Thicker than blood

Kriti woke up at the sound of a heavy thud. Still sleepy, she called out to her mother,” Mumma, what was that sound? “.

“Nothing to worry, baby. You know the Kapoors are leaving, their movers are here. Why don’t you get up now, if you get ready in time you can say goodbye to your Sumit bhaiya”, said her mother, from the kitchen.

Burying her face in the pillow, Kriti, once again, got gripped by the sadness that she had been feeling for the 

past few weeks, since the news of this moving had first come about.

Kriti had always been a shy child, she didn’t mix with people that easily, even with the few friends that she had in the neighborhood she would remain inhibited. The fact that she was an only child, made her feel all the lonelier at home as well. Her parents, both working, doted on her, fulfilled her every wish; but somewhere even they were aware of the void that Kriti felt.

Then, four years ago, just before Kriti’s eighth birthday, the Kapoors moved into the house next door. The Kapoors had three kids: Naina, Sunaina and Sumit. The girls, Naina and Sunaina were twins, about to complete their college education. The boy, Sumit, lanky and bespectacled back then, was seven years older than Kriti and also her complete opposite. He was a fun, outgoing kid and within two weeks of them moving in, had made quite a lot of friends in the colony. Kriti, wasn’t one of them, till her birthday.

That year too, Kriti’s parents had thrown a big party, inviting all her friends, decorating the place with balloons, banners, ribbons and, of course, getting the most beautiful and delicious cake. They had gifted her a new bicycle that year. It was like they always tried to compensate Kriti for the one thing that they probably could not give her- a sibling. And that evening, Kriti missed having one more than ever. One of her friends Aditi had just had a baby sister. Over a silly kid fight, she had told Kriti that she was not allowed to play with her baby sister anymore, and maybe God didn’t give her any baby sister or brother because she was so horrible. Kriti had cried a lot that day, even her mother had cried a little bit. The fight was over and forgotten, but that night Aditi was at the party with her baby sister, and that was all that Kriti could think about.

Although, the Kapoor kids weren’t of the same age as Kriti but living next door they got invited to her party nonetheless. Naina and Sunaina, saying that they were too old for the party, excused themselves, but Sumit had to attend, even if only for the formal courteousness. After exchanging greetings with Kriti’s parents, Sumit asked where she was, and they directed him to her. As Sumit made his way towards her, he couldn’t help but notice the sadness in Kriti’s eyes. The little kid had a sheepish smile glued to her face as she accepted her presents but her eyes were dim, and she seemed to keep glancing across the room, at another kid who was playing with a baby. Sumit couldn’t figure out the reason for her sadness, but resolved to cheer her up somehow; “Everybody should be happy on their birthday”, he thought.

“Helllooooo there!!’, called out Sumit, and momentarily pulled Kriti out of the distress. She, having passed him many a times in the hallway and seen him playing with his friends in the neighborhood, obviously recognized him. Then, the sheepish smile returned again as she expected another round of birthday wishes and presents from Sumit.

“I see you have been looking at that little baby for quite a while, would you like to play with her?”, he asked, catching Kriti a little offgaurd as she didn’t expect someone to have noticed this about her, least of all an older kid whom she had hardly ever spoken to. She remained quiet for a moment, thinking of making up some excuse and bringing the conversation back to her birthday, but then the kindness in his eyes made her decide otherwise.

“I can’t, that’s not my baby sister, she’s Aditi’s. God didn’t give me a baby sister or brother”, said Kriti in a timid voice, she didn’t expect Sumit to be able to do anything about it but somehow sharing this with him made her feel lighter.

Sumit was able to put together the pieces, and immediately understood the entire situation. Being the youngest, he was constantly ragged by his sisters and during many a fights had wished that they never existed, and yet he loved them a lot and knew that life without them would never have been the same- never been as much fun. He felt a sudden affection and a sense of protectiveness for this little kid in front of him.

“Hmm.. I don’t know who told you that one can only play with one’s own baby sisters or brothers, but that isn’t true. Why, you aren’t my little sister, but does that mean that I couldn’t play with you?”, he said, not certain what to say if she said that he couldn’t. But Kriti remained silent, thinking over the logic given to her; it made sense.

“Okay, so I guess that means a no…”, he said to check what she had decided.

“No..no.. Bhaiya.. of course you can play with me. But..”, she was still a little unsure.

“ What but? And now that you have called me Bhaiya, let me live up to it na.. It’s your birthday, and if 

playing with that baby is what you want, that is what you shall have. Come on, we’ll go over to them right now”, said Sumit, as he extended his hand towards Kriti. With a moment’s pause Kriti held it, and from then on began a relationship that was much purer and stronger than that of the blood relations.

Sumit had always been the youngest in his family, but with Kriti he was the older one. With her, he felt, he had to provide care rather than be taken care of and this brought in him a sense of responsibility. On the other hand, in him, Kriti had finally found someone who could fill that void in her life that only a sibling could have. When he got his bike, Kriti was the first one to ride with him around the block, as she proudly sat in front of him. He was the first one she ran to whether she had won something or had a terrible fight. Despite their age difference, they understood each other completely and shared a strange connection. Whenever she would be going through some adolescent problems, he would give her an attentive ear and never put her down like the other adults did; tackling her issues like very serious matters indeed. Likewise, when he would have some problems in his life, he would come and share with her. Her earnestly made innocent suggestions might not have made great solutions but definitely assured Sumit of maintaining a positive outlook. With Sumit, Kriti learnt to let go of her inhibitons, and her parents saw a more confident and outgoing side of her come out; and they knew that they had only Sumit to thank for it. Time soon flew by as their bond strengthened.

Then, a couple of months back, Sumit got the final call from one of the engineering colleges in Jaipur. The previous year, Naina and Sunaina had been married to another set of twins in the same city. So, at this news the Kapoors decided to shift to Jaipur where they could be close to all of their children. When Sumit first shared this news with Kriti, she took it better than what he had expected. Soon, his house had been put up for sale. So when people began to turn up to look at the property she realized that the Kapoors were actually serious about it, and her dream run was soon going to end. And that’s when it had actually hit her and the sadness had begun to gnaw at her.

As Kriti finished brushing her teeth, her mother called out,” Kriti, see I was telling you to get ready na..Sumit has to come to meet you, come on out quickly.”

She looked at herself in the mirror and smiled, assuring herself that she can go through this. But as soon as she came out and looked at Sumit, the little child in her came out. She ran into his arms and burst into tears, holding him tight not wanting to let go; she thought maybe this way she could make him stay.

“Don’t go bhaiya, please don’t go.. I’ll be all alone again..please don’t go.. please”, she broke down, the emotions she had been guarding closely for weeks finally came undone.

Kriti’s mother stood in the doorway as she looked over the two of them, tears brimming in her own eyes. Sumit gestured her to go inside, he wanted to talk to Kriti; wiping her tears she went inside. He gave Kriti a tight hug, hoping that it would brace them for what lay ahead. Then, gently stroking her head he searched for words; words that would somehow alleviate the pain of this separation.

“ Haa.. I am being so silly”, suddenly Kriti cried out, pulling herself away from him as he looked at her bemused.

“Bhaiya, three years ago, I was a sad, lonely kid, who thought that she didn’t even deserve the kind of love and care, which you have shown me since then. Pata hai, after meeting you I have always felt glad that I do not have a sibling, ‘cause if I did, maybe you would not have noticed me that day, and I would have missed out on all this love, which I believe God had earmarked in your heart just for me. You always call me your angel, but the truth is, you are God’s angel sent for me”, Sumit was left speechless by Kriti’s words. He just looked at her lovingly; the little kid he had met three years ago had definitely grown up.

“Now, I know you have to go”, she continued,” you have to finish your studies. You might be away from me, but, this doesn’t mean that you will stop loving me,” she paused,” will you?”

Seeing her grow doubtful again, it was time for Sumit to say his share,” No, never.. No matter what happens, no matter where I go, I could never stop loving you. And don’t you ever doubt that”, a little smile showed up on her face,” This bond that we share; ye aise hi nahi ban jata… God might have intervened to make us meet, but beyond that it was our love for each other that has brought us this far. Your Bhaiya might not be in the same city as you, but till the time he is in your heart, he has not gone anywhere.” The smile had reached Kriti’s eyes; Sumit knew that she was ready now.

“Now come on both of you, get up and get ready, and what about the farewell card that you had been making Kriti, don’t you want to give it to bhaiya?”, Kriti’s mother was back again, her wet eyes revealing that she had overheard the conversation.

“Ohhh why did you tell it to him, I still have to work on it. I’ll see you in a while bhaiya”, cried Kriti as she ran inside. Her mother waited till she had left the room.

“If it wasn’t for you Sumit, Kriti would never have known what a brother’s love is. It’s Rakhshabandhan, in a few days, I’ll ask her to send you a Rakhi”, said Kriti’s mother, moist eyes beholding tender affection for Sumit.

“Aunty, many a times when blood tries to tie people together in relations, it only strangles them and leaves them gasping for breath. But, when relations are decided by the heart, it draws people together rather than binding them. With or without a Rakhi, I am her brother. That Rakhi will never be a bandhan for me, being there for her is what I want to do, not what I have to do”, with folded hands and a smile, Sumit took her leave. Nothing more needed to be said. The two children had amazed her with their maturity and their love for each other.

With Sumit’s words still echoing in her ears, she returned to Kriti’s room, to find her laboring over the card. Written at the lower corner of the card, in big bold letters it read:

“ God knew exactly the kind of brother I wanted; so he put it all together in you and sent you to find me. Now that you’ve found me, I’ll never let go.                                         

                                                               -          To the brother I never had, from the sister you’ll always have.”