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I Believe you would specially understand a story much better if you read it after a while. In this case, I'll be reading CW after a gap of 3 years. From 2013 to 2016, a lot can change in someone's life. I was a teen then, now I'm on the threshold of my 20s. The maturity might have seeped in. I think now, maybe I would understand much better and may see it in a different light. I know I will understand the story a bit differently when after a gap of 10 years too.

Which leads to me to wonder why? Why does your story brings out a different understanding every time? I believe I've experienced that very feeling when I read HP/ Pride and prejudice/ little women etc. The answer is actually simple. You not tell a story, you actually weave a whole meaning to the emotions of the plot. Making the reader understand the need for words. You make them understand humans as well. Give the whole new perspective in the minds of other human beings, in turn making this ever lasting connect with your stories. Very few writers have this ability. That is why, we love you. Never ever doubt yourself. Only a few writers actually know how to do it. And, trust me I've read a lot of shallow romantic stories and your stories in the proverbial way donot hold a candle against them. I don't want to demean them, but just want you to know even if they might be more popular, you still have an edge over all of them. You can do what others can't do. You make us have this emotional, physically and spiritual connect with the stories which compels your readers to keep coming back to them, time after time.

The Prologue was one of the best ones I've ever the fortune to read. The intensity, the need to achieve zenith surpassed the need to forget sanity. The way you defined their proximity, their sense of right and wrong, their apparent disregard for validation and judgment yet still keep the importance of the same in the underlining established the start of something promising. The whole piece was commendable. The intensity was tangible. I Couldn't help myself but share these very quotes with you -

"The dam had fallen. Everything that had ever simmered in secret was now open and she was powerless against it. The need to soothe, to save, to resuscitate was much stronger than the morality of their situation"

"They sank to the floor, not caring that the floor was hard and cold. The heat from their bodies was enough to take care of everything else."

"...need overtaking all her senses and leaving behind pure woman who was responding to the man in her arms in the most primal way known to mankind."

"Time was short and sanity threatened to return any moment"

"The fire had been built and it had to reach the peak it craved. They took each other to heights that helped them forget everything else except the act of physical communion and the ultimate fulfillment that they knew they would find with each other in a way that would make every past and future experience pale in comparison."

"And when it finally ended, they wouldn't be friends. They hadn't been strangers. They weren't lovers. They were two people bound by something and neither of them knew what."

Phew!!! Meera, I believe you yourself know the importance of a Kick ass prologue. It paves the way for the interest of the readers. This one just does that only!!! You had us hooked from the word go ^_^

3 years after that night. Arnav has moved into a shell. A recluse. It is funny how when you know the mystery, you are able to see and the understand the many hints the author had actually dropped throughout the tale. Shyam seems a kind person. Sticking around his best friend, despite the apparent disregard from the very other person. However, a true friend will never ever let their friend slip into darkness. Actually, I believe no human would allow any other human to willing self-destruct themselves. That is humanity.

The 2nd chapter was actually very touching. Even Arnav realised that he had to work now. Though it seemed that he was still wrapped in time. The memories, it seemed was only what he craved. How one wishes to be live and re-live one moment. How one wishes to die in that very moment coz one feels that he no longer requires anything else in this world. This feeling is oddly familiar to all of us. We all love reliving these recollections of our beloved past. On a loneful evening, with a cup of coffee and faint music in the background one reminisces those lost times. However, what catches us is how Arnav fluctuates between La and Khushi. His apparent inclination towards sadism is moving.

Anjali and Shyam are both sweet souls. But they are still helpless. Atleast, arnav is considerate to some extent and is thankful to both of them.

"He closed his eyes and waited for the images in his head to settle down. They didn't but he couldn't deny that they were now blurred. It scared him."

Khushi's self imposed exile. She is a mystery. Like Arnav too. Nonetheless, you need to tell us why is Aditi an important character in all your stories. Unveil the mystery. I like how both of them share an easy comradeship and how they both look out for each other. Though, Aditi is the younger one she plays the role of an elder protective sister to the core. It is nice knowing humans like these exist. Khushi also appreciates the concern. It also draws out an important conclusion too i.e. that however much you may try to outrun from your past, it still creeps up on you. You can never really get away from the shadows of who you are and what you are. Escape is never possible. At the end, avoidance is a temporary solution.

"Morning brought with more peace than the night had left behind" - the reader in me always appreciates the poetic way in which you craft your words.

The premonition. Seems like coincidences were too many for both of them to remain unnoticed. I think we all feel that heavy feeling that says that something is going to happen, that will change everything.

Aditi is again someone whose patience is commendable. They both reached out to each other in moment of need and ended up becoming an important person in the other person's life. Why they met is destiny. Why they stuck around is coz of relativity. Two lost souls found each other paving the way for a life long friendship.

"She wondered if she would like Mumbai for its impersonal generosity or if she would miss Delhi for the good heart beating beneath its intrusiveness."

"And in Khushi's world, acts of help and kindness didn't have a time stamp on them."

Nk and Khushi sure have a very beautiful friendship. The kind any person craves of. The kind which actually about being there for each other through thick and thin. A pure relationship. I admire the bond of trust and support they share. Khushi came across in the chapter as someone who was very selfless. Keeping someone's needs before her. A stark contrast to Payal's character. Who seems like the I-dont-give-a-f**k-about-anyone character.
On the other hand, NK's character was pleasing to read. What are the odds that two such beautiful souls would meet each other and be there for each other. It is called a good Karma.

Their first meeting seemed so silly yet cute. Aaah, trust me I would have been speechless to if I had to make contact with ASR *_*. Hotness alert!!! :D. Seems like a very cute pair. A nerdy/spectacle wearing girl with a hottie in toe. ^___^ Romance toh banta hai.

Khushi's guilt about the whole fiasco of cheating with Asr when he had a wife is completely understandable. Both of them have their own burden to carry, without knowing the life of each other's for doing it. If I look from Khushi's perspective, any honest soul, no slash that, any good soul would direct this hatred towards themselves. Then again guilt is not an easy emotion to live with. Specially for a pious soul like Khushi, with a defined sense of wrong and right.

Then if look from arnav's POV one could but see how he was so confused. He wanted to assuage her guilt, wanted to talk & clear things out. Yes, all of this. However, it doesn't happen. Urgent matters that required attention allowed other matters to take a backseat eventually allowing confusions to shape into misunderstandings.

The two souls who unknowingly had fallen in love, knowingly committed a sin,when in reality everything was different. In the great scheme of things, all of it was justified. Then again, I remembered a dialogue from Jab Tak Hai Jaan- "Har ishq ka ikk waqt hota hai".. Things weren't just meant to be at that time. Probably the need to be at a distance was much more important. Distance makes the heart grow more fonder. Don't they say.

"If he didn't talk to you, he didn't talk to me." She said with a smile. It was a favorite

"...carefully arranged carelessness in that query." I don't know if this falls under the category of Oxymorons, but I couldn't help myself from sharing it. Like Khushi even I was smiling :p

"..talking to someone who listened without judging healed the deepest wounds in the long term even if the short term pain it unleashed was too much to bear." Profound. This sense of sharpness you unleash at your clueless readers is what makes me love you all the more. You just drop the bomb. Just like that.

You always amaze me with you effortlessness you unravel the whole mystery of a character. I've pointed it to many times. You build a plot, you build more suspense and whoosh with just one click you bring out the mystery. I simply love it!!! Though in this case I had already known about NK's sexual orientation but it still caught me off guard when you got done with the mystery.

I admired your views on the whole LGBT society too. Which you carried out through Nk's story. I couldn't help but agree with your words. Someone's personal life and choices are their business not the world. Yet, the cruel hypocrite society living under the pretense of being progressive still makes it hard for people to come out in their true form. Also,in Khushi's state it takes serious guts to do what she did. Not many people can actually take a step like that. Yes, as the story progresses we will know why she did what she did but one can't help but admire her for taking such a bold step. Somebody like NK should be highly indebted to her for just that. Aditi makes perfect sense for saying so. The voice of reason and sanity.
Also, thank you for raising awareness about how TV and Movie industry/showbiz treats these people.

I loved the war of words between NK and Arnav. Hahahaha :D That chapter did pack a punch. How Arnav was avoiding his past, how the other two were desperately trying to make him move on, one couldn't help but actually feel like a near spectator like Shyam through it. Like a third person, making out what was between the lines.

"I have no idea why I feel compelled to put up with your crap but I guess I am just a sucker for gloom" - yes friendship is this.
"He saw the girl flail her arms about wildly as the expressions on her face clearly outlined the excitement in her manner." These power packed words. Wooohhh!!!

The cheeky ASR. The old him is very cool and fun. Anyone couldn't but help themselves but fall in love with him. But, that very ASR when he continues the charade of normalcy, the whole act tugs a chord in our heart. His optimism struck you in the deep. It really is beautiful how he loves her so much.

Payal can be a mean bitch. However, i loved how Arnav handled her. it was amazing the way he dealt with her. I enjoyed the whole verbal communication and couldn't help myself from saying to Payal - In your face!!!!

"Not when they made love for the first time as young adults who had discovered that they wanted each other in ways as old as time." La and arnav are the epitome of happily ever after. With there sweet mushy romance. I love there relationship. Too sad they couldn't spend their lifetime together. But, the tale is about something else. I adore there easy going friendship and love they have.

The beauty about Nk and Khushi's relationship is their willingness to go the extra mile for the other person. Yes, they do get hurt in the process and they know there will be problems but that doesn't stop them from still taking this huge step. That is the foundation of a very selfless relationship. I admire that NK is willing to put so much at stake to bring both of them before each other. Arshi need this. They need a catalyst. Like the first time they met - all thanks to nK, they need to meet now too coz of him only. I love a story which has strong supporting characters.

I feel bad for Gaurav and NK though. I understand the insecurities that both of them had to face. They might come out, people might know their realties but they will never understand them. They will never allow them the normalcy this pair needs. They will never be allowed to be treated as an equal. Judgments will keep on forming. For these very people, it is hard. All we need is to acknowledge them as normal and move on. They don't want to be treated as different. They just want to be treated as just normal beings in love.

" Commitment and loyalty is worth admiring, Sir". Indeed.
Arnav did correctly sum up Khushi's feelings towards him. Only honest people can love honest people.

"...momentary discord was once again brushed under the carpet of their mutual hatred for all things confrontational." You string your words together so easily :')

Khushi self loathing is so tangible. You feel as you if you are the one who destroyed their relationship. Though a lot of misunderstanding are still there, it seems like all in all they still want to some where clear things out. They want an outlet to release the tension. Get a closure.
I also love the easy comradeship that Arnav and Khushi share. Their light hearted banter warming their souls. Their interactions are so pleasant.

"She had smiled then, wistfully even without knowing it." - What must Khushi be feeling. Without even realizing, falling in love with someone who can never be theirs. That wistful yearning in her eyes touches the soul. The most unfortunate love is the love which is unreciprocated. In Khushi's case she fell in love with a guy knowing he was in love wish someone else. That was his charm. His unavailability. Khushi didn't desire anyone. She desired the forbidden. She knew she could never have him, and that allowed her to like him. In the great scheme of things she never anticipated this mess. She never anticipated that moment of weakness. And, definitely not Arnav being the one to take the step.

Nk and Khushi. Finally, they confront each other. Yes, we wonder why someone plays God but we forget that God never comes down from above and helps us. He makes other people to do that very job. And, Nk is needed to bring together the main leads.

The past. Whenever I read it, it leaves me hanging on the what could have beens.
La and Arnav. They pretty much make such a sweet adorable pair. Relationship Goals start from them. In many ways, they were meant to be. On the other hand, I liked how you allowed Khushi and Arnav to meet before time as well. A fleeting glance. The curious ways of fate.

"Something was going to change between them today but for some strange reason, it felt like the most natural next step. He knew things would only become stronger from this day on." Whenever I remember this story, I do remember this line. It is so heart-warming. So pure. So endearing :)

Whenever I read Chapter 18. I'm struck with the melancholy of fate. How it can be cruel yet be a blessing in disguise. How fate is bigger than everything. How Arnav from IPK would say he makes his own destiny and how Khushi would Continue to remind him that he was in the end,a puppet in the hands of the fate. It is true. Whatever Arnav did for La, I believe many people would do the same. To keep the hope alight. Yes, not many would agree with the method but those desperate times cause for desperate measures. Who would not do everything possible to keep that one source of connect with someone they love, and that doesn't mean just someone as a lover. This love is bigger and more wider. Just for that candle to remain burning you would do anything. Arnav there makes me love him. Fall in love with him.

Okay. Yes, I've tears in my eyes. This despondency is tangible. This Arnav is beautiful. His love is admirable. I'm all respect for his ability to keep a sane face for so long. For not asking for sympathy. For dealing his own battles. One word. Respect.

"...it was a good sign; the first step to acknowledging that things had changed, that the need to move on was inevitable".

It is amusing to see how both of them feel the same way about the night. They never wondered why they sought each other that night, but all they feel is the guilt of destroying the other's relationship. Ironic.

"..how did one begin to say goodbye to someone they loved, to someone they had vowed to keep safe and yet failed to" - Arnav. You are... no words to describe my feelings for him.

"The thing with solace was that it faded just as quickly as it built up into a crescendo"..

Yes, one needs to let go. The letting go is the most difficult one. Moving on from some place familiar is difficult. How does one move on from some place which is home. How does one move on. Finally, after a wait of 3 years. Arnav let go the struggle of 5 years. Still standing.
Letting go was never easy.

Fate again had a way by making Khushi land on that very film. The grand of scheme of things.

Aditi and Aman. There romance is also something else. Quite normal. Very cheeky. Funny. Enjoyable.

"She had spent sleepless nights wondering how people dealt with such situations. How did people overcome guilt of such proportions? Did their lives ever go back to normal or did normal itself get redefined to account for the change in one's personality that was bound to occur?" Yes. Even I've given it a lot many thoughts.

To see them moving on, finally taking a turn in that direction is peaceful. Makes me want to shout a deep sigh. 3 years is a long long time. To carry that guilt. Those two tortured souls need their respite.

"They were aware of each other in a way that was inexplicable. Maybe they always had been. Maybe that is why he had sought her out that night.".

"The time for beating around the bush was past, indeed. Yes, he was taking a huge risk but it was one that would force them to move forward from the rut they were stuck in." - Somehow, I admire how these two are fighting this battle of moving on with this unknown force. In some ways or in many, they both want to move on.

"She had smiled again. She almost always had when he talked about Lavanya."
Khushi really respected and looked up to their relationship. She really admired them. The unknown wistfulness remained, but it was overshadowed by the respect for commitment. If this not an honest soul, what is?

"Have you never been in a situation where someone just wouldn't listen to what you had to say and there was nothing except physically restraining them that you could try?"
Many a times, I really feel that you are somehow the writer of IPK. I mean you explained this!

"He couldn't let how he felt now get in the way of what they needed to resolve before he could even consider the option."

I just can't help sharing your words. There is unique quality in all of them.

"This was not her, the bitter woman who hurled insults because she didn't know how to deal with her own wayward emotions." In your own simple words, you bring a whole new light/addition to a character's graph!

"Rain surrounded her, drowning everything in its wake, washing away everything except the scent of his cologne and the warmth of his body against hers." - This..This is what I'm talking about. How easily you are able to allow to form words that mean so much. The beauty that defines the passion that simmered between them. The poetic context of your writings is extremely addictive.

"Something about this man thrilled her and bothered her at the same time." - Trust Meera to play with the right words.

"She who had always talked through every minute of her day. She who felt the need to fill every silence with words because that was the only way she connected with people"

Ch-32! It surely gave me the goosebumps. While the chapter start with Aman and Aditi was very light hearted, the last bit about Khushi discovering all the reality was too much. Like her, I could feel the raw feeling of coldness that swipes the whole body. Goosebumps. The sudden dip in heartbeat. This finally brings about an end to a whole lot of misunderstandings pertaining to that one night that changed everything.

"Was it even humanly possible for anyone to deal with so much pain so effortlessly?" - yes, a question I ask from you. Is it possible. How did Arnav make it possible?

"Aman, his stoicness and solidity winning over Shyam's effusiveness and warmth".

"The one that offered support without questioning, without words? By just being him." - I really like Aman. No wonder Aditi and Him make a great pair.

The whole mix and match of the days was fun. Completely making me smile and laugh with the way. In the end, their goal remained the same.

"It was strange how plain acquaintances promised to be something a lot more lasting in just one conversation". Couldn't agree more.

"Given into the desire to be held like everyone yearned to be held at least once in their lifetime, the need to feel the warmth of an embrace, the searing heat of a kiss"

"I have lived with her for longer than I have lived without her."

Aditi felt her heart twist at the simple statement" Same.

"However, it didn't miss either of their keen eye for observation that there had been hardly a moment of silence even after the two of them had in-explicitly agreed to stay away from the two other names that had been secretly acknowledged as catalysts for Aditi and Arnav's current date".

"And then the need to change the topic, to see his cousin squirm was suddenly just as powerful as it had been when they were teenagers". I love this funny Arnav. Chilled out.

"The answer was simple and finite. And in that moment, a ripple broke through, disturbing the stillness that had been deceiving the world for so long."

"There was a sense of anticipation and anxiety in the way they were aligned with each other."

"It was a promise of something she didn't even know she was waiting for."

"Loss of a spouse, the guilt of cheating, pretend marriage..the two of them had too much baggage weighing them down. They need a break, a change in setting." The two did deserve a break :p

"She never liked people who abused sun glasses by wearing them all the time, especially film stars. It didn't help that she didn't really understand how dark glasses were supposed to completely render them unrecognizable when all they did was hide the truth of their innermost emotions and nothing else." Wohhh..That was deep. And, an interesting thought.

"..the forced stagnation and dismissal of the undercurrents that defined what they shared, pushing her to a corner that made her want to fight back and run away at the same time, as always."

When I highlight your words, my only reason to do so is to make your realise how marvelous you are. You writings and play of words deserve a pat! It is to make you remember that whenever you doubt yourself, it is your duty to come back to these very words and seek reassurance that you my dear have something special, that not many have.

" And it was not Lavanya who he realized he was answerable to any more. That it might be someone else whose emotions had him wrapped up like a tight wound coil waiting to snap, tore at him. " - hahhahahaha. The stark contrast is there for all of us to see.

I couldn't help but wonder why they were not discussing the elephant in the room. Almost all the times, one of them always backs out. It is hard. Like Aditi pointed. Too much baggage. Where to start. Where to apologize. Where to pin-point that among all those moments that were shared, were they all real? Too much that one wishes to just leave it all and get on with everything else.

"Why did you let me make love to you?""
Finally, the confrontation. Finally, they faced their demons. The water was way above the bridge. Huh. There was too much angst and intensity there. It excited the hell out of me. There underlying love and passion was so palpable. It was too much to into. Simultaneous combustion.

That song - Kal Ho Na Hooo
"It wasn't a song she particularly liked. No, that wasn't true, she realized. She just hadn't ever paid attention to the song."
Even though Khushi means these words, but they couldn't help but describe what I too felt for the song. Before whenever I listened to the song, I used to rush/switchover to the next song. However, when you used this song in CW, and when I read it, from there onwards I have loved this song. The lyrics are so beautiful. That I couldn't but help fall in love with the song. It now means a lot to me. I love the 2nd stanza. The song is motivational and like a breath of fresh air. A morning song. A song for a new day.

"Them. Now. This moment.

Nothing else mattered."

Have you ever considered writing for TTT, the facebook page. I know you would rock there.

"The conversation was clear, precise, the unspoken words promising to hold on to the night that stretched before them, of letting memory take a new course, of replacing a night of solace and seeking into one of fire and flames."

"How he always knew exactly what she wanted to hear, she would most likely never know but those few words were all she wanted to hear, all she had dared to hope for all evening and in another lifetime that seemed like a piece of imagination now."

"They tasted each other, like journeymen finally discovering the elixir of life they had only sampled very briefly once a very long time back, the poison they had been searching for ever since"

"On a moonlit night flanked by fire, water, air and the earth, he had finally realized what was more important than the guilt they battled with, the fear they felt in their hearts. The past was a truth they couldn't shy away from but the future was free, blank like the sand on the beach which was still waiting for the ocean to douse the fire the sun had lit earlier in the day."

There consummation scene was so remarkably written. You portrayed their love-making with the reverence it fully deserved. Their journey to gain mutual ecstasy was written with such maturity and dignity making it among my most favorite loves scenes ever. Meera, there was an impeccable quality behind those words. One couldn't but help fall in love with the words. Words like these define the whole definition of making love.

"I love you.

She let the words remain unspoken just like she had on a night before.

Forever was never hers. But she didn't want it anymore. Not if it meant never feeling what she did at the moment."

"The sound of the zip being pulled back on, almost final in the muted breathing of two souls struggling to find a new dawn."

"Forever was an elusive dream reserved for the elite few in the world, ones who had not been beaten and weathered by life and its vagaries."

I loved the calm acceptance of Lavanya's importance in Arnav's life by Khushi. The way she says - that she is a part of his very existence. It had to be that way only. Coz, Khushi fell in love with him for that very reason. That Arnav who valued commitment.

The article was plain despicable. It is one thing to speculate, another to be downright obnoxious. However, there is two sided war in actual. I agree with Aman with this. Journalist write such things because there is market out there where people read such stuff. If you want to avoid such stuff, you have to remove the double standards. Can't blame the media alone. It is quite similar to the Hritik-Kangana case which has became a national topic of debate. People choosing sides whereas

"But she couldn't deny that the feeling had been liberating, knowing that she would never have a real chance with him and that there would be no reason to expect anything from life again and set herself for disappointment in the process."

"And in one weak, self-serving moment, she had given him what she could and taken from him what he could offer.'

The coincidences. ..I think it could have better explained. How La was able to draw the exact same thing. So more highlight could be done on that aspect.

Aditi and Arnav crack me up ever damn time. Their sense of humour is very alike and how they both make sure to always one up against each other is hilarious.

I even love the jealous Aman. He and aditi make the opposites attract notion quite believable.

Shyam and Anjali as they step in a new phase of their life brings out a warm feeling in the heart. It seems like every on is moving on.

Finally, the last two and their confession of love rendered me speechless. There could have been no other way it could have been any more special. It was the right time, right place and the right moment. One could even understand Khushi's guilt but then again you explained how it was her cross to bear and she will overcome it, eventually.

Their interviews were a pleasant read. It is fun to see

The epilogue about they all were now together. And, have a made their own little clique in more ways than other.

And, somehow I craved a new epilogue like this. This insecurity of being Khushi, taking La's place. Whatever she felt was only human. However, we all needed to know this specific aspect about her personality. Whether she was okay. Whether she dealt with her demons or not. How she did so. In which capacity did Arnav allow her that chance. What was his role in making her feel safe in the knowledge that the man who she was in love with is not comparing her with the woman he was always in love with.

The way Arnav dealt could not have been better. I was spell bounded with the whole set up. For a minute there, I was jealous of Khushi, like every other woman there would have been. To be in that position of being showered with unadulterated love leaving no space for any doubts. Arnav could not have used any better method to dispel her unnamed insecurities. It was the perfect end to the whole story. A perfect conclusion to the story of two lost lovers who came a long way. A journey that may have felt more than a millennium.

Gail and Lavanya's conversation was strangely therapeutic. To know La wanted him to move on. To move ahead. And, to allow him that chance to live.
It is hard to be the one to be left behind. To make that hard choice to live on. Being dead is easy, but being alive is a journey. And, somehow through that whole chat I could feel that La knew that and wanted only that for him.

And, now to answer your questions- It was hard to pick a piece/favourite. Like the proverbial needle in haystack vali feeling -

# Which character (s) did you feel most strongly about?
Before the chapter of Khushi's past, I was all for Team arnav, but after that it without doubt

#Would you be able to list any three favourite portions of the story?
Being very objective here -

1. The Prologue
2. Chapter 18 (with all the parts); Arnav's part with La. I was struck with melancholy after that chapter. For a precious loss of life and love.
3. Khushi's past. It changed the entire graph of the story. Completely unexpected and adding a whole new dimension to the story.

#Would you be able to list any three least liked portions of the story or portions that you ended up skimming?
No answer. Sorry for sounding biased, but I enjoyed each chapter. Some more than others, but the others were still required.

#What is the one thing you wish you could change about the story (if any)?
Hmmm. Not really.
Whatever happened in the story was made in the way that it brought out the story. Taking away a scene would only steal the essence from it.

Maybe a more ever after, seeing Arshi adopt a baby, Nk and Gaurav coming out and getting married, and La finally finding someone for herself in the other world.