Over the Garden Wall (PART 1)
The wind howls and the night falls. Avanti rushes over the streets while holding her small red purse, the same colour as the stone on her forehead. Her long black ponytail swipes from the left to the right as she moves. Around her, the balloon-shaped lanterns are lit and hurdles of women are searching the market for clothing and jewellery. There is a big festival coming up, but Avanti does not care much. She pushes her hand against the button on the garden wall and a guard approaches her at the gate. “Password please”, he says. “Pracuratā.” The gate opens and she follows the path along the many flowerbeds, statues and ponds. Along the way, she passes the gardener who is always very kind to her. She smiles at him and he waves back.
Once inside, her mother is standing in front of her with her arms crossed. “Priya Avanti, why are you so late? You know your father wants you to be here at dinner.” She is looking sad and Avanti knows this is not the first time this has happened. “I’m sorry mother, I had to buy some more sugar for the balushahi I’m baking tomorrow.” Her mother sighs and continues preparing dessert, not saying a word. Avanti bows her head and starts walking to the living room. From the kitchen, she turns to the left and enters the main hallway, the one that has the most chandeliers. Gazing at the floor, she recalls how she and her brothers used to slide down this hallway when they were little. They had removed all the colourful carpets to throw buckets of soapy water on the marble floor, making it as slippery as possible. Their parents were at a honeymoon back then and the nannies just went out to buy naan bread and baskets of vegetables. Those times were fun, but now her brothers live with their own families and Avanti remains the youngest left. During dinner, her father keeps his eyes on his food and drink for a while, but at some point he starts the interrogation. “Avanti my dear, how is work going? Do you enjoy it?” Her father arranged her a job at which she started working directly after finishing her studies in Law. “Yes dad, very much”, she replies. She is leaning her head into her hand while playing with her fork. “Excellent”, her father nods, and they continue eating in silence.
Avanti prays, thanks the cooks and stands up while leaving three-quarters of her dinner on the plate. She leaves for the frontyard again, waves to the gardener and the guard, and passes the gate back into the outside world. Instantly, her smile returns and she starts floating over the streets, heading to the fountain behind the herbal store. She crosses her legs and looks around excitingly. A young man in shorts and a worn-off t-shirt approaches the fountain, holding his hands behind his back. “Hello there beautiful”, he says. He pulls a bunch of wild flowers from behind his back. “I picked them just for you.” Avanti claps her hands and sniffs them. “Thank you Mehmet!” Mehmet is the son of the herbal shop’s owner. His father mostly sells mint and saffron they grow behind the shop. They make a bit more earnings now the festival is coming up. Mehmet offers to go for a walk and they move towards the great bridge of the city. The air is a bit cooler here, it makes Avanti’s hair lift up in the wind. Avanti tells him about her day, about the dull time at work, the dirty boss and how she disappointed her family again by being late. “Oh well”, Mehmet said, “you had a great time in the herb garden with me after work right?” Avanti pushes her elbow in his stomach. Mehmet starts laughing. “It’s not funny Momo, I had to tell my mom I went buying sugar. Now I have to buy that before work tomorrow so I can bake balushahi in the afternoon.” She sighs. “Why do things have to be so hard?” Mehmet lifts his shoulders and looks Avanti in the eye. “You know your parents won’t allow that, I mean, look at me. My hands and feet are always dirty and we barely save anything to be able to expand the store. Do you think we will ever meet your parents’ standards? You’ve got everything and I…” A teardrop forms slowly on Avanti’s cheek. “You don’t get it do you? I don’t have everything. I have a shitty job and parents that don’t care about what I want. I want what you have Momo, freedom, being outside, being loved. I know you work hard but it must be better than sitting behind a desk all day being stared at by perverts.” Mehmet isn’t surprised about her reaction. Ever since they have been together, Avanti had told him everything. They meet at the fountain every day, during break time in secret. He had thought of an idea for a while now, but until now he never had the courage to ask her.
“Avanti, why don’t we go away together? My older brother will work in the store and you and I will be fine, as long as we are together.”
“Momo.” Avanti put her arms around him. They watch the lights in the sky sparkle bright from the bridge.
“If you say yes, you don’t have to bake balushahi tomorrow”, Mehmet grinned.
Avanti laughed. “You’re crazy”
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