My fate was sealed and for the next few weeks, I had to wake up everyday and wear a saree. Usually one or both of Priya Aunty or Miss Shalini would be there to help. Eventually i became an expert at draping which pleased them but wasn't exactly something I wanted to hear.
Here I was, a college going male who had to dress up in sarees, while both Anjana and Shruti were allowed to wear whatever they liked. So the entire situation was very embarrassing for me. Anjana and Shruti were very grateful for what I was doing, but would also tease me a lot. "Look how lovely our Ananya looks today" , "it is as if she was born to wear sarees", "I'm sure most girls in college would be jealous of you Ananya" - Shruti and Anjana were sometimes relentless in their teasing and my face would be beetroot red after blushing. During the day, the two girls were asked to help Priya Aunty with her work, while I was asked to help miss Shalini. I didn't think this through and agreed, but this meant that I had to walk over to Miss Shalini's house everyday in Sarees.
Every day, I would look for the time when nobody was in our street (Miss Shalinis house was nearby, barely 1 km away) and then walk as fast as I could in my saree While my job was to initially help Miss with her paperwork, eventually I started helping her with chores too. She even taught me how to cook and clean by saying that I would need these skills later after graduation. In the evening, she would take me back to Anjana's home in her scooty, with me sitting sideways in the back due to the saree.
One such day, I was completing my chores at Miss Shalinis place. I was so absorbed that I hadn't noticed the arrival of Priya Aunty. She and Miss were quietly observing me all day and just as I was done, she remarked - " Oh what a wonderful housewife you have become Ananya"
I was confused before they explained to me that all these chores were also a kind of training. They were trying to make me a method actor by making me live out the role of a housewife.
"I knew we picked the right person to be our Heroine" - Miss Shalini remarked, with a glow of pride in her face.
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