Colliding Fates (On Hold)

Chapter 1: Siblings

"Butter naan coming right up,' Dua told the customers with a smile, placing the pencil behind her right ear. Flipping her luscious waist-length  black hair and captivating black eyes, she exuded an air of warmth and grace.

'Sara, hurry up! We are running behind!' yelled Dua to her twin sister, Sara, running into the kitchen.

"I am trying my best!" said Sara, her voice a mixture of determination and a touch of fatigue. Sporting her shoulder-length hair framed her face elegantly, and her enchanting brown eyes. As she stood by the stove, flipping the parathas in the sizzling pan. The delicate glint of a tiny nose ring caught the light as she moved

'It's her engagement tomorrow. How can I ask her to come in today?' Dua said, her eyes softening.

'That's why I said we should hire extra help for today,' said Sara, rolling her eyes and handing baked parathas and butter chicken to Dua for the customers.

'That will cost extra, and the electricity bill is high this month,' Dua said, making a face and started arranging the dishes in a prettier way to please the customers.

"It would be because we are using a new oven. Our business is growing, Dua, so we have to get new appliances to make our work easier," said Sara, looking at her sister rearranging the dish. "Our income would match our expenses if you would stop giving our food away for free," Sara said, stressing the word 'free' and removed her grey dupatta as it was getting in the way of her cooking.

'Sara, they are children, hungry children,' said Dua, finally turning towards her sister. 'And they looked at me like this,' continued Dua, blinking her eyes filled with sympathy.

'And that look will close our restaurant one day,' exclaimed Sara, taking the pencil from Dua's ear and striking her head with it, turning around to mash the potatoes.

"Sara, it will help with our goodwill,"  said Dua, taking the boiled potatoes to peel.

"It will help with our goodwill if you go and serve our customers at the right time," Sara said, taking the potato from Dua's hand and signaling her to take the dishes to the customer.

Dua gave an 'I forgot about that' face, biting her tongue, and ran out the door with the dishes.

Sara shook her head slightly, smiling, as she looked at her running twin sister.

Sara and Dua started the "Masala Grill" restaurant a year ago. They began by delivering home-cooked meals and catering food at events. They pulled savings from parents, loans and worked extra shifts at restaurants, retail stores, and hotels, among other jobs. Sara, being a skilled cook, worked her magic in the kitchen. Taking online classes at a culinary school only enhanced her skills. On the other hand, Dua worked her magic in marketing, advertising, and finance, having earned a business diploma through night school.

Both sisters worked hard to move from delivery to a restaurant. Their space can seat 20 to 30 people, with multicolored chairs to appeal to the customers with the wooden ceiling and plants on the right side. They offer a variety of desserts such as muffins, cookies, and a new flavor of the month created by Sara. Breakfast, lunch, dinner based on Indian cuisine.

Dua came up with the name "Masala Grill" due to Sara's exceptional skills in marinating chicken with different flavors and barbecuing and grilling it only on the weekends. Dua recognized this as their specialty, which set them apart from other restaurants.

Striking her head, Sara remembered that she still hadn't started prepping the food for Radha's engagement. "I don't know how I will pull off catering food for an engagement with no extra help," Sara wondered out loud, while smashing the boiled potatoes.