Om Shanti, Babe Read online

  As I watched her, I realised that Nandita was like Rachel. When she was dancing, Rachel had the same look of total concentration I could see now on Nandita’s face. No wonder my mucking about frustrated her, and it explained why she was so upset with me that day at the rehearsals. Remembering Rachel’s angry words, and what I had done next, I felt ashamed.

  She was right. If I couldn’t respect the dance and the other dancers then I didn’t deserve to be in the group. I thought chucking me out meant she wasn’t my friend, but maybe it was my own fault.

  Finally, Nandita stopped dancing and did a very serious Namaste bow, which I returned.

  Priya was whooping and clapping madly, and over the noise I shouted, ‘Dev, how do you sign That was amazingly incredible?’ Then, without waiting for an answer, I gave Nandita a huge hug and nearly lifted her off her feet.

  Dev had been doing something on Priya’s computer and I saw him look up and smile at his sister in a way that made my already-racing heart bang in my chest.

  Priyanka was making it’s-snack-time noises, but I wanted to keep practising so I pretended I couldn’t hear her and went to see what Dev was doing.

  I guessed Nandita was hungry too because, with a bang of the door, she and Priya were gone and it was just me and Dev. It seemed suddenly to have got loads hotter in the room. I thought I should say something, but I had no idea what.

  ‘Your sister is a brilliant dancer.’

  Dev didn’t answer. He was doing something on Priya’s computer and the tapping of the keyboard sounded unnaturally loud. I wiped a trickle of sweat out of my eye.

  Finally Dev looked up from the screen, pressed Enter and said, ‘What do you think of this, London girl?’

  A tune started to drift out of the speakers. I couldn’t make it out at first. It sounded like Jonny Gold’s new track Om Shanti, Babe but there was another beat running underneath it, just nudging the music towards something real, something more exciting.

  As the song went on, the Indian beat got stronger and Jonny’s voice gently faded into the background. Then the music became more melodic, more Indian and I could hear sitars and drums. And now Jonny was back, his voice drifting in and out of the rhythms with a cool London feel.

  ‘How did you do that?’ I said, looking over his shoulder at the virtual mixing desk he’d dug out of Priya’s laptop.

  ‘I told you I liked computers and your friend has a lot of music in here.’ He patted the machine like it was a puppy who’d done a clever trick.

  ‘You made it sound much more Indian.’

  ‘It should sound properly Indian – the track is called Om Shanti, Babe, after all!’

  ‘What does Om Shanti actually mean?’

  ‘Om is the sound of the universe and Shanti means peace. It can be said as a way of wishing well to someone you care about.’ He smiled at me.

  ‘This will be perfect for Nandita! Do you think she’d like to dance with us?’

  ‘She will like that very much.’

  ‘But how will you explain the tune to her?’

  ‘If the music is loud enough, Nandi can feel the rhythm and also I will show her. I can dance too, London girl.’

  Then he put on something slow and dreamy and held out his hand for me. I stood up and tried to remember some of Nandita’s graceful moves, but after a couple of steps I realised this was just Saturday night dancing, and it was great. We’d nearly got to the end of the track when, with a dying groan, the music stopped and all the lights went out.

  In the sudden silence I felt Dev’s hand brushing mine. He was standing very close to me and I could feel his warm breath on my neck. His hand touched my shoulder and then his lips were very close to mine, too.

  ‘Cassia, I wish to kiss you. Will this be all right?’

  Surprised, I pulled back a little and felt his hand drop away. I reached out for it in the darkness, feeling his cool skin and smooth finger-nails. My skin went goosebumpy, the hairs standing on end and sending shivers into my spine. I absolutely definitely did want to kiss him, but it had to be a proper kiss, no crashing teeth, nothing bitey, or grabby, or slobbery that might spoil this utterly perfect moment.

  ‘Cassia?’ he said.

  ‘Um, sorry, I think that would be all right... I mean, yes.’

  And moving towards each other very slowly, carefully avoiding bumping noses, we kissed. And it was perfect, gentle, and exciting and totally amazing.

  Smiling and holding hands in the dark, I realised Priya was right. This was the strangest, most unexpected and without a doubt the very, very best day of my life.

  It seemed as if a hundred years had passed before Priya and Nandita came crashing back into the workshop with a bag full of food and bottles of water.

  The electricity was still off, but we hunted around the cupboards, still full of the old pans and candle-making equipment, until we found some samples left over from when Call-me-V’s shed was a proper workshop. The wicks were dry and dusty, but they lit easily enough and the golden-coloured pools of light gave the space the feeling of a stage set.

  Priya said it was as if Diwali, the festival of light, had come round again. She said Granny-ji remembered when the workshop had been a good business, employing a lot of local people. They had produced handmade beeswax candles that were well known for burning with a strong, clear light that lasted for ages.

  The workshop slowly filled up with the faint smell of honey, smoking up from the melting beeswax, and reminding me of Auntie Doré’s super-swishy dining room decorated with perfumed candles.

  We washed our hands and then all sat down together and unpacked the food. As we ate, I told Priya about how Dev had saved me from certain death in the train. I might have made it sound a bit too dramatic because Priya looked at Dev like he was a superhero.

  It was weird acting all normal after me and Dev had kissed. I wanted to sit close to him, but since Priya and Nandita had come back I felt stupidly self-conscious. I kept remembering the feel of his lips on mine and realised I was smiling like an idiot. I hoped he felt the same.

  I thought Nandita must have noticed something because she kept staring at Dev, and he kept avoiding her eyes. Luckily, she was practically bursting with questions about Jonny Gold.

  With Dev signing, I explained about using the dance routine to get Jonny to notice us, and how we thought he’d be so impressed he’d listen to our story about the hotel. It would be brilliant to get such an important person on our side.

  While Priya was doing her designer bit on our costumes back at the house, I’d made some notes about the plan and now I pulled them out of my pocket. I realised now that Nandita should be the star, not me - she was a much better dancer and I knew that Jonny Gold would be really impressed by her.

  I said that we’d have to pick a spot on the beach where he’d be able to see us. Then we could start the music and just let our perfect plan play out. I had a list of things we needed to do and, while everyone was eating, I read it out.

  I got a round of applause when I’d finished, just like Saachi at the party when she’d explained about the hotel development to the villagers. Dev smiled at me and Nandita gave me a thumbs-up sign. I realised I’d got them all organised and committed, and that meant I must be pretty good at this stuff. Priya started planning a make-over for Nandita. It was so good to be in a gang of friends again.

  We finished eating and Dev cued up the music. Maybe it was following Nandita, or all of us dancing together, but something had inspired Priya and she was keeping time at last. We went through it a zillion times, with Dev making adjustments to the music as we worked on the routine.

  It was turning into a kind of musical play about squabbling sisters all in love with the same boy. Nandita was the star and we each had different styles of dancing. Dev signalled the changes to Nandita, counting out the beats in sign.

  We had it almost perfect when the big wooden doors opened. I was hoping to see Saachi or Lula coming through the door, but it was Call-me-V, jangling t
he keys.

  ‘I hope the workshop has been a good place for you, but it is time to be going home now.’

  ‘Already!’ wailed Priya.

  ‘It is actually quite late, Priyanka.’

  Trust him to come and spoil our fun, I thought. I started blowing out the candles. Dev and Nandita were already heading for the door and I realised I didn’t even know where they lived.

  As I reached them, Call-me-V stepped in front of me. ‘Cassia, I am very happy to see you are making new friends here.’ I wanted to get outside, but Call-me-V was determined to get into a conversation. ‘So, where did you meet these young people?’

  Why was Call-me-V being so nosy about Dev and Nandita? What did my friends have to do with him? I pushed passed him trying to get outside as fast as I could. I wanted to say goodbye to Dev properly, but it was too late. When I looked around, the road outside was empty. We hadn’t even organised when we would meet again. Why was Call-me-V always in the way, interfering in my life?

  Priya came out of the shed and linked arms with me and we hurried down the hill back to the house.

  Saachi and Lula were waiting in the living room when we got back. They both had their serious faces on and Lula was twisting her earrings manically. It wasn’t that late and they knew where we’d been, but still I wondered if we were in trouble. The rest obviously hadn’t done Lula much good.

  ‘Amma! We have to keep practising. You should see us all dancing, it is amazing!’

  ‘Calm down, Priya. You must please stop shouting and listen. This is important and not easy to say.’ She took a big swallow of water and cleared her throat. ‘I have found out who owns Auramy Incorporated. I had my suspicions confirmed today at the law firm in Kannur. As a matter of fact, the clue was in their name, Auramy. It’s Latin, but until I had some spying done and remembered the graffiti about the bears that Cassia noticed, I couldn’t make the connection.’

  I didn’t know what she was getting at, but I could see by Priyanka’s expression that she was at least one step ahead of me and it wasn’t good news.

  Saachi looked very uncomfortable. ‘Auramy is another word for gold. The company is registered to something called Gilded Bear Records in London. I’m so sorry, girls, I really am, but it’s your Jonny Gold who is behind the hotel development.’

  ‘That isn’t true!’ I protested. ‘He only found the perfect beach for his video a few days ago.’

  ‘Cassia, I think the story in the newspaper was just a publicity stunt.’

  ‘I don’t understand.’

  ‘It’s not really a video for his new song, it’s more of an advert for his new hotel. People will see the beach and want to visit it. Having his own hotel here means he will make money out of fans and tourists.’

  ‘But he’s really into the environment, Amma. His lyrics are all about love and nature. It can’t be him!’ said Priya, shaking her head.

  ‘I know you don’t want to believe me, but I have seen the evidence. There is no doubt in my mind. Jonny Gold and his record label are the ones building the hotel.’

  I sat very still for a minute, and then I felt our dance-practice picnic rising back up my throat. There was a very good chance I was going to throw up. When I thought of all our plans to impress him with our dancing in order to get him on our side about the development, my stomach squeezed into a tight ball. I thought Jonny Gold was going to be the one to help us, and all the time he was the one we had to stop.

  I heard someone shout, ‘No!’ and realised it was me. I ran out of the room and slammed the door so hard that a chunk of plaster fell off the wall. It landed on the tiles with a sharp crack and a puff of chalky dust rose up from the floor. The stillness of the garden swallowed me up for a while, and all I could hear was my own jagged breathing.

  Then, from the house, Saachi’s voice cut into the night air. The veranda light clicked on and I saw her silhouette gliding purposefully across the grass towards me. ‘Cassia, I’m so sorry.’

  ‘You’re wrong,’ I yelled back. ‘You must have made a mistake!’

  ‘There is no mistake, I’m afraid.’

  ‘It can’t be him, Saachi, it just can’t!’

  ‘Oh, Cassia, I know it’s hard when your heroes let you down.’

  ‘I want to go home!’ I cried and the tears started gushing, and my nose began to run, and my mouth got tight and watery. She hugged me as I blubbed and howled until my chest hurt.

  Suddenly, barking echoed from somewhere in the dark and I felt her laugh.

  ‘I’m sorry, Cassia. I know it’s not funny, but you’ve set the tree-foxes off.’

  I rubbed my face on her soft shawl. ‘I’m sorry I shouted at you.’

  ‘Don’t worry, you had a lot to shout about.’

  ‘How am I going to tell Dev and Nandita? They’ll be so disappointed.’

  ‘This isn’t your fault, Cassia. You were trying to do a good thing. You could all still dance, you know. I’d understand. The hotel development isn’t really your battle to fight.’

  ‘But it feels like it is now,’ I said. And then I explained about promising to save the netball court for Nandita and her friends, and how I wanted to do something which mattered to other people, just like her.

  ‘Well, so long as you understand taking on the world will make your life a lot more complicated, Cassia.’

  Suddenly I found myself blurting out, ‘Priya doesn’t want to be a lawyer, you know.’

  ‘I am not surprised. Mums are a hard act to follow.’

  ‘Lula will look after her if she comes to London to study fashion.’

  ‘I know. Luella is my best friend. I’ve always thought of her as Priya’s second mother, and I am so glad to have met you, at last.’

  Talking to Saachi was different from talking to Lula or Dad and I knew I could tell her things that were difficult to share with them. I really wanted to tell her the whole story about Rachel and me. It was like a bad tooth that wouldn’t stop hurting until it was taken out.

  ‘Saachi, I was angry with my best friend, Rachel, and I messed up our chances in a big dance competition. She said I didn’t take things seriously enough and that she would never speak to me again.’

  ‘You seem to be a very serious person to me, Cassia.’

  ‘I didn’t realise how hard she worked to get the routines right and how much it mattered to her until it was too late.’

  ‘Is it too late?’

  ‘Yes. The competition’s over, I forgot to bring the proper music and we had to make do with what they had. It made us look like we couldn’t be bothered. I ruined everything.’

  ‘There will be other competitions, other chances, you know.’

  ‘But Rachel will never let me back in the group.’

  ‘Tell her how sorry you are, Cassia, and show her that you mean it. She is probably missing you, too.’

  ‘It doesn’t feel like it now.’

  ‘I know, but that will change, I’m sure of it.’ She smiled and gave me a hug.

  It felt so good to have finally told someone, someone who understood how bad I’d been feeling. The relief was so huge I started to laugh, getting louder and louder, until the gulps and hiccups turned into crying again.

  Saachi stayed with me, gently stroking my head, until I was all cried out. Then she went back into the house and a few minutes later Priya came and sat with me. I saw she’d been crying too.

  ‘Don’t be sad, Priya.’

  ‘But I can never listen to Jonny Gold’s songs ever again!’

  ‘Yes, you can. He may be a greedy, lying creepster, but he can still sing.’

  The next morning, after a rather gloomy breakfast, Priya set off for school, grumbling all the way up the road. It was a cloudy day but still really hot, and the lack of air made me feel flat and cranky. Lula hadn’t even got up yet and Saachi said I should let her sleep as she had a lot on her mind. She wasn’t the only one, I thought.

  There was no point trying to find Dev and Nandita and I didn’t wa
nt to just hang about all by myself. So, when Saachi suggested a trip into the hills, I thought it would be a really good chance to talk to her about Call-me-V, among other things.

  I went upstairs and put on a sweater and jeans because she said it could get chilly once we got high into the forest. As I opened the wardrobe the smell of the perfumed oil from our costumes drifted out. I fetched the little bottle Mrs Jaffrey had made for me back in Kochi, twisted open the tasselled top, tipped a couple of drops on to my hand and breathed in the flowery smell.

  Outside on the veranda, I saw Call-me-V reversing the Green Goddess down the drive, and I guessed he was moving it away so Saachi’s car could get past.

  He wound down the window and waved to me from the driver’s seat. ‘Jump in, Cassia, we have a long drive ahead of us.’

  What did he mean, “we”? Then Saachi came out of the house, looking harassed, and said she had been called into a meeting about the development and I would have to go without her.

  My face must have twisted because she squeezed my hand and said quietly, ‘Vikram is a great guide, Cassia. You will learn a lot and I’m sure you will enjoy each other’s company, if you give yourselves a chance.’

  I turned to walk back to the house, but Saachi touched me on the elbow and I stopped.

  ‘Do this for your mother, Cass. It is so important to her that you at least try to get along with Vikram. He is a good man and he makes Luella very happy.’

  Call-me-V smiled and opened the passenger door. ‘I thought we could start with a visit to the elephants. Does that sound good, m’n?’

  ‘I suppose so.’

  I climbed into the car and Saachi loaded a couple of tiffin tins on to the back seat.

  We left the village and, using the back roads, we climbed into the hills. We sat in complete silence for ages, but as soon as we reached the forest, Call-me-V went into teacher mode, pointing out sites of environmental interest and birds of prey until, in desperation, I asked him to switch on the radio. When he hummed along to a few of the songs, I closed my eyes, hoping I could shut him out and shut him up for ever.