Turning 30
Alarm ringing in the background as Mira wakes up, there is a light drizzle outside her window and she can hear a steady but loud chime from the church nearby. It is only 6 am in the morning and the Goan sky is cloudy with rains. The smell of damp palm leaves fills the air with a light, aroma. Mira breathes in the early morning freshness, a luxury her city can never provide.
She hears soft purrs coming from outside her door, and is greeted by three tiny fluff balls as she opens it.
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| Turning 30 |
Eeny, Meeny and Teeny are looking at her with their big googly cat eyes as she stands there puzzled. All her life Mira has been a dog person and for the first time under the same roof as cats. The kittens scurry around and stare back playfully. Both parties equally scared of the other.
*Buzz. . . her phone buzzes on the bed side as Eeny stares in astonishment. It is almost funny how the kittens are super curious of this new person in their house, checking everything, sniffing her clothes, pawing her phone and slippers and at the same time all the more scared. Mira answers her phone.
"Hey, thank you so much, . . . . .yes I am stepping into the big thirties." She giggles as her bestie wishes her a happy birthday, one of the few people she expected calls from at this hour, as her shift ends. Growing up does change a lot of thing, the obsession to be the first to call at the stroke of midnight to be one.
It is only 6 in the morning, and Mira is on a holiday. She decides to go agains Manik's advice of keeping her door locked to prevent the kittens from entering her space. She leaves her door ajar before going back to lay in bed. In no time the kittens climb onto the bed and play with her hair, careful not to wake her up. It amuses Mira how they play while the mother cat Payal comes up and lays right next to her while her three kittens tread softly on and around Mira, with their tiny paws. The level of trust these animals are showing her makes Mira feel like a disney princess. She has been used to of random dogs and cows playing with her, but cats were unchartered territory. Laying in bed, she feels a sense of calm sweep over her, it is a weekend, after ages, where she is neither expcted to work, nor show up to any event. The itinerary for the next 4 days is totally in her control. Where to go, what to do or not to do. She lets out a loud sigh, and Payal curls up closer in comfort.
"Arey!" Manik exclaims as he steps out of his room and catches a glimpse of the kittens jumping over Mira's suitcase.
"Teeny, get down right now" He tries to sound stern to initiate a response.
"Good Morning Manik" Mira beams a smile. She had slept well and was up before him. Payal and Mira both looked at Manik while laying in bed.
"Wow, they seem to have accepted you pretty well. Manik observed from the doorway." He had lived with his cats for a few years now, and this was the first time they had shown such level of acceptance for a stranger, after his immidiate family that is.
"You know this too is part of your house, please make yourself comfortable." Mira chuckled as she gestured Manik to take a chair. Manik lived alone in his 4 bhk villa and had offered a room to Mira for her visit to Goa.
"I am okay. While you're here, this is your room and I won't be entering it." Manik was a man of word and kept it.
"Suit yourself" Mira shrugged as she got up to get a sip of water, while the felines rolled around lazily in her bed. Walking down the stairs, the kittens ran around Mira's leg, almost causing a fall. Mira entered the kitchen, and Payal was already propped on the counter. She meowed at Mira as if to demand attention, Mira offered to pet her but Payal did not budge.
"They must be looking for food now that you are there" Manik said out loud from upstairs. Mira had seen Manik put the cat food in one of the shelves, but she was too short to reach them on her own to feet.
"Can you get down so I may climb the counter top and retrieve your food?" Mira asked Payal absentmindedly, and to her surprise, the cat moved away, making space for her. Mira looked at her for a moment and then shrugged her shoulders, she had experienced dogs and cows understanding her words, so accepting a response from a cat was also not difficult. Feeding the cats, she went back to the drawing room where Manik now sat with the breakfast he had ordered. Mira told him about her conversation with his cat Payal, to which Manik only shook his head in disbelief.
"Wow, just Wow. I knew my cats were smart, but this is cool." Manik chuckled as he sipped his cold coffee.
"What, animals are smart. Way smarter than most men I have come across in the dating pool." Mira could not help but laugh.
"Ya i remember what you told me about your last date. Tell me more na." Manik was liking this new dose of entertainment.
"Which one? The guy who had a problem with me being too friendly? or the one who's family had an opinion about me watching shows from a specific country of origin.?"
"Okay I guess the list of shitty experiences is long, but in defence of all men out there I would just like to add that women also have quirky demands and deal breakers." Manik clarified while taking a bite of his double cheese sandwich.
"I never contested that." Mira worded between mouthfulls of bread pudding. It was her birthday she could ditch her diet plans for a few days. "Plus you are a Mr. Left too, we did'nt click the way we thought we should, but it turned out way better than it ever could" Mira raised her glass of water to cheers with Manik and his cold coffee bottle. Strange how growing up changes habits and beer cans get replaced with coffee mugs and water for productivity.
"You should do a stand up comic peice on your failed dates, it would be so much fun" Manik could not help but think out loud.
"Ofcourse, why not. Misery loves company. And who knows, I might find Mr Right while dissing at all Mr. Lefts" Mira gave Manik a high five as they both lazed around and giggled.
Manik was a Tinder match turned penpal who had now become a close friend for Mira. Life is unpredictable and Mira chooses to trust her instincts about people. Something about trusting people and giving them the benefit of doubt had helped Mira come across so many amazing people, many of whom are now her friends. Manik too is one of them, and she has chosen to spend her 30th birthday with him. They may not be the right match for each other, but they are surely a good match for sharing great jokes. Life can be scary, having a friend who understands your perils may not make it easy. But having someone who understands does feel reassuring.
Cheers to the thirties, and new adventures !!!
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