As Leo Alvarez's grades begin to slip, so does his facade as the school's golden boy. Much to his surprise, he ends up finding solace in the last place he'd expect, in his tutor― Maya Chopra.
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MAYA LEANED AGAINST THE pink, laminate countertop in her kitchen and her eyes intensively watched her Ma, who was hovering over the stove. The aroma of spices, freshly cut onions and tomatoes circulated through the air. Her sock-clad, left foot tapped against the bland, beige tiles, as she watched her Ma lift her head and then divert her gaze towards Maya.
"Don't just stand there, come here, you need to learn how to make this," She instructed, irritation lacing her voice as she stirred the daal with a wooden spoon.
Maya resisted the urge to release the sigh that she was holding in and begrudgingly made her way over, knowing that any resistance that she made was going to be met with a subtle threat and a glare that would send her six feet underneath.
As she neared the stove, Maya peered into the pot and glanced back up at her Ma, "It doesn't seem so hard."
Her Ma was bemused, "That's what you say now, you don't know how to cook already and on top of that, this, this haircut of yours," She paused and pointed her finger at Maya's hair, "You look like a boy, it'll be a surprise if someone decides that they want to marry you."
Growing up in a household where her Ma had done most of the cooking, Maya couldn't necessarily blame herself for not learning the techniques and basic life skills. She was never needed in the kitchen but, as the conversation with her Chachi had lingered in the air, her Ma had slowly started to initiate it within the house.
Tara had learned the basics— cooking, cleaning, doing laundry, and other duties.
Maya was merely next.
Stung by her Ma's statement, Maya reached a hand to her hair and twirled a strand between her fingers, "It's, it's not that bad, I just wanted-"
Her Ma released a sigh and shook her head, "Maya, we know what's best for you, luckily your hair will grow back, now pass me the garlic."
We know what's best for you.
It was something she heard all her life, and something she was sure that she wouldn't stop hearing until she was no longer here.
Maya merely nodded her head and did as she was told. Opening the cabinet that was in front of her, where jars of spices had been organized by label and size, she pulled out the glass container of previously ground garlic and handed it to her Ma.
As she watched her Ma measure the amount by leveling it with her eye and glancing over at the pot, an instinct as her Ma often referred to it as, Maya often wondered what her Ma was like when she had been younger.
She had seen the pictures, but there was one that was particularly her favorite. Her Ma had been standing beside a pillar. It had been taken during a family trip outside of their village when they had gone to see the city, her Uncle had that time had developed a strong passion for photography. He decided to take pictures of everything and everyone, but his family was his favourite muse.
