"It's pretty late, so I can't let you go alone by yourself", Raymond said dismissively.

"It's not got late at all. Plus I am a big girl and I can take care of myself. I will share my Uber trip with you so that you can know about my trip details. You just eat and take rest. That's paramount right now", Akira said and was about to leave the room.

"Can you then at least stay while I eat?", Raymond said and looked up at her.

Akira stood there stupified by his request. She knew he was vulnerable and weak at that instant and so she decided to stand next to him.

"I am sorry for earlier. It was rude of me the way I left", Raymond said, with his head hung low.

"Hey, it's totally fine. You are overthinking", Akira said.

He then looked at the bowl of Mac and cheese and said,

"My mom was an amazing cook. She would take a few basic ingredients and whip out an amazing restaurant ready dish in no time but this was one of my favorites". His hands quivered as he took a spoonful of Mac and cheese and ate it. It was the first time since her mother had passed away, that he was eating it. He always used to avoid anything or any topic related to her, because in his heart he had never come to terms with the fact that she had left him.

He felt like he had a lump in his throat. His voice started cracking. He wanted to say something but he couldn't. His heart was in an emotional turmoil and he was feeling all helpless.

She saw him struggling and came closer.

He didn't know what to do. The pain was pressing hard on him. When he lost his mother he felt like he had hit the rock bottom. But today the pain, the void that he was feeling was unsurmountable like fate had loaded twenty feet of guilt on top of him and on top of that laid rock bottom.

His eyes were brimming with tears. Tears that he wanted to hide from every single person in the world. Tears that he had never shed in front of Katherine as well. But somehow in front of her, he let his gates open. She was someone whom he had hardly known for a week, but he felt like he shared something strong and something deep with her.

Akira couldn't bear to see him that way and inched closer. Her own heart was shredding into pieces after seeing him this way. She just wanted to hug him tight and wipe away his tears but somehow she was restraining herself.

He looked up towards her and there was a sense of despair in those eyes. Upon seeing them she couldn't stop herself. She went even closer and placed her hand on his shoulder and gently caressed him. She didn't say a word but the comfort she gave him couldn't be measured in millions.

He let the torrent of his tears flow endlessly. This was probably the first time ever that he had cried like this after his mother had passed away. He had always hidden behind a shell acting all strong but today the surging pain took away all his inhibitions. He slowly raised his arms and embraced her waist and then slowly pulled her close. She was perplexed for a moment but then she caved in. She wrapped her arms around his neck and his shoulder, running her fingers through his hair while he kept hugging her and cried burying his face in her body.

His tears had soaked through her dress but she didn't care. With every passing moment, he gripped her tighter and had locked her in his arms, like he was scared to let her go. His warm tears were piercing through her skin. She wanted to contain the storm that had been raising inside his chest. She wanted to absorb all his pain and set him free. His feelings and emotions were so pure and true at that moment that she couldn't stop her own tears from running down.

She didn't realize the effect of his pain on her. Streams of tears ran from her eyes and then slowly started landing on him. A few moments later, when he recomposed himself, there was a sudden tactile experience of wetness everywhere. He saw the wet patch on her top and felt the wetness in his hair and realized that she was also crying all along.

He lifted his head up and realized that he had been crying, burying his face on her body and holding her waist like a kid. So he hurriedly released his grip around her.

The moment he removed his hand from her waist with a sudden jerk, Akira realized what she had been doing and hurriedly took a step back. She swept away her tears with immediate swift strokes as she didn't want him to know that she was also crying all day long.

"You ok?" he asked and looked at her fondly.

She nodded without even raising her head up

Raymond sighed and breathed an air of relief. The bundles of emotions which had been chained inside his heart for so long finally got released today. He felt a bit lighter. He was amazed at the power that she had over him. There was something about her presence that made him more human. He looked up at her.

She was still standing there awkwardly and was drawing random shapes on the ground with her foot. Probably she was nervous. The intimacy and closeness that they had shared made her go all scarlet.

"I am sorry, I ruined your clothes", Raymond said looking at her.

"Huh", Akira exclaimed in surprise.

"I mean your top", he said and pointed at the wet patch on her top.

"Oh, this!!! This is totally fine. Don't even worry about it. Unless you have wiped your nose as well".

She said and looked at him with a smile etched on her face.

His eyes twinkled with mirth as he listened to her and a smile plucked at the corners of his mouth.