☀️ The Last Shirt

Amma was folding the last shirt when Mukshi stepped out.
His shoes were already dusty from yesterday.

Daksh blinked twice from the stool.

“Already ready?” Mukshi asked.

Daksh blinked again. That meant yes.

Amma handed him the bag.
“One banana. No snacks today.
Come back before the sun moves past the neem tree.”

🚲 The Turn with the Sound

The ride felt usual.
Past the old well, the leaning tree, the stone shaped like Appa’s slipper.

But near the narrow turn—something different.

A bell sound.
Small. Soft. A single ring.

🔔 The Bell on the Stick

Tied to a short stick beside the bush.

One side cracked.
It leaned, like it had rung too much and bent in the middle.

“Looks broken,” Mukshi said.

Daksh tilted his head.

“It rang,” Mukshi added. “But no one’s here.”
He touched it. It moved but didn’t fall.
“Should we fix it?” Daksh asked.

🧵 Mukshi’s Fix

Mukshi pulled a string from his bag—the thread Amma used to tie banana stalks.

He wrapped it once. Then twice.
Tight. Quiet.

The bell sat straighter now.
He rang it once.
The sound was softer. But clean.

Daksh blinked once. “Better.”

🏡 Back at the Steps

Amma was sitting on the floor, peeling beans into a plate.
“You were quiet today,” she said.

Mukshi placed the bag near the mat.
“Just tied something,” he said. “A small thing.”

“Yours?”

“No. But it looked like it wanted to stand.”

Not everything broken needs replacing.
Some just need a little help… to ring again.