"Mamatha, if you don't mind may I ask you a small question?" Sirisha wanted to ask that question with a low voice but she has to talk with her usual range to make it audible to Mamatha because of the cacophony around.

"Just feel free to ask anything I don't mind." With an assured expression in her face Mamatha said.

"Are not you feeling odd to have such a small brother? Don't you feel about how the others feel and talk looking at you both brother and sister with that much age gape?"

"What the bloody hell you are talking?" Mamatha's face was filled with an instant angry expression. "What's wrong in that? There are sisters who have brothers with even more age gape. Why anyone would think otherwise as my brother is quite legitimate? In other words why should I care about anyone else once my parents have given birth to him in all proper way?"

"I am sorry. I should not have asked you like that." Sirisha shocked on seeing the response of Mamatha so. She shocked more for the way she was feeling about her little brother rather than her angry response so.

"I really do mind if you talk like this Sirisha. If you don't like you may not come at all to the party I am giving. But don't talk nonsense like this and spoil my mood." Then she went away angrily from that place.

Sirisha wanted to go after her and say apology but before she did something like that mathematics teacher entered into the classroom. Sirisha postponed her decision to say apology to Mamatha in the small recess between mathematics period and science period but without giving any gape science teacher Saritha entered into the class as soon as mathematics teacher left.

"Sirisha will you meet me in my chamber once this period is over?" looking into the face of Sirisha, Saritha teacher asked. "I want to have some chit-chat with you."

"Alright madam." Sirisha said and sat along with all the other classmates once Saritha teacher permitted them to sit.

She could guess why Saritha teacher wanted to talk with her then. She has written the science unit test in the worst way just like all the other exams and only to admonish her, she wanted a session with her. All the other teachers do like Sirisha as she was intelligent and got good marks in all the exams but this science teacher has special interest on her. There was no surprise if Saritha teacher could not tolerate the low marks she has got in her science exam.

***

But Sirisha could not meet Saritha teacher on that day as she left for her home on some urgent work immediately after that class. Sirisha relieved a little as the uneasy situation she has to face was postponed but still she was feeling very much unhappy because of the episode that has taken place between her and Mamatha. Even though not as much as Chandana, Mamatha was also a very good friend to her and she did not like to lose friendship with her. Moreover on thinking she understood she really talked in such a way to hurt the feeling of Mamatha. Even in such a situation also Sirisha did not understand how Mamtha could like her little brother like that!

"I am really sorry. I should not have talked like that. Please excuse me." Sirisha could get the opportunity to meet Mamatha all alone only in the evening.

"I can excuse you on only condition." With the same serious expression in her face Mamatha said.

"Alright. Tell me. What it is?" Sirisha could guess what that condition was and she did not try to refrain the smile that was forcing onto her lips.

"You must come to the party in the evening." Mamatha said and put her both hands around Sirisha. "Of course, I hurt a little by way of your talking but I have no anger on you. You and Chandana are very good friends to me always."

"I sure do come. How do I miss it?" with the same smile on her lips Sirisha said.

When Sirisha said to her mom the purpose behind her going to her friend's home on the evening of that day, Sanjana suggested her to take a gift. Sanjana was behaving just in usual way with Sirisha after telling her about her decision to get an abortion. Sirisha tried to see some change in the expression of Sanjana when she said about her friend's little brother but there was no change at all. Rakesh was once again out of station on his business work so Sirisha could not meet him on that day. Sanjana already told Sirisha that her dad would be in the home on Wednesday by the time of her abortion.

Sirisha felt surprise on her friend's feeling that much with her little brother like that but it did not change her feeling at all towards her incoming sibling. Even though she was feeling little bad in herself, she was feeling happy for the decision ultimately her parents have taken. Mamatha has no aspiration to become a doctor and there may be no problem to her even however many siblings she has. But it was not so in her matter and it was not possible to her parents to bear the expenditure for her medicine studies while looking after the welfare of her sibling also. She did not want to believe what her father said that he would have no problem to look after her doctor studies even with ten children also. Moreover she still did not like to share anything with a sibling whatever she was enjoying.

"He is the gift to my daughter. I promised her to give her a sibling when she was three years old. But I could not give it till now. So I gave the chance to my daughter to name him." Mamatha's mom Parimala said.

"My dad also has no objection for my naming him as Vitthal." Mamatha said and once again there was the same happy smile on her lips.

"How do I object as we gave birth to him only for her?" putting his right hand around her daughter, her dad Niranjan said. "Not just that; it is she who is going to decide everything for him. We just follow her suggestions."

Still Mamatha's happiness towards her brother was very much puzzling to Sirisha and she looked at the three months' aged small baby in the cradle. While she was looking at the baby with small mouth, active eyes and black dense hair, she felt something deep which she could not explain to herself. For a moment she felt there was no surprise in Mamatha's feeling happy at her little brother. If she let her mom to continue with her pregnancy, she too would have a little beautiful brother or sister like him in future.

"In fact I want a sister to play with me. But it really does not matter whether it is a sister or brother. A brother also can play with me and spend time with me just like a sister." While looking at her brother with the same love and affection on her face Mamatha said. She was very much protective towards him and was not leaving him even for a moment.

Sirisha did not forget about the brother of Mamatha even after she reached home. In the night of that day she got a dream. In that dream her mom got her abortion. After that a baby just like the baby she saw at Mamatha's house yelled loudly while weeping 'You killed me. You killed me. You are a murderess. You are a murderess."

Sirisha woke up and sat straight on the bed. She started feeling very much bad and for a moment she thought to go to her mom and tell her not to get abortion. But with effort she diverted her mind from that thought. Once her parents also agreed to it, it would be just foolishness to ask her mom to change her decision. With no siblings she could spend her whole life just in the same with her parents. She once again laid on her back, turned on the right side and tried to sleep but her sleeping then was fitful.

***

Chandana's family could not reach her home as they expected and it became eight in the night by the time they settled in the house.

"I have missed to go to Mamatha's party in the evening. I have promised her to attend it." once her parents and she settled in the hall in chairs, Chandana said.

"If we have delayed like this to come to home, it was not your mistake." Her dad Madhukar said. "Anyhow is it is her birthday?"

"No of course." With a smile on her lips Chandana said. "This birthday was for her little brother who took birth just three months back and they named him on this day. And you know one thing!" Chandana paused a little. "Mamatha herself selected the name for her brother."

"It is indeed beautiful! But she has a brother now?" with little frowns on her forehead Madhukar asked her.

"Yes, there is more than fourteen years age gap between them both. But still she is feeling so much happy for him. She said her mom promised to give her a sibling when she was three years old and only now it has become possible to her to give her a brother. But the delay did not make any difference to her and she is just very much joyous now also." Chandana said.

"Why it should make any difference? With however much age gap a brother is a brother. How nice it is to have an own sibling whether it is brother or sister! Your friend is very much lucky." Her mom Sameera said.

"I also share the same opinion." Her dad Madhukar said.

"But it is not so at all to my friend Sirisha." with gathered frowns Chandana said. "Her mom also became pregnant and Sirisha all the time is just feeling hate towards her incoming sibling. She cannot feel even a little love and affection on it."

"Why it is so?" Sameera knitted her brows with surprise, first looked into her daughter's face, then into the face of her husband there also and then again into the face of Chandana. There was the same sort of expression in the face of Madhukar also.

(..........to be continued)

(I hope you enjoyedit so far. Please don't forget to rate and review it. I update the next chapteras early as possible.)