shit, shit! My baby is so f-ing smart…”

“Language, Maya, language.”

“Look.” She held steady in the field of MM’s vision, waiting to hold her gaze. Then very slowly started walking to the side. And the eighth wonder of the world! MM was following Maya with her eyes. Gautam was amazed as Maya returned to her spot and MM was still following.

“Yaaayy!!!” Maya clapped. “Megha is the smartest girl. My beauty with my brains!”

“My turn, my turn,” Gautam nudged her off her place and stood, waiting for MM to fixate. When she did, he began to move. But midway she looked away.

“Nooo… try again, MM, I am your favourite person in this house.”

“I give her food, why are you her favourite?”

“I let her out of her swaddle,” he grinned, returning to his original spot. But she wouldn’t follow. His face fell.

“Awww,” Maya pulled his cheeks, reaching up to nuzzle his nose. “My big baby.” She cooed in her baby voice. He grunted. “Go and wear a bright coloured shirt,” she laughed. “I am wearing fuchsia pink. You are wearing white. Babies stick to bright colours.”

He didn’t need to be told twice. Gautam raced into his room, pulled out his brightest piece of clothing, which happened to be a cobalt blue formal shirt, and ran back. He waited in MM’s periphery again, hanging on for her to fixate on him. Once she did, he moved. Very slowly. One step at a time. Almost in slow motion.

And she held on!

“Yes!” He whooped, returning to his spot and doing it again. And again. And again, until his baby girl was tired and went to sleep halfway. Maya chuckled, lounging on her bed.

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