She loved not many things, but three; the sea, airplanes, and helping people. The desire to help others was evident in her toddler stages. The first to comfort another kid, who just had a boo-boo or helping teta bake in the kitchen. She was always present when others were in need.
‘What could they possibly be talking about?’ KhodA-dAd thought to himself as he looked on at a group of three guys and two women standing a few feet away from him. For the full hour within which he has sat, despaired over having such little catch for sale this week, they have been chatting and laughing among themselves. He was more curious than irritated at this point, what could possibly be too entertaining to have been spoken and laughed about for the full hour?
He sighed again as he raked his fingers through his wavy hair, a handsome trait he inherited from his dear father, then looked away. He wasn't happy. He wasn't pleased. His family of five was highly dependent on the money he made from the fish he caught.
Last month was a blessing. There was a lot of fish to last his family for days, and more than enough to sell at the fish market. His family had enough money to last the whole month but it was all over now, and he was back to toiling for more. For some reason, fishing has been slow. ‘Are the fish running away from him? Were they upset with the amount of their relatives he caught the last time?’ He thought and silently laughed to himself. “I need more of you unfor-”, his train of thoughts were interrupted by laughter from the happy bunch again.
‘What could they possibly be laughing at this time?’ He thought, annoyed that their happiness yet again disturbed his misery.
Just then the sound of a seaplane roared through the air, swirled in a spiral in the sky, leaving a trail of smoke, then gently landed on the surface of the water by the dock. He's seen this plane before. But when he was younger. If he could remember right, it was painted a different color. A darker shade of green and orange, and often flown by a man. But it's white and red, with clouds of pink. Whoever thought that was the perfect color for a seaplane, must surely be an interesting person.
But this time there was a lady in it. A cheery one too, he thought as he rolled his eyes, ‘they must be on some strong drug.’ Shaking his head.
“Asra! You finally arrived” Asad, her elder brother greeted happily “Nasrin, has kept us happily engaged with her good jokes.”
“You know she has quite a handful” Azadeh, her cousin piped in.
“Of course” Asra said with a smile, taking her brother's hand as she climbed out and down the plane.
“You brought good news, I believe?” Her father, Aurang, asked whilst giving her a warm hug. She sighed as she welcomed his embrace ‘I missed this’ she thought. “More than good news, actually. I was able to feed more mouths than usual, and came back with an empty plane but myself”
“That is lovely news, it is.” FarzAm, her brother's friend, commented.
“I'm quite happy for the lovely family reunion, I am, really, but I'm running on a tight schedule here. You can't be the only passengers I ride the whole day” an impatient taxi driver called out to them. Hearing his voice, the group of six laughed and headed towards the driver.
‘Finally’ KhodA-dAd thought to himself, but his moment of peace was short lived as he received a call that shook his world. His father just passed. Shocked, he stared into the sight before him, questioning if he heard right. Blinking twice, he cleared his blurry vision and asked his sister to repeat what she just said. The last of his surviving parents has finally died.
Orphans. They were now orphans, he thought. He's now fully responsible for the wellbeing of his siblings. What was he going to do? He barely makes enough to get by, with only bursts of breakthrough every now and then. Who's going to watch the youngest of his siblings whilst he's out fishing and his sister's at the market? Relatives, he thought, but no, his dad cut ties with them because of messy issues. They've got to start attending school soon. This money is not enough for school. What's he going to do?
His sister couldn't go to university because of low funds. He couldn't go to university, because his month fell sick and had to be taken care of until his sister was mature enough to handle taking care of his mother whilst he was out.
Sighing again, he ended the call and let his head flop in-between his raised knees “God, if you exist, now would be the right time to help me” he whispered, distraught, as tears finally fell from his eyes.
‘Look up’ The thought flowed into her mind, interrupting her deep thoughts. ‘Huh’ Asra thought to herself, wondering whether her Dad or siblings called her, as she was about to step over the hedge to get to the taxi. She looked around still wondering, until her eyes caught sight of a man whose head was bent in between his knees. ‘Is he okay? Is everything alright’ She suddenly thought to herself.
Moved to find out what the matter was, she called out a concerned greeting, causing his gaze to snap in her direction. There's something sad about his look, she observed. Not wanting to pry, but still wanting to express concern, she offered a warm smile and wave. He gave her a confused look, but later smiled the best he could then waved back. She nodded gently, then turned back and headed to the taxi.
Who would have known, this small gesture, would mark the start of a tremendous change in the life of his and his family.
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