Still at checkout desk of supermarket...

Sanskaar eyed her cart as she was paying for it. Stationary, books... He remembered her saying this was something she did for them. How often...?

"How often do you do this?" he asked with a quiet sort of seriousness.

"Hmm?" Swara looked up, a little confused. Didn't she see him smiling a moment ago?

"Ye jo tum bacho ke liye le rahi ho," he gestured towards the cart.

"Oh. Mahine me ek bar." She answered with her customary smile. "Actually unka wish list hota hai...I tell them to make one. Aur us hisaab se le leti hu ye sab," she explained, pushing the cart towards exit. "And then school ke liye unhe jo chahiye wo bhi, periodically."

He held the door open for her; they stepped out.

Still considering, he slid his hands in his pockets. She couldn't possibly buy them stationary forever. Didn't she say she was a student, that day when they met at Little Flowers. And the place needed financing for other things, he thought fast. Everyday things, repairs, maintenance. And there was no telling how many more children they would take in. Baby Angel took the tally to twenty five. Father Benedict and his team of nuns seemed to have open hearts and wide open arms that could encompass the whole world. Little Flowers needed more than the gracious contributions of patrons like Swara and Kunal, even himself. It needed regular funding, steady income. What about a trust fund...

"Umm, Sanskaar?" she said cautiously. She had been pretty sure he had forgiven that moment of glee, but now he looked all serious.

"Yes?" he turned to her, jerked out of his thoughts. They were standing by the parking lot, and she seemed to be waiting for him to say something. Now why did she look so solemn and serious?

"thank you," she said gravely.

"Kis liye?" he enquired.

"For helping me out in shopping and of course for the lift." She gestured with one hand towards his car. She wished he didn't look so serious. Damn her careless habits and inability to control laughter, she didn't like insulting people.

He nodded. "That's absolutely fine Swara, thanks ki koi zaroorat nahi."

"And I'm sorry," her eyes shone with the sincerity of those quietly spoken words.

He brows went up quizzically.

"For that...Ashirwad." She added. "Wo jan boochke nai tha, I couldn't help it. Bura laga hoga na..."

For an instant he was struck. The girl threw him for loops, with her spontaneous smiles and apologies by turn. His first urge was to put her off her distress, then he though what the heck. I can give you some back, you imp, he thought with an inward smile.

"Of course laga," he said in a quiet tone he reserved for disciplining unruly employees. "agar koi aap pe haste hain tho bura tho lage ga na swara."

She swallowed. Damn. Wishing she wasn't always so impulsive, she apologized again. "I'm sorry, Sanskaar."

Hell, he thought. She took it so seriously. Her eyes... "Its alright, I was just kidding," he smiled, hoping she would take it lightly. She could be such a serious little thing at times...

She nodded. "Ok."

"Friends?" he asked, holding out a hand, smiling the lethal smile that started his fan club at Maheshwari Inc.

A little dazzled by the wattage of the smile, she returned it with one of her own, shook his hand. "Friends."

"Then lets seal it," he gave her a friendly wink.

"Kaise?" she asked, relieved. He was quick to forgive, good.

"Coffee," he answered shortly, pointing to a coffee shop right next to the mart. "Gift shopping aur tumhara shopping, I'm tired. Lets go have some coffee."

"Ok. But-" what about her things?

"Mere car me rakh do for now," he answered.

After placing her bags in the trunk of his car, they proceeded to the coffee shop.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

IN Cafe Coffee Day :

Coffee ordered, both sat back in their seats and waited for their drinks.

Swara smiled as she observed the other coffee enthusiasts in the shop. There were all kinds of people, couples, bunch of teenage girls, group of school boys poised on the threshold of adulthood, immersed in their electronic gadgets and self-important looks, solitary souls enjoying coffee and a book, a family treating their kids to fancy, fluffy coffee laced drinks. Quiet people, noisy people, life and happiness and good cheer in the air. She liked the atmosphere here.

Sanskaar regarded Swara and her enigmatic smile curiously. What was she thinking about now?

Their coffee was served.

"Can I ask you something?"

"Sure," she smiled, sipped her latte.

"what were you thinking just now?"

"oh, nothing. I like it here."

"Hmm." Right.

She laughed. "What?"

He shook his head. "nothing," he took a sip of his coffee. "How do you manage everything together?"

"kya?..."

"college, gift shop, Little Flowers." He wanted to know.

She explained how she was doing her Master's in Social Work, and happened across Little Flower Angels' Home as part of a project. How the kids stuck with her even after the project was done, and she felt the need to do more for them than file a report. How infectious was their joy, and their love for life. The gift shop was just a filler for three free evenings a week.

"you know what Sanskaar," she set her cup down, leant in. "In bacho se milne ke baad mujhe ehsaas hua ki hum kitne privileged hain.. I mean we are pampered so much at home , agar hame kuch chahye hain tho hum apne maa baba se poochte hain , and sometimes we act ziddi too ki ye chahiye who chahiye lekin ye bache chah kar bhi-" she sighed. "Is liye wo wishlist." She smiled. "Aur Sanskaar you should see unki aankhon main jo khushi hoti hain ye chote chote cheez dekh kar...its just priceless!" she smiled softly, drank some more. "this latte is really good." she murmured to herself.

Wow, he thought. Look at this girl. And he had people in his office who were cribbing about charity, that too about spending money that wasn't really their own and even had the possibility of earning them more.

"Aise kya dekh rahe ho?" she asked, setting her cup down again. "Do I have cream on my nose?" she touched her nose experimentally. No cream.

He laughed. "No, you don't. Sorry." He sat back again. "I was just thinking ki tum kitni achi ho."

"Wo tho main bachpan se hu." She agreed with another little smile, not one ounce of ego.

Charmed, he had to laugh at her total lack of guile.

She leaned forward, hands folded atop the table. "acha ab tum batavo apne baare main ..What do you do?"

"Tumne maheswari group of industries ka naam suna hain?" he began slowly.

"Of course suna hain .."

"I work with the marketing department there. Section head, PR wing." he toyed with the cap of his travel cup, contemplating should he tell her he is ..

"WOW!.thats awesome," she enthused. "Sanskaar vaise mujhe bhi kuch kehna tha tumse..Aaj ke din jab logo ke paas dusro ke liye time nahi hota you want to do something for those kids, that's really sweet of you."

"Actually main khush hoon ki main kuch kar pa raha hoon. By the way Swara, I might need your help."

"What kind?"

Sanskaar shared his plan of action for Little Flowers, starting with the audit, repairs. and since he may not be able to spare as much as time as required he would want her to be an active part of it; because she knew the needs of Little Flowers better than him, Swara agreed readily.

"Thanks Swara."

"Hey." She said in mock seriousness. Dosti ka ek usool hain Mr, "no sorry no thank you."

He smiled an odd smile. They had started their friendship with a basketful of sorrys from her. "Ye tumhari line hain?"

"Nahi salman khan ka hain ,woh movie hain na Maine pyaar kiya .. arey kabootar waala ..oh I just love that movie. don't tell me tumne dekha nahi-" .before Sanskaar could answer, "acha who sab chodo ab dosti kiya hain tho rules tho maan ne honge," she nodded to herself with absolute conviction.

"Filmy ho kya." He laughed when she shrugged negligently. "Ok, ok fine. No thanks no sorry."

"good," satisfied, she sat back again. "Now give me your number. Audit kab hai? I'll call you if there is anything."

He recited his number; she gave a missed call. "Save kar lo," she murmured as she typed in his name on her phone.

"yes, Ma'm." Bossy, he noted with an amused smile. How did he miss that the day he fell?

Talks turned to audit plans and structural repairs, occasional picnics that Father Benedict took the kids on, some formal games that needed to be organized so that the kids from little Flowers met others their own age, from neighboring schools and such. And the need for steady financing.

He was surprised when she mentioned her idea of setting up a trust fund for Little Flowers. We have something in common, he realised, startled and pleased.

He ordered coffee cake when it took a little longer to discuss things.

They walked out an hour later. He held the door for her again. She smiled, thinking he was such a funny person, snazzy clothes and gallant ways.

Gifts, drive to the Mart, coffee and discussions had taken up most of the evening. Dusk was falling.

"Ok, ab batao kaise jane ka plan tha ye sab leke," he waved a hand towards her loot sitting in the car trunk.

"Auto," she answered, looking away for a minute in the hopes of flagging one.

"What nonsense. I'll drop you." he said briskly.

"oh no, don't trouble yourself," she turned to smile at him, then went back to auto-scanning. "Auto hi lene wali thi me, thanks," she said abstractedly.

"but we are friends," he reminded her in an odd voice that caused her to turn to him again. "I'll drop you home. It's getting late." He didn't like the thought of her going home alone because of the time; he felt responsible for delaying her. coffee and refreshments was his idea. She would be home by now if not for him.

Sweet fellow, she thought. It was getting late. And he was genuinely concerned. "Ok," she agreed with another smile, and so suddenly he had to wonder again what was going on in her head. He opened the car door for her.

When they reached her apartment building, he offered to help cart the things upstairs. She declined cheerfully, waved the security guard over. "Kaka, ye Sab upar le Jana hai." The guard nodded with long-standing affection. "ji bitiya. Lao do," he reached in for the bags. Sanskaar noted she took care to give him the lighter albeit bigger ones, kept the heavier ones for herself. Then with a goodnight and a see-you, she waved him off too and walked away, asking the guard about his knee which was bothering him.

He accepted the summary dismissal good-humoredly. It was just her way of doing things. She was not unkind. Anything but, in fact. Interesting person. Interesting day, too, he thought as he backed out of the compound. Grocery shopping. In snazzy business suits. Amused at himself he checked the rearview. And saw her chatting up with the guard as they walked towards the lifts, then laughed. Seemed he was forever seeing her through the rearview mirror. That was interesting, too.

Then he thought, there I go again. Why do I keep thinking of- he let out the breath in one impatient huff. A quick analysis. He could do that. That would help. Ok, so he liked her because she was a nice person. She was incredibly sweet and funny. A very interesting character. And pretty, he added. Anybody would notice those huge eyes and smiles. Very likable, he nodded to himself. They met in a funny situation, now that he thought back. He stopped the car at a red signal.

And now they were friends. So it was only natural that he thought of her, he summed up. The light went green. Enough, enough, he thought to himself as he put the car in gear again. He pushed these thoughts to the back of his mind and brought up Uttara. Flight timings, pickup, bickering on the drive home, pranks to be played before admitting he did keep gifts for her. He drove away, deliberately keeping his thoughts on the day to come.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Corridor outside Sanskaar's room, next day evening:

Uttara was being pushed forward like a reluctant train engine by Sanskaar, who had both hands on her shoulder and was prodding her on. Annapurna walked beside them contentedly. Uttara was back and Sanskaar was enjoying her company; the mother's soul was happy for both children.

"Bhai jane do na muje. Vaise bhi mere liye kuch laye nai ho. Upar se humesha ki tara show off. Wo room tho nai Doge muje," she pouted.

"Beta tumhe wo kamra chahiye tha?" Annapurna fretted. "Tumhara humesha wala kamra taiyyar kar rakha tha humne tho-"

"Arey Ma mazak kar Rahi hai," he gave his train's engine a little knock on the head. "Par ha, mere room ka view sabse acha hai." He cackled as she poked her tongue out in retaliation.

Reassured, Annapurna resumed walking. This was normal.

It was their long standing tradition: bickering about who had the better room, and then Uttara conceding it was his, asking for a swap and ensuing bickering again.

"Bhai rehne do na," she whined a little, for old time's sake. "Apka room sabse best hai." And she didn't mind. She had the best, girliest room on the planet. And she loved that it was always the same when she came home.

"I know, I know. Room tho nai de sakta tumhe. But mere bed pe na kuch chize rakhi hai maine jo muje nai chahiye, chaho tho le sakti ho."

"Badi Ma dekho na kitna rudely behave kar rahe hai," she complained, looking over her shoulder.

Behind them, Annapurna smiled.

He pushed Uttara towards the door gently. "dekh tho lo pehle."

On his bed were four fussily wrapped gift boxes with huge bows on top. Glittering and sparkling, they were difficult to miss. And one big wicker basket full of chocolates.

"Wow Bhai," said an excited Uttara. "ye sab mere liye?"

"Of course tere liye , ab tu jaa rahi hain , sab shaanti se jee payenge , celebrate tho karna padega na ..kyu mom?" said Sanskaar in teasing tone.

"Dekha badi maa ., Main jaa rahi hu tho kitna khush hain bhai," she turned to Annapurna in defense.

"Sanskaar ..kyu chida raha hain use," she chided, patting his cheek.

"Come on mom , itne dino ke baad aayi hain itna masti tho banta hain..kitna miss kiya maine isse.." he said giving her a one armed hug.

"Missed u too bhai..." she returned the hug, then bounced in place. "chalo ab main apna gifts open karu..main bahut excited hoon!"

"haan chalo chalo," said Sanskaar, taking her hand. Half the fun was in opening them with her.

Both settled down with gifts.

Annapurna smiled looking at them, somethings never change. Uttara had always been daughter to her and her husband and Sanskaar loved her no less than if she were their own child. She always was his darling, his laadli. Her schooling had been with them before Ramprasad moved to Bangalore to take care of southern division of their business along with her sis in law sujata and uttara. But they visited whenever they could, and Uttara always spent her summer holidays here.

"Acha jaldi khatam karke aajavo main khaana laga rahi hoon," said Annapurna and left to kitchen to take of dinner arrangements.

Sanskaar sat besides Uttara watching her face keenly, trying to gauge her reactions, whether she liked the gifts or not and with every gift they opened her happiness became two-fold.

"Bhai ,..this is so beautiful, dancing ballerina, so pretty," she gushed as the doll wound out a sweet tune. "aur ye ganesh ji ki moorthy, maine isse apne room main rakhungi and roz pray karungi aur" she ripped out third package. "planner, thanks bhai I needed one badly. And it's so nice," she ran a hand over the pretty glossy binding, with the embossed floral print on it. Then she pounced on the basket. "chocolates ..main ek bhi nahi dene waali aapko iss main se..." and at the last one .. Uttara was overwhelmed looking at statue of brother holding hand of little sister, and she looked up at him with moist eyes.

"kya hua...kyu ro rahi hain," a little worried, Sanskaar wiped her tears off.

"I love you, bhai" she said hugging him, "and thank you for being with me hamesha .."

"Hamesha," he said, giving her a bolstering squeeze, then released her. "Ab Rona mat ok."

"Ok, ok," she sniffled , then bounced back to her usual self. "Waise bhai aap ki choice itne achi kab se hogayi?" she poked him in the arm. ",aur sach batavo kisne help kiya bolo"

"Tumhe kaisa pata ki-"

"muje pata hai aap bahot sweet ho," she pulled his cheek. "par apki range chocolates tak hi hai," she said fondly. "bolo na kaun hai."

"Wo meri-"

"ooohhh... MERI..." she wiggled her brows, amused.

"Friend hai," he said firmly, aiming a stern look at her. "usne help ki."

"oooh" she drawled again, eyes dancing. "...friend matlab girl friend."

" aisa kuch nahi hain ok," he grumbled, turning the other way. Much to his shock, he could feel his cheeks warm! "she's just helped me pick some gifts for you." He turned back to Uttara, having composed his features quickly. "You liked them na," he said accusingly, referring to the gifts. Why couldn't she leave it there? Sisters could be so annoying some times. He sighed inwardly.

"Haan haan I love them," she nodded rapidly.

"topic change mat karo," she continued. "Ye friend, Ladki haina?" she asked again, tongue firmly in cheek; because he had turned for half a second, she felt duty bound to pull his leg some more.

"Haan." He frowned. What was she getting at now?

" woh girl hain." She nodded to herself, a wicked gleam in her eyes. "aur apki friend bhi hai."

"Hain yar." He said exasperatedly. His sister could be so obscure some times.

"Girl hai, friend hai, tho.." He eyed her with suspicion. She was looking way too amused. "ho gai na girlfriend," she rubbed her hands together in pure glee while Sanskaar wondered how he walked right into that one. "badi maa, bhai na"" she yelled out to Annapurna.

"oye chup kar" he clapped a hand on her mouth, torn between amusement and embarrassment. "wo friend hai, and just recently Mila hu usse." He moved his hand when she bit it, so that he held her in a headlock now. "aur tum na Bollywood ki filem dekhna kam karo sehet ke liye acha hain.."

she poked her tongue out in reply to that, smiling. "tu jaise soch rahi hain waisa kuch nahi samjhi." He tacked on firmly.

"Haan haan teek hain" she wriggled out of his hold. "naam kya hai?" she asked casually, picking up her gifts.

"hmm?"

"Wo thanks kehne ke liye."

"Swara," he answered, then added quickly, "me keh dunga tumhara koi Barosa nai hai."

"Vaise bhi mere pas number nai hai, Aur lagta nai aap Doge muje. Possessive," she laughed.

"shut up ok. Ab Jake mom ko tang karo mera quota ho gaya." He banished her from the room cheerfully.

"fine, fine. Mat do number." She ambled out the door, arms full of gifts. She stuck her head inside the doorway for parting shot; he grabbed a handy cushion to throw at her.

"Abhi nai tho bad me le lungi aur photo bhi bhejna muje...bhabhi ka," she said winking at him and ran away from there before he could catch hold of her.

He shook his head, laughing to himself. He who prided himself on out-maneuvering everyone else professionally, had fallen pray to his baby sister's flawed logic. He picked up his phone to thank Swara. Since it was late, he decided not to call; a text would suffice.

"Hey. She loved the gifts...thank you - Sanskaar" he kept it back on the charger, turned to go.

Since it beeped, he checked his phone again. Text from Swara.

"Hey. Glad she did."

He smiled, kept it back and went to the door.

The phone beeped again. Wondering who it was, he went back to the charger dock. Another text from Swara? His frown turned to a quizzical smile.

It said:

"what's for dinner there? I'm having rotis " this came with a pic of half opened Ashirvad atta packet on a kitchen counter.

Dinner, huh. His quizzical smile turned menacing.

Meanwhile at Swara's apartment:

Taking the next bite of roti and sabji, she shook the phone once. Hmm? No response? Another giggle escaped she thought of him in the supermarket asking kiska Ashirvad. Oh, classic she laughed a little, took another bite.

Then wondered if she went too far. She had no idea how good his sense of humor was, or if he could take jokes on himself, or... damn. She'd just thought, friend. Friends Matlab thodi masti is allowed na?

A little worried, she started typing an apology.

Meantime, dinner table, Maheswari Mansion:

Uttara was helping her badi Ma serve dinner. The dining room was alive with her laughter and cheerfulness. It was different from the usual sedate atmosphere of dinner time at Maheswari Mansion, but then it always was different when Uttara was home.

DP was already seated at the head of the table, talking to Uttara, smiling indulgently as she bustled about with dishes and chirpy good humor.

Sanskaar walked in, taking a stack of plates from his mother on the way and giving her a peck on the cheek in return. Smiling, she patted his cheek and went in to get the next dish.

"Airport tak Sanskaar drop kahega tumhe, and after you land, Mathew Scott will pick you up and drop you at your campus hostel." DP was telling Uttara as he came to the table. She looked up smiled at him as she took half the plates from him and set them about.

"Hi, dad." Sanskaar got a nod in answer.

"Psst.. bhai-"" Uttara was hissing at him, careful not to let DP hear.

"What?" he hissed back.

"Ye Mathew Scott banda cute hai kya" she asked in the same whispery tone.

"Shut up you idiot," he hissed back, hurriedly checking DP to see if he heard. Thankfully, he hadn't. Sanskaar turned to Uttara, aiming a stern look.

She was giggling, elbowing him in the arm. "hai kya. Nai tho bore ho jaungi airport se hostel tak." She whispered again.

"pagli. Wo dad se bade hai. Business partner." He told her firmly, tugging at her pony tail.

"tsk. Matlab me bore hoke Mar jaungi." She sighed, resigned to her fate about her ride from airport to hostel.

"Pagli." He repeated, smiling.

He sat down next to dad.

"Sanskaar, your new project." DP began.

"Yes, dad." He waited, holding his breath. He had yet to hear from DP about it, if it met with his approval or not. After all, he hadn't had time to have consulted with DP about it before the brainstorming session at their office.

"I approve," he said with a little nod. "It's a good initiative."

He relaxed a little, sat back. "thanks, Dad. And I'm sorry I didn't ask you before-""

"That's alright. I expect you to make your own decisions, not consult with me or your seniors all the time." He paused a moment. "And you are responsible for your decisions and following them through. I also expect results."

"Yes, Dad." This, he had expected. If it didn't make good business sense, DP wouldn't approve. "You will have them. By the third quarter." He answered in definite tone.

Another nod. "how are you launching it?"

His phone vibrated in his pocket; he ignored it for the time being. "We've already started with a few notable NGOs. And I'm thinking of a dinner fete in a couple of weeks, all proceeds going for charity."

"Good," DP said summarily. Dinner was served.

Sanskaar slid his phone out to check. He smiled, just a little. It was another text from Swara, "zyada bol diya kya.. pls let me know if so, aadat si hain bina soche kehne ki..I mean hamesha aisi hu tho.. did I ..?"

Sanskaar considered himself a good judge of character. And he believed he had Swara pegged down in the guilt department. Waiting seemed the best prank to return for the pic she sent, and he was pleased it worked. Feeling smug, he typed the response...

Swara's apartment:

Dinner and dishes done, she sat down on her favorite couch by the window, adjusted the lamplight and opened her text book to a previously bookmarked page. Then took her phone to check, wishing she wasn't so impulsive. Kya zarurat thi pic bhejne ki, she berated herself. No message. There, she had managed to insult one person twice in two days. Sighing, she put the phone down and reached for the pencil.

The phone beeped.

Hoping he had forgiven, having bitten her tongue figuratively she reached for the phone. Damn...it was a nonsense message from the service provider about some offer! Ugh. She went back to her text book, marked one para with her pencil.

Phone beeped again.

Without much interest this time, she picked it up to check. Then wondered, what the heck? It was a text from Sanskaar, but he was neither smiling nor scolding. The text read: "daal bati, churma, gatte ki sabji, kadhi, masala tikadia, moong dal halwa."

Maheswari Mansion:

Having said his good nights post dinner, Sanskaar was walking upto his room when his phone beeped.

Text from Swara, one word: "what?"

Smiling, he typed the response and went to get his laptop.

She waited for the reply. At the ding of her message tone, she took it up again, frowning.

"Dinner, Thought you wanted to know "

Oh. Oh, he did have a sense of humor, she thought with a relieved laugh. Thank heavens. Smiling now, she texted him again. "Thanks for not being gussa "

By then Sanskaar had settled down with the laptop at his bedside table, for his routine scan of emails before bed. He smiled knowingly when the phone blinked beside him. Princess of guilt; he laughed as he read the message. Enough pranks, he decided to let her off the hook. "I thought we had agreed upon no thanks and no sorry policy"

"Yea, I know. I'd say sorry for forgetting, except I can't. So truce"

He smiled. He was enjoying this silly game.

Screen blinked again. "hey will you be free sometime tomorrow? We could distribute those things at Little Flowers...you can spend some time with the kids it'll be fun."

He shook his head, bemused. How could she type so fast? He checked his calendar, messaged her the available slot. "5 pm tomorrow?"

"Sure, 5 is cool'"

He keyed it into his calendar, synced with his phone. "ok then, see you tomorrow"

Reply came in the blink of an eye. "Good night"

"good night" he set the phone aside, went back to scanning his emails. He had a smile on his face as he did so; he didn't notice.

Swara's Apartment:

She set the phone aside and went back to her text book, smiling. It was a good day. Few blunders, but overall a good day. Tomorrow would be fun too. Smiling, she scanned the next page of her text book.

Night wore on, as these two went about their nightly routines. A new day was to come. Neither knew what surprises it held for them. Or fate