Ashik Alom
It was four and forty in the morning. The light of day was slowly emerging from the darkness on the ground. The birds were sitting on the branches of the trees and singing in a chirping voice. The curtain of a balcony on the second floor of a two-story house moved faster on both sides. Two heads came out of the curtain. A moment later, the fair-skinned girl went back inside the curtain, but the dark-skinned girl was not moved. She jumped out of the room. She came to the large veranda and took a deep breath. She spread her arms on both sides and laughed loudly. The sound of laughter scared the fair-skinned girl in the room. As she looked out of the room with frightened eyes, the girl on the balcony suddenly entered the room and threatened her. The fair-skinned girl stared at her with her eyes wide open. She moved back two feet to get scared. The brunette girl bit her lip and looked at him with round eyes, and burst out laughing, trying to scare him.
The fair-skinned girl raised her hand and slapped the brunette girl. The girl was slapped on the back and curled her lips and gave a devilish smile. She narrowed her eyes and said,
"Go and pray!"
The brunette girl, with a soft smile on her lips, stepped out and came back to the balcony. She placed her palms on the balcony railing. The sweet morning breeze came and touched the girl's body. The hair fell down her body!
A nameless feeling. The quiet atmosphere of the morning was broken by the sound of loud laughter. The girl closed her eyes.
Syeda Nusrat Nasir, the second daughter of Syed Nasir Uddin, the second son of the Syed family, means me! The one I scared a little while ago is my elder sister Syeda Israt Nasir! Our joint family! Now, joint families are not usually seen! It can be said that they are not seen, but our family is one of them. Our family would have always been torn apart if it were not for the unbreakable bond between uncle, father, and grandfather. And yes, our father and uncle have four brothers and two sisters! Everyone has their own children. My elder uncle has been living in exile for almost thirty years with his son and wife. My elder uncle Syed Helal has three sons. The eldest son Syed Zain, the second son Syed Zayan, and the youngest son Syed Arsh.
They haven't come to the country for the past twelve years. Due to various problems! I don't know when they will come! Then the elder uncle is still taking care of the family! I don't particularly like the elder uncle! My second father, and the eldest uncle is Syed Shoheb! The uncle has a son and a daughter. The son's name is Irham and the daughter's name is Anika. Irham is my friend and Anika is a slut, so I can't stand her.
The younger uncle is Syed Shoheb. He has two children. The elder daughter is Arisha and the younger son is Ahan. Both look like rosagollas, with white skin.
Oh yes, I forgot to mention one more thing, I am the only brunette in the Syed family and everyone is beautiful. Each one looks beautiful and whiter than the other. Haha!
The elder aunt Lutfa Begum. Mother of three children. The elder daughter is Sajida! Married seven years ago. She also has a son. The eldest son, Ashiq, is the eldest uncle's younger son, Arsh! The younger daughter, Mamo, is the same age as I and Irham!
There are so many people in our family that I sometimes forget their names. Anyway! Oh no, I forgot to mention another thing, the entire cousin group calls me rude, impolite, and son-in-law. When someone says something, they say, "Oh, Nasir's older daughter is twice as rude and impolite as the younger daughter, just like her." This impolite name is my favorite! When everyone calls me impolite, I feel embarrassed.
I opened my eyes and looked up when Israt came from behind and grabbed me.
Israt asked with a frown,
"What? What are you thinking about?"
Nusrat stood silently. The sun was slowly pouring its light onto the earth, overwhelming it. The flower trees in the garden had faded a bit due to the sun for the past few days. The sweet morning breeze was now covered by the sun's light.
Israt came and stood next to Nusrat on the railing. She bit her lip and stared ahead. Nasir Sahib, Shoheb Sahib, Shoheb and the sleeping Irham slowly gathered in the muddy courtyard of Syed's house.
Shoheb's harsh voice could be heard clearly from downstairs to the balcony. Shoheb was raising his voice and threatening Irham to sleep. Irham still looked at her with calm eyes and closed her eyes again.
Nusrat counted in her mind one, two, — before she could count three, Dabangg hit her cheek. Irham got slapped. Irham's sleep was shattered after receiving a slap. He bit his lip and looked at Shoheb with surprised eyes, placing his hand on his cheek. This was an everyday occurrence! Irham would stare at Shoheb in surprise after receiving a slap. Then he would ask in a tearful voice why did his father hit him?
Today he asked Shoheb the same question,
"Why did his father hit him?"
Shoheb came running and said,
"Have another bite!"
Irham shook his head from side to side. Shoheb said, "Have you fallen asleep or should I slap you again! He's such a big, stubborn boy, you have to wake him up to pray! You have to take him out for a walk! What a gluttonous little girl!"
Irham's mouth fell shut. Is this his father, Mir Jafar? Don't spare a single hand to slap him. This man was slapping his flower-like cheeks until they were bleeding. He bit his lip and stared ahead! A tear rolled down the corner of his eye because he was not sleeping well. Irham wiped the corner of his eye with his palm.
Shoheb grumbled and joined his brothers and walked towards the gate. Irham unsteadily followed his father. As he walked, he rubbed his eyes repeatedly to make the sleep go away.
Nusrat and Israt looked at each other and took a deep breath. They were both bored watching this drama every day! Yet Irham was not annoyed.
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As soon as the clock struck eight in the morning, the big clock on the wall in front of the dining table chimed loudly. The housekeepers started bringing food and placing it on the table. The loud sound of opening the doors of all the rooms was heard. One by one, there was the sound of people coming down the stairs.
At ten minutes past eight, everyone took their places. They pulled their respective plates towards themselves. Meherun Nesha! Syed, the head of the house! She came and sat on the middle chair. The straight chair next to her was empty, no one sat there. Meherun Nesha took a deep breath. It had been twelve years since she had seen the boy face to face. She had spent twelve years saying she would come, she would come, and then she did not come. A light tear gathered in the corner of her eye! She wiped it with her index finger, unnoticed by everyone! Nusrat rolled her eyes at Meherun Nesha's behavior! This old woman was overacting. She had been watching the old woman wipe her eyes like this while eating since she was born.
Nusrat rolled her eyes and muttered,
"All these old wives' tales! You're crying so hard for your son! And there's no sign of your son coming back to the country. Haha...
Nazmin Begum hit Nusrat on the head from behind. Feeling a sudden pain in her head, Nusrat looked back with her eyes closed. As she looked back, Nazmin Begum rubbed the oil in her hand on Nusrat's face.
As she looked at Israt, she saw that Israt's face was soaked in oil. Before she pursed her lips and smiled,
Nazmin Begum held her face and rubbed some more oil on her face. Nusrat's smile flew away from her face like the wind. Israt laughed hysterically.
Nusrat rolled her eyes. Nazmin Begum said in a hoarse voice, "What are you doing to your face without putting anything on it! That Rahima's face is better than yours. She takes better care of her face than you. Your father likes to listen to you chatter about these things every day, doesn't he?"
Israt got annoyed and said, "Ugh, mom, I don't feel well! Don't talk!"
Before Nazmin Begum could say anything, Nasir Sahib came and entered the dining room. The whispered conversation at the dining table ended. The surroundings became silent! Everyone looked down at their own plates.
Nasir Sahib said in an orderly tone,
" Give me food Nazmin!
Nazmin Begum gave her husband a plate of roti, fried potatoes, and fried eggs. Slowly, everyone picked up the food on their own plates. Everyone was busy eating in silence.
Breaking the silence, a video call came on Meherun Nesar's Samsung old model mobile phone. Nasir Sahib looked up at his mother once. He said in a serious voice, "Mom, I didn't tell you to change this ringtone, so why haven't you done it yet?
To be continued....