A foodie affair

It was a Woman’s Day gift. And a great one at that. Unexpected and delayed, but wholeheartedly appreciated. So much so, that an entire weekend trip was planned to make it happen.

It had been almost four years since I last ate his perfectly cooked dish of lasagna. I had missed the chance previously due to a communication/timing gap. Talking about chance, I’m also convinced his skill at cooking lasagna is the reason his wife is still married to him.

We reached their place at about 11 AM; way before lunch time because patience and good food don’t go together. As soon as we entered the apartment, we couldn’t help but get a whiff of the melting cheese from the kitchen. My plus one at the luncheon, looked at me with brightened eyes and childish smile, confirming he already loved whatever this afternoon was to hold.

The wine was poured and laughs began to break in the house. 10 minutes in and the other two couples had reached too. From sophisticatedly seated on the sofa, we had no idea how we ended up on the floor, laughing. The lasagna was ready and we were too, to hog upon it. Conversations were in the air; mostly me sharing all their embarrassing stories with their respective wives. Including the ex-girlfriends and flings. The guys had asked me to cut it out but me being me, went on. It’s only when one of the wives literally left the conversation feeling offended that I came back to my senses.

It was weirdly amusing how differently things had turned out for all of us. From that bachelor pad in Pune to all of them getting married, two of them even having kids, moving countries, me (finally) not being called a kiddo anymore, the change was crystal clear.

I stood there in the balcony, smoking my cigarette and contemplating random stuff. Just when I thought things won’t be the same between all of us because we had different lives, a huge pipe splashed water on me. Just like it did years ago. When I hated Holi and had come to their place for shelter. And instead they made sure I celebrated the best (there, I said it!) Holi of my life. Lasagna was their apology gift back then for being such huge assholes.

Perhaps, some things don’t change after all. They are still huge assholes and I still love the lasagna.