Chapter 1

A twenty year old girl was walking on a cold road. She was dressed in black trousers and a pink shirt. Her hair tied in a big bun while holding a bag on her right shoulder and some books in the other hand. 

There was a look of distress on her face. She did not know when she reached her home. A loud shriek of a six-eight year old boy broke the trance she was lost in. As soon as she saw that child, all the troubles of that girl vanished, only then she heard the sound of laughter of a small four-year-old girl.

That six-year-old child tried to take books from the girl's hand, the girl smiled and stroked her head lovingly. 

"Mom, I am grown up now. I can also look after you. Look how strong I have become after drinking milk every day. Look how big my muscles have become." That kid said while showing his muscles by raising his left hand. 

That girl bowed parallel to that little child and touched her head lovingly, "I will do all this, you just have to take care of yourself and your little sister."

A four-year-old girl came out from the inner room and said with a pout, "Mom, no one loves me, everyone loves Eddy Bro!" That girl shook her head at the drama after listening to that little girl's histrionics.

"No baby mamma loves you both. Now hurry up, tell me what you did after my departure for coaching."

"Don't ask them Rapunzel, Ask me how much these devils have troubled me. See they even jumped on my back . Now I have to go to the Doctor, '' a boy in his early thirties said.

Listening to the boy's bickering , the trio giggled. The girl stopped laughing. 

"Now I understand where they are learning all this drama. Such a spoiled brat you are, God knows how you tackle your patients. I already knew you were in the wrong profession," that girl said, slapping his forehead in a friendly gesture. 

"This is such an insult for a handsome man with six pack abs. I am a hero and you are claiming me as a clown. Such a disgrace Rapunzel!'' The boy said, making funny faces. The girl broke down into a laughing fit seeing the funny faces.

The boy raised his hand in the air , making a surrender gesture. "Okay, now that my babysitting work is completed. You may carry on from here. He took out his coat from the stand, "and Rupenzal, please add something Indian in the dinner. I have some medical theories to be completed. Bye," the boy said in particularly one breath and the girl gaped with an open mouth . The boy smiled and closed her mouth while tapping his finger to her chin.

"Such a cute Rapunzel in this era!" chuckled the boy. 

The girl smacked his shoulder lightly, "Such a shakkal in this era," the girl reverted back.

" Hey hey hey! Don't say anything in your native language," said the boy with furrowed brows. 

"Whatever," she replied evasively.

The boy went to the apartment next door. That girl got busy doing her daily chores and needs. It was her routine busy in his daily struggle to keep everything synchronized.

The boy was the only hope for this girl as she got some monetary support to pay bills. She quickly changed her work clothes into simple full sleeve kurta and leggings, she liked to wear Indian dresses very much . She tied her below hip length silky hair in a simple bun and made kids eat their dinner quickly and then made them sleep while reciting bedtime stories. 

She looked at both kids' naive faces and remembered some happy memories of how her father used to recite her bedtime stories. She traced their sleeping faces and secured them with a pillow. She wiped her tears and went to the apartment next door to cook dinner for her only friend. 

She decided to make an Indian Curry with tortilla and baked fresh bread for dinner. She went to inform the boy about dinner, he was busy with some paperwork. She knocked on the door and the boy smiled at her. " I gather you have cooked dinner."

The girl smiled and nodded. "Make two cups of coffee and come to the terrace. I need to talk with you. The kids are sleeping, right?" 

She nodded her head quietly and went again to the kitchen to make two coffees. Nandini went to the terrace and found the boy already there with his head embedded in the laptop screen. She kept the hot steaming coffee on the table which attracted his attention and he raised his head to look only to find Nandini fumbling her fingers. 

"What happened to my sweet Rapunzel? Are you fine ? Did someone say something at coaching?"He asked with calculating eyes. He knew she was upset with something. 

Nandini swallowed before asking the favor, she looked at him and requested

"Can I borrow some euros? I will return as soon as I get my coaching fees," her voice was laced with uneasiness. 

The boy nodded and took his wallet . He took out one thousand euros and kept it in her hand. Nandini's face broke into a smile. Aspen shook his head looking at her happy face, "You didn't answer my question girl?" he demanded.

''I am fine and nobody said anything to me, everything is going well. Eddy's birthday is in the coming week and he is asking for an electric car. I don't want to break his heart by denying him so I asked for money. I already took an advance amount from the coaching centre so it was not an option."

Aspen looked at her smiling face sympathetically. "You didn't have dinner right? Come on, let's have it together. And about the money, I had to pay you your salary, so nothing personal there. Furthermore, I will pay you for your cooking. I will also not take service for free." He cleared the topic as he knew she would never consider his given money as her salary as a cook.

"But...." Nandini tried to cut him in between but Aspen shook his head. " No more discussion Rapunzel, end of the topic. I am hungry. Let's go for dinner" he dismissed all her talks.

She served him chicken gravy with bread for dinner. Aspen smelled the food and moaned loudly as his mouth watered. She laughed at his childlike actions. "Such a kid you are, Aspen."

"No compromise with food, Rupenzal."

He had his dinner with Nandini and asked her to come into the drawing room.

''Rapunzel, here are your reports. You need to take medicines on time. Your Insomnia, panic attacks , anemia , darkness disorder! And whatnot? Everything is messed up in your health girl and you are not taking it seriously. Take care of yourself. If you want, I can search for the best job in Italy itself. You were a scholar. I can support you to get a good firm with a handsome salary package." 

" Shakaal, I am capable enough to grab a job but I don't want it. There are things about me and my past. The reason for my insomnia disorder is my terrible past. I am glad that I have found you, you never force me to share anything and copacetic ,I admire this about you, please don't ask further. Please let this bond be as beautiful as it is. I adore you as you are, no filter required."

"Rapunzel..." 

Nandini shook her head, stopping him from talking further. "Did you forget your past?" She swallowed the heavy lump. 

"Sometimes these things solve with time but not mine. My wounds are not healing, they make me wince, anxious and ponder to never forget them. I don't want to go anywhere to leave you and P." She blinked her tears away.

Aspen and Nadini shared a very pious bond of friendship. She was his employee too as Nandini cooked for him because he had no one to cook for him. Nandini needed to do three jobs to meet her daily needs and bills. Aspan paid her to cook but sometimes Nandini refused to take the money. So he offered her a permanent job as a cook.

Due to her long hair he called her Rapunzal and she called him Shakaal just to irritate him . She also told him that it was the famous villain name of a very famous Bollywood movie. But being a foreigner it was quite irritating. 

Nandini remembered her mother who loved and respected Indian culture. Even after marrying her father, she always used to wear her nuptial chain which her father had specially ordered from an Indian Jewelry store. 

Her father loved her mother very much and that was why he always bought her Indian clothes. Her mother wanted Nandini to stick to her roots. She smiled recalling her parents.

That was the reason Nandini always preferred to wear Indian when she came home. She also tried to make Edwin and Faith wear Indian dresses.

Sometimes she became a laughing stock for the natives but who cares. 

When one thinks that everything is going alright, then the storm will hit at the same time and here Nandini was happy in her little humble abode but till when ? she didn't know a dangerous storm going to hit her which would shatter her life entirely