Dear Lovelies,

I am sorry for the delay. Here is a long chapter for you to enjoy. 

Love

W

Pihu swung her little feet in the air as she sat on the boundary wall, licking her ice cream. A lanky Jeet sat beside her with an open book on his lap. He was scribbling something frantically in a notebook.

"Jeet, what are you writing in the notebook?" Asked a curious Pihu. She peeped over Jeet's shoulder.

"I am making a list of books I need," Jeet replied without taking his eyes off his notebook. "Akashda said he would hand me his used books to prepare for the Medical Entrance Exam."

"But you are in ninth standard right now. You still have three more years." Pihu pointed out.

"Really?" Jeet made a "you are unbelievable" face. "I must score well to get a scholarship and a government college. I need to start right now." He mumbled while scribbling some more intangible words in his notebook. "I should have started long back." He whispered at the end. Pihu rolled her eyes as she finished the last bit of her ice cream. She jumped down the wall and brushed the back of her skirt.

"You are very boring to hang out with, Jeet. Always so serious about everything." She complained while showing her tongue to Jeet. " I will take my leave now." She mocked a bow. "...and don't forget about the lunch invitation at Narayani Pishi's (Maternal Aunt) place tomorrow," Pihu said as she turned on her heels to walk past the iron gates of her apartment. Jeet just nodded as he threw his bag over his shoulder.

It has been two months since the "thief" incident. Since that day, much has changed in the Mukherjee and Banerjee household. Pihu and Jeet were inseparable. They were, for all purposes, best friends. The small girl from the orphanage was adopted by Dipu Masi and named Mishti...Mishti Mukherjee. Mishti had wrapped the Mukherjees around her little finger, especially Kailash and Palash. Akash passed the Medical Entrance Exam and got a seat at Maulana Azad Medical College, Delhi. He was leaving in a few days. He had very quickly become Jeet's role model. Jeet wanted to become a doctor, just like Akash, so he was on a mission to extract as much information as he could before Akash left.

"Aii Pihu, roll up the window panes. The car will get dirty." Kailash said in an irritated voice.

"But if I roll up the panes, the car will get flooded with my vomit. So you choose." She turned her head to give Kailash a stunning smile but stopped abruptly when she noticed the horrid look on Akash's face. "I m...mean, I feel nauseated in the car, and you know that, Kailashda." She said with a fake pout. The Mukherjee brothers and Pihu, Jeet and Diotima were on their way to visit Pihu's Narayani Pishi's house - her paternal aunt.

"Do we need to go there? Mishtu is all alone." Palash complained.

"Firstly, Mishtu is with Ma. She is not alone....," said Akash in a sharp tone as he steered the car around a sharp bend. Pihu would have almost been thrown on Akash if it had not been for the seatbelt. Her cheeks turned tomato red. "....and we need to go to Narayani Pishi's place. It is her son's 10th birthday, and she has invited us. It will be impolite if we don't attend the celebration," Akash concluded.

Pihu nodded her head obediently but frowned at Kailash as he made a weird face. She glared at the twins, silently making fun of the elder Mukherjee behind his back, quite literally. Her eyes trailed to her best friend sitting next to Kailash, peeping out the window. Jeet and her 7-year-old sister - Diotima, had the same enthusiasm. Pihu realized that Jeet was riding in a car for the first time. A small smile bloomed on her face.

"Who asked you to wear a sari?" An irritated Kailash asked. It was the first time Pihu had worn a sari for a family gathering. She struggled with the sari throughout the journey. As they entered Narayani Pishi's house, she tripped on her own foot. If it were not for Akash, who grabbed her by her wrist, Pihu would have made a fool out of herself. She just wanted to impress her Akashda, and now all she was doing was embarrassing herself.

"Oii Pihu, why such a long face?" Jeet asked her with scrunched brows. He was sitting beside her, waiting for the party to start.

"Nothing..." Pihu murmured. Jeet was about to say something when a shrilling voice made both the kids jump in surprise.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN BY HE CAN'T COME?" A very enraged Narayani Pishi bellowed. A lean, bald man was in her line of fire. He was moments away from a blackout.

"Boumuni (Sister-in-law), his mother is not well. He went to his village." The bald man mumbled.

"I don't care. It is Boomba's 10th birthday. How can we have a party without a photographer?" Narayani Pishi's nostrils were flaring like a raging bull. " Arrange for a photographer immediately." She ordered the bald man, who cowered with fear.

Jeet and Pihu witnessed the whole scene. Jeet had an uneasy look on his face, whereas Pihu looked completely comfortable with her Aunt's behaviour. But what caught Jeet's attention was Pihu's change in mood. Her eyes had a glint. Jeet knew Pihu enough to smell her brain brewing up something.

"Pihu..." Before Jeet could ask anything, Pihu approached a visibly upset Narayani Pihshi. Jeet stood several feet away from the raging bull. He could not muster enough courage to follow Pihu. He saw Pihu explaining something to Narayani Pishi. Her hands animatedly expressed her feelings. Jeet saw Narayani Pishi's expression change from anger to thoughtful to delight. At the end of the conversation, Pihu gently pointed toward Jeet. At that moment, Jeet felt trapped. He looked over his shoulders several times to ensure that both females walked towards him. He fought the urge to turn on his heels and run.

".......and you know Shubho?" He heard Pihu.

"Who Shubho?" Narayani Pishi's shrill voice followed.

"Aree, the heir of Aggarwal Textiles..." Pihu could not finish her statement.

"You mean, the one with the factory at Barrakpore?" The excitement mixed with the shrill somehow threatened to pierce Jeet's eardrums.

"Right...right...Shubho Aggarwal...he asked Jeet to take photographs on his birthday." Pihu said animatedly. On the other hand, Jeet froze, hearing Pihu's blatant lie.

"Sotti? (Are you telling the truth?)" Narayani Pishi asked, astonished.

"Sotti..."Pihu said with a hint of offence on her face. "...don't you believe me?"

"Aree..na...na...boka (Idiot)..." Narayani Pishi composed herself and waved her hand in the air dismissively. "Aii Jeet..." This time, she addressed a horrified Jeet directly. "...Pihu told me that you are a good photographer and you do cover parties and functions...." Jeet gave a tight smile and a small nod. "....you see, the photographer we booked did not turn up..." Narayani Pishi made a sad face. "....will you please cover this event?" She asked timidly. Jeet opened his mouth to refuse, but he did not get the chance.

"Of course, Pishi. He will do it." Pihu's said with fake excitement.

"B..but I did not get my camera..." Jeet made a desperate attempt to escape the situation.

"Oh...that is not a problem. Boomba's father has a camera." Narayani Pishi pointed towards a short, jovial man with a shiny bald head. He was in the middle of cracking a joke as the crowd around him broke into laughter. "He wanted to learn photography...." She made a bored face. "....but never got the time."

"O..Ok", Jeet had to agree.

"Thank you so much. I will get the camera." With that, Narayani Pishi walked out of the door. Pihu had a happy smile on her face. At least something went right today. But the shortlived smile faltered as soon as she turned towards Jeet. His face was devoid of expression, but his eyes said it all. He was not happy with the situation. Jeet walked towards the deserted veranda. He needed some time alone to process the deal.

"Jeet?" He heard Pihu's timid voice. He turned to look into the confused eyes of little Pihu. "I was trying to help...." Pihu trailed off.

"Help?...Why would you lie like that, Pihu?" Jeet didn't mean to yell at his best friend but could not contain his anger. Pihu lowered her eyes. "I have never photographed in a big event like this, and you lied between your teeth...." Jeet stopped abruptly as he saw Narayani Pishi hurrying towards them with a big bag in her hands. He composed himself and walked past Pihu.

"Here...this might not be as good as your camera, but ..." Narayani Pishi handed the bag to Jeet. He pulled out the camera. He was mesmerized by the beauty of the device. It was bigger, shinier and far better than his.

"Will this do?" a concerned Narayani Pishi asked.

"Perfect", he murmured while admiring the camera.

The rest of the event went by with cheerful laughter and happy faces. Jeet never missed a moment to capture all the emotions on his reel. He captured the gleeful smiles and envious eyes. He captured the content faces of people devouring the delicious lunch and everything in between. He seized all the moments with every camera click to immortalize them into memories. By the end of the event, he was content with his work.

"When will we get the photos?" Narayani Pishi's husband asked Jeet while rubbing his bloated belly.

"It will take a couple of weeks. I will get it as soon as possible." Jeet replied with a content smile as he carefully removed the reel from the camera.

"Aii Pihu, where were you all this while?" Narayani Pishi's voice brought Jeet out of his blissful world. His heart wrenched painfully. Pihu's drooped face pierced his soul. Pihu's sari had almost lost its shape, and her eyes were swollen red.

"I..I...Headache..." She stammered. Jeet's face fell with the lie. He knew she had been crying, and the worst part was he made her cry.

Jeet did not get a chance to talk to Pihu after the function. She decided to stay back while Jeet and the Mukherjee brothers came back. Two whole weeks have rolled by since then. Jeet has not met Pihu. Rather, he did not get a chance to do so. After the first week, Jeet suspected that he was being ignored. At this point, he was in a constant state of panic. Pihu was his only friend - who genuinely cared.

"Didibhai (Elder sister)....please..if I do not get this done by tomorrow, Miss will beat me black and blue." Diotima pleaded with tears in her eyes. It was a bright Sunday morning at the cusp of winter. The Banerjee household had a lazy start.

"Remember you told Baba about my half-yearly marks?" Pihu said with spite in her voice. "Now go to Baba with your maths problem." Pihu had an evil smirk on her face.

"Please, didibhai, he will scold me if I don't get it....please, didibhai." Little Diotima was violently sobbing by now. Pihu felt pity for her little sister, so she gave up.

"Fine, show me." Pihu snatched Diotima's books with a harsh pull. Both the girls spent the next two hours solving mathematical problems. At the end of the second hour, Pihu smacked the back of her sister's head "Gordhop akta (Donkey)...Go open the door." Pihu ordered with authority as she heard the doorbell ring.

"Arre, come inside....why are you standing there?" Pihu heard her mother from the bedroom. She jumped out of bed to run towards the drawing room, but her feet halted when she heard Jeet's voice.

"Is Pihu there? Kailash, Palash and I were planning a farewell surprise for Akash da. We needed Pihu's help." Jeet's voice sounded hopeful...almost to the point of desperation. Soon enough, Pihu heard her mother calling for her. She had been avoiding Jeet for a couple of weeks now. Although she meant no harm to him, she was afraid she was responsible for his displeasure. She was embarrassed. She missed him but had no guts to face him.

After twenty minutes she found herself following Jeet to the Mujherjee's. She kept her eyes on the road. She had a weird feeling about the situation. Soon, they were in front of the huge house. The sight of the house, for the first time, did not make Pihu happy. Akash was leaving for his college. He will leave in another two days. The house already felt empty.

"Pihu..." She heard Jeet. They stood in the middle of the lawn behind the big old mango tree. "Pihu...I am sorry..about the other day." Jeet murmured. "I did not mean to yell at you. I was just nervous and..." He trailed off. "Please don't ignore me...I am very sorry. Can we please be friends again?"Jeet hung his head low.

"Its ok..." Pihu replied with a dry smile. Although she was very happy that she was friends with Jeet again yet her disappointment was evident on her face.

"I got a gift for you." Jeet held out a green envelope. Pihu hesitated a bit but took the envelope. She pulled out a photograph from the envelope. A smiling Akash peeped at her.

"I thought you would like a photograph when he is not here," Jeet murmured more to himself. Pih could not contain herself. She threw her arms around his neck and hugged him tight. Tears rolled down her cheeks, dripping on Jeet's shirt. Jeet patted her back as she sobbed on his shoulders. The sobs stopped after a while. They still held each other.

"Uhh...Uhhh.." Both of them heard someone clear their throat. Jeet pushed Pihu abruptly and turned to find a disappointed Akash standing behind them.

"What is happening here?" Came Akash's scrutinizing question.