Pa! He has opened the door? Was he waiting for me? He looks... different. His light brown eyes... they are kind of dead. No life at all.

"Evelyn! My sweet daughter!" A warm embrace brings me out of my thoughts. A certain bubble like sensation erupts in my heart as I embrace mom. A very familiar vanilla fragrance hits my nose. Looks like what I've heard since childhood is true. A mother's scent never changes, no matter what happens.

I close my eyes to bask in the warmth of my mother. I hear few sobs escaping from her mouth. I break the embrace while she quickly puts on a smiling mask.

"It's been so long. Come inside! Why are you standing here?" Mom grips my arms firmly and looks at my face. Change of time is clear on her face with the wrinkled dry skin.

Mom is chattering non-stop while I glance at Pa from the corner of my eyes. He is still standing at the same position. His shoulders are slumped down making his tall body a bit short.

"Come on! You'll have ample amount of time to look at your Pa later." Mom pipes out making me avert my gaze down as I try to pick up my luggage.

Damn! Mom!

"Leave those! He'll bring it." Mom looks at Pa with a sweet smile like a kid who is requesting for a candy.

"No! It's okay. It's not heavy. I can manage." I hold the handle of the suitcase.

"It's okay. I'll bring it inside." I find Pa beside me with a small smile on his face.

I look into his eyes again. I can see a gush of emotions but can't point out any one particular emotion. Nodding my head, I let Pa hold the handle while I walk inside with Mom.

Mom pulls me by my right hand and makes me sit on the royal blue coloured couch.

"You sit here. I'll come within a few minutes." Mom says in her as usual chirpy tone and vanishes in the kitchen which is at the far end of the corridor at my right.

"I'm keeping these in your room." Pa says in his broken voice as he passes me from behind the couch.

As he starts walking on the wooden stairs which are giving creaking sound, I look back. I can't match the man I've in my memory with the one who is in front of me right now. His booming, authoritarian, determined voice is now replaced by a feeble, tired and broken voice. His steps are also slower than before. Few strands of grey hair is visible amid his light brown hair.

With a sigh, I look away and my eyes wander at the living room where I've spent mostly my whole life, except the last year. I've tripped and walked on this white and green marbled floor. I've jumped and danced on this royal blue couch on which I'm sitting right now. I've played hide and seek with Mom, Pa, Lucas and his parents in this living room. Nights after nights we have had dinners on that mahogany wooden dining table.

"Here! Your favourite raw mango juice." Mom holds out a glass of green coloured juice filled with spices.

The fruity fragrance mixed with spices hit my nose and I get pulled back to my memory bank again.

"Leave it Eve! You'll never be able to make the juice perfectly like Aunt does."

"Shutup Lucas!"

"I'm just saying the truth. Why don't you accept that you are not good at cooking?"

"Lucas! Now just wait and watch! I'm gonna make you drink this whole glass of juice."

"No! Please, forgive me. You are the best cook of this universe."

"I can hear your sarcasm, you fool! Stop your nonsense. And make the juice for me."

"As you wish my queen."

"Huh! Drama king."

"Evelyn!" I jump out into the present hearing mom scream.

I look at her blankly and then hold the glass of juice with a feigned smile. I hear a mild sigh leaving her mouth.

"What is it?" Mom says while sitting by my side as I take my first sip.

"Hm?" I give a questioning look to her despite knowing what she is asking about.

"What were you thinking just now? Or rather I should ask, about whom were you thinking just now?" Her voice clearly says that she knows the answer.

I stay quiet as my eyes stare at the green liquid inside the glass.

"Lucas, isn't it?" Mom asks softly.

I look at her, give a faint smile and take another sip from the glass.

"It's okay sweetie. I understand your pain. Time is going to heal everything." Mom gives me a side hug.

I nod and continue with the glass of juice. Soon, I finish it. Mom takes it from my hand and says, "Dinner will be ready in two hours. You can freshen up and take rest till then. You remember the time right? Eight pm. sharp!" Mom says with a smile on her face.

"Yeah. I remember. I'll be here at eight." Saying it, I get up from the couch and head for the stairs.

As I step on the stairs, the old wooden planks make a creaking sound. I look downstairs and can't find Mom there anymore. I hear some clinking sound of utensils from the kitchen and realise that she has gone to the kitchen. As I reach upstairs, I stop at the first door which is slightly ajar.

I peek into the room and see Pa gazing at the wall. I push the door open with a mild creak. Pa hasn't noticed me yet. He is looking at our old family picture which is dangling on the whitish pink wall from a rusted nail. A small smile is lingering on his face.

"That was the last birthday I celebrated in this house." Walking upto him, I stand beside and speak.

"Yeah. It was four days before you... left the house." Pa says with a sigh.

Without saying anything, I walk away from him and walk into the balcony. This is the same balcony where I used to talk with Lucas nights after nights. The bloodred bean bag is still here, but only with a layer of dust painted on its beautiful, dark colour. Gripping the rusted iron railing, I look down. The garden behind is still filled with my favourite flowers and surprisingly, unlike the garden at the front porch, this one is well maintained. A smile lits up my face as I see the swimming pool as well in a maintained manner. The water is calm and transparent; beautifully reflecting the yellow street lights and the crescent moon.

Ahem!

I look back and see Pa standing at the door of the balcony. He gives me a faint smile which makes me give a small smile as well.

"You should take rest. Do you remember the dinner time?" Pa asks in his broken voice.

"Yeah. I do." I say while entering my room.

"Okay." With that, he starts going for the door to leave the room.

"Pa?" I call him from behind without my own knowledge.

But he doesn't turn around. He stops and stands there rooted to the ground and his shoulders seem to become stiff.

"I... I..." Not understanding why I stopped him and what should I tell now, I ask the first thing which comes to my mind.

"What happened to your throat? Your voice is broken." Though I stopped him for no reason as such, but this is a question which was haunting my mind since I've heard his voice. I was intending to ask Mom, but looks like the question had other plans for itself.

Hearing my question, I see his shoulders returning back to its previous, slumped down position.

"Nothing much. Just caught a cold." Pa says as he takes his right hand to his eyes and presses the corners of his eyes with his fingers.

I feel a sudden tingling sensation in my heart; as if something is brewing. I feel my throat getting chocked and tears pooling at the corner of my eyes. Gulping down my emotions, I let out a little cough.

"Oh. Okay." Sensing that my voice is breaking, I stop saying anything else.

"Hm. Take rest." With that, he leaves the room without looking back.

Staggering, I sit on the bed and grab the glass of water kept on the bedside table. Chucking down the entire water at one go, I let out a deep breath.

I tap on my phone screen to watch the time but instead my eyes linger on Lucas' face which is adorning my phone's lockscreen.

"Pa has changed Lucas. He is not the one... not the one whom we knew. And I... I don't know what to do. It's such a weird feeling. I'm happy to see them after such a long time, but the pain which I felt just now, I didn't feel it when I was with Mom. It's just Pa. I think... we both need to give some time to each other. Slowly, everything will be like before. What do you think?" I look at Lucas' picture with a smile, despite knowing there'll be no answer.

All of a sudden, a cool breeze kisses my face and with that a sweet tingling melody hits my ears. I sprint towards the balcony and see my old, purple and silver coloured wind chime dancing with the rhythm of the wind from the ceiling.

A bright smile spreads on my face.

"Lucas." I mumble recollecting how he had climbed my balcony and hanged the wind chime here at dot twelve o'clock as my birthday gift.

I remember the question I was pondering on when the breeze blew and the situation made me laugh a little.

"My dear Lucas, is this your way of telling yes for my question?" I know I'm sounding silly and this is all nothing but a coincidence, still I want to believe.

"Thank you Lucas, for confirming my thoughts. Pa has really changed a lot and I want to start everything afresh with him. Hope we can forget our bad memories." Another cool breeze passes through making the wind chime dance once more.

This time, I only give a smile and head towards the washroom to freshen up and then take some rest.

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