in the end ~ d. malfoy

Chapter Twenty

𝕵𝐮𝐧𝐞 𝟐𝟎𝟏𝟓

MAYA'S FIRST VIVID MEMORY IS from when she was about four years old.

The three of them stand in the kitchen together, looking through an old, dusty cookbook that looks as though it hasn't seen the light of day in years. Nandini glares at Arjun, who glares back with equal ferocity. Both of them have flour splattered all over their aprons, some of the white mixture landing in Arjun's hair and Nandini's cheek. Three-year-old Maya watches the scene with interest, popping a sweet blueberry into her mouth, as she swings her legs off the counter.

"The recipe says that we need to use dried wild blueberries," argues Nandini, pointing to a particular line in the book.

"But jaan, this cookbook was written in India!," protests Arjun, sounding like a petulant child, "We have fresh blueberries here! Why not use them for the muffins instead?"

"Because it's not in the recipe!"

"Screw the recipe!"

"Language!" replies Nandini, immediately covering the ears of her daughter, who just looks at the both of them, confused, taking another handful of blueberries when her mother isn't looking "I don't want our daughter to pick up any profane means of speech"

"Oh, I bet she already knows more than most her age, " replies Arjun, rolling his eyes, "Considering your tendency to get worked up in the middle of traffic. What was the name you called that poor fellow on the moped? Son of a bloody c-"

"Arjun!!" growls Nandini, eyes flashing in a warning.

That gesture would have intimidated him a few years ago, but after thirty-one months of marriage, Arjun isn't intimidated by his wife in the least, even though they're practically the same height. He just smiles, raising his hands up in surrender.

"Okay, okay!!, " he replies, trying to diffuse the tension in the room, as Nandini glares at him once more, "I'll stop. And we can use the dried blueberries instead. Just promise you'll stop looking at me like you want to kill me,"

Nandini huffs, still mad, turning away and muttering something under her breath. Arjun sighs, wrapping an arm around his wife's slender shoulders and pulling her into his body. He places a tender, sweet kiss on her cheek, whispering words in her ear that make a faint blush appear on her cheekbones. She swats him away, trying to stay mad, but the smile that's starting to make its way across her face is unmistakable.

Her parents are very different from the typical married couple, Maya's noticed this regularly. Both of them look no older than twenty, the sunlit glow of youth still lingering on their faces. There's a maturity in the way they speak to each other, eyes drinking in every word the other says. Arjun and Nandini support each other with zero embarrassment about what others may think of them. Guaranteed, their jobs as a schoolteacher and an auror keep them busy, but they still manage to make time for each other and their daughter, an unconventional, but still happy family.

"Wait. . . .where are the blueberries?" Nandini questions, finding the bowl she'd originally poured them into to be empty. She then looks at Maya with shock, the toddler immediately putting an expression of innocent surprise on her face.

"Maya. . . ." tries Nandini, as Arjun tries to hold in his laughter, "Did you eat these?"

"No. . ." tries Maya, shifting to a more comfortable position on the counter, "Why would I?"