Sunny side up

Tanya wasn’t allowed to go out during the day. Why were her parents so scared of sunlight?

The last rays of the dying sun touched the mountain tips and slowly, the countryside faded into darkness.

“Tanya, are you ready?” shouted her mother. “Don’t be late for school!”

“Tanya! Hurry up,” said her dad. “I can’t be late for work again!” Tanya’s father worked with a courier company, while her mother worked at the Blood Bank.

“Coming! Coming!” shouted Tanya, as she zipped up her bag, slung it over her shoulder and rushed out.

“I wish I could go to school when the sun is up,” said Tanya, wistfully.

“Don’t start now,” said her mother impatiently. “You know we can’t be outside during the day.”

“That’s what you always say!” sulked Tanya.

Night-time school

They dropped her at the school gates. In the dark, they could just about discern the silvery outlines of the gate. The broad driveway led up to the classrooms. Tanya walked away with her head hung low.

“She is so unhappy having to go to school at night. I wish we could find a remedy for this,” said her mother.

“Remedy? How can we find a remedy for this?” shouted her father angrily. “She has to understand that this is the best time for us.”

“Easier said than done,” said her mother, sadly.

One morning, when everyone in her house was asleep, Tanya decided to sneak out. She was surprised by the brilliance of day. She looked up to find the source of so much light. It warmed her hands and legs and filled her with joy. She wanted to dance and sing. She ran into the park and found other children playing there. She joined them and had a great time. Around noon, Riya, one of the girls she was playing with, said, “I’m hungry. I’m going to have a snack. If you want you can come along.”

At Riya’s house, the cook warmed up some samosas. One bite, and Tanya’s eyes were popping. Never had she tasted something so amazing.

“Oh my god! What is this? I’ve never tasted anything so fantastic,” exclaimed Tanya.

“Oh baby!” beamed the cook. “It is the usual potato samosa only but I have added garlic to it. That’s why the taste is so different.”

Just then, the clock struck one. Tanya realised it was getting late and she would have to get back home, if she did not want her indiscretions discovered.

The next morning, she sneaked out again. This continued for a couple of weeks. When it was time for school, she was tired and disinterested. She refused to eat at home saying the food was bland and insipid. Her parents were at their wits’ end.

Caught

One afternoon, when she came home, she found her parents awake and worried. As soon as she slipped in through her bedroom window, they caught hold of her. “Where have you been?” asked her mother. “We were worried sick!”

“I went out to play,” said Tanya, nonchalantly.

“But it is day...,” spluttered her father.

“Yes, indeed. And a fine, glorious day it is,” said Tanya. “ I’ve never been happier in my whole life!”

“Phew! What’s that smell?” asked her mother, wrinkling up her nose.

“Oh that!” said Tanya, with a careless wave of her hand. “Must be the samosas. You know Riya’s cook adds garlic to them.”

“GARLIC? GARLIC?” shouted her parents.

“What’s wrong with you?” cried her mother. “Don’t you know we are vampires?”

“Garlic and the sun will destroy us!” said her father.”

“That’s not true,” said Tanya, “I’m still around, aren’t I?”

There was silence for a while. Then they said, “Yes, you sure are.”

“So does that mean that these are just superstitions we have been fed on?” asked her mother doubtfully.

“Looks like it,” said her father with a smile.