A month !

It had been a month since Shivaay was searching for a job and all he got to hear is he is too young to be working.

Not really... He was just a year younger than his classmates and it wasn't certainly his fault that he was smart and got promoted to the next grade before time.

"Bhaiya ! Yaad hai na aj apka result hai ? Jaldi aao." ("Brother ! Remember your result will be announced today ? Come inside.") Om said in anticipation and dragged Shivaay inside the home.

Shivaay had just returned from the broker's office after paying the rent of this month.

Shivaay sighed and looked at Om with a smile.

Shivaay was feeling depressed lately. He didn't know how to manage everything. He was running out of money each passing day. He now had just 9000 rupees in his hand after paying for all the expenses. One more big expense and he wouldn't be left with any money to pay the next rent or to pay for the food.

Om made Shivaay sit on the cot and opened the website where the results were going to be declared.

"Don't worry bhai, you'll do great." Om smiled at Shivaay in assuring manner cause he thought Shivaay was nervous about the result.

Shivaay gave Om a small smile and hugged him.

Om opened the website and filled in the details required. That's when Shivaay saw that Om had his fingers crossed and Shivaay smiled at that.

"Ru kaha hai ?" ("Where is Ru ?") Shivaay asked. He didn't care about results anymore.

What was the use of that result ?

Shivaay knew that he wouldn't be able to enroll himself for further studies cause one, he didn't have enough money and two, he didn't think he could handle studies along with OmRu and job.

"Khelne gaya hai chawl ke bacchon ke sath." ("He's playing with other kids from the chawl.") Om replied nonchalantly without taking his eyes off of the mobile screen. "Ugh !" Om groaned catching Shivaay's attention.

"Kya hua ?" ("What's wrong ?") Shivaay asked while walking into the kitchen to start preparing the lunch.

"Bhai yeh website load nahi ho rahi hai." ("The website is not loading brother.") Om complained with a frown.

"Toh rakh de, baad mein dekh lenge results." ("Then leave it, we'll see the result afterwards.") Shivaay replied.

"Aap excited nahi ho results ke liye ?" ("Ain't you excited to see your score ?") Om amused.

"Kyu excitement hogi mujhe Om ? Woh result ab mere kisi kaam ka nahi hai." ("Why will I be excited Om ? That result is now useless.") Shivaay confessed sadly.

"Kyu kisi kaam ka nahi hai, bhai ? Aapko jo IIT mein admission chahiye woh result ke bina nahi milega." ("Useless ? Bro, how would you get admission in IIT without this result ?") Om said.

"Aur kise chahiye IIT mein admission ?" ("And who wants to get admission in IIT ?") Shivaay turned to Om.

"What are you saying ?" Om said in disbelief. "Apne bachpan se sirf ek hi sapna dekha hai aur woh hai IIT mein graduation degree hasil karke Cambridge University se post graduation karna." ("It had always been your dream to graduate from IIT and then do post graduation from Cambridge University London.") Om recited.

"Sapna hai nahi, sapna tha. Ab mera ek hi sapna hai ki mein tumhe aur Ru ko ek acchi life de saku." ("It was once my dream. Now my only dream is to give you and Ru a good life.") Shivaay blurted out.

"Bhai, aap humare liye..." ("Brother, for us you're...") Om was about to say something when he was cut off by Ru running inside the house with a frown.

"Bhaiya !" ("Big brother !") Ru wailed with tears streaming down his eyes.

"Ru." Shivaay left everything and rushed by Rudy's side. "Kya hua baby ?" ("What's wrong baby ?")

"Bhaiya, Swapnil ne mujhe bola ki..ki.." ("Brother, Swapnil said that...that..") Rudy started hiccuping.

"Aaram se, aaram se." ("Calm down, calm down.") Shivaay rubbed Rudy's back soothingly while Om ran inside the kitchen to fetch a glass of water for Ru.

Rudy gulped the glass of water and took a few deep breaths before continuing, "Swapnil ne bola ki mein mota hu." ("Swapnil said that I'm a fatty.")

Om, who was tensed to see Rudy crying, now relaxed and rolled his eyes at his baby brother. "Cry baby." Om muttered under his breath.

Rudy heard it and wailed more loudly. "Bhaiya ! Dekho na O ko." ("Brother ! Om is teasing me.") Rudy complained.

Shivaay sighed and glared at Om. "Om, kyu mere Rudy baby ke piche pade ho, ha ?" ("Om, stop teasing your younger brother.") He feigned anger, making Om huff and sit away from them.

"Aur tum..." ("And you...") Shivaay turned to Rudy, who was now sitting on Shivaay's lap. "...kyu ro rahe ho ?" ("...why are you crying ?")

"Uss Swapnil ne mujhe mota bola." ("Swapnil called me fatty.") Rudy scowled through tears as he repeated himself.

Shivaay sighed and wiped his face with his palm. "Tumne kya kiya tha usey ?" ("What did you do to him ?")

"Kuch nahi." ("Nothing.") Rudy said and looked away.

"Rudy, truth !" Shivaay sighed.

"Meine usey patlu bulaya." ("I called him a stick.") Rudy whispered while looking down at his lap.

Om smirked from his position at ShivRu. "Apka baby sirf crybaby hi nahi, naughty bhi hai." ("Your baby is not only a crybaby but also a very naughty child.") Om snorted.

"Bhaiya !" ("Brother !") Ru complained again.

"What bhaiya ? Om's right !" Shivaay turned to Rudy with fake anger.

One thing which Shivaay had learnt this entire month was, 'Never turn a blind eye towards the kid's mistakes'.

The first and foremost rule of raising a child was making them aware of their mistakes and making sure to teach them the difference between wrong and right.

A little over a week Rudy had got into a fight with another kid from the area and thinking it as a stupid thing Shivaay had turned a blind eye towards it but the fight only got worse with time and finally, Shivaay had to interfere in between the kid's fight to refrain themselves from getting kicked out from the chawl, cause the kid with whom Rudy had started a fight was none other than the chawl owner's beloved grandson.

Rudy stared at Shivaay with fear written in his eyes but made a puppy dog face.

"Don't give me that look." Shivaay said sternly. "Iss mahine ki yeh second fight hai. Agar aur ek baar fight mein involve hue toh no TV for a week." ("This is your second fight this month. One more fight and I'll restrict you from watching TV for a week.")

Rudy's eyes widened. Rudy was addicted to the TV ever since he was 5.

No TV for a week ? Wouldn't Rudy die without watching what happened in his extremely marvelous cartoon shows ?

"No." Rudy replied quickly. "Mera Tv nahi." ("Not TV please.") He cried.

"Then behave yourself." Shivaay replied in a stern tone. "Now go and get freshen up."

Rudy nodded with a sad look and went to wash his dirty hands and legs and face.

"Arey usey kyu chod diya ? Mujhe usey daat khate dekh maza aa raha tha." ("Aww why would you let him go ? It was fun to watch Ru getting scoldings.") Om groaned with a pout.

"Om." Shivaay warned.

"Ok, ok. I'm sorry." Om replied and then jumped in his seat when he returned his attention to his mobile. "Load ho gaya, load ho gaya." ("Website has been loaded.") He said excitedly and started tapping the screen.

Shivaay joined him and peeped from above his shoulder.

Om's eyes lit up when he saw the result. "Bhai !" He squealed and hugged Shivaay tightly. "You're genius ! 96% !"

He announced with a huge grin. For a moment, Shivaay thought Om's face will break in half with such a huge grin.

Shivaay gave out a faint smile. He was more sad than happy to score more.

If he could've managed to get low grades then maybe it would've been easy to blame it on the grades for not enrolling himself for further studies but now that he had scored more, he would feel sad all the time for not being able to pursue further education.

"Bhai, I want a special treat now. You're brilliant." Om beamed at Shivaay and explained what had happened to Rudy who was giving them both quizzical looks.

Shivaay nodded and returned to the kitchen to cook something good for his brothers. He gave one glace at his lil brothers and a smile crept on his face.

So what if he couldn't pursue his further education ? He will make sure that his brothers get the best education in the world.

With a new determination in heart, Shivaay turned towards cooking again and started thinking about something else.

♣

An elderly man, probably in his 50s or 60s was sitting in his office with his face hidden in his hands.

He just had a fight with his impulsive, 25 year old son.

"Ab kaise samjhau mein iss ladke ko ki illegal kaam usey zindagi mein sirf dubayenge." ("How am I supposed to knock this in my son's brain that getting involved in illegal business will take him nowhere in life but jail.") The old man muttered with a sigh.

The old man was none other than Surya Murthy. Surya Murthy was a Chartered Accountant by profession and had established his own company 20 years ago.

Surya was a man of his principles. He was true to his ethics and would never compromise his principles and ethics for anything.

Alas ! His son, Aryan Murthy, was exactly opposite to him. Aryan believed in money and nothing else but money. He had no principles or ethics. He believed in playing dirty.

Aryan had always been spoilt kid ever since his mother died when he was just 14. Surya Murthy had a hard time in handling his teenage son.

Surya was always busy in his work and got less time to spend with his son, this hugely contributed to the differences between the father and son.

Aryan always disobeyed Surya and now that he had completed his education, he was going to takeover Surya's company.

Suddenly Surya's phone went off.

"Hello." The old man said into the phone, his voice became professional as soon as he received the call.

"Hello sir, mein Akash bol raha hu." ("Hello sir, Akash here.") A young voice came through the phone.

"Haan, bolo Akash. Kaise ho ?" ("Yes, Akash, how are you ?") The old man said in a bit softer tone.

"Mein thik hu sir." ("I'm fine sir.") Akash replied. "Mujhe apke assistant ka phone aaya tha ki apko mujhse kuch kaam hai." ("Your assistant told me to call you as you had some work for me.")

"Arey Haan." ("Ah, yes.") The old man said and rubbed his temples. "Mujhe ek ladke ki jarurat hai." ("I need a boy.") He confessed.

"You mean ki apke yaha vacancy hai ?" Akash asked and added. "Mujhe Job Description aur Job requirements bata dijiye I'll send the candidates." ("Send me Job Description and Job requirements and I'll send in the candidates for interview, sir.")

"I don't have time for interview procedure Akash, that's why I've called you. And anyway I need him for personal work but it'll be good if he could do some basic back office jobs." Old man said. "Mujhe ek aise ladke ki jarurat hai jo meri har baat manega aur at the same time professional aur loyal bhi ho. Education criteria nahi hai." ("I need a boy who'll obey my orders, who'll be professional and loyal. There's no educational criteria.")

"Hmm." Akash wondered.

Why would a successful Chartered Accountant like Surya Murthy, need a boy for ?

As far as Akash knew, Surya Murthy had no vacancy in his office as Akash had already recruited enough candidates last month for Surya's company.

"Mujhe ek ladka pata hai." ("I know one guy.") Akash finally confessed. "He's smart and professional and at the same time he seems very loyal. He's not that much educated but considering his age, it's quite obvious."

"Kya age hogi uski ?" ("How old is he ?") Surya Murthy asked with a spark of interest.

"Sir, 16 years." Akash answered.

"16 years ?" Surya amused. "Ok, what is his name again ?"

"Sir, Shivaay, Shivaay Singh Oberoi." Akash revealed.

"Hmm." The old man, Surya Murthy, nodded with a satisfied smile. "Uske contact details mujhe Whatsapp kardo." ("Whatsapp me his contact details.")

"Sure sir."

"And one more thing, our conversation should be kept confidential." Surya said in a sharp, demanding voice.

"Yes, sir." Akash said before hanging up the call.

♠

It was 3 o'clock in the afternoon.

"Bhaiya, kaha jaa rahe ho ?" ("Brother, where are going ?") Om asked when he saw Shivaay getting ready.

"Interview hai." ("There's an interview.") Shivaay replied while straightening his shirt.

"Oh, All the Best." Om smiled and helped Shivaay.

It took Shivaay an hour or so to reach the company and then another half an hour of wait to go through the interview procedure.

Shivaay had grew accustomed to all those interview procedures till now.

After the interview, Shivaay watched sadly as another candidate got the post as usual.

He sighed and started his journey to his home.

It was getting dark already as the sun was setting down.

Shivaay sighed. His life was just the same. His luck was setting down and his life was getting engulfed in darkness.

"Will I ever be able to achieve something in my life ?" Shivaay muttered to himself while watching the sunset and sighed.

Shivaay was nearing the police station after some time, the same police station where he had read about Vecha.

"Aye bhai ! Kaisa hai ?"
("Hey bro ! How are you ?")

Shivaay turned towards the source of the voice and saw the two hooligans from the police station.

They were the same people who had told him about Vecha. They both were sitting on the benches of a lil tea stall.

Shivaay just stared at them blankly, debating whether to go talk to them or ignore them. He wasn't, however, left with much of a choice when one of those men came towards him and dragged him to sit with them.

"Bataya nahi tune yar, kaisa hai tu ?" ("You didn't answer my question, how are you doing ?") The man smiled.

"Mein..thik hu." ("I'm...fine.") Shivaay replied but tension was clearly visible on his face.

"Lagta toh nahi hai." ("Doesn't seem so.") The man commented.

Shivaay chose to stay silent cause he didn't even know those two men, how was he supposed to share his life details with strangers ?

As if the men had read his mind, they introduced themselves.

"Mein hu Ganya aur yeh hai mera bhai, mera yar, mera dost Raja." ("I'm Ganya and he's my brother, my friend, Raja.") The man who had dragged him, Ganya, introduced.

"Mein Sh.. Shivaay hu." ("I'm Sh..Shivaay.") Shivaay hesitantly replied.

"Bhai, lagta hai tu interview se aa raha hai." ("Bro, I take that you're coming from an interview.") Raja remarked as he eyed Shivaay's document folder file.

Shivaay nodded.

"Paison ke liye pareshan ho." ("And you're stressed due to financial issues.") Raja added.

Shivaay nodded again, signalling that Raja's statement was correct.

"Kitna padhe likhe ho ?" ("What's your educational qualification ?") Ganya asked.

"12th pass hu." ("I'm a high school graduate.") Shivaay replied lowly.

"12th ?" ("High school ?") Ganya and Raja laughed out loud making Shivaay frown and stare at them.

"Sorry bhai, hume hasi aa gayi." ("Sorry bro, we couldn't hold back our laughter.") Ganya apologised. "Mein Engineer hu aur yeh Raja BA graduate hai." ("I'm an Engineer and Raja is BA graduate.")

Shivaay was surprised at his words. He eyed them both from head to toe and they looked like uneducated baboons let alone University graduates.

"Aise kya dekh raha hai ? Jhoot lagta hai tujhe ?" ("Why are you giving me that look ? You think I'm lying ?") Ganya smirked. "Bro we're educated, in fact, I can explain you how a DC transformer works as well." He replied in English making Shivaay's jaw drop.

"Lekin kaise ? Tum log toh.." ("But how ? You both are...") Shivaay was cut off by Raja.

"Roadside ka gunda hai." ("Roadside, illiterate hooligans ?") Raja completed for Shivaay.

Shivaay nodded and then shook his head and then nodded again, making Raja and Ganya laugh at his shocked expressions.

"Bhai padhai kis kaam ki jab jobs hi nahi milte ?" ("What's the use of education when there are no jobs around ?") Ganya said.

"Matlab ?" ("Elaborate please ?") Shivaay asked with a confused face.

Ganya and Raja narrated him their life stories.

Ganya and Raja used to be just like Shivaay, studious and career oriented but when they graduated they both came to know about the harsh realities of the world. They were very well educated but didn't get jobs even after 5 years of desperate trying and that's when they decided to give up and got themselves involved in illegal business.

"We smuggle things for local gangs." Raja said. "Agar tum chaho toh tum bhi hume join kar sakte ho." ("You can join us if you wish.")

Shivaay was too overwhelmed by all the information he had received.

If Raja and Ganya were holding degrees and still didn't get a job then Shivaay had very silm chance of getting a job himself.

"Kya bolte ho, Shivaay ?" ("So what do you say Shivaay ?") Ganya asked with an intriguing look. "Mahine ka itna toh kama hi loge ki apne parivaar ko acchi life de sako." ("You'll earn enough to keep your family happy.")

Shivaay just stared at him blankly. He was too overwhelmed by everything.

He was already depressed due to his financial condition and due to the tension of not getting a job. Ganya and Raja's story had further crushed his hopes of getting a job.

Even though he knew he shouldn't be turning in with those two men in illegal business, Shivaay couldn't help but think about how doing this illegal stuff would lessen his problems.

"Itna kya soch raha hai ? Arey darr mat mein aur Ganya hai na." ("There's nothing to think about. Don't worry I and Ganya are here to help you.") Raja assured.

Shivaay was slowly getting trapped into Ganya and Raja's sugar coated words.

"Toh kya bolte ho ?" ("So, shall we count you in ?") Ganya smiled and without waiting for Shivaay's reply he pulled out a small packet from his pocket and pushed it into Shivaay's hands. "Yeh lo, for starters, yeh packet tum kuch din apne pass rakho." ("Take this, starters, you've to keep this packet with you for a while.")

"Kya hai iss packet mein ?" ("What's in this packet ?") Shivaay asked while eyeing the brown packet in his hands.

Raja came closer to Shivaay's ears and whispered. "Drugs."

Shivaay's eyes widened in shock. "Mein yeh nahi rakh sakta. Wapas le lo yeh." ("I can't take this ! Take it back.") He said and tried giving that packet back but Ganya didn't take it back.

"Iska tumhe mein 10,000 dunga." ("I'll pay you 10,000 for keeping it with you.") Ganya said making Shivaay stop in his track and re-think about the offer.

--------

Hey bubblies !

Hmm...Shivaay and illegal business ?! 😱😱

Will he take the offer and get himself trapped in the underworld business or will he refuse ?

What you all think ?

Poor Shivaay...

And Oh... I DO NOT PROMOTE OR SUPPORT THE USE OF DRUGS OR ANY ILLEGAL BUSINESS, it's just a concept which crossed my mind.

Now that I've cleared it..

I've question for you all,
Who is your favourite character in this book so far ?

Let me know, I'm excited to find out who's the most popular guy in this book...😄😄😁😁

Until the next update,
Have a great and safe life 😇