The next day Rohit and Sanjana drove to Rohit's condo. Rohit and Meenakshi had arranged to have many of Sanjana's larger suitcases moved to Rohit's place in advance to make the move less tiring. Rohit glanced over at Sanjana. She seemed to be acting normally as if what happened last night didn't affect her at all. They hadn't really spoken since last night. Sanjana wondered what her new home would look like. Did he live with many family members? Were there going to be children for her to play with or help care for? How much cleaning and cooking would be expected of her? All of these questions raced through Sanjana's mind as the car approached Rohit's house. Sanjana thought about what her new family life would be like. Rohit's father seemed like he would be an amicable father-in-law, so Sanjana wasn't too worried, but she hadn't gotten to know many of Rohit's other relatives besides exchanging pleasantries at the wedding. She met Rohit's older brother, but he lived somewhere far away with his wife and baby.

     "We're here," Rohit said, interrupting Sanjana's thoughts about her new life.

     They pulled up to a tall skyscraper. Sanjana looked at Rohit in awe...his house was ugly. It looked industrial, not like a home at all.

     "So I live in a condo in this building. Lots of people live in the building. It's a little different from an actual house." Rohit explained, not sure if Sanjana was familiar with the concept of apartments or condominiums.

     They exited the car and entered the condominium building. Sanjana looked around the large lobby as they waited for the elevator. The building had over thirty floors according to the silver buttons in the elevator. Rohit pushed the button to the top floor. Sanjana took a deep breath. She felt nervous as the elevator moved closer the top floor. The doors opened after a few minutes, and Rohit led Sanjana down the hall to the door at the end of the hallway.

     "This is home." Rohit said, opening the door.

     He motioned for her to enter. Sanjana stepped inside. Her breath was taken away. The living room was humongous, with modern style furniture. Though it was more sparsely furnished than their homes in India, Sanjana thought it worked well with the style of the condo. There was a wall of windows overlooking the beautiful city

     "Do you like it?" Rohit smiled as he watched Sanjana's expression.

     Sanjana turned to him and nodded in response. She walked closer to the wall of windows, gaping at the city.

     "I'm never really here, so that explains why it's so presentable," Rohit explained, grinning.

     Rohit led Sanjana throughout the apartment, giving her the grand tour. Once they had been through every part of the apartments, Rohit took Sanjana to the master bedroom.

     "Here is our bedroom," Rohit announced as he opened the doors. The room was larger than Sanjana expected. It had a huge king sized bed right in the center. There was a large walk-in closet and a luxurious en suite bathroom. This was pure luxury.

     Sanjana was perplexed. She wondered if every condo in this building was this luxurious. She had worried about what a condo would be like, but it seemed even better than living in a house. She paused. Where was the rest of Rohit's family?

     "You live alone?" Sanjana asked Rohit.

     "Well I did...and now I don't." Rohit answered.

     Sanjana glanced around the condo again. It was too large for a single man. It was too large for a couple. She felt lonely just living with Meenakshi. Living with Rohit would probably be just as lonely. Sanjana was used to living in a large community, where friends and relatives would freely visit like they lived in the house themselves.

     "Are you okay?" Rohit asked.

     Sanjana nodded. The condo was nice. Rohit was nice. What more could she ask for?

    "I have to be at work in a couple of hours." Rohit announced.

     Sanjana looked at him, perturbed that he was going to leave her all alone in a new place.

     "I couldn't take another day off." He explained. "But take the day to unpack and get settled. I'll be back tonight. Are you hungry? Let's order something."

     Rohit left the bedroom and went into the kitchen. Sanjana slowly followed him. He opened a drawer and took out what looked like menus of various restaurants that offered delivery. He spread them out on the counter.

       "What do you feel like eating?" He asked, barely glancing at Sanjana.

     Sanjana stepped closer and looked at the different menus. She concluded that Rohit ate out frequently or had food delivered to his condo. She decided then that she'd treat him to a nice home cooked meal for dinner tonight.

     "Chinese?" Rohit asked, handing Sanjana a couple of menus from different Chinese restaurants.

     Sanjana took the menus from him but didn't look at them. Her eyes were fixed on Rohit. He seemed frantic and unfocused. He hurried around the kitchen, searching for his phone to call the restaurant. Sanjana walked over to Rohit and placed her hand on his shoulder. Rohit paused. His eyes met hers.

     "I'm sorry about last night. I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable. It's just that...we're married, and I...I want to be able to touch my wife. I want to be able to kiss you whenever I want without causing a panic attack. I like you a lot, Sanjana. I'm glad that we're married, but I don't think you like me much and I wish I could change that." Rohit blurted. He took a step back. He felt embarrassed for whining to Sanjana like an immature child. She needed time to adjust, and he knew this, but knowing something and dealing with something were completely different.

     Sanjana took a step closer to Rohit and hugged him. Rohit was shocked. He hesitated before finally wrapping his arms around her. He felt Sanjana take a few deep breaths. He knew the physical contact was getting to be too much for her, but he didn't want to let her go. Not yet. He held her in his arms are a few more moments before finally releasing her.

     "Thank you. I definitely needed that." Rohit chuckled. "So...Chinese?" He asked, holding back a smile. Sanjana giggled and nodded. Rohit quickly ordered some food and spent the next few hours with Sanjana.

     "That was great! I have to get going, otherwise I'll be late." Said Rohit, while finishing up a spring roll.

     He grabbed his keys and made his way towards the door. Sanjana followed him, ready to lock up after he left. Rohit turned around and quickly kissed Sanjana on the cheek.

     "Bye Sanjana. I'll be back later tonight." Rohit said.

     Sanjana closed the door behind him and sighed. She was all alone in Rohit's condo that was now her condo as well.

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     "Rohit! What the hell are you doing back so soon? Shouldn't you be spending time with your new wife?" Sheila bombarded Rohit as soon as he entered the hospital.

     "Couldn't get more time off," Rohit said. "I have a surgery scheduled for today."

     "Aw, poor guy. Have you made any progress?" She asked.

     "Progress?" Rohit was confused.

     "Rohit, come on...she doesn't talk to you," Sheila said seriously.

      "She'll come around. We'll get there. I just have to be a little patient." Rohit answered.

       "Oh my god. She's so not your type." Sheila replied.

     "It's too late now. We're married." Rohit laughed, trying to lighten the mood.

     "You could've done better," Sheila muttered.

     Rohit rolled his eyes.

     "You have to like her. She's my wife." Rohit said.

     "I don't have to like her." Sheila countered.

     "Yeah you do," Rohit answered nonchalantly. "Otherwise we can't hang out."

     "Rohit!" Sheila exclaimed. "You can't just throw away years of friendship like that."

     Rohit ignored her and grabbed a chart. He walked around her, focusing on the chart, pretending like Sheila didn't even exist, all while trying to stifle his smile.

     "Rohit! Come back here! You can't just tell me we can't hang out. Rohit" Sheila frantically followed Rohit down the hall.

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     Sanjana frowned as she looked at the nearly empty fridge in front of her. It would be impossible to cook any type of satisfying dinner with the amount of food currently in Rohit's house. Sanjana was unsure whether she was up to venture out in search of a grocery store. She'd gotten hopelessly lost the first time she went out in New York City, and she wasn't familiar with this area at all. She sighed. She'd have to wait until Rohit came home. Maybe he would take her to a grocery store or maybe he would order more food from a nearby restaurant.

     Sanjana looked at the clock. She wasn't sure exactly what time Rohit would be home. He said he'd be back sometime tonight. It wasn't even night time yet. Rohit had only been gone for a few hours. Sanjana resolved to unpack the few suitcases that she had brought with her. She went into the bedroom and opened the first suitcase she saw. She unfolded some clothes and then paused. She had no idea where to put her clothes. She had no idea whether or not Rohit had made room for her things in his bedroom and her clothes in his closet. Sanjana looked around the empty bedroom. She felt like such a stranger in what was supposed to be her new home.

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     Rohit couldn't stifle his yawns on the way home. It was just past midnight, nearly two hours after he had planned to leave the hospital. There had been a serious car accident that brought in a couple of complicated cases that required his attention. Rohit felt exhausted. He opened the door to his condo to find it engulfed in darkness. Maybe Sanjana went to sleep. Rohit quietly made his way to the bedroom. He sat down on the bed, careful not to jostle it too much....only Sanjana wasn't asleep on the bed. She wasn't in the bedroom at all. He turned on the lights and called out her name. No answer. He left the bedroom and walked into the living room. Sanjana was asleep on the couch. She had waited up for him. Rohit smiled. He walked over to the couch and kneeled beside Sanjana's sleeping figure.

     "Sanjana," Rohit whispered, not wanting to startle her.

     Sanjana didn't move.

     "Sanjana, let's go to bed." Rohit said more loudly this time. He tapped her shoulder gently.

     Sanjana's eyes fluttered open. It took her a moment to realize where she was. She quickly sat up. Rohit stood up and moved to the other side of the couch, taking a seat beside her.

     "I'm sorry it's so late. I got caught up at the hospital. I'm so tired. Let's go to bed." Rohit stood up and walked to the bedroom.

      Sanjana hesitated and then stood up and followed him. Rohit suddenly stopped, causing Sanjana to nearly run into him.

     "You haven't eaten, have you?" Rohit turned to Sanjana.

     Sanjana looked down and shook her head.

     "Damn it! There's no food in the house, so how could you have had any dinner? I'm sorry. I'll get something for you. I should have picked something up on the way home." Rohit said.

     He opened the infamous drawer full of menus and handed a couple to Sanjana. She looked through them, noticing that they were all open til late at night. She didn't really feel all that hungry and she didn't want to eat restaurant food for the second time that day. She put down the menus on the counter. Rohit looked at her questioningly.

     "What's the matter?" Rohit asked, concerned.

     "I'm not hungry." Sanjana said quietly and walked back to the bedroom.

      "Sanjana," Rohit said, following her. "Wait, you haven't eaten all day. You have to eat something. Please eat something."

     "It's okay," Sanjana said. She sat down on the bed, ready to lay down.

     "Sanjana, please. I won't be able to sleep knowing that you haven't had anything to eat." Rohit pleaded with her.

     Sanjana smiled at Rohit. He cared about her so much. It felt nice to be cared about. She relented and pointed out what she wanted. Rohit ordered what she wanted for dinner and even had a second dinner so Sanjana wouldn't have to eat alone.

     "I'm so tired" Rohit sighed as they finished their late night dinner. "I'm sorry I left you here without food." Rohit had apologized to her so many times since he came home that she'd lost count.

     Sanjana took a deep breath as they settled into bed. She moved all the way to the edge of her side, while Rohit made himself comfortable on his side of the bed. He turned to Sanjana, aware that she wasn't about to come near him anytime soon.

     "Sanjana, are you ever going to let me give you a goodnight kiss?" He asked her suddenly. "I mean you don't have to tonight, but eventually...I'm a huge fan on goodnight kisses." Rohit smiled.

     Sanjana blushed. She held back a smile. She was grateful that Rohit made no effort to move closer to her. She felt content sleeping beside Rohit, a feeling she didn't anticipate to have for a long time.

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     Sanjana woke up early the next morning. She was determined to make Rohit breakfast since it was her first morning as his wife in their condo. One of the only things Sanjana found in Rohit's sparse fridge was eggs. She planned to cook him eggs, maybe even an omelet depending on what else she could find hidden in the kitchen. Sanjana made sure she was extremely quiet as she got ready. She made her way to the kitchen and began preparing an omelet. Once she finished with the omelet, she moved on to the coffee maker. She never operated a coffee maker before but she was sure Rohit would appreciate some caffeine early in the morning. She pulled out the top and opened the bottle of coffee grounds, unsure what her next step should be. She poured some of the coffee ground into a cup-like part and poured water into it. She put it back into place and turned the machine on. The coffee maker seemed to be doing what it needed to do. Sanjana heard small sounds coming from it, then suddenly a loud beeping erupted from the machine. Sanjana's eyes widened in shock. She tried to pull the cup part out of the machine but it was stuck. She started pushing buttons, desperately trying to make the noise stop.

     "Sanjana," Rohit emerged, looking tired and cranky. "What's going on?" He asked, rushing to the coffee maker.

     He pushed a button and the coffee maker turned off. The beeping came to a halt.

     "What the hell are you doing up so early?" Rohit said, clearly annoyed.

      "I..." Sanjana started. She held out the plate containing the omelet she made a few minutes earlier.

    Rohit smiled at her.

     "You cooked me breakfast?" He asked in disbelief. "It's been a long time since anyone cooked breakfast for me. Thank you." He took the plate from Sanjana. He stepped closer and hugged her. Sanjana stiffened, not expecting Rohit to give her a hug. He quickly let her go.

      "Sanjana...maybe we should stock the fridge with food." Rohit laughed.

     Rohit heard someone knocking on the door. He and Sanjana paused, both looking at the door.

     "Who is here this early?" Rohit wondered out loud. He walked to the door and opened it.

      "Rohit, your father left town. He didn't even wait for me to come back from my vacation with my sisters let alone offer to take me with him. He knows I just can't function by myself. I'm staying here until he comes back. I'll check the guest room myself and let you know if I need anything. Have you had breakfast?" A woman in an expensive pantsuit with designer shoes and a purse to match pushed past Rohit and sauntered into the condo.

      "Uh...Hi Mom," Rohit said unenthusiastically.

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      I'm SO sorry for not updating regularly. I've been going through a lot of difficult family issues and school stuff. I'm applying to grad school, which is taking up all my time, but it's Winter break so I thought I'd finally get to updating.

     I hope everyone liked this chapter! And before anyone says anything about Sanjana not knowing how to work a coffee maker, I don't drink coffee and I DO NOT KNOW HOW TO OPERATE A COFFEE MAKER, so I think it's fine that Sanjana can't either LOL

Rohit's Mom is dead, right? GUESS NOT! Explanations will be given next chapter hehee

PLEASE VOTE AND COMMENT! I'm not sure if there's still any interest in this story, so some support and enthusiasm would be greatly appreciated! THANKS!!!!!!!!!