D R I S H T I

"Varun, baby wake up or I'm not allowing you to stay over at your friend's house this weekend" I screamed from the kitchen to wake up my little sunshine.

"Two minutes mum!" Replied my 4 years old and I heard sounds of his growling in anger while getting up from his bed.

Varun Drishti Sharma, my son who was born to me the week after my 18th birthday. That mistake was mine but I was not allowing a little life to end just because I was not cautious enough. Moving out of my own house after being abandoned by my parents and later dumped my baby daddy brought me several problems.

For months I had to live as a homeless woman, just walking along the road looking for a job, surviving on what little money I would get by doing small chores by myself. With my 7 month belly, it grew harder than what I imagined it to be. With the little money I had, I used it to keep me alive and had regular some check ups for the sake of my baby's health.

Things were the worst when I couldn't find a shelter for myself and was the baby due the next week. I needed care, but no one was there. I felt lonely, but no one showed up. I was depressed but had to get myself out of it so that the baby could be a healthy one. The next week two days before my due date, I brought my lifeline into this world. With clear brown eyes, he showed resemblance to his biological father while most of his other features were inherited from me.

Seeing him I knew, he was worth all the troubles. The day his little eyes opened to see me, his little tender hands curled around my finger, every pain, every suffering seemed to have vanished.

But then I knew if I didn't get myself a job and a shelter, he would be taken away from me. And I was not ready to give my only hope to live for an adoption or away to the child securities. He was mine.

The doctor that happened to work there, Miss Divya Walia had become an acquaintance of mine ever since I started coming for the check ups. She knew well of my state and offered to help me but I was the one not ready to accept any person's help. But in the end I had to ask her if she would help me finding a job and take care of Varun as his official 'guardian' till I was able to get on my feet.

It took me two years to get where I was now. Not enough, but I was satisfied with the things and the people I had with me. The first year I completed my high school in just four months and the next, I applied for different medical colleges. The acceptance letter came and I got rejected from the first one. But was able to get into the other medical school.

Talking of now, I was a single mom who was in her 2nd year of med school. For my son Varun, I was his mother as well as his father. He was the sort of person who only loved three people in his life the most, the three near which he was himself and knew that he was safe when he looked in their eyes.

The first person was me and the second person was his friend, his Divya whom he liked to call D. Varun would always fight with me that he would soend the weekend at Divya's home which was right in front of ours, he would awalys be sneaking out to play with her whenever he saw her returning. Weekends were easy for Divya as those days there was no night shift in the hospital. She would always the best person whom I could a friend. The third person was Sia, a caffee owner who lived near Divya's home. Whenever Divya would be out due to an emergency case, he would stay at Sia's. Sia was the second person who came into my life as a boon.

Not only does Divya helps me with Varun but also with my studies and a few of my assignments. And Sia takes care of Varun whenever I am at my job. We four would spend our Sundays together, going to the park, the movies or sometimes to the carnival whenever they were held.

I would spend my entire week, studying and working a part time job in a small cafe, just a few blocks from our home.

Life was never easy and it would never be perfect, but I am thankful that I decided to stay. Well, Alec Benjamin once said 'The world's not perfect but it's not that bad' If we have each other and that's all we have, I'll be your mother and I'll hold your hand, you should know I would always be there, with you and for you.

"Mum, I'm stuck in my tshirt! Help! Mommy station come to rescue!! Immediately! Or a ghost will eat your son! Mommyyy!!" I heard him yelling from the chair and laughed to myself at his behavior.

"Mommy says that baby will be doing it on his own!"

"First of all I'm not a baby! I'm freaking 4!" Now how the hell taught him that word?

"Varun!" I yelled at him while cutting the salad for his school lunch and placing his sandwiches in his tiffin.

"Yes that's my name. Now come, or I'll surely call the cops on you for not helping me, mommy!!"

"Coming!"

I went to our room and saw him struggling with his tshirt. His hands were standing straight above his head and his tshirt was stuck there, hiding his entire face while he kept jumping at his place and yelling that his tshirt had conspired and grown smaller. "Childish"

"I'm not" I pulled down his tshirt and saw his cheeks holding in the air while he continued to glare at me with an angry pout.

"I see"

"Don't make fun of me, I am a grown man"

"Man?"

"Um hm, so don't worry princess, I will protect you" passing me his sweetest smile he opened his arms for a hug and threw himself at me. "Good morning by the way. Our teacher told us to wish our parents daily" kissing my cheeks with all the force he had, he showed me his smile again which had the front two teeth missing.

I tried to control ny laughter but burst out laughing like a dying whale which made him mad, once again. "Stop laughing" he whispered, hiding his teeth.

"Oh, so you're gonna tell me what to do? Who's the mom?"

"Me!" He escaped from my grip and ran around the entire room while holding his toy airplane in the air.

"You little mischief, wait!" I ran after him as he screamed to escape from me. We continued the chase for nearly four more minutes before he went to the washroom and got ready for his school.

Varun loved to get ready on his own even if his tie would be touching the floor, shoe lases left untied, don't even start at his hairstyle and his trouser's zip always open.

"Mommy!" He kept shouting while dragging bis Iron Man bag all around the house, waiting for his school bus. "Help me with my tie or else Victoria would laugh at me"

"Victoria?" Taking the bag from him, I out his lunch inside it and looked at his face in surprise.

"Yeah, she is" he sighed dramatically while palming his face and turning it away "the love of my life"
What the actual hell? This boy found his love? In his preschool?

Wow!

"Varun" I looked at him before my jaw dropped watching his state "now would you please explain me the look?" Crossing my arms across my chest, I inspected how he had pne side of his shirt outside his pants, the pants zip open as ususal and his hairs stood up in attention.

He looked like a freaking porcupine.

"Swag mom. Leave it, kids won't understand" This boy was growing faster than most of the others from his age group. He would be turning 5 soon and I don't want to imagine how he mature would think that he had become.

There was a blow of the bus horn while Varun tossed the bag on his shoulder, rested his hand in his pocket and kissed my cheek "Goodbye princess. Meet you after work"

"Oh you're not going anywhere, looking like a cartoon my son" holding him back, I adjusted his clothes while he tried his best to escape me and run away in his so called 'sway' "now you look good"

"Whatever" he mumbled and put the bag around his shoulders properly befor leaving the house with me accompanying him. "Ok bye, love you mommy" he looked across the street and his face glowed up at an instant "Bye D! Love you to the ocean and back!" Sending a flying kiss her way, he watched Divya smile at him and leave for her work. "Ah, if I was her age, I would've married her" he sighed, beating his heart.

"You're getting out of my hands" I sighed and watched him wave me from his bus.

"I love you" Whispering the words to myself, I turned around to go inside and get ready for my college when I noticed a new face.

The house next to ours which was abandoned since a long time was not owned by someone. A boy in his mid 20s, wearing black and grey clothes with an alluring and dangerously handsome face stood in front of the porch and inspected the house. From my observations, he seemed pretty messed up from his highly ruffled hairs and his blank expressions along with that band aid on his forehead.

Since my first and last relationship had not been much of a successful one, I turned my face to the other side, not showing any interest in him.

I don't believe in love anymore.

Just my son, and my friends, Divya and Sia.

I felt his eyes on me as I walked towards the door and entered my house.