A friend in need...

"Are you okay Ms. Lakshmi?" Being interrupted by her chain of thoughts, Lakshmi replied: "yes Mr Arjun." He sat on the chair opposite to her, giving her a simple smile. Sitting there, he looked straight into her eyes for some moment. "What?" She asked. "I have the same question-" he was a bit serious while saying this. "What? Nothing." She tilted her head to her left side. He sighed heavily, leaned over to the table, and said: "Look, Lachu. I know you are not okay. When did you stop sharing your problems with me? If you do not feel like sharing it, then it's okay. But if you are feeling not sharing it with me, then it's not okay. You know that I won't judge you. If you are thinking about what I will feel when you share everything with me, then I have only one thing to say... Whatever you feel when I share my problems with you, I will not feel anything beyond that." Holding her hands into his, he concluded: "I will always be there for you, whenever you need me." Lakshmi let out a sigh and said: "what have I done to have you in my life?" Lifting his eyebrows and leaning on the chair, he said: "if you are expecting an answer, then here it is... You've done everything. You have been there when I needed you the most. You have always been a comforting hand to me. And, yeah! You are always like that- to everyone. A shoulder to cry on. So, you got the answer to your question." Smiling, she said "Yes". Looking straight into his eyes she continued: "Thank you for being there in my life". Spreading his hands to his sides as if to hug her, he replied with a warm smile. "You're al...ways welcome".