Evening of Naina's fourth visit, Sameer returned from Rajkot post the match about 6 pm. Munna and Pandit arrived about the same time, as per some previous plans. The boys were sitting in his room when Ramdhari brought up some coffee and the cake.

As Sameer tested his coffee, Ramdhari waited for the verdict of the day. It was an ongoing thing between Ramdhari and his Bhaiya, as Sameer very rarely felt that the sugar in the coffee was right, it was either a little on the sweeter side or not sweet enough. That day's verdict was that Coffee was not sweet enough. After trying very hard using spoons of varying sizes, Ramdhari had given up trying to perfect the sweetness level of his Bhaiya's coffee, and just did the best he could.

Meanwhile Munna picked up a piece of the cake and tasting it exclaimed "Kya baat hai Ramdhari tumne toh ab cake banana bhi chalu kar diya!" Pandit also tasted some and shaking his head said "Na, bura mat manna par yeh tumhara banaya hua nahi lag raha hai, kissi bakery se laya hua lagta hai. Bahoot tasty hai." Ramdhari chuckled and replied "Yeh cake na humne banaya hai aur na bakery se laye hai. Yeh toh Bhabhi banakar layi hai." And then he added in a teasing tone "Khaas Sameer Bhaiya ke liye." Munna and Pandit both had an O expression on their faces.

Sameer feeling very conscious said "Aare, aisi koi baat nahi hai... woh toh har baar jab bhi Nanaji se milne aati hain, kuch leke aati hai. Mere liye thodi na lati hai" Pandit immediately turned to Ramdhari and said "Agar aisi baat hai toh tum dabba nikal ke rakhna main jate waqt le jaayunga, mujhe toh bahoot acha laga hain. Shayad Bhabhi mere liye hi layi ho." Sameer now instructed Ramdhari too "Dabba nikal ke nahi, chuppa ke rakhna! Jab dekho bus khate rehta hai yeh Pandit... pet nikal aayega uncle types isska bahoot jaldi."

As Ramdhari exited the room, Munna said "Yaar, tu na such mooch buddhu hai. Har baar woh khana Nanaji ya Ramdhari ke liye lati hogi kya?! Saari aurate aise hi pyar dikhati hai, subhase bus saamne khana leke khadi ho jaati hai! Bhai, humare ghar mein toh yahi hota hai." Sameer not having experienced this side of a woman's love before, just shook his head uncertainly.

That night and for a few more nights, long after the rest of the house was fast asleep, Sameer would sneak himself a piece of the cake and relish it before going to bed. And as he did that, he would wonder if she had really baked it for him? And what was the need to spend so much time and effort on making something when it was just as easily available in the market? But he failed to ask himself the big question and that was – why he was craving a piece of this specific cake every night. If Ramdhari noticed the gradually diminishing cake, he was wise enough to not embarrass his Bhaiya by remarking on it.

That same night, before falling asleep Naina pondered on her conversation with Nanaji that day. It had given her a big insight into his life so far and the events that had shaped him. It had greatly pained her to think of all the heart wrenching trials he had been through. She wondered about how different her life could have been, had it not been for her Chacha-Chachi who had taken her in and showered her with so much kindness and love. Just how would her life be, had it not been for them?

At times, though not often, she had resented having to be on her best behaviour all the time. Thinking, all this love and approval was conditional. On some level she had always wondered if they would still love and praise her just the same if she did not top her class or run behind her Chachiji always lending a helping hand. Pooja Didi, Preeti or Swati did not have to be the perfect good girls all the time and they were still secure in the knowledge that their parents would love them regardless. She had never felt that way. But today she was really grateful, that at least she did not have to grow somewhere among strangers.

The day of the wedding, when her father had mentioned leaving her in some ashram in Banaras, she had felt panic set in, as never before in her life. The idea of being tossed away far from her kin, had pierced her heart with extreme dread, and she was almost twenty. How did a child of eight deal with something like this? The thought of him scared, lost and feeling cast away, made her soul shiver. Yes, she would do everything to make him feel loved and happy, just as she had promised Nanaji on the day of the wedding. All that had happened to him was now in the past, and she was completely committed to ensure that it would be forgotten as they started their new life together.

Maybe it was the magic of hopeful new love, or maybe her naivete, but she seemed to underestimate the effect of the invisible scars left by the past.

The next day, when Sameer spotted her entering the college, he called out "Naina!" She was very pleasantly surprised at this deviation from their established routine and both the Agarwal sisters stopped outside the bike stand. He said to his friends "Yaar, woh Naina ko cake acha bana tha batana hai, main abhi aata hu." Pandit chimed "Aare, toh hum bhi chalte hai, humne bhi toh khaya hai." Munna tried to hold Pandit back saying "Tujhe kya itni jaldi hai? Usse jaane de akele." Pandit responded "Yaar, woh kaunsi akeli hai? Usske sath bhi toh Preeti hai, aur ab toh Swati bhi aa gayi." Seeing Swati approaching the girls, Munna forgot about wanting to give his Bhai-Bhabhi any privacy and eagerly followed Sameer.

As he approached, Naina observed that he was dressed in Jeans and a black collared t-shirt, thinking black really suited him. And then she happily thought to herself that all the colours equally suited him. He observed that she was dressed in a simple pink cotton shalwar-kameez, some dangling earrings and of course the kangans. Her hair was tied in a simple high pony.

She smiled and uttered a "Hi" when he was close enough. Preeti also followed with a "Hi Jijaji. Kaise hai aap?" Sameer returned Preeti's greeting with a "Hi, main bilkul theek hu. Aur aap kaisi hai?" After Preeti confirmed that she and the whole Agarwal khandan were well, he turned to Naina and said "Woh, tumne kal laya hua cake bahoot acha bana tha..." Suddenly feeling conscious of everyone looking at him and listening to every word he was saying, he finished "Bus yahi batana tha." Naina happily and hopefully asked "Aap ko such mooch acha laga? Maine abhi seekha hai, toh sure nahi thi ke kaisa lagega..."

Pandit jumped in wanting to tease her "Aare acha hi nahi... bahoot acha bana tha. Humne toh pura khatam kar diya!" Naina looked at them in surprise "Pura khatam bhi kar diya?!" Munna now decided to continue and said "Ha, acha bana tha... aur bhuk bhi bahoot lagi thi... ab koi ration pe thodi na khana thay, hai na?" Naina not knowing what to say but feeling a little dejected that he hadn't probably eaten much of it, replied slightly less enthusiastically "Nahi, ration ki kya baat hai, maine toh pehele hi Nanaji se kaha tha, ke aap dono ke liye bhi laya hai. Agli baar mein aur bhi jyada banake laayungi."

Munna now turned to Swati and asked blushing a little "Waise tum bhi banati ho kya itna acha cake?" Swati replied "Main yeh sab nahi karti... jab bakery mein itna acha milta hai, toh bhala itni mehnat ki kya jarurat hai." Preeti now snorted "Aaj yeh bol rahi hai, ek baar teri mangni ho jaaye tab poochungi! Naina kaunsa humme cake banake kheelati thi... isse bhi toh naya naya shauk chadha hai." Preeti cast a pointed glance at her Jijaji, leaving both her sister and Jijaji blushing a little. Sameer not sure what to say next said "It's ok, tum logon ko der ho rahi hogi lecture ke liye. Bye." As the girls started to leave, he said to her in a softer voice "Woh Munna Pandit toh aise hi bol rahe thay, abhi kafi cake baaki hai." Naina's eyes immediately lit up as she said bye to him.

Couple of days later Nanaji informed Sameer "Aare beta, Rustam ka aaj phone aaya tha. Woh log parso Ahmedabad aa rahe hai. Do din toh uss function mein hi busy rahenge par Saturday sham ko aayenge humare yaha dinner pe." Sameer happily exclaimed "Aare wah! Yeh toh bahoot acha news hai. Behrooz Bhaiya aur bache bhi aa rahe hai kya?" Nanu confirmed the whole family would be visiting. He then continued "Beta, Naina ko phone karke bata dena ke usse bhi aana hai. Woh log sab milna chahate hai usse. In fact, uske Chachaji se baat karke unhe samjha dena ke humare khaas mehmaan hai, jinse main Naina ko milana chahata hu. Agar unhe kuch aur jaanna ho toh kehna mujhe phone kare."

Few hours later, Sameer was in his room casting glances in the direction of the phone every now and then. He knew procrastinating wasn't going to help but was still not able to pick up the phone and call her. The one and only phone call he had made to her to that day, kept coming back to him. That day, he had been so completely determined to not move forward with this relationship and had decided to completely overlook the fact that they were married. And then, it seemed like life kept happening and he was just going along. The past three months or so had just flown by.

He wondered, if someone asked him how he feels about the marriage now and he decided to truthfully answer – what would his answer be? He still felt adrift, still unsure where he was headed and where he would like to go. And what did he feel about her? She was no longer a total stranger, but neither did he know her. In fact, she baffled him, with the easy assurance with which she seemed to be navigating this new territory. It was almost like she had a secret map, while he was absolutely clueless.

Anyway, all this pondering would have to wait for another day. He still had a lot of time to figure things out. The task at hand, had to be dealt with first. He looked up her number in the directory once again, only this time he first scribbled it in a small diary and then taking a deep breath dialed it.

This time a man probably her Chachaji answered the phone. He asked "Namaste, yeh Agarwalji ka number hai na?" The person at the other end responded "Ji, boliye." He continued "Main Sameer bol raha hu..." and then not sure how to explain his connection went on "Sameer Maheshwari, Naina ka " The person immediately interrupted "Aare Sameer beta, kaise ho? Main Chachaji baat kar raha hu." He a little relieved said "Namaste Chachaji. Kaise hai aap? Kuch baat karni thi aap se." Chachaji replied "Ha, bolo na beta. Sab theek hai na?" He answered "Ha sab theek hai. Woh Nanaji ne aap ko call karne ko kaha hai. Actually, Saturday ko Nanaji ke bahoot karibi dost jo Bombay mein rehte hai, unki family ke sath dinner pe aa rahe hai. Nanu Naina ko unse milana chahate hai. Toh aap se poochna tha ke aap Naina ko bhej sakte hai na?"

Chachaji smiling said "Of course beta, bus kitne baaje drop aur pick karna hai bata do." Sameer hadn't thought about the timings before, so thinking for a few seconds said "Agar aap usse saade-paanch che baaje bhej de toh acha hoga, woh log shayad saade-che tak aayenge. Khana kab tak hoga yeh toh mujhe pata nahi... par aap chinta mat kijiye, hum usse drop kar denge. Nanaji ne kaha hai, agar aap chahe toh unse bhi baat kar sakte hai..." Chachji replied smiling "Aare nahi beta, Nanaji se baat karne hi koi jarurat nahi hai. Tumne keh diya, mere liye kafi hai. Main Naina ko Saturday ko drop kar dunga."

Sensing some hesitancy to end the call from Sameer's side, Chachaji asked "Naina ko bula du phone pe? Usse bhi tum theek se bata do." He responded "Ji Chachaji, thank you." He heard the phone receiver being put down somewhere and Chachaji calling in the background Naina, beta Sameer ka phone hai tumhare liye. Naina who had been helping her Chachiji bottle some freshly made achaar, almost dropped the bottle hearing he was on the phone wanting to talk to her. As she picked up the receiver, she sat down on the sofa already feeling a little wobbly in her knees, not able to forget his last call.

Trying to remind herself that things had changed now, she answered "Hello... Naina bol rahi hu." He replied "Hi, kaisi ho?" She felt a lot calmer hearing the question that usually marked the beginning of most of the ordinary conversations and replied "Main theek hu. Aur aap? Nanaji toh theek hai na?" He responded "Ha, hum dono theek hai. Woh maine Chachaji se already discuss kar liya hai, par unhone kaha tumhe bhi bata du. Saturday ko Nanu ke bahoot hi close friend Rustam uncle aur unki family dinner pe aa rahe hai. Nanu tumhe milna chahate hai, toh aa jaana. Maine Chachaji se kaha hai, dinner ke baad hum log tumhe ghar drop kar denge, pata nahi exactly kitne baaje tak honge woh log." Naina nodding her head agreed "Ji, main aajayungi. Par, kitne baaje aana hai?" He confirmed that about 5:30-6 pm should be fine.

Just then, remembering her rather plain outfit from the visit when he had found her in his room, he added "Naina, woh log Bombay mein rehte hai aur Nanu tumhe khaas milana chahate hai, toh zara taiyar hoke aana." Naina was stumped "Matlab? Kuch khaas pehen ki aana hoga?" Wondering if he expected her to wear something that would fit with modern Bombay society she continued "Mere pass toh koi modern kapade nahi hai... bus shalwar-kameez aur kuch sareeya hi hai. Aur Taiji ne toh ab skirts pehene se saaf mana kar diya hai... toh kya pehenu?"

He now felt a little silly for having brought up this topic and confused too, as she was asking for his advice on the choice of outfit. He blurted "Saree theek hai... maine toh bus issiliye kaha kyun ki tumne last time ekdum simple si dress peheni thi." Naina replied "O... woh toh Nanaji ne hi kaha hai ke unhe Sunday ko gardening karna pasand hai, toh main saadhe kapade hi pehen ke aayu, warna kharab ho jayenge. Guests aa rahe hai toh waise toh pehenke nahi aayungi na..." Sameer satisfied with this explanation and not knowing what more to say, decided to end the call "Phir theek hai. Chalo main rakhta hu." She replied "Ok, bye. Saturday ko milenge."

Naina spent the next couple of days feeling rather stressed, trying to finalise the outfit for Saturday. This was the first time she was being presented as the Maheshwari Bahu and to add to it he had specifically asked her to dress appropriately. Chachiji asked her to choose one of her sarees, but both she and Preeti did not find anything suitable for the occasion in Chachiji's wardrobe.

Preeti then came up with the genius idea of selecting something from the sarees gifted by his family. Naina considered this idea as a life saver, rationale being he could hardly find fault with anything that had come from his own family. Some frantic phone calls were made to Pooja Didi's tailor who had been entrusted with the task of stitching the blouses for those sarees just last week. The tailor who was very busy at the moment, said he would be able to get just one blouse ready by Saturday morning. Naina now reviewed the saree selection and the accessories she could match with them and got back to the tailor with her final choice.

The morning of the event, after two trips to the tailor and with the blouse finally ready and in hand, Naina let out a sigh of relief. But this relief was replaced with a new anxiety on trying the blouse after returning home.

Naina now recalled the cryptic conversation from that day when Pooja had taken her to this new tailor. During the measurements, Pooja had been giving her recommendations on the length of the sleeves, the height of the blouse and the shape and depth of the neckline. Naina had presented the tailor with one of her existing very traditional blouses, which the tailor renowned for his modern designs had looked at in disdain and then proceeded with the further discussion with Pooja only. Pooja had mentioned at some point that her sister was newly married and shared a knowing smile with the tailor. The tailor had said Ji Didi, hum samajh gaye. Ekdum perfect blouse banayenge. Aapke banate hai na waise hi!

As Naina stood in front of the mirror, appraising the handiwork of the new tailor, Preeti exited the bathroom in their room and exclaimed "Wow Naina! Kya mast banaya hai yeh blouse ekdum Madhuri ne pehena tha na" Naina cut her short "Preeti! Kya bol rahi hai? Mast? Kiss angle se mast lag raha hai tujhe?" Preeti walked in a half circle around her and said "Mujhe toh har angle se mast hi lag raha hai." Naina in a quivering voice "Tune dekha nahi kya sleeves bhi normal se short banayi hai... aur yeh peeche ka design bhi kitna ajeeb hai." Her sister not seeing any problem with it responded "Aare, itna acha toh banaya hai design. Kitna mast border use kiya hai!" She again tried to highlight the problem "Border ko chod, kitni jyada peeth dikh rahi hai woh dekh. Taiji toh mujhe maar hi daalengi!"

Preeti sounding irritated "O ho! Tu aur tera yeh Taiji ka darr. Bhagwan kare tere sasural wale tujhe jaldi le jaye aur tera yeh sar dard khatam ho jaye." Seeing her sisters extremely tense expression she said"Sunn tu na Taiji ke saamne sar se pallu oodh ke aana, ekdum sushil bahu ki tarha. Toh phir unhe kuch dikhega hi nahi, samajhi?" As Naina visibly relaxed,Preeti added in a teasing tone "Waise dekh lena aaj toh Jijaji peheli ball par hi clean bowled ho jayenge!" This remark from her sister brought a new worry  to her mind, what would he think? Well, he did want her to dress in a manner fitting to receive his modern guests from Bombay, right? Hopefully this was good enough.