The Grocery List

Priya and Sana sat at the kitchen table on the first of the month, a spreadsheet glowing between them. Rent had gone up, and for the first time their money felt genuinely tight.

"We need a real budget," Priya said, opening a fresh column. "Not a vague one. A number for everything." They listed rent, wifi, transport, food, and the small joys they refused to give up entirely.

The biggest expense, after rent, turned out to be groceries — far more than either had guessed. Neither cooked much, so takeout and last-minute snacks had quietly drained them all year.

Sana pulled up a grocery app and found a discount on staples if they bought once a week instead of daily. Rice, lentils, oil, and eggs dropped noticeably in price when they stopped shopping while hungry.

There was even a small windfall. A subscription Priya had forgotten to cancel issued a refund after she finally called and complained — enough for a month of vegetables, appearing like a gift.

By the third week, they had turned frugality into a kind of game. Sana came home one evening holding up a sack of oranges like a trophy. "Two kilos," she announced. "A total bargain — the vendor was closing and practically gave them away."

They ate oranges for days and laughed about it. The month that had frightened them ended with a little left over — not much, but proof that the spreadsheet, and each other, had carried them through.