Subha yarned, shifted in the couch and looked at the time in the dim light the T V provided. It was 10.50 P M and still her father has not come home. She sighed and tried to loose herself in the T V before her. She could not watch the serial, it was the same recurrent story of a woman avenging another woman. It seemed the T V channels could not think up any new ideas for the serials. Frustrated she switched off the T V and sat in the darkness, her hands covering her face. She tried to stifle the tears that threatened to flow and with an effort steadied herself.
Less than three months ago when her mother passed away suddenly due to brain fever the responsibility of running the home and looking after her father fell heavily on her. After finishing school she could not attend college because their financial situation would not permit it. Her parents had the responsibility of saving money for her marriage and with the small income from the fancy store her father ran, it was hard. After a lot of convincing she had finally taken up her present job in a ready made garment show room as a sales girl. Most of the other employees also were girls there and so her parents reluctantly agreed. Her pay helped their savings and they let her work.
After her mother's untimely death, she had to do the house work also and it was tiring her. But her father was neglecting his shop and had started drinking and her salary had become a must now. She could not understand why her father was drinking when her mother had not been a good wife so to speak when she was alive and he had no reason to miss her. She nagged and bitched a lot and her father never got along well with her. Still here he is neglecting his business and drinking every evening, not even thinking of his adult daughter.
Subha was worried and did not know what to do. She had tried talking to him, reasoned with him, even fought with him to no avail. Every night he came home late, fully drunk and went to bed with his cloths on. At first Subha did not know how to handle it but now she undressed him every night and made him comfortable in his bed. It was hard for her since being a virgin at nineteen and having never seen a naked man before, seeing her own father naked was embarrassing to say the least. But she did it and never regretted it for she loved him. He had been a good father all along, loving her and being there for her always. In fact she was more closer to her dad than her mother from the start.
She came out of her reverie when she heard noise outside. She switched on the lights and opened the door. Her father staggered in and she helped him and led him to his bedroom. He fell on the bed babbling incoherently. Swiftly she undressed him and made him comfortable and with an aching heart she went to her bed. Some thing must be done to get her father back in gear and she had no clue as to how she could do it. Just what would give her father the motive not to drink and be normal she needed to find out. With this thought and pain in her heart she faded into sleep at last.
~*~
Sleep gives us the peace we never seem able to feel when wide awake. Sleep also refreshes us physically and emotionally. Often we go to sleep with problems in our mind and wake up with the solution falling into place from no where. That is just what happened in this case or at least a possible solution starred at her when she woke up in the morning. Suddenly she remembered the gossip of older women when she had visited her village in her early teens. Village folks liked to bathe in the river and when they did they talked about their personal affairs. Most of the talk would be about sex, either bragging or complaining. She now vividly remembered a discussion that suggested this possible solution to her.
"My husband comes home late every day and invariably he is too tired to wait for me in bed. By the time I come to bed he would be snoring," A young woman was saying.
"The idea my dear girl, is to interest him when he comes home late or early and that would make him wait for you," a much older woman responded.
"What do you mean, ma?" the young woman said interest showing in her wide open eyes.
"Give him a hint of what is in store for him as soon as he enters the house and then keep him interested,"
"How ma?"
"You stupid girl," the older woman winked at the others, "God has given you enough charms and why can't you flaunt them for him to see? After all it is there for him anyway,"
The younger woman had blushed furiously and had been silent. But the older woman was not finished yet.
"No man who gets good fun in bed would sleep without sex even if he is dead tired," She laughed loud.