She is dead.

"Hello Ella." Maya smiled, "See you later?" She said as she entered her home.

"Yeah, sure." Ella also went inside her place.

...

As soon as Maya got back, she heard a notification tone from her phone. "Who is messaging me right now?" She said as she checked it.

"It is Lucas... So he will be reaching before me." Maya read his message and replied him back with her arrival timings.

"Anyways... the question of the hour!! What should I eat!!?" She spent entire half an hour by herself without being productive.

Just then, *Ding- dong*, her doorbell rang.

"Yes?" Maya asked as she opened the door.

Ella was standing there with a covered bowl in her hand.

" Hey! Actually I had just made something, and I wanted to share with you. I hope you have not eaten anything yet." She pushed the bowl forward to Maya's hands.

"...." Maya did not know how to react. Should she trust someone whom she had just met and badmouthed about, and that too in front of that very person?

"I guess it doesn't matter, I can treat it as fan service." Maya shrugged as she thought.

"Umm.. Thanks. You want to come in?" Maya asked as she took the bowl from Ella.

"Yes! Since you are the one inviting me, why not!?" Ella said as she was about to sit on the couch.

"...." Maya was speechless. She had asked it purely out of courtesy, who had expected that Ella would come in even before replying to her!?

Maya kept the dish brought by Ella on the kitchen countertop as she came to Ella with a glass of water. "Would you like anything else?"

"Since you are asking me, yes! haha. In fact the serving I have brought for you is actually for two people! Both of us can eat together!"

"....." She was speechless again. "Just a second, I will bring it out." Maya said with a smile she could barley raise.

"What an uninvited guest!" She thought as she went into the kitchen. "Well I can not blame her, she looks a bit too friendly to know her own faults. Anyways, I should not make a problem out of it, after all she is the one who made this."

Soon Maya and Ella sat together as they ate the rice made by Ella.

"Mhmm... it is really tasteful! Unlike the one I had made. Haha!" Maya said between their talks. Both of them were casually talking about different things as they ate.

"Yes, this fried rice was actually taught to me by my step- mom! I did not know that one day because of her I would be so interested in cooking." Ella said.

There was something different in her expression, something which Maya could not decipher. She thought that maybe, it might be because she mentioned her step mother. She wanted to ask about it but, realized that they were not that close for her to be asking Ella so personal questions.

Ella, who was constantly observing Maya's reactions, clearly noticed this change and said, "You don't need to hesitate if you want to ask anything. If you are thinking about my step- mother, well... she is dead. She died several years back, I think it has already been six to seven years."

The way Ella said all this so casually, made Maya feel even more weird. Before she could reply with anything, her phone rang.

Since it was kept on the table itself, even Ella was able to see the caller's name, "Mr. Body Heater?" She asked as she handed the phone to Maya.

"Oh he is just a friend." Maya replied with a smile to cover her embarrassment as she thought, "I should change his name soon. It may cause a lot misunderstandings!"

"Hello?" Maya said as she checked the time. "It's so late now. What's up?"

Aiden asked her about when was she going to the Capital.

"You already know about it? I guess it must be Sofia, right? That girl really has a big mouth!"

Both of them talked for a couple of minutes, "Yes... hmm, good night Aiden."

All this time, the girl who was unconsciously ignored by Maya, was just sitting and looking at her empty plate while her hand was skillfully playing with her fork.

She raised an eyebrow when she heard that the person Maya was speaking to, who was saved as 'Mr. Body Heater' was actually named Aiden.

She then thought, "Both of them might be totally different people, but I don't know why, I have a feeling that this 'Aiden' is the one whom I know."

Maya, who did not know of anything, kept her phone back as she asked Ella, "Are you done? It is quite late as well." She was indirectly hinting Ella that maybe it was time for her to leave now.

"Hmm? Yes sorry! Yup I should leave now, but before that can I know where to keep these used plates?"

"Oh there is no need for that! I will put them back later on. As for your bowl, I will return it to you after it gets washed, okay?"

"Anytime, no need to rush. May I know where the washroom is?"

"Yeah, let me take you there." Maya showed Ella her way and then she went inside her room.

When Ella came out, noticed that Maya was standing there with something in her hands.

"....?" She asked from her questioning gaze.

"Well I remember you had asked me for my autograph earlier. So... here it is. Thanks for the wonderful dinner by the way!" Maya said as she handed it to Ella.

"Aww thank you so much!!" She said with a beautiful smile on her face.

As Ella walked out, she asked Maya, "So when can we meet again? Because I will be leaving soon."

"Well, I will be going to the Capital and a few days, maybe after that?"

"Okay! And... can I get your number?" Ella asked as she smiled shyly.

"Yaa sure!" Maya laughed at her shyness.

Aftet they exchanged their phone numbers, Maya closed her door as she thought, "Such a cute girl!"

Unknown to her, the cute girl she was thinking about had a complete change in her expression as she went out.