Trouble in Paradise

Sid woke up a bit early Monday morning, before the sun was fully up. Akki was still snoring away next to him, dead to the world. Quietly, Sid slipped out of bed, the cool floor hitting his feet as he wandered out to check if his mum was awake. And she was—Chitra was in bed, leaning against the headboard, looking at her phone screen.

“Yeah, Amy went to the terrace for yoga a little while ago,” Chitra was saying into the phone, her voice soft and sleepy. “…And the boys won’t be up for another hour, probably…”

“Wrong!” Sid cut in with a cheeky grin, popping into the room. “One of them is awake already!” He knew it was his dad on the call—Karthick’s voice always had that loud, happy ring to it.

“Siddhu! You scared me!” Chitra gasped, clutching her chest with one hand, her saree shifting a little…