They’re here.
Papa was at the door, inviting them in.
Uncle and Aunty stepped inside, followed by a man I didn’t recognise.
He had broad shoulders, a groomed beard and was not half bad-looking.
Was that … Parth?
‘Ananya, come back inside,’ Maa whispered sharply, grasping my wrist and pulling me back into the kitchen. ‘They’re here now. For God’s sake, don’t make a scene. Just meet him once. If you say no, I promise we won’t even mention him again.’
‘Fine,’ I said through gritted teeth.
She thrust a tray at me, piled with steaming samosas and chutney. ‘Go take this outside. Sumita and I will be right out.’
Pressing my lips together, I carried it out and placed it on the coffee table with a little more force than necessary.
‘Arey waah,’ Uncle said with a smile. ‘You’ve gotten so big.’
I resisted the urge to roll my eyes and smiled tightly, taking a seat.
Within minutes, Maa and Bhabhi joined us with chai and more snacks. Conversation carried on around me. I fiddled with the hem of mykurti,talking only when spoken to and not making eye contact with anybody.
After some time, they pushed Parth and me out on a walk.
The sky had turned inky black in a way it never did in Mumbai. Temple bells rang in the distance. A street dog growled at us before disappearing down an alley.
My phone had been going off for the last hour.
I took a glance at it. It was an Instagram notification. Rhea was sending me memes, no doubt. I put it on silent mode.
‘I take it it’s a no from you?’ Parth broke the silence.
I looked at him.
Time and Delhi had done him well. He wasn’t the scrawny, awkward teen anymore. He was a well-put-together, confident man now.
I remembered being twelve, sitting on my front steps after failing a math exam, face buried in my hands. Parth had appeared and sat down next to me without a word.
After a long silence, he said, ‘My dad says failure’s just practice for the next attempt.’
I’d looked up. ‘That’s terrible advice.’
‘I know.’He’d grinned.‘But it made you look up, didn’t it?’ He stayed until I stopped crying. Brought me chai from his house. Made stupid jokes until I forgot why I was upset.
That was Parth. Always showing up. Always there. The problem was, I’d never liked him the way he’d liked me.
A part of me felt sorry for him. Unrequited love was one of the saddest things in the world. On top ofthat, he had travelled hours to see me at a moment’s notice.
‘I’m sorry.’
A sad smile played on his lips.
‘I wish I could have saved you the trip,’ I added. ‘But my parents have a mind of their own. A stubborn one at that.’
He slid his hands into his pockets. ‘I’m sorry, too. Nothing romantic has ever worked out between us. I shouldn’t have agreed to the meeting in the first place.’
‘If your parents are anything like mine, they wouldn’t have given you a choice even if you’d said no.’
