Birthday Gift Part 3
Now that Neha di was once again talking to me, I was happy once again. In fact, I was having fun with my dupatta and gesturing like girls but in a more exaggerated way, or you could even say in a more boyish way.
“Ok, di”, I said trying to mimic a girl’s voice but I ended up laughing after it. You see one might think that I would have felt embarrassed or shy being in girls’ clothes. But I did not. I was too confident in my self as a boy and as my sister’s brother. I was just doing this for my sister. So I took it as fun. And because of my confident personality, I could do it without feeling embarrassed or shy. Think about it, does Amir Khan feel embarrassed to act as a woman? No, because he is confident about his life as an actor. He knows that by dressing up as a woman, that wouldn’t change his demand as an actor. He does it for the audience, who loves whatever he does. So, he doesn’t feel ashamed to occasionally act as Manno Bhabhi or any other woman.
“Look Priya, if you are not going to take this seriously and continue to act like my dumb brother in a salwar, then this is not going to work out.”, Neha di said.
“Sorry, di. I will be more serious now. Can’t you forgive your little sister?”, I said to her. She smiled back at me and we got busy once again with what we were doing.
Neha di was checking out a dress from her cupboard. So, I asked her, “Di, what are you searching for now?”
“I am looking for a dress to wear in the evening”, she said.
“But you already bought a dress, a salwar suit, for your birthday, two months ago. Look it is here. Then why do you need to search?”, I asked.
“Because that dress is not for me, Piyu”, she said. She called me “Piyu” in an affectionate way, short for “Priya”.
“I don’t understand. Then why did you buy this dress in the first place?”
“I didn’t know back then, but this dress is for my cute little sister.”, she chuckled.
“What?”
“Yes, piyu. You are going to wear that dress today.”
“But di. You brought that dress for your birthday. It wasn’t for me. I can’t wear that dress.”, I said thoughtfully.
“If you want me to wear that dress, then you will have to wear a saree tonight.”
“What? No way.”
“Come on. It would be the kind of sisterly fun I was talking about. I would love to drape a saree on my cute sister. But you have a choice. Either you can wear this dress or a saree. You decide.”, she said.
“I don’t think that I can handle a saree. But you make a choice for me.”, the boy in me told me that there is no way I could handle a saree so didi would agree with me. But I didn’t want to take her birthday dress either.
“Well, since you have already worn a salwar, and you look so beautiful in it, I suggest that we should try a saree for you for the evening. I want to see how my sister would look in a saree.”
“Are you sure, didi? I can wear some other salwar suit.”, I said.
“You don’t worry sis. I will be there to teach you how to handle a saree. Besides only three of us are going to be at home, so don’t worry about it. Mom would be excited too to see you in a saree.”, she exclaimed.
“Ok fine, I will wear saree.”, I resigned.
“Good. So come here and help me select a saree for you”, she said.
“Didi, you are taking this too far. I don’t know anything about saree. You just select something and let me know. I know your choice is not bad at all.”, I said with reluctance.
After some time, she took out one red designer saree and kept it on my shoulder and said – ‘Yes, this will look perfect on you , What do you say?’
“Ok di. You know that red is my favorite colour”, I smiled. I think I was enjoying this sisterhood with her.
it was around noon. I was in the bedroom reading a book and still in a salwar that I wore that morning. I heard a doorbell and mom opening up the door. I heard the voice of a boy but I couldn’t figure out who he was. I got occupied with my reading again. But after about 10 minutes, Neha di called me to come out. I just came out adjusting my dupatta that kept slipping over my arms. As soon as I came out I saw that there was a boy. And he was none other than my friend Ritesh. He lives in the same building as us, and lives with 3 other boys of his age. We both belong to the same batch in the college, and we do projects together. Then I recalled that I had informed him about my sister’s birthday sometime back. Since he knew Neha di too, he must have come to wish her a happy birthday.
Being a prankster myself, I thought let me have fun. I just hope Neha di didn’t tell him that I am Pravin in a girl’s getup. I gently held my dupatta in my hand and walked as femininely I could manage to see him.
Neha di saw me and broke the silence and said – “Ritesh, meet my sister Priya. Today is her birthday too.”, she was giggling a little while she said this.
“Hi Priya, what a great coincidence. Wish you many many happy returns of the day”, Ritesh said.
I just smiled and said thank you in a feminine voice I could muster. Though I wanted to pull some kind of prank, but I could not think of anything. So I just went to the kitchen.
“Looks like Priya is feeling shy.”, didi said.
“I haven’t seen her here ever before. How did she manage to come during a lockdown?”, Ritesh asked.
“Oh, she had been here before the lockdown. Because she is extremely shy, you hadn’t met her.”, didi replied.
“Oh, ok. By the way, where is Pravin? I think I should see him now that I am here anyway.”, Ritesh said.
“But you just saw him”
“What? I didn’t see him. Where is he?”, he asked.
“Let me bring him here.”, didi said and she came to the kitchen. Probably, she understood that I wanted to pull a prank too. So, she said, “He is asking for Pravin. Now take this coffee that mom prepared for him, and go out. Let’s have some fun.”
Mom just looked at us and smiled at us.
I came out with a cup of coffee in a tray, and went out with di. I gave coffee to him, and sat next to didi on a sofa. I tried my best to act like a shy girl. But I didn’t have to try too hard. He was more shy than a girl. He could barely raise his eyes up to my chest level. Who knows he liked what he saw… ha ha.
“Neha didi, where is Pravin?”, he asked again. He looked uncomfortable in presence of an unknown girl.
“Oh, he is here with us.”, didi said.
“Here? Where?”, he looked perplexed.
“In front of your eyes.”, didi looked at me as she said.
He still looked confused.
“Oho .. this girl sitting here for the past five minutes is none other than Pravin. He is acting as my little sister today as my birthday gift from him to her.”, didi clarified while laughing.
“Ta da … dude, you didn’t even recognize your friend!”, I finally said in my usual voice laughingly.
“Oh man… you guys really got me. And here I was sitting blushing thinking that there is a new girl in this building. You guys … “, Ritesh said.
He seemed a little relaxed now. His face was turning pink because of the stunt we pulled on him.
“So, should I call you Priya now?”, he asked.
“Of course! Don’t I look like Priya?”, I said in a naughty way while adjusting my dupatta to exaggerate the effect.
Meanwhile we talked while he finished his coffee. He then stood up to go back to his house. That’s when mom came to the room and invited him for the evening dinner which he gladly accepted.
I went to the door to close it behind as he went out (as was my habit), he looked at me and said, “Will see you in the evening Priya.” He was still blushing in front of me! “Yeah, see you dude.”, I said to him in my usual boyish way. What he heard and what he saw was really confusing him. Well, he was like that, never comfortable around girls.
After our lunch, didi and I were sitting in the bedroom and thinking about today’s evening. Because of the lockdown, we could not invite anyone for the birthday party. Only Ritesh could come because he lived in the same building. Mom was busy preparing a cake while we two chitchatted. Neha didi truly appreciated that I became her sister today. She admired the jhumkas that I was wearing in my ear.
“Ok then it is final that you will wear this saree in evening”, she smiled.
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