In the afternoon, Raj continued to work diligently on his thesis, reviewing his research notes and refining his arguments.
Before leaving the office at the end of the workday, he called Penny. "Honey, how was your day at work?"
"Still the same boring routine," Penny replied with a sigh, her voice carrying a note of weariness.
"That's okay, let's relax tonight and unwind. What would you like to eat for dinner?" Raj asked warmly, a smile evident in his tone. "I'll stop by the supermarket to pick up some ingredients and cook for you myself."
"Let's see... we had steak the day before yesterday, and pizza yesterday. Tonight, I'm craving something different—maybe fried rice, fried dumplings, and General Tso's chicken." Penny paused thoughtfully before adding, "Do you think you can manage all that?"
"Absolutely, no problem at all," Raj said confidently. "Just come over to my place after you get off work."
After ending the call and preparing to leave for the day, he politely declined Howard's invitation. "I won't be able to join you for Thai food tonight."
"Why not? Do you have a date with a beautiful woman?" Howard asked with obvious curiosity.
"That's right. I'm going to cook dinner for Penny myself," Raj replied with a pleased laugh.
"Dude, are you already becoming 'henpecked'?" Howard teased, shaking his head in mock disapproval.
"This is called being romantic and thoughtful," Raj countered, rolling his eyes good-naturedly. "Anyway, I can't chat anymore—I need to go buy the ingredients."
"Oh, Raj, you're going to spoil her completely like this," Howard said with resignation in his voice.
Raj then drove to Costco, where he carefully selected all the ingredients and seasonings he would need for the meal. He also picked up two bottles of red wine, a dozen beers, and two scented candles to set the mood for the evening.
After returning home with his purchases, he encountered Maria, the cleaning lady who was in the middle of tidying up his apartment.
When she noticed Raj entering, she merely glanced in his direction without offering a greeting, continuing with her work as usual.
"Hi, Maria!" Raj called out cheerfully, offering her a friendly smile. His sudden greeting visibly startled her.
Until now, Raj had never been able to speak a single word in Maria's presence, rendered mute by his selective mutism around women. He had always communicated with her through notes or gestures, like someone who couldn't speak at all.
Now that he had spoken to her so naturally, she was understandably shocked.
Maria stopped what she was doing and looked him up and down with wide eyes, studying Raj in complete surprise. "God bless, you can actually talk now!"
"Of course I can," Raj said with a nod, his confidence evident. "Please, have a seat for a moment. I need to discuss something important with you."
"What is it?" Maria asked warily, sitting down on the edge of the sofa and looking at Raj with visible anxiety, clearly worried about what he might say.
"Well, here's the situation," Raj began, choosing his words carefully. "My parents have cut off my credit card, and from now on I'll need to support myself financially. Unfortunately, that means I can no longer afford to keep you on as my housekeeper."
As his domestic worker, Maria had been helping him clean his apartment once a week and occasionally picking up groceries for him. Her monthly compensation was one thousand dollars.
While this price was quite reasonable for the services she provided, it had now become an unaffordable luxury for Raj given his new financial circumstances.
Because he is an assistant research professor at the California Institute of Technology, his annual salary is only $85,000. After deducting federal and state taxes, social security, and other mandatory contributions, he nets approximately $60,000—barely $5,000 per month.
However, his consumption habits are extravagant. Beyond essential expenses like rent in Pasadena, medical insurance premiums, utilities, groceries, clothing, internet service, gasoline, and phone bills, he indulges in numerous discretionary purchases: vintage comic books, the latest video games, gourmet cooking classes, and tickets to Comic-Con and other pop culture conventions.
He even drives to Beverly Hills for haircuts at an upscale salon, spending two hundred dollars each visit when a local barbershop would charge a fraction of that amount.
For years, he has relied on financial support from his parents back in India to maintain this lifestyle. Without their monthly supplements, he would never be able to afford such luxuries on his modest academic salary.
This long-term dependence on parental funding has created an unfortunate dynamic: he has never achieved true financial independence, and his parents feel entitled to exert control over his personal decisions, particularly regarding his relationships and life choices.
Several of his ex-girlfriends complained about this very issue, calling him a "mama's boy"—a grown man still spoiled and coddled by his parents, unable to stand on his own two feet.
So Raj finally decided to change everything, starting with drastically cutting his extravagant lifestyle.
Maria was visibly stunned when she heard what Raj was telling her—that he could no longer afford her housekeeping services.
To be honest, working for Raj had been remarkably good for her bottom line.
His personality was gentle and accommodating, never demanding or picky about her work. Even when she cut corners or didn't complete tasks thoroughly, he never criticized or complained.
Besides, despite being a doctor of astrophysics, he was somewhat oblivious to practical matters—endearingly goofy, really.
Every time she went grocery shopping for him, she inflated the receipts, pocketing an extra six or seven hundred dollars each month. He never questioned the numbers, never asked for change, never seemed to notice the discrepancies.
An employer this trusting and naive was extraordinarily rare—a golden goose she had hoped to keep for years.
Unfortunately, that arrangement was now coming to an abrupt end.
"I know this news must be difficult for you, but please believe me, there is really nothing I can do about it. I simply cannot afford to keep you on," Raj said with genuine regret in his voice.
Maria sighed heavily and stood up from the couch. "Okay, then settle my wages for this month, and I won't come here anymore."
"Yes, of course." Raj nodded and went to retrieve his checkbook, carefully calculating what he owed her and writing out the final payment.
"Okay, goodbye then." After accepting the check and tucking it into her purse, Maria turned toward the door without further ceremony.
"Wait—the key. Please leave the apartment key," Raj called out, stopping her just as she reached for the doorknob.
Maria froze mid-step, her hand instinctively tightening around her handbag. She turned back, feigning surprise, then reluctantly retrieved the key from her bag with obvious irritation and placed it in Raj's outstretched palm.
Internally, she cursed her bad luck. She had been planning to keep that key and return when Raj was at the university, helping herself to some of his possessions—electronics, perhaps, or anything else she could quietly sell.
With his absent-minded personality and trusting nature, he might not even notice items going missing for weeks, if ever.
But now, with the key surrendered, all those plans evaporated into nothing.
After Maria left, Raj began to cook, his mind occupied with thoughts of his upcoming move. The house he currently rented was prohibitively expensive—even more so than the two-bedroom apartment shared by Leonard and Sheldon. He had decided to downsize to a more affordable single room, which would significantly reduce his monthly expenses and ease his financial burden.
As he prepared the final dish—a batch of golden fried dumplings—a knock sounded at the door. Raj quickly turned down the heat on the stove, wiped his hands on a kitchen towel, and walked over to answer it. Opening the door, he found Penny standing on his doorstep.
"Hi, welcome!" he greeted her warmly, his face breaking into a smile.
"So this is where you live," Penny said as she stepped inside, her eyes scanning the room with genuine curiosity. The space was filled with vibrant colors and decorative elements that gave it a distinctly exotic atmosphere—quite different from anything she was used to. "Wow, it's really interesting in here."
"Yes, feel free to look around," Raj said pleasantly. "I just have one more dish to finish up. It'll be ready soon."
"Okay," Penny nodded, beginning to explore the room. Her attention was quickly drawn to his dresser. "Oh my God, your cosmetics are way more expensive than mine!"
"Please, help yourself to anything you'd like," Raj offered generously.
"Really? That's so sweet, thank you!" Penny's face lit up with delight. She promptly selected a bottle of high-end liquid foundation, a tube of BB cream, and a package of moisturizing face masks, tucking them into her purse.
Meanwhile, Raj hurried back to the kitchen to complete his preparations. He plated the dishes carefully and arranged the dining table with thoughtful touches: two wine glasses, elegant candles that cast a soft glow, and delicate paper cranes he had folded himself. He also set up his iPod, queuing up Kelly Clarkson's romantic ballad "Songbird" to play softly in the background.
"Honey, dinner is ready," Raj announced, turning to face her with an inviting smile.
"Wow, this is so fancy! Why did you go to all this trouble?" Penny asked, clearly surprised and touched by the elaborate setup before her.
"Because I want to give you the best experience possible," Raj replied sincerely. He stepped forward and gallantly pulled out her chair. "Please, have a seat."
"Thank you," Penny said, settling into the chair with a pleased expression. In all her dating experiences with various boyfriends, this was the first time anyone had treated her with such princess-like care and attention.
"These paper cranes are beautiful—you're really talented with your hands," Penny remarked admiringly as she examined his handiwork. She then sampled one of the dishes he had prepared. "Oh my God, this is incredible! Better than most professional chefs I've tried. What's your secret?"
"Love," Raj answered with a gentle smile. "Love is the secret ingredient. Now, let's make a toast—cheers!"
"Cheers!" Penny echoed, raising her glass to meet his with a warm smile.
After they had savored every course of the delicious dinner, Raj dimmed the lights and started playing the romantic drama "The Lake House" on DVD—the one starring Sandra Bullock and Keanu Reeves. The poignant, time-crossing love story between the two main characters deeply moved Penny, stirring her emotions.
As the romantic tension built on screen, it sparked a similar electricity between them. When passion reached its peak, there was no holding back, and the evening naturally progressed into a night of intimate connection.
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