"Only people who are capable of loving strongly can also suffer great sorrow, but this same necessity of loving serves to counteract their grief and heals them."

- Leo Tolstoy

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Parking her car outside of the Malhotra house, Suman ran towards the main door, almost slipping midway. As always, she was late and she knew she was in trouble. Before she could ring the bell, the door opened, and standing in front of her was her Qutub-Minar, looking down at her in disapproval with a frown on his forehead and his eyes narrowed.

"Sorry, I got late because of traffic," she said with a guilty smile.

With a sigh, he moved aside to let her in but continued to act as if he was angry at her, knowing she would buy it, although his wicked plan failed as she caught him before he could wipe the smile on his face.

"You...Shravan, are you pretending that you are angry at me?" She asked him with her hands on her waist, daring him to deny, with her eyes narrowed, she glared at him until he chuckled with an embarrassed smile on his face.

"It's just so easy to mess up with you these days," Shravan said with a shrug as he smiled down at her.

With a frown, she wrapped her arms around her chest and glared at him for making fun of her before looking away with a sigh, annoyed at him for not understanding why she was behaving in such a way, why she was going out of her way to make sure there was no misunderstanding, why she was treating him with the utmost care and attention. Looking at her lips almost quivering, he stepped closer to her and gently tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

"Sumo, you don't have to walk on eggshells around me, I know I told you to be not impulsive, but that doesn't mean you have to stop being yourself," he told her, softly as he kept looking at her with a worried frown on his forehead.

Touched, she smiled at the earnestness in his voice, her eyes serious as they flicked from one light brown orb of his to the other before nodding, adoring how his smile deepened before his eyes were warmed by the slight amusement.

"Aren't you wearing blue way too much these days?" He teased her with a smirk, taking in her form wrapped elegantly in the navy blue suit as her pearl earrings swayed with her every move.

"So? You are wearing blue too, did I say something?" She said defensively as she indicated the navy blue sweatshirt he was wearing.

"I know, we match, but why is that?" He asked her with a teasing smile, "I wear blue because I like it, why do you keep wearing blue?" He asked her with a smirk, pretending to not know the reason.

"For the same reason," She impulsively said with a nonchalant shrug.

"You mean to say you wear blue because I like it?" He asked her with a smirk as he kept stepping closer to her.

"No-no, of course, not...I meant because I like blue!" she said, stuttering as she kept moving backward.

"And when did that happen?" He asked her with his eyebrow arched at her.

"I have changed in these past years, you just don't realize it." She hurriedly snapped as she lightly pushed him back with her both hands resting on his chest.

"Actually, you are right!" He admitted with a sober tone in his voice as he suddenly stopped moving and looked down at her with a frown.

Confused at the sudden change in his mood, she looked up at him and found him gazing back at her as if he was analyzing her in concentration, with a frown on his forehead that was always present whenever he tried to focus all his attention on a particular object. The look on his face told her that from then on, she was going to be analyzed by him with the utmost attention.

"I am not going anywhere, Shravan, you can stare at me all whenever you want to, but later...Let's have dinner first, okay?" She teased him with a smile, smirking when the tips of his ears once again got tainted in red as he tried to act nonchalant.

Ordering her to follow him, Shravan hurriedly made his way to the kitchen before she could say anything else. As he went to stand in front of the stove, she took in his every move with a smile on her face as she slowly walked in. The navy blue sweatshirts he was wearing looked amazing on him as it clung to his sculpted chest and arms. He pushed the sleeves of the sweatshirt up to his elbows and once again got busy with what he was doing before she came. Sharply, with the knife, he chopped the tomatoes and the movement made his forearm muscle more visible. There was something very attractive about him as he moved from one side of the kitchen to the other with confidence, but still, there was an awkwardness of novelty in his every action, she realized as she gazed at him.

"Do you need any help?" She asked as she came to stand beside him.

"No, dinner is almost ready." He told her as turned around and reached down to lift her up onto the counter near him, loving the small squeak she made as he did so. Letting out a laugh, he moved back to the stove and bend down to add some basil in the sauce.

Turning her body to the left so she had a better view of him, she kept looking at him as he moved around the kitchen.  As he carefully stirred the sauce, she noticed how his movements were nothing like someone who cooked frequently or knew their way around in the kitchen. Every step was taken with caution, every movement had a little bit of hesitation in it and despite that, there were still small mishaps as he stirred the sauce or added something new, these were the things that didn't go unnoticed by her expert eyes, but she adored the look of concentration on his face, the dedication he was showing brought a smile on her face.

"So, you are cooking Italian?" She asked with a smile.

"Yes, red sauce and Spaghetti," he answered as he turned off the stove.

"Have a bite," he said as he moved the fork closer to her lips and watched as she chewed and swallowed. A strange look crossed her face, but soon her lips turned up into a smile.

"Hmm, not bad, Shravan Malhotra." She said, pleasantly surprised.

"Why, thank you, Suman Madam, so glad that my master chief approves," he responded with a small smile as turned off the stove and he moved to the other side of the island to start making the salad.

"What are you doing now?" She asked with curiosity.

"I making Caprese salad for you." He informed her as he carefully cut the Mozzarella is slices.

Suman smiled at the sight in front of her; he was bending down over Mozzarella with a frown, and then with utmost concentration, he moved the knife in his hand very carefully to make the slices of perfect thickness. And when he was done with it, he let out a sigh and smiled down at his handy work so proudly that looking at him, she was barely able to control her laughter, but at the same time, the sight warmed her heart and she wanted to pull his cheeks for being so damn adorable. But when he looked up at her, she just could only shake her head at him with a smile.

"What?" He asked her with a small confused smile.

"Nothing, I was only wondering when it was that you learn how to cook." She asked, curious.

The Shravan she remembered could not boil water without burning it and now, ten years after, he was standing in front of her and cooking Italian for her. Never had she thought that her Chashmish could do something like that, ever...

"I have been away from home for ten long years, Sumo. I had to learn." He told her with a shrug of his shoulders.

"I had never ever thought that you could or would ever want to learn how to cook, never!" She said as she smiled softly at him.

"I wouldn't have had if I hadn't moved away. You had me spoiled with your cooking, so much that I didn't even know how to make a cup of chai." He laughed while shaking his head, remembering his first few months away from home.

As he turned to look at her, Shravan felt a constriction in his chest as he found her gazing at him with a soft smile on her face. During the past decade, there had been countless times when he had imagined her with him, like this. It felt as if a specter of his fantasies was haunting him. Countless times he had wished to hear her lilted voice, to be in her presence as she would move around the kitchen, talking with him, cooking with him their dinner. He had done that enough times for the longing to become an aching wound that only hurt him whenever he wished for her presence beside him.

And now, she was here with him, he had to remind himself. 

'This isn't a dream anymore. It is real,' he told himself as he smiled back at her, taking in her presence.

Suddenly the spell was broken by a sudden loud cry coming just outside the kitchen.

"Hai Ram!" Ramu Kaka dramatically cried out as soon as he walked in.

He was all ready to cry over the damage he was sure the young man had done on and in his lovely kitchen, cry over the abuse his beloved has suffered because of the newly discovered cooking skills of the Tall tower of Malhotra clan. Only to find everything in its place as he looked around in shock and confusion.

"As promised, I didn't do anything bad!" Shravan declared, amused at the antics of the cook.

Suman looked between the two in confusion, curious to know what they were talking about as she noticed the amusement shining in Shravan's eyes.

"Ramu kaka, can you please set the table?" Shravan politely asked the man standing in the middle of the kitchen, looking around in wonder.

"Yes, of course, Shravan baba. Anything for you!" Ramu kaka stuttered and nodded excessively, looking at the younger man in wonder as he was thanked.

"Come on, let's go." He said to her as turned to look at her and held up his hand for her.

Holding his hand, she got off the counter and let him lead them out of the kitchen but when she looked back, Suman was confused at the sight of the aloof cook of Malhotra house running around the kitchen and then sigh in relief now and then dramatically thanking God he was named after.

When he found her looking back, Shravan laughed as he told her the reason why Ramu Kaka was behaving so weirdly.

"He was worried that I would destroy his beloved kitchen," Shravan told her as he laughed.

"What?" Suman asked, amused.

"Apparently, I am the only man from Malhotra clan who has ever entered into the kitchen to cook something." He informed her with a smug smirk on his face.

"And it's the first time you are cooking here?" She asked him as he led her to the table.

"No, I had before, only once. But Ramu kaka was on leave then so he doesn't know about it." He told her as he pulled the chair for her.

Sitting down himself on the chair beside her, they chatted about their day as Ramu Kaka set their dinner on the table. She told her about the funny conversation she had with Preeta about how her husband, D se Dhulander, had courted her before their marriage. He continued to laugh, a low rumble in his chest as lifted the lids of the dishes and served her. When he was done telling her how tiring his day had been, she looked at him with curiosity.

"Who taught you to cook Italian?" She asked in between chewing a mouthful morsel of spaghetti.

"Girlfriend!" He responded casually as he wrapped spaghetti around the fork and looked up when she suddenly started choking with a gasp.

"Sumo!" He cried out, worried he stood up from his chair to hand her a glass of water as he gently patted her back.

"Girlfriend?" She asked as soon as she could, still coughing in between.

"Yes," he distractedly responded, still patting her back softly as he looked at her with concern.

"What? But you told me you had no girlfriend," she said as she glared at him when he came to sit on his chair once again.

At first, he looked at her, confused, then suddenly a striking realization hit him, transforming the confusion into amusement. He bit his lower lip to contain the smile and lied without batting his eyes.

"Yes, not a permanent one, just casual ones, no one worthy of a mention." He answered her nonchalantly, pretending to not notice her loud muttering as she continued to glare at him.

"Shravan ke bache!" She yelled as soon as she caught his eyes giving away his secret as they wrinkled eyes in amusement.

"Suman, once again, pehle shaadi hogi, phir bache!" He corrected her as he laughed out loud.

"You are lying to me now or you lied to me back then?" She asked as she glared at him.

"No, I didn't lie. And anyway, I was talking about my friend Eric's girlfriend, Angela. Actually, his fiance now, but everyone in our group is so used to calling her 'The girlfriend' out of habit that we rarely use her name," he informed her.

"And why is that?" She asked with a frown.

"Because she had been his first and only girlfriend. They had been dating from the start of their high school and moved to Oxford together to study Law. They are so sickly sweet, that's why they were the target of everyone's teasing. They are getting married in a few months," he told with a fond smile on his face.

Eric and Angela had been the epitome of the relationship he had wanted to have with Suman during his teens. They had been each other's best friends, first love, couldn't live far away from each other, were always spotted together. At first, being anywhere around them hurt, their relationship was a constant reminder of what he couldn't have but would always crave, desperately...

It had taken him years to stop feeling the hurt, anger, and envy at their togetherness and accept that he would never have what they did because the girl he had wanted for life did feel the same. And when he had accepted that, from then on, he had stopped flinching on their display of affection and had started to look at them with admiration, doing his bit to protect their togetherness from the harsh realities and being the perfect peacemaker whenever the situation asked him to be.

And that had been the time when he had actually gotten to know Angela, had realized how different she was from the girl he loved and that did nothing but made him resent his former best friend for being so egocentric, for hurting him and whatnot. And when years after he had met her, he had lashed out, sought revenge because his wounds were still open, wounds created by the hurt only she had been capable of inflicting on him.

Eric and Angela had also been an extra reason why he couldn't move on from the love and craving he had felt for Suman Tiwari, thus, making her the only girl he could accept as someone he could, would love. It was if he had unintentionally decided to not want and need anyone else but her...

"Wow!" Her exclamation snapped him out of his thoughts, there she was stared back at him with wonder in her eyes.

"They had been together since forever!" She said and suddenly looked at him with something in her eyes that took away his breath, made him wonder, did now she too wished the same for them?

"So, she taught you how to cook?" She said with a forced smile, once again realizing how much time she had lost.

"Yes," he answered before shaking his head to snap out of his thoughts and smiled at her, before continuing; " whenever I had free time - and that didn't happen a lot, as you already know because you have seen the size and the length of the law books in Nana ji's room."

"God, after suffering from too much study and after her constant remarks that cooking can be a stress buster, Eric and I had given in and learned a few simple dishes from her." He said with a laugh.

"Can you cook anything Indian or only Italian?" She asked, her eyebrow arched at him before she chewing a mouthful morsel of spaghetti.

"No...I-I just couldn't..." He answered with a faraway look in his eyes.

He had not been able to even enter into the kitchen whenever his roommate used to cook his favorite Kareele. The smell of Indian spices in the air, the aroma of something being cooked with Indian recipe reminded him of her so much that he couldn't even stand in the kitchen without gasping in pain and longing he felt for her presence.

During the first few years, he had not been able to eat Indian food for it tasted bland to him. Every Indian dish reminded him of her, everything he tasted had been compared to the dishes she used to make for him and nothing and no one had the ability to cook him something that had been close to the taste of anything cooked by her. And that had made him miss her even more, only for the longing and hurt to slowly transform into rage, helplessness when she hadn't made any move to contact him, and as the years passed, the rage he felt had started to nearly consume him in the same way the pain had been...

"Huh? You couldn't? Why is that?" She asked with a frown, looking up from her plate.

"Because Indian is your thing, Sumo!" He said, nonchalantly, marveling at how simple it was now to admit it to her.

"You really loved my cooking, didn't you?" She asked with a tender smile on her face.

"Yes, I did, I do, I always had. Almost ever since you started to cook, you had been the only source of good food, the only one who would cook me anything I wanted." He admitted with a soft smile as he gazed back at her lovingly.

"The only? Why aren't you counting Nirmala auntie?" She suddenly asked without a second thought.

His fork paused midway to his mouth, the soft smile on his lips was wiped away as he kept looking at her as if she suddenly had stabbed him and maybe that was what it felt to him, an unexpected attack, after all, his mother had always been a forbidden topic. She realized it with regret as she kept looking at him, holding her breath, fearing his reaction.

As she kept looking at him with dread, Shravan suddenly let out a deep sigh, realizing he had promised her that Nirmala Ahuja was not going to come in between them and just an hour ago, he had told her that she didn't have to walk on the eggshells around him. So now he shouldn't deny her the answer, he thought to himself before looking down at his plate as he answered her;

"No. I actually don't even remember the last time I ate something cooked by her. She had been so busy with her job and whatnot that she never had the time to do anything else. That's why I was so surprised that I still remember the taste of her Daal," he whispered, letting out a shuddering sigh with a bitter smile on his lips.

"Shravan, she must have tried her best, you know how work becomes stressful," she reminded him, defending his mother as in the same breath, she reached out and held his hand in an attempt to comfort him.

"It's okay, Sumo, it doesn't matter now. And anyway, it's a matter of priority!" He said, understanding her need to console him he nonchalantly shrugged with a forced smile.

"No, it's not." She insisted forcefully, shaking her head at the direction his thoughts were taking.

"Yes, it is! One can always make time if one wants to. It's a matter of priority and importance, and I have never been important to her," he argued with a frown before letting out a sigh of exasperation when he noticed the look of defiance on her face.

"You know what's the problem?" She asked him with her eyes narrowed in determination.

"What?" He asked, humoring her despite knowing whatever she was going to say next would be against the misogyny ideology of his.

"It's our society! A woman can't be a working woman and at the same time a good wife and a good mother, she is obligated to be a 'homemaker' and stay at home because otherwise, she isn't a good wife or a good mother, while the men get the privilege to enjoy the both of the worlds!" She exclaimed passionately as she glared at the man sitting in front of her.

"Oh, please, Sumo, don't make it another Abla-nari slogan. I am sure there are countless women who are doing both of the things just fine. Those who know how to balance. You women just have to learn how to balance both your personal and professional lives, but only a few of you do that." He argued with the usual critical tone his voice, before continuing;

"You, thankfully, are one of them, you give the needed time to your family and your work as well, so don't use that as an excuse to say why Nirmala Ahuja couldn't be a good mother as soon as she started to work. And I am not talking about her cooking me for me," he told her, consumed in the fire of his anger and hurt.

"Yes, but - Wait a minute!" She suddenly stopped and looked at him, shocked before continuing; "did you, Shravan Malhotra, said something positive about women, just now?" She asked with her eyes wide open in shock as she kept staring at her misogynist best friend who's compliment wasn't only for her but also for 'countless' working women?

"What I meant is that 'some' women somehow know how to balance their working and family life. And anyway, I have eyes and a brain, of course, I do realize that a section of women is intelligent enough to find a balance!" He said defensively with a frown, embarrassed at the way she kept staring at him with her eyes wide open as if she was in shock.

"Are you Shravan? Shravan Malhotra, my Shravan? Are you feeling alright?" She asked with her, bemused as she reached out and with the back of her, she touched his forehead.

"Shut up!" He cried out, annoyed as he pulled away from her hand, letting it fall before looking back at her who now had a teasing smile on her face.

"Shut up and eat quietly!" He commanded with a frown, sulking.

As she looked at him, she started to laugh silently, her shoulder shaking and when he glared at her, she let out a loud laugh and continued laughing, completely ignoring his glares and muttering.

"When you are done, come into the living room!" He snapped at her as he stood up to walk out.

"Shravan, okay, I won't laugh, stop sulking like a child!" She told him, holding his arm to stop him before he could walk away.

After staring at her for a second, he gave in and nodded down at her before tentatively holding his hand in front of her to pull her up. With a smile she placed her hand in his, feeling the always present sense of comfort in his touch as his fingers closed around hers, his large palm encompassing her smaller one easily. Wordlessly, he tugged her beside him and she followed him as he made his way out of the dining area to the hall. With a smile, she wondered what else the night has stored for them...

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A/N:- Here is the next chapter! Sorry for the wait, was busy with exams... I hope you all liked the chapter and that it was worthy of the wait and was everything you had imagined their 'dinner' to be...But let me remind you all ke raat abhi baaki hai! *Wink* 

Let me know your thoughts on the chapter and please leave a comment! :)

Thank you!  :)

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