January, Through Blurred Eyes

It all happened over a year ago; Sidharth still remembers the day when his father experienced the loss of vision for the first time. It was a cold January morning; grey clouds hung over the horizon, blanketing the sun's golden rays and stopping them from touching the surface below as Malem's favourite white SUV cruised through the empty streets of the blue city. Sidharth had been specially called in by his coach for a tournament; the venue was on the other side of the city, and Malem didn't want his son to miss it.

As they made their way towards the stadium, Sidharth could see his father squinting his eyes occasionally but dismissed it as drowsiness from driving early, only if he hadn't. After a few minutes, Malem's grip on the steering tightened; as he stopped the vehicle, Sidharth, who was sitting beside him, oblivious of what was going on, stared at his father with confusion.

"Papa?" He had called out.

Malem frantically turned. Gazing at him with his eyes squinted as his pupils tried hard to focus on his son's face, only to close it after a while.

"I think there is something in my eyes," Malem said. "Let me park the car on the roadside and rinse them."

Sidharth nodded as he gazed outside, staring at the leafless trees standing at the roadside, enduring the cold winters to bloom again in spring. Many had lost their original rich brown colour and were now pale.

As Malem reversed the car, Sidharth saw his father trying to park the vehicle on a small patch behind them. Three trees were there, but it wouldn't be a big issue if he stopped on time.

However, he didn't. Malem had rammed the car into the trees, and his eyes widened in shock and confusion as he frantically looked at Sidharth for confirmation and asked, "There were only two trees behind me, right?"

That was the day when his father was diagnosed with Central Retinal Vein Occlusion. A prevalent retinal vascular disease that usually leads to vision loss among older individuals. The main reason for the loss of vision is the exit of central retinal veins from the eye. However, vision loss can never be recovered. The only thing that can be done is to stop further damage.

One year later, Sidharth still feels responsible for not letting his father know that there were three trees and instead believing he was all right. He had even said there was something in his eyes that should have been the warning for Sidharth to act upon, but he had childishly assumed that it was nothing.

Sidharth felt a warm hand squeeze his fingers as he switched off the dryer. "It's okay, Sid," Aisha said, holding his hands tightly, "Papa is a fighter. He will power through this, and he is already doing it."

"I know," Sidharth smiled as he leaned on his side, stretching his arms, trying to reach the digital nightstand to place the dryer, only for Aisha to take it back and put it where it originally was.

"Thank you"

"No, thank you for drying my hair for me." Aisha chuckled, her left bionic arm ruffling his hair while her free arm rummaged through her pocket, bringing out a black elastic band, which she then used to tie her curly hair into a high ponytail.

"Well, since you are too lazy to do it," Sidharth smirked. "I had to act like the older sibling here."

"Sure," Aisha smiled as she stood up and turned around, her dark eyes staring at Sidharth warmly as she hugged him tightly and whispered, "Happy Birthday, Sid."

"Thank you," Sidharth replied, returning the embrace. They stayed like that for a while; it was their thing ever since Sidharth was a child. Aisha would randomly just hug him tight for a few minutes and then go on to do whatever she was doing, and before he knew it, hugging like this became very normal for them.

"Aisha!" Leela called out loudly enough for even the neighbours to hear. "If you have nothing to do, can you help me set up the table? In that way, I won't feel as if an adult is freeloading."

"Shut Up!" Aisha replied back, her face flushed with embarrassment. "I am coming, Ma."

She quickly broke the embrace and ran out towards the kitchen, trying hard to hide her face from Sidharth, but little did she know he had seen it and would use it to tease her all the time.

Freeloading adult, eh? Ma really is something else.

"Also Sid! You better be at the table in ten minutes if you want lunch."

Shit, I better get freshen up quick.