Purvi was about to keep the glass of water in the cinq, when kavin noticed that the cinq had no other utensil left to be washed. 

"khaana nahi khaya tumne aaj?" asked kavin, as purvi looked up to him, glaring before shaking her head in no. 

"tum toh khaate nahi the ghar aake, tumhare hisse ka joh bada tha, woh hi maa ko garam karke de diya...ek hi plate aur chamach tha toh dhoke rakh diya." stated purvi bluntly. 

"tum bhi khaa leti..." stated kavin, as purvi scoffed. 

"khaane ka mann nahi karta ab mera...maa ke saath joh unse khaya jaata tha, banakar khaa leti...ab samajh hi nahi aata ki banaon kya...aur joh hota hai, woh khaane ka mann nahi karta..." responded purvi, as kavin couldn't help but feel sad for her. 

"acha, toh batao, iss sab se pehle, tumhe khaane mein kya pasand tha?" asked kavin, with a forced smile, in an attempt to cheer her up, as an actual smile crept up on her face. 

"pizza.." replied purvi instantly, as kavin couldn't help but chuckle. 

"mujhe bhi pasand hai, chalo mangata hoon, khaate hai saath mein..." stated kavin, as purvi couldn't help but be pleasantly surprised. 

                                                                    ***

Dushyant and ishita sat on the bed at right and left side respectively, as jia lay at the center, dushyant gently stroked her head, while ishita had her gaze fixed on her. 

"yeh sote hue kitni pyaari lagti haina...." remarked ishita in a whisper, as dushyant couldn't help but smile slightly. 

"bholapan haina iske chehre pe, aisa lagta hai sukoon mein hai sote hue..." stated dushyant, his tone low, in order to not create noise, as ishita too smiled. 

"jia ki maa bahaut sundar hongi na...tabhi toh itni pyaari hai yeh..." admired ishita in a whisper, as dushyant giggled sheepishly. 

"hmm...woh maanti nahi thi par mujhe na usse pehli nazar ka pyaar hogaya tha, college ka pehla din, pehli class...itni gori thi, aur itni badi si bhuri aankhein...bas, usse dekh kar na ek baar, bhool nahi sakte the kabhi..." expressed dushyant his overflowing love for his long gone wife, as ishita couldn't help but feel warmth for him. 

"humein jab pehli baar pyaar hota hai, toh bas beshumar hota haina...aisa lagta hai ki bas ab yeh hi zindagi hai..." remarked ishita lowly, moroseness coming through her voice, which dushyant sensed. 

"ishita, kya haina, pyaar mein kehte sab hai ki main tumhare bina marr jaunga...par marrta koi nahi hai...sab aage badh jaate hain...zindagi isliye toh badi ajeeb hoti hai." stated dushyant lowly too, as ishita couldn't help but feel what he was saying, both left with their own thoughts. 

                                                               ***

A cardboard box with two leftover pizza slices was kept in between kavin and purvi on the bed, as they both had taken a slice each to bite off. 

"pata hai bachpan mein, mummy bahaut pareshaan hogayi thi mujhse, kyunki main roz pizza khaane ki zidd karti thi...toh unhone phir ghar mein roz kuch naye-naye snacks banati thi, taaki mera mann hatte usse." recounted purvi, as kavin couldn't help but smile lightly. 

"mummy chahe na, toh sab kuch tasty bana sakti hai..." stated kavin, as purvi couldn't help but nod. 

"isliye aur bura lagta tha, kab unhe aisa ubla khaana khilana padta tha...ki khaash main bhi inke liye kuch bana pati." expressed purvi her remorse. 

"purvi, aunty ki yeh haalat hone se pehle, kya kar rahi thi tum?" asked kavin. 

"bsc...physics mein...mujhe toh laga tha har ke haalat mein pass hi kaise hongi..par hogayi degree jaise-taise..." purvi gave an account of her situation, as kavin couldn't help but empathise.

"aage ka kuch socha tha?" asked kavin, showing genuine concern.

"teacher banna tha...mummy ki tarah....jaise bache unse pyaar karte the, respect karte the unki, bas wahi chahti thi." expressed purvi her aspiration. 

 "msc karni padegi na..." asked kavin curiously, as purvi nodded in agreement. 

"toh enroll karlo na, ghar mein saara din rehne se acha hai joh pasand ka kaam hai woh karo." suggested kavin, as purvi's face couldn't help but light up. 

"sachi?" asked purvi, surprised, just to make sure. 

"kyun nahi, ghar kitna bhi acha hoon, khaali baithe toh yeh deeware kaatne daudti hai kuch dinon baad..." remarked kavin, as purvi couldn't help but chuckle. 

They were both done eating the pizza, as kavin picked up the cardboard box, and started to walk out of the room to throw it away, only for purvi to call him by his name, making him turn back to face her, as he had just grabbed hold of the door knob. 

"thanks.." expressed purvi genuine appreciation, with a smile that lit up her whole face, as kavin reciprocated with a light smile. 

Then he turned away to walk out of the room, shutting the door behind him, as the smile remained on purvi's face, recounting what had just happened.