Fern Road by Angshu Dasgupta

Author:Angshu Dasgupta
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: UWA Publishing

Six

It’s almost eleven in the morning when the doorbell rings. Orko knows that it’s his father. He continues to sit at the dining table, pretending to study.

‘Orko!’ his aunt calls out. She is in the bathroom, by the sound of it. ‘Will you get the door, please?’

Orko shuffles to the door reluctantly. When he came to stay with his aunt a week ago, he wasn’t really looking forward to it; everything in this house still reminded him of his grandfather. Over the past week, though, he has thought about his grandfather only fleetingly, and he has discovered how it feels to have a conversation with a grown-up who laughs, and cries, and becomes angry or regretful about things over which they never had any control. Besides, for the first time this year, he feels confident about the board examinations. He has a set routine, and his aunt is an excellent teacher. He has learnt more in a week than he did in the entire school year.

‘How have you been?’ Nandan asks as he comes through the door. ‘I’m sorry I had to stay away for longer than I planned.’

‘That’s okay,’ says Orko. ‘How is Kabul-dadu?’ he asks, even though his father told him over the phone that he’s better now.

‘He has been discharged from the hospital,’ Nandan says. ‘He should be up and about in a few days.’

‘You left him all by himself?’ Orko retorts, his tone sharper than he intends it to be.

‘Well, Tenia is taking care of him,’ says his father. ‘Besides, your exams are just around the corner, and I have missed a week of classes.’

Orko is unnerved by his father’s presence. ‘Mashi!’ he calls out to his aunt. ‘Baba is here.’ It’s Sunday, and Nandan has brought with him the bags they use on their weekly trip to Gariahat market. When he called last night, he did say that he would be here this morning, and that they would go to the market together, but somehow Orko didn’t quite register that this meant he was going back home today.

Sudeshna emerges from her bedroom. She smells of Neem soap, and her hair is wet. ‘I’m glad your uncle is better now,’ she says to Nandan. ‘Orko has been a very good boy. We’ve done quite a bit of studying together.’

‘That’s good to hear,’ says his father, eyeing the periodicals stacked on the shelf by the sofa.

It irks Orko when his father or his aunt speaks of him as if he’s an infant. Of course, it’s true that Orko has been fine. In fact, he hasn’t felt so calm and collected in months. Just a week ago it had seemed to him that he was going to fail his board examinations. Now he thinks he’s going to get by without too much of a struggle.

‘I could do with some tea,’ Nandan says, picking up yesterday’s newspaper from the coffee table.

‘Well, I don’t have your fancy Darjeeling,’ Sudeshna replies. ‘I can fix you a cup of my daily poison.’

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