No Sweets Please!

He came in. Prisha sat quietly at her desk, her fingers absentmindedly tracing the edge of her chai cup. The office buzzed with the usual chatter, but her mind was elsewhere—lost in the thoughts of a past she couldn’t seem to shake off. Her heart still ached in places she hadn’t known existed, and as the days passed in her new job, it felt like she was living on autopilot. She looked at him and thought, Relationships? Love? She had given up on those long ago, not believing they were meant for someone like her.

But then, as if on cue, there was this new guy sitting right in front of her—confident, with a smile that seemed to light up her entire room. His eyes swept across the table, before settling on her for a brief second, as if they were magnetically drawn together .

Prisha’s heart skipped a beat, but she quickly forced herself to look away. Not now. Not again.

But her mind was a different story. Oh, so cute, she thought, watching him interacting with him with some suggestions. He had a charm about him—soft yet striking, like a cupcake you couldn’t resist no matter how hard you tried.

She bit her lip, trying to concentrate, but her thoughts kept drifting back to him. Why did it feel like everything she had worked so hard to shut out was creeping back in, one glance at a time?

Prisha had always been drawn to the bold and the intense. She liked her food spicy, her chai strong, and her men, well, a little less sweet. In the past, she had never been one for the “cute” or the soft charm that some seemed to admire. No, she preferred something more… edgy, more complex. But this guy? He was like nothing she’d ever considered before.

There was something about his easy smile, the way his eyes lit up when he spoke, the effortless way he moved through the office that made her heart stutter. She couldn’t explain it—she wasn’t one for the soft, “cute” type. She never had been. But something about him felt different.

Without even realising it, Prisha’s thoughts began to shift, a protective instinct rising within her that she hadn’t expected. 

She found herself observing him, making sure no one took advantage of his newness, ensuring he was settling in well. If anyone spoke too harshly or acted in a way she didn’t like, she would step in, quietly but firmly. She didn’t even know why she was doing it—he wasn’t her responsibility, and yet, in that moment, he felt like he was.

And he didn’t have the slightest clue. The guy was completely unaware of her silent, almost possessive concern, as he wandered through the office, blissfully clueless about the fact that he had already taken root in Prisha’s heart in a way no one ever had before.

Hello Stranger!

So, let me help you all meet my wonderful lady Prisha. Last year, Prisha’s world came crashing down. After years of pouring herself into relationships, of giving more than she ever received, she found herself heartbroken and emotionally drained. The love she had sought so desperately from others was never fully returned, and for the first time, Prisha realised just how much she had been sacrificing her own well-being in the name of love.

Prisha always knew why she was looking out for love. Reason that she could never share with anyone. Growing up, Prisha never had the kind of bond with her mother that many others had. While some people find their best friend in their mother, Prisha never had that emotional safety net. Her mother’s cold distance and expectations from Prisha being an all rounder, left a void, one that Prisha tried to fill with relationships. She believed that if she loved enough, if she gave enough, the love would be returned, and her heart would finally feel whole.

But time and time again, her relationships fell short. They were built on her giving, on her constantly putting others’ needs before her own. And yet, none of them ever filled the emptiness inside. Each breakup felt like a repetition of the same painful cycle—give too much, get too little, and hurt all over again.

Then came the heartbreak of last year. It was the tipping point because this time Prisha just took the most major decision of her life. But it proved to be the final lesson that Prisha hadn’t been able to learn before. She realized that she had been searching for validation and love in all the wrong places. And the hardest part? She had never learned to love herself first.

In an act of courage, Prisha made a bold decision. She left the city, a place filled with too many painful memories, and took a new job in her old town, hoping that a fresh start might help her heal. The city was same but this time Prisha had gone cold. The job was exciting. But what Prisha found most surprising was the quiet space she created for herself. She wasn’t rushing into anything anymore—no more relationships, no more seeking external validation. For the first time in a long while, Prisha felt the luxury of silence.

This silence wasn’t a form of retreat. It wasn’t avoidance or fear. It was introspection—a space to finally reconnect with herself. Prisha learned that, after years of giving, she needed to stop and ask herself: What do I truly need? She had always been a giver, but now, she needed to be a receiver. She needed to receive love, care, and affection—not just from others, but from herself.

Prisha’s silence became a tool for self-discovery. She learned to set boundaries, to recognize her worth, and to understand that she didn’t need to sacrifice her happiness for someone else’s. Slowly but surely, she began to heal—not just from the relationships that had hurt her, but from the idea that love was something she had to earn by giving everything of herself away.

Through this journey, Prisha realized that she had been trying to fill an emotional gap that could only be filled by her own self-acceptance and self-love. Relationships could still be part of her life, but they would no longer define her sense of worth. She could love, but she would never again lose herself in the process.

Prisha stood stronger, wiser, and more content with the woman she was becoming. She understood now that true love starts within. She had learned the importance of balance—of knowing when to give and when to take, and how to value herself in ways she never did before. All was quiet. And then suddenly there entered a “Cupcake!” 🧁