It was a lazy weekend in the haveli, and my husband was finally home after a long time. He was dozing peacefully in his armchair while melodies played on the radio. I could hear it well as I cut ripe mangoes for the kids in the kitchen.

"Chalo, aam kha lo," I carried the bowl into the living room, and all three of them surrounded me excitedly. "Haath dhokar aao, warna nahi milega."

(Come on, eat the mangoes... Wash your hands, otherwise I won't give you any.)

Saarang smiled sweetly at me, "Didi par hamare haath toh phirse gande ho jaenge... Aap hi apne haatho se khila dijiye!"

(But Didi, our hands will get dirty again... Isn't it better if you feed us?)

I rolled my eyes at his wit and fed all three of them by hand. The kids were playing some kind of strange game that required Raghu to ride on Saarang's back while my brother pretended to be an elephant.

"Aage badho haathi!" My son commanded.

(Move forward, elephant!)

Janu immediately jumped in front of them, "Nahi! Bure haathi yaha nahi aa sakte!" And she pretended to cut him with a stick. It was quite interesting to watch their strange story progress. My brother suddenly gained shapeshifting powers, so he became a fish while my kids pretended that the floor had turned into the ocean and they were sinking.

(No! Bad elephants aren't allowed here!)

"Muh kholo, rajkumari," I fed a mango slice to my daughter.

(Open your mouth, my princess.)

"Bachao! Bachao!" She started shouting again as soon as she had eaten it.

(Save me! Save me!)

The phone in the living room rang at that time. And I got up to answer it before Bhairav Ji could wake up.

"Kaun hai beta?" Maa looked up from her prayer books from the sofa.

(Who is it, beta?)

"Sanjana?" It was Aradhya's voice, and my mood immediately lifted.

"Kaisi ho? Itne dino se phone kyu nahi kiya!"

(How are you? You never called!)

She chuckled on the other end, "Tumhari bahut yaad aa rahi hai yaha. Meri Maa keh rahi hai ki bacha ek hafte mei aa jayega... Mujhe thoda dar lag raha hai..."

(I miss you a lot. My mother is saying that the baby will be born in a week... I'm a little scared...)

"Arey... Daro mat! Tumhare liye dua maangne ke liye tumhare pati har din mandir jaa rahe hai, pata hai?" I giggled.

(Arey... Don't be scared! Your husband goes to the temple every day for you.)

Aradhya sighed, but I knew she was blushing furiously on the other end, "Unhone bataya tha... Ghar mei nahi hai woh? Tum kya kar rahi thi?"

(He told me... Is he not home? What were you doing?)

"Nahi. Thakur Ji ne kisi zaroori kaam ke liye use bahar bhej diya hai. Mai yaha bacho ko aam khila rahi thi. Is saal ke aam bahut meethe hai! Tumhare liye bhi kuch bachakar rakhungi."

(Nope. Thakur Ji has sent him outside for some important work. I'm trying to feed the kids mangoes. This year they're really sweet! I'll save some for you as well.)

"Shukriya," Aradhya smiled, "Mai jab wapas aungi, tumhare liye kuch zaroor laungi..."

(Thank you... When I come back, I'll definitely bring something for you...)

"Kya laogi?" I asked excitedly.

(What will you bring?)

"Woh toh kuch mahine baad pata chalega," she chuckled.

(You'll find out after a few months.)

We continued talking for a while about her home and family. But then, a sharp sound in the background startled me.

"Woh kya tha?" Even Aradhya asked in surprise.

(What was that?)

When I turned around, the sight made my eyes go wide. While Saarang got distracted by eating the mangoes, the twins began playing near their father. I wondered what they had done because Bhairav Ji's radio was on the floor, a part of it broken.

"Mai... Mai baad mei phone karti hu... Bacho ne kuch giraya hai," I whispered in a hurry, and hung up because my husband had woken up by then.

(I... I'll call you later... The kids dropped something.)

Janaki and Raghav stood frozen in front of their father as he looked around, slowly recovering from his slumber. But then it struck him what the sound had been.

"Radio gira diya?!" He yelled, frightening everyone.

(You dropped my radio?!)

Bhairav Ji's eyes were wild with rage as he glared at our kids. He knelt beside the radio and carefully inspected it. He tried turning it on and off, but even then it didn't work. When he shook it, there were broken parts shuffling inside as well. I gulped.

"Pata hai kitni keemti hai yeh?" He stood back up, glaring at the kids.

(Do you know how expensive it is?)

"Pata hai ki nahi?!"

(Answer me!)

The children flinched at his loud voice. They were in tears immediately, and Bhairav Ji snapped at them again, "Maar khaani hai kya? Rona band karo!"

(You want me to hit you? Be quiet!)

I stepped towards them at that time, and the kids immediately clung to my sari, bawling their eyes out like I was their anchor. Bhairav Ji lifted his eyes to glare at them, "Bacho ne jaan boochkar nahi kiya hai, Ji... Maaf kijiye..."

(The kids didn't do it on purpose, Ji... Forgive them...)

"Tumhare karan yeh aise hai! Subah raat inhe bigadte rehte ho... Daantthe bhi nahi! Tumhe inke saath maarna chahiye. Ruko yaha."

(It's all because of you! You spoil them day and night... Won't even scold them! I should teach you a lesson with them. Stay here.)

My husband was fuming as he went to the kitchen to retrieve the long bamboo stick. I wondered if he'd really hit me. Maa cleared her throat, "Bache hai, beta... Woh samajhte nahi hai-"

(They're children, beta... They don't understand-)

"Aap isme mat aaiye, Maa." His tone was sharp as he didn't even look at his mother. I held the children's faces, hugging them tight as they clung to me.

(Don't get involved in this, Maa.)

"Zindagi bhar Maa ke pallu pakadkar rahoge kya?" Bhairav Ji pulled Raghu towards him first. My little boy screamed and cried as his Father raised the stick and slashed his bum. I myself hissed in pain because it felt like my heart was burning.

(You're going to cling to your mother's pallu for the rest of your life?)

When he raised the stick to slash him a second time, I tried intervening, "Ro raha hai bechara... Ek kaafi hai Ji-"

(The poor thing is crying... Once is more than enough-)

"Chup!"

(Shut up!)

I jerked back when he slashed the floor. Bhairav Ji was glaring at me, "Tumse toh bache nahi darte. Kisi se toh darna chahiye!"

(The kids aren't afraid of you. They need to be afraid of someone!)

Bhairav Ji slashed Raghav's bum a second time. My little boy's face was red from all the crying and coughing he had done. He was trembling as well as he stood on the side, squeezing his knickers.

I thought my husband would be more lenient with Janaki... But he gave her the same punishment as Raghav. At least, he didn't discriminate between the kids, at least.

"Idhar aao mere laal... Dadi ke paas aao," Maa called the kids softly, and they ran towards her and climbed onto the sofa to hug her as they cried. I sat beside her, and Janaki cried in my arms as well.

(Come here, my darlings... Come to Dadi.)

"Woh radio tumhare Baba ke liye bahut keemti hai... Kareeb das saal pehle tumhare Dada Ji ne us radio Baba ko dilwaya tha."

(That radio was really precious for your Baba... Your Dada Ji gifted it to him around ten years ago.)

Now it made sense why he lost his temper like that.

"M-Maa..." My daughter hiccuped, "Dard lag raha hai...!"

(M-Maa... It hurts...!)

I sighed and softly rubbed her bum while kissing her head, "Tumne sharaarat kyu ki, beta? Kitni baar bola hai ki dhyan se khela karo..."

(Why did you do that? Didn't I ask you to play carefully...)

Even Raghu crawled into my arms at that time, and I hugged my children dearly. They had stopped crying now, and I wiped their faces with my pallu. Saarang was leaning on the sofa beside me, looking equally guilty.

"Maine unhe dhyan nahi diya, Didi... Maaf kardo," he mumbled.

(I couldn't pay attention to them, Didi... I'm sorry.)

"Koi baat nahi. Agli baar se dhyan rakhna beta," I smiled at him and rocked the kids in my arms, "Baba kuch der baad tumhe aise gale lagakar lori sunaenge."

(Don't worry. Just pay attention the next time. Baba will hug you like this and sing lullabies after some time.)

"Baba sunaenge?" Raghu sniffed.

(Baba will?)

"Haan, bilkul," I kissed him again.

(Of course, dear.)

It took a while, but the kids eventually fell asleep on the sofa between Maa and me.

"Bahu, tum jaakar usse baat karo... Keshav us radio ki maramat kal karwane dega."

(Bahu, go talk to him... Keshav will get the radio repaired tomorrow.)

"Thodi der baad jaati hu, Maa... Unka gussa thoda aur thanda hone do," I mumbled, running my hand through the kids' hair.

(I'll go after some time, Maa... Let him cool down a little more.)

She frowned, "Tum jaakar baat karo, phir gussa thanda ho jaega. Jao."

(He'll calm down after talking to you. Go now.)

I couldn't disobey her, so I carefully went upstairs with a bowl of mango. Bhairav Ji was smoking a cigarette as he worked at the table. He eyed me suspiciously, and I managed to smile a little.

"Aap kaam mei vyasth hai?"

(Are you busy with work?)

He didn't say anything, and I took the cigarette out of his lips before feeding him a mango slice, "Iska swadh cigarette se badhkar hai, Thakur Ji."

(This tastes better than cigarettes, Thakur Ji.)

He turned his face away at first, but then I held his chin lovingly and fed him a piece. "Keshav aapka radio dukan mei le jaakar maramat karega. Chinta mat kijiye."

(Keshav will take your radio to the repair store tomorrow. Don't worry.)

"Bache kaha hai?" He mumbled.

(Where are the kids?)

"Neeche Maa Ji ke paas so rahe hai... Aapne unhe kuch zyada hi maara hai... Sirf theen saal ke toh hai..." I mumbled.

(They're sleeping beside Maa... You were a bit too cruel with them. They're only three years old...)

He sighed. Bhairav Ji felt guilty now.

"Bacho ke saath ek baar ghumne chalte hai... Kya kehti ho?"

(We'll go out with them... What do you say?)

My eyes widened, "Ghumne...? Kaha leke jaane wale ho unhe?"

(Out...? Where are you going to take them?)

"Kahi door chalte hai... Garmiyo ki chhuti bhi hai na. Nainital kaisa lagega?"

(Let's go somewhere far... It's summer vacation too, right? What about Nainital?)

I blinked at him, "Nainital...? Woh kaha hai...?"

(Nainital...? Where is that?)

"Nainital ek mashhoor pahaadi sheher hai. Woh sabke liye bilkul behtareen rahega."

(It's a popular hill station. It will be really fun for everyone.)

"Sabke liye matlab...?"

(Everyone as in...?)

"Tum, bache aur Maa. Sabko leke chalte hai," he replied, picking a mango slice.

(You, the kids, and Maa. We'll take everyone.)

"Aur Saarang...?" I gulped. I couldn't leave him alone again.

(And Saarang...?)

"Saarang kya bacha nahi hai?" He muttered, "Woh bhi bilkul saath chal raha hai."

(Is Saarang not a kid? He's also coming with us.)

I was quiet for a while, trying to process everything.

"Kal shamm ko train se jaenge. Mere jaan pehchan ka aadmi hai waha. Waha sab taiyar rakhega."

(We'll leave tomorrow evening by train. I know a man there. He'll keep everything ready.)

"Kal shaam ko?" My eyes widened, "Par kapde aur saare saaman..."

(Tomorrow evening? But what about our things...)

"Ek din mei sab taiyar kar sakti ho na? Naukaron se bol do, agar kuch chahiye toh," he replied as if it wasn't a big deal. Bhairav Ji had literally planned a holiday for us just like that.

(You can get everything ready in a day, right? Tell the servants if you need something.)

"Hum waha kitne din rukenge? Aur kaha rukenge? Aapne yeh sab bhi soch liya hai...?" I sighed.

(How many days are we going to stay there? And where? Have you thought of everything?)

"Ek hafte ka saaman taiyar rakho. Phir hum waha jaakar dekhenge. Maa se jaakar kehkar aao."

(Pack things for a week. We'll decide the rest after going there. Go tell Maa.)

I had so many questions. Why the sudden plan? Was he doing it to make it up to the children? Or was there more to it?