1

Pratik was no longer alone. He has a friend. A betta, or a Siamese fighting fish, who he named ‘Junior’.

It was a gift that he bought for his little girl, Tia (that name might sound puny, but it fits, as his daughter was a tiny frame), who was in Kannur, out on a short vacation with his wife Ananya.

‘Daddy, buy me a fish. A colored one please.’ Tia would often say.

‘And what color would my baby like?’

‘A rainbow-colored fish, like the one we saw at Ansar mall in Sharjah.’

She was referring to the plastic fish in one of those big fish tanks at the mall, which looked so real that it would even fool a passerby at first glance. Pratik, who was on a short visit to meet his cousin in the U.A.E, had a tough time knowing it was unreal.

‘It is not for real Tia, it is a dummy.’ Pratik reminded her.

‘But it moved daddy and you took photos.’ That was a truth and an embarrassing one. Pratik had taken photos and a video of the dummy, until the owner of the shop did a gentle reminder of what realty was all about.

Pratik only had to smile at that thought.

He kneeled down and said, ‘If you insist, I can buy a better one. Who knows? a colored one, maybe. I have something superb in my mind and I’m sure you gonna like it, more than that dummy.’

Tia rolled her eyes. ‘Okay, but not the goldfish. It’s such a bore,’ she said.

‘Sure, I will remember and leave a reminder to make it a double sure.’ On a busy day in the big metro Bangalore, you could even forget to go home.

Pratik was a Malayali (or Mallu for most Indians) but brought up in Bangalore. He worked as a software engineer at a private company. Great job to begin with, and a handsome salary. But sometimes, while there is money to mint, you forget your family. And that was an atypical problem with all modern-day professionals. The work-life balance is seldom achieved. Pratik was no different.

‘I will phone Uncle Wilbur to ready your present. He has a great case of forgetfulness.’

‘Well, call him now or you would forget. You always do,’ Tia said.

Pratik placed his hand on his hips and squinted his eyes. ‘You have a knack for complaining about your daddy, don’t you? Learned from her mom, right?’ He looked at Ananya automatically. She gave a sharp glance in his direction. He had to freeze. Men (even the hairiest of the chest, often considered as ‘The Daring ones’) often froze at such terrifying sights. Those were the eyes that had enticed him; and after marriage, he had to admit, it diced him. Such is the truth.

‘Never say that in front of the kid. You teach her bad manners,’ Ananya reminded.

‘Oh! I do? Well, that is nature. Dad’s teach their kids what not to do. And that makes me her role model, I suppose?’

‘Well, I can see that. Nice example you set to the kid.’

‘Me lady!’ he said with a courteous bow.

2

Two weeks later, he was at Uncle Wilbur’s pet shop at Church Street. The uncle had his shop on the first floor of a two-storeyed old mall, which looked like Alankar Plaza during a business day. The mall had a chick’s (dressed in black) full-sized banner, hanging at its entrance with a remote control in her right hand, and on the other hand, she held a multi-colored placard that said ‘Visit us at The Tronics’, probably an electronic store on the topmost floor. Only a nerd would have missed looking at that banner; and if at all someone had seen that banner, he would have never visited the store as the electronic items are priced at their highest in Bangalore.

Pratik went to the first floor ignoring the photograph. Uncle Wilbur was seated at the desk reading the Deccan Herald. It was a small store crammed with fish tanks at one end and Uncle Wilbur’s desk with an aging desktop probably running Windows 2010 without any updates. The wall had Uncle Wilbur’s black and white photograph of himself and his missus. The missus sat glamorously on a wooden chair and standing next to her was uncle Wilbur in his mid-thirties (assuming that the photograph was taken in the late 70s) with his hippie outlook and looking like an electrocuted crazy alien with that wavy unkempt hairdo, so customary of the 70s.

Pratik looked at Uncle Wilbur still comparing the man in the photograph. That age and that era have changed ever since. Also, from the looks, uncle Wilbur did not seem to have a busy day. He must be expecting customers who would occasionally drop in for some bird seeds or pet food.

‘Hi, uncle. How are you doing?’

‘You see, I don’t get customers at this hour. Not until evening. The business hours are between 4 and 8 in the evening. So, I’m a bit surprised to see you here. Sounds like I’ve got business,’ uncle said.

‘You guessed it right. I need a fish.’ Pratik said.

‘Is it for you or your dolly?’

‘Tia has been asking for an ornamental fish for long. I knew you have a good collection. So, thought of checking with you.’

‘Sure… take a look and make a choice. You are lucky. It’s on offer,’ uncle said with a smile.

Pratik started to scan the tanks. There were Gold fish, Molly fish, Guppies, Zebra fish, Clown loach.

‘If you want the bigger ones, you could check them here,’ Uncle Wilbur said pointing towards another corner.

‘What are these, uncle?’

Uncle took a net expecting a purchase. ‘This is a Blue discus… that is a Red lionfish… that is a Spotfin lionfish… and that one the Fahaka pufferfish….’ he continued as if Pratik was on a guided tour. Pratik began to wonder why ornamental fishes as these, which would decorate a man’s house, had such unusual names; whereas those found in supermarkets, the ones that were edible, had far cultured and tame names.

‘I need a fighter fish.’ Pratik didn’t know it was cheap and that hurt uncle Wilbur.

‘You could go for some mini turtles. I’m sure your daughter would love playing with them,’ he said pointing to a bigger tank.

‘Yes, they seem cute.’

‘And they live longer,’ uncle said.

Pratik thought for a while.

‘It’s only 1500 rupees per piece. I could discount them if you buy it in pairs,’ uncle said.

‘Err… No, my daughter might not like them. I’ll stick to the fighter fish please.’

‘It’s called the Betta.’ Uncle reminded sounding annoyed. He knew fighters wanted a lonely life as they are territorial. So, the purchase would be only one fish. He had a bad start at business today.

‘And give me the small tank too. I think the smallest one would be fine. The one made with plastic please.’

What a cheapskate, uncle thought. ‘Here goes! Won’t you buy the fish food?’

‘Oh yes, I almost forgot. Please toss the smallest one.’

‘Feed it two grains thrice a day,’ uncle reminded.

‘And when it is over I can always come back, isn’t it?’ Pratik said with a wink.

‘You are most welcome,’ uncle said taking the cash and not meaning it really.

3

Pratik took the fish home. He placed the plastic tank on his desk. He opened the lid and using a stick, moved it towards the fish. He then started a whirlpool. The fish responded in fear and started to swim frantically. It reminded him of the big dogs, and how they scare the hell out of small puppies. He immediately stopped.

‘Hey, what do I call you?’ Pratik asked. The fish, tonked in a tank, ignored Pratik.

‘I’m speaking to you, little one. Sorry about that prank. But Tia might not be that kind with you. I would keep you as a surprise for her, so that she might not scare you. Do you know what I mean?’ he said.

Pratik christened him, ‘Junior’. ‘That is a good name. I know you are happy, isn’t it?’ he asked.

After a while, he unpacked the fish food and emptied half of it in a small plastic container. He was curious to know the ingredients.

‘I mean, do you actually eat this? It’s made of fish meal, shrimp meal… why would one make a meal out of its own kind and feed you guys?.. spirulina, wheat flour etc and etc., wow! that sounds like a whole lot of protein to me.’

‘Uncle Wilbur said it’s just two grains per serving and only three servings per day. Hope you are not a glutton?’ he added.

The scent of food attracted the fish and it just pounced on it. The fish was small and the round grain was too big to hold on, in its small mouth. It spit it back, and while Pratik was thinking that the fish might starve itself, it had another go. This time it held the grain in its mouth and stood there doing nothing and not knowing what to do next. But then, it swallowed it and looked at Pratik for more.

‘No… that’s it for now. I better feed you with something soft. Maybe bits of cauliflower or a tiny lettuce or maybe, even rice,’ he said. The fish was circling near the surface spitting bubbles.

‘Hey! you might be wondering what I do for a living?’ he asked opening his laptop.

‘I’m a software engineer. But I don’t do coding. It is for the busy folk, the so-called developers who know well to pose that they are a responsible bunch, but, who wouldn’t know if someone stole a pen from their breast pocket, and those who go home with a long face every evening putting even a baboon to shame. I write manuals for them and that only means I need to sit with these developers and understand what they are doing. Decoding their brain is like solving the Da Vinci Code. It’s the same in every company that I have worked for, let alone this one. So, I can say it’s kind of déjà vu. However, it’s a great business, if you know your English well, and I was good at that since I was a child.’

Junior wagged his tail and swam away.

He continued, ‘Work from home is going to stop one day and I shall be back to the office, which is a bore.’ He looked at Junior hoping that he would suddenly speak.

Three hours passed and Junior seemed restless.

‘Are you hungry? ’

The sight of the plastic container excited Junior. He seemed to respond for the first time. It started to flutter its fins and move more frantically than ever.

‘Ah, that’s nice! You seem to be a glutton then. Whoever taught you this must be some kind of a ringmaster.’

He opened the lid of the plastic container and threw a grain. Junior jumped at it as if he was never fed today. It caught its food in the first attempt and didn’t drop it. Perhaps it was beginning to learn to eat its meal and a mouthful, that is.

‘Wow, what a catch! It’s fascinating to see you eat. How you try to gobble that grub in your mouth.’ He continued, ‘I know nature teaches us many things. How much you learn is when you grow, isn’t it? That’s how nature keeps it simple. But, we make things complicated, don’t we?. If you ask me, we humans have never grown at all. Hence, it doesn’t come as a surprise that we don’t abide the nature’s law. They proclaim that such laws are strange to them. The result? we end up in a precarious situation as this pandemic, isn’t it?’

Junior went to the bottom of its home and stayed still.

‘While you enjoy your siesta, let me have a quick chat with my wife. She needs no reason to be upset with me and I have enough to give her.’

4

It was past lunch time. Way too late today.

‘She said, she would be home by 7 pm. The city traffic would delay her by another 2 hours likely. She wants me to prepare dinner.’ Junior began to flutter his fins. It now seems to be excited at the sight of a passing Pratik.

‘You might wonder what I’d prepare usually. I’m good at making tea. That’s all I know. I used to make dinner and that was a long time ago. I really messed up the kitchen once and then, she placed a ban on me to enter the kitchen. Lately, I have been exempted from that rule.’ It reminded him of how hopeless men are in the kitchen, except the chefs (over achieved characters in the kitchen) who were better than most women. Once he and his dad prepared rice for the family without adding water to the cooker, while the entire family was waiting for dinner. Luckily, the cooker didn’t burst.

Pratik prepared the rotis and vegetarian curry, prepared the salad, and dressed it with mayonnaise and yogurt.

‘Viola! Here is the dish that would make my lady proud.’

He placed the salad in the refrigerator.

‘Now, let me dress you too and then, feed you with a piece of lettuce. Maybe I could decorate your tank with a piece of lettuce as well, in the water, as a water plant. As a prop, I meant,’ he said shaking both his hands at the rib’s height to mimic the fluttering fins. Junior thought it resembled him dancing to rock and roll of the 60s.

He checked the time. It was 5 p.m. He was late. He had to hurry. If he had the time, he controlled any situation better, but, the lack of it, brought the grips. It was a mystery to him considering how easily that happened. He had done some meditation therapies on YouTube to control this emotion, but, it never really worked. Perhaps these therapies misunderstood the term ‘The better half’. After all, you need someone to correct you.

‘C’mon… C’mon, let me remove the dirt off the water from your tank,’ he said. Junior started to swim frantically as he lifted the tank.

He lifted the tank’s lid and smelt it. ‘Oomph! it smells like a real fish tank. Do they ever change the water in your tank… out there at the shop? C’mon boy, let me give your tank a shower. Also, let me wrap a ribbon around your lovely home. I wonder where Tia keeps her things. She is so organized like her mother.’

He smiled. ‘Not that I’m not organized,’ he said giving false assurance. ‘All these dialogues on organizing things, well, it requires some positive push… like motivation, which is not an easy thing to get. And for God’s sake, where is the time?’

He placed the fish tank on the edge of the sink.

‘You stay here and let me search for a brush and some tissues,’ he said.

As he turned towards the door, he heard a thud and then, a splash. The fish tank had slipped from the smooth corner of the sink, and tumbled upside down, letting go of the water in it, and Junior…

Pratik was a confused lot. He couldn’t believe what was happening. It reminded him of Titanic. The way the mighty ship went down. But, he had no relatives to mourn on Titanic, but, here he had Junior.

He ran towards the sink hoping that Junior might still be there, maybe struggling to breathe and fighting for his life.

A flash memory and a scary one that was momentarily spine chilling (because he only had that one moment to experience it), came to his mind that the sinkhole was big enough to send a fish to the gutters. Ananya had always complained about changing it or closing it with those sinkhole lids. He had forgotten about it.

His breath stopped as he had just enough time to see Junior slide away through the sinkhole. And away it went, taking away all his thoughts of being organized.

5

As he drove to Church street, he checked the time. He had just one hour to reach home. If the traffic was kind (considering how unlucky he had been today), his wife and kid would be at home before 7 p.m. It would have been embarrassing for him in front of Tia and he could not cover it up by asking if she had completed her homework (she was always prompt). He hoped they are late today.

The mall had a different look in the evening from its sober look during the day. It was all decorated and lighted up as if Christmas had come early. As he climbed the staircase (damn the lifts, they never work during business hours), he glanced expecting to look at the chick’s banner. But, she wasn’t there. It was replaced by a huge banner of the Statue of Liberty, carrying a clove in the hand instead of the famous beacon. Probably, they have opened a Spice store on the top floor. This time, the retailers had used some sense, he’d thought. The Roman Goddess with the beacon of hope at the entrance offered them some assurance that they have come to the right place, bringing some shine to the old mall.

Uncle Wilbur was busy counting cash.

‘Hey! Uncle Wilbur. I need a betta fast,’ he said.

‘Oye, Oye. I think betta is selling fast today. I had five customers buying that,’ uncle said.

‘Whatever, please make it fast… I got to go…’

‘Calm down… sit here boy… how come this fascination about betta fishes.’ He said taking his net.

‘If you wanted two, I could have offered a discount. Do you still need two?’

‘What two?’

‘Ananya and Tia were here sometime back. They said they wanted a betta and I gave them one. They said you seem to forget things. Most men do, don’t they?’ he said with a laugh.

Pratik felt he was struck by lightning.

‘Uncle, do you still have the mini turtles on offer?’

‘Sure, that’s the best purchase you would ever make,’ Uncle Wilbur said with a smile.