The old house in Mathura had been locked for several years. When Rohan turned the key now, dust curled into the air, heavy and stale. Behind him, Naina shifted uneasily. They had come back only because their father was gone, cremated two days ago on the banks of the Yamuna. "Let's finish quickly," she murmured. The rooms felt smaller than Rohan remembered. The walls bore the stains of dampness, and the paint flaked like old skin. But it wasn't decay that made the air thick…it was memory....

Karan boarded the Shatabdi Express from Jaipur to Delhi with a heavy heart. That evening, the platform buzzed with excitement: families pulling their trolley bags, some children tugging at balloons, and some eating sweets from a mitai box. The vendors shouting - chai… samosa…thanda… chai… thanda…samosa… chai… thanda le lo. Diwali was only a few days away, and the whole country seemed to be rushing home to light up the darkness.   Karan took a seat by the window, breathing a heavy sigh. Amidst...

Mr. Ramesh Nair had always cooked for two. Even now, two years after Radha was gone, his hands instinctively reached for the second...