Extremely Slow love

32

A child piped up, "Fighting is a bad thing."

Teena intervened, "In their fights lies their love, kiddo."

Naina, in a playful gesture, hit Teena's leg, exclaiming, "Naina! You broke my leg!"

Meera smiled as Naina stormed off in anger.

Turning to Teena, Meera asked, "Do you and Lalita working together bother Naina?"

Teena shrugged, "She said she doesn't care what we do."

Meera chuckled softly, "Do you three share everything?"

"Yeah, pretty much."

"Everything? You do everything together?"

"We don't always get the chance, but we would if we could."

Meera took a sip of water.

Just then, Lalita arrived and hugged Teena.

"It feels good. By the way, why didn't you come over to my place to crash for the night?" she asked Teena.

Teena teased, "You came over to my place yesterday, didn't you? Didn't have enough fun?"

Meera listened in while cutting the pizza.

Lalita chimed in, "You didn't let me have fun yesterday, so today I'll take over."

Meera intervened, "Hold on, there are kids here, you know?"

Teena retorted teasingly, "What's the problem with talking about food in front of kids?"

"You guys were talking about cooking?"

"What else would we do? Are you okay in the head?"

Meera apologized, "sorry."

Just then, Jay and Aahan stepped out of a Lamborghini. The kids instantly recognized Jay and clamored to take pictures with him. Aahan pulled out his phone and said, "I'll take them." After snapping the photos, he added, "I got this."

Jay asked, "Do you guys wanna hop into the car?"

Everyone enthusiastically agreed, almost bursting Jay's eardrums. Aahan covered his ears, while Teena and Lalita burst out laughing.

"Look, the couple's here," someone exclaimed.

All the kids hopped into Jay's car, grabbing his sunglasses or jacket. Aahan joined them, and some even hopped onto his shoulders. Jay opened up the car's roof, revved up the engine, and took off for a ride.

Naina returned and told Teena, "Send me your files. I'll handle them. Don't spend on CA for now."

Teena replied, "Don't do that. I've got an investment. You focus on the company. It goes against company rules."

"Okay, I'll just add the toppings then," Naina conceded.

As they worked, Naina reminisced, "Being in school was so much fun, you know? I remember those days vividly. I used to get into so many fights with girls. They'd think I stole their pencil or something. Then Aahan came into my life and made it a blast. He turned me into a queen of school. Nobody wanted to be a topper like me because I wasn't into skipping classes, but I wasn't a backbencher either. I had so much fun teasing Aahan."

Teena chuckled, "I was a total backbencher. Always scored around 40%. I just loved skipping classes, did homework for my favorite teachers, got scolded by my mom, and the best part was sneaking off to watch movies."

Meera chuckled along, "My life was pretty simple. I was a middle-of-the-road student, average marks in everything, no crushes, no interest in studying. No bunking, no fun."

"So, you weren't bored?" Teena asked.

"Nope! I developed a habit of reading novels. Books became my friends," Meera replied.

"Anyway, let's change the topic. This is getting too serious. What would you do if someone didn't love you back?" Teena suggested.

Naina laughed, "Shut up! I know she loves you. Silly question. No one would say anything."

Teena persisted, "Why are you getting annoyed? Just tell me how you behave around him."

"I stay by his side as a friend, happy in his happiness. At least I can be her friend if nothing else," Naina responded.

"So, what if the situation was reversed?" Teena prodded.

"It's getting too much," Naina hesitated.

"Come on, be honest," Teena urged.

Naina replied, "Even if I love someone and they don't love me back, I'd still do the same. Their happiness would be mine, too. I know it can be really tough in such moments, feeling jealous, but I'd still try to stay strong and be there for them as a friend."

Teena turned to Meera, asking, "What about you, Meera? What would you do if no one loved you?"

"I'd just walk away from them. I can't control my own feelings. Their happiness wouldn't make me happy because I'm not happy. That's the truth. I get angry even when someone touches them," Meera admitted.

Teena chuckled, "Wow, you're quite aggressive. Hot and cool combination."

"Focus on the pizza, don't ask pointless interview questions! Meera can do whatever she wants. Besides, it's never gonna happen, nobody would reject Meera," Naina interjected.

Teena laughed, "You know it all, don't you?"

Lalita said, "Babe, grandma's leaving."

Naina laughed, "Babe?"

Teena explained, "It's a term of love. Lalita sometimes calls me that."

Meera chimed in with a laugh, "Naina, babe."

Teena laughed, but Naina stormed off in anger.

Teena commented, "You two look great together."

Meera replied, "What's the point of staying together if there's no love?"

Teena retorted, "Then make it happen."

Meera jokingly asked, "Do you have a magic wand or something?"

Teena laughed, "Nope! Make heart fool."

Meera continued, "Isn't Naina dating Lalita?"

"Who? Lalita? Since when?" Teena was surprised.

"she likes Lalita."

"Wait, what are you saying? Lalita and Naina, eww, since when?" Teena replied.

"You're saying there's nothing between them," Meera exclaimed excitedly.

"I don't know about before, but there's definitely nothing now. I said Lalita you should date someone; she isn't interested. She says I am enough for her," Teena said with small smile.

Meera left everything aside and went to find Naina, saying, "So, why do not you two dates then."Teena stopped making pizza and asked, "Lalita and me?"