Rohan was getting dressed for school. His mother, Saroj was preparing breakfast in the kitchen. Rohan was constantly looking at the watch. He was waiting for his father who was out for his morning walk.
Saroj served him Poha and milk as he sat at the dining table. She packed his tiffin as he ate his breakfast. Right then Rohan’s father came in. Rohan looked at him with excitement. He went to his father and said, “Papa! Give me 50 Rupees.”
Father- “Why?”
Rohan- “You said if I scored more than 80% on my tests, you would give me 50 Rupees. I showed you the sheets. Please! Please!”
Father smiled and asked, “What will you do with the money?”
Rohan- “Our school canteen has excellent cream rolls. I will use the money to buy it.”
Father- “No! Your mother prepares such a delicious meal for you and you want to eat crap. No!”
Rohan- “Please Papa!”
Father- “No! If you want money then I will give you. But you need to spend it on something good. You can buy some books, or maybe colors for your drawing lessons.”
Rohan thought for a while and agreed. He got his 50 Rupees. But while giving the money his father reminded him that the money must be spent wisely. He would check the kinds of stuff bought with those 50 Rupees.
Rohan thought to himself- “If I spend the money on cream rolls then what would I tell father? He would ask me to show the colors or the book I bought.”
Saroj tapped him on the shoulder and gave him the tiffin. She said- “Put it in the bag otherwise you will forget.”
This gave Rohan an idea. He thought- “If I forget the tiffin then I will have an excuse of spending money on food.” He smiled mischievously.
Saroj was busy serving breakfast to his father. Suddenly, he heard the bus engine. His father screamed- “Rohan! The bus is here. Come fast.”
He left the tiffin on the table and ran towards the bus. He had successfully left his tiffin home and was now free to eat his favorite cream rolls.
He could not concentrate in any class. The thought of eating the cream roll had increased his hunger. He was eagerly waiting for the lunch break.
And then the bell rang! He quickly took out his 50 Rupee note and ran out of the class. He was not able to control his happiness. With a wide smile, he ran towards the canteen. Suddenly he stopped as if a sudden brake was applied to a fast-moving car.
The canteen was closed today!
Rohan felt as if someone had snatched away food from his hand. His smile faded and he slowly walked back to the class. He entered the classroom where students were eating their tiffin. He could smell so many different foods- Paratha-curry, fried rice, sandwich, Maggie…
He thought to himself- “I wonder what mother would have packed in my tiffin? It must be something good.”
Image: AI image generated with Creative Automation Platform
Rohan looked at other students with the hope that someone might offer him food. But the kids were so engrossed in eating their food that none had paid attention to him. The lunch was over. The last few classes seemed like ages. He did not pay attention to a single word said by the teacher. He could only think about rice, dal, and curry.
As soon as the school got over, he became hungrier. The time taken by the bus to reach home seemed like an entire day. As soon as he reached home he threw his bag and ran towards the kitchen. Saroj asked him to wash his hands but he had no patience. He saw the tiffin still packed and sitting calmly on the kitchen shelf.
He grabbed it and ran to the dining table. He opened the tiffin and started eating the Paratha and Bhujiya in a hurry.
Saroj smiled as she watched him eat. She said, “You forgot your tiffin on purpose. So did you enjoy your cream roll?”
But Rohan did not have time to answer. He was busy devouring all the content of the tiffin. When he had finished eating then he looked at her and said- “Cream roll can never match Paratha Bhujiya. Please bring more!”
Story by:
Khushboo Singh
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