After what felt like hours of labor, they managed to move everything important to the upper floor. Exhausted but relieved, they sat down for dinner. Aditya’s grandfather had prepared dinner earlier, and they ate in silence, the sound of heavy rain thudding on the roof a constant reminder of the storm.
The flickering candlelight cast long shadows on the walls as Aditya and his grandfather finished their meal. Despite the rising floodwaters, they allowed themselves a brief moment of relief, hoping that by morning, the water would have started to recede. They needed a reprieve, just a little bit of good news to carry them through. But the storm had other plans.