Monday morning arrived with the ruthless efficiency of a machine. The weekend bubble of chai and cuddles popped as Ishika stepped back into her role as the CEO.She stood in front of the full-length mirror, dressing in a sharp, charcoal-grey pantsuit. Her expression hardened, her eyes turning to ice as she applied her red lipstick. The woman who held him in the night was disappearing, replaced by the ruthless businesswoman.Veer sat on the bed, watching her. He was wearing a soft sweater and jeans, feeling small and useless."You are staring," Ishika said, meeting his eyes in the mirror."I am just... memorizing you," Veer admitted softly. "When you leave, the room gets very big."Ishika paused. She turned around and walked over to him. She cupped his face, her thumb stroking his cheek. "I have to go to work, Veer. The empire doesn't run on tea and smiles.""I know," Veer said, leaning into her touch. "But... you will come back? Before the sun sets?""I always come back," she said firmly. "Rules: Do not open the door for anyone except Shanti. Do not go near the balcony edge. And do not try to cook anything on the stove except the kettle. Understand?""Yes, Ishika.""Good." She kissed his forehead—a quick, distracted peck—and then she was gone, the heavy front door clicking shut behind her.The silence returned.By noon, the silence was deafening. Veer had cleaned the already spotless room. He had watered the plants (which were plastic, and he felt foolish when he realized). He had prayed.But his mind kept drifting to Ishika. She works so hard, he thought. She never eats properly. Just coffee and bitter things.He looked at the clock. It was lunchtime. In the village, the men would come in from the fields, and the women would serve them hot, fresh food. Ishika was in a field of steel and glass. Who was serving her?*No one.*A determined look settled on Veer's face. He was a husband now. It was his duty to care for his wife, even if his wife was a Queen who owned half the city.He went to the kitchen. Shanti was there, chopping vegetables."Shanti Didi," Veer said, his voice trembling with nervous energy. "I want to go to Ishika."Shanti dropped her knife. "Beta, you can't. It is an office. Very strict. Madam said—""She is hungry," Veer cut in, his eyes wide and pleading. "I made roti and sabzi this morning. I wrapped it. I need to give it to her. Please, Didi. How do I get there?"Shanti looked at the innocent boy, then at the tiffin box wrapped in a cloth in his hands. She sighed, her heart melting. "Okay, okay. I will call the driver. But don't tell Madam I let you go."
Thirty minutes later, Veer stepped out of the elevator onto the top floor of Raichand Towers.The transition was jarring. He stepped from the carpeted quiet of the elevator into a hive of activity. The floor was vast, filled with rows of glass desks, ringing phones, and people in suits walking fast, shouting into headsets.The air smelled of paper, toner, and stress.Vere clutched the tiffin box to his chest like a shield. He felt painfully out of place in his simple sweater and jeans. He felt the eyes of the employees on him—whispers, curious glances.He walked toward the large glass doors at the end of the hall. A nameplate on the wall read: ISHIKA RAICHAND - CEO."Excuse me! You can't go in there!"A stern voice stopped him. A security guard stepped in front of him, blocking the path. Behind the guard was a receptionist who looked at Veer with disdain."This is a restricted area," the guard said. "Do you have an appointment?"Veer looked at him, confused. "Appointment? No. I am here to give lunch.""Lunch?" The receptionist laughed. "Delivery is at the back entrance, honey.""No," Veer shook his head firmly. "It is not delivery. It is for Ishika. My wife."The silence that fell over the nearby cubicles was absolute. Heads popped up like meerkats. The receptionist's jaw dropped."Your... wife?" the guard scoffed, looking Veer up and down. "Listen, kid, lots of people try to pull stunts to get to the CEO. She isn't married, and even if she was, she wouldn't marry a—""Let him through."The voice didn't come from Veer. It came from the intercom speaker on the wall, sharp and crackling with authority.The guard paled. He looked at the closed glass doors of the CEO's office. The light on the intercom was glowing red."Open the door, Rajesh," Ishika's voice echoed through the room. "Or pack your things and leave."The guard scrambled to unlock the glass doors, his hands shaking. Veer took a deep breath and walked past them, his head held high. He could feel the shock radiating off the staff as he passed.He pushed open the heavy door to the CEO's office.The room was huge, dominated by a massive desk. The wall behind the desk was entirely glass, overlooking the city he had arrived in just a week ago.Ishika was standing by the window, her back to him. She was on the phone, her voice tight. "I don't care about the merger delay. Fix it."She hung up the phone and turned around slowly. She didn't look angry. She looked... stunned."Veer?" she whispered. "What are you doing here?"Veer walked to the desk and placed the cloth-wrapped tiffin box gently on the cold mahogany surface."You forgot your lunch," Veer said simply. "And I know you do not eat the canteen food. You said it tastes like plastic."Ishika looked at the tiffin box, then at him. She walked around the desk, closing the distance between them. She could hear the murmurs of the staff outside the glass walls, wondering who this boy was who commanded the Ice Queen."I told you to stay home," she said, but there was no heat in her voice."I know," Veer said, looking down at his shoes. "But a husband must feed his wife. My grandfather said that a hungry wife is an angry household."Ishika let out a short, breathless laugh. She reached out and touched his cheek. "You came all the way here... through the city... to the tallest building in the world... to give me roti?""It is Aloo Gobi today," Veer said, his face brightening. "And I added extra chilies because you like spicy things, even if you don't admit it."Ishika looked at this innocent, brave boy who had stormed her corporate fortress armed only with a lunchbox. He had humiliated her security, silenced her gossiping staff, and melted her heart, all in five minutes.She grabbed his hand and interlaced her fingers with his."Sit," she commanded, pulling a chair over next to hers. "Open it."Veer sat down, carefully unwrapping the cloth. The smell of home-cooked spices filled the sterile, cold office. It was warm earth in a room of steel.Ishika sat down in her CEO chair. She didn't care about the emails piling up. She didn't care about the mergers. She took the metal spoon he offered her and took a bite.It was perfect.Outside the glass walls, the entire office was watching. They saw the terrifying Ishika Raichand sitting next to a boy in a sweater, eating out of a tiffin box, wiping a piece of potato from the corner of her mouth with a napkin he held out.Ishika swallowed and looked at him, her eyes dark and possessive."You are never coming here again," she said firmly. "It is too dangerous. The traffic, the people...""But you liked the food?" Veer asked anxiously."I loved the food," she admitted. "And I love that you came."She leaned over and kissed him—right there in front of the glass wall, in front of the hundred employees who could see everything.It wasn't a peck. It was a claim. A stamp of ownership.When she pulled back, Veer was red as a tomato."Now," Ishika said, picking up another spoonful. "Tell me about this temple again. The one with the smiling god. I have time."