Apparently Sameer and Aisha have been in love for the past 5 years. They've actually met at some inter-school event 7 years back and it was love-at-first-sight for Sameer. Though he liked her from day one and even confessed his love at the beginning itself, they had to remain just-friends for 2 years because Aisha was a year older to him and she wasn't willing to get into a relationship with someone younger.

Somehow Sameer's endless efforts finally made Aisha accept him. And even though they had problems in their relationship initially because of family interferences from both sides, they overcame all of them with their true love. However when Aisha's sister got married last year the pressure of marriage-and-settling-down fell on her.

Her parents started getting worried because she was aging and asked Sameer how fast he could marry her. Being the typical middle-class boy with a new job abroad obviously he couldn't agree to do it anytime soon.

So, Aisha's family found a proposal for her and are now forcing her to get into an arranged marriage. This is why Aisha messaged Sameer for one last time yesterday saying "I still love you and I will always love you but we have to end this now. I'm sorry" and blocked his number, without even allowing the poor boy a chance to reply.

Okay, cool love story Sameer. Very romantic and sad for you but sounds a little dramatic to me. And I hate to judge people but Aisha sounds like a total bitch. I mean, how could you love someone for 5 years and dump them like that just because your parents say so? I'd never do it to someone who I truly love.

That's why Aisha's side of the story doesn't make sense to me. Total drama in my opinion. She probably likes the guy her parents found for her. Maybe he's richer or better-looking than Sameer. After all most women do that when it comes to settling down.

Anyway, I can't tell Sameer what I truly feel about Aisha. She is after all his ex-girlfriend and he still claims to love her. Therefore I try to be as empathetic as I can be. Though I'm not a bit sad about his breakup I even try to pretend like I understand the depth of his sorrow.

I mean, I've never fallen in love or gone through a heartbreak before. So this is just another emotion I watch in movies or read in books. I can't feel it on a personal level. This will be my reaction to anyone's heartbreak story — whether it's my friends, family, Sameer or any-other-boy-who-is-not-Sameer.

But then again I don't want to lie to my conscience. So here you go, let me just say it. I AM VERY VERY VERY HAPPY ABOUT HIS BREAKUP and that doesn't make me a bad person. I'm sure any girl crushing on a committed boy will be happy when she gets to know his relationship is over.

But you know what I love most about this whole thing? Sameer and I are getting closer. I can feel it already. He's been chatting with me endlessly and I've been getting all fast replies too. Generally I'm the one who responds within seconds and that's a habit I'm ashamed of. Sameer always takes a few minutes or even hours to reply back and it sucks. I mean, it sucked. Not anymore, you see?

Now he pours his heart out only to me and that too without a break, even though it's kind of annoying when he keeps talking of Aisha like she's a queen and he just missed the greatest treasure of his life! Every time he does that I'm feeling super jealous of her. Jealous not because she used to be his girlfriend but because of the fact that she is loved so much by a man.

I wish someone loves me like this some day. I wish someone cries for me some day like Sameer is crying over Aisha. "If only!" I mutter under my breath and sigh because deep down I know it will never happen. Not for a girl like me.

In his last message he has mentioned that he cried all night thinking about her. It all sounds too dramatic for me by now. Do people really love so deep? I thought that was just in movies and books. Anyway, what do I reply to him? I can't even relate to what he says because I've never stayed up crying over someone.

I think for a while and finally type the same reply I've been sending to him ever since I left office and got on to the bus, "I get it. Must be so hard for you 😞 but trust me, you will find someone better soon ♥️". What else am I supposed to say anyway?

He has been repeating the same things about Aisha just like a broken tape recorder for the past one hour so I'm doing the same. God! I wish we could discuss something else like how I can be a better girlfriend or how I'd never ditch him even if my family threatens me to do so.

I get off the bus and as I start walking towards home, I keep texting Sameer. By now the topic has changed. I mean, I insisted we speak of something else because it's not good for his mental health. So now we're discussing TV shows. It's good. A plain old Sameer-Ilhaam fun conversation.

As I open the gate, I can see many pairs of slippers outside. Oh no! A lot of footwear at the door of a brown house means there are a set of relatives waiting to mentally torture you once you enter the house. Who must it be this time?

There's some aunty coming in with her with daughters and grandchildren every day or the other. I just hate it. I hate relatives coming home. I know I sound like an anti-social prick but they're just not good for my mental health.

Okay so it's my mother's sister Nisa and her three daughters — Maryam, Zainab and Reema with their four, two and three children respectively. A family of thirteen people sitting in the hall in the name of relatives and staring at me as I walk in.

I'm sure you can imagine how that would make one feel, especially when you come home after a tiresome day at work and can't even sit on the sofa to rest for a few minutes because now they're getting ready to question you and you have no choice but to answer them as your mother will be disappointed in you if you don't treat guests with respect.

I look at them and I smile or at least I think I'm smiling. I mean, I have been blessed with this face that forever makes me look like I'm angry or uninterested even when I'm smiling. A resting bitch face — that's what I've got. So sometimes even though I think in my mind that I'm looking friendly, my facial muscles make me look exactly the opposite.

"It's 7:30 pm. Why so late Ilhaam?" asks my aunty with a smile. And before I could answer, her annoying daughter Zainab adds another question, "Yeah, isn't office over by 5:00 pm for you?" Ugh! Here we go.

It's okay to ask questions but at least make them smart ones. Why so silly? Doesn't she know the fact that I have to travel back from Colombo after work and it takes me 1.5 hours to reach Wattala, especially when I take the bus because neither me nor my family has the riches to own a car at this point of our lives?

Aunties question for the sake of talking sometimes. But what's with Zainab? She's after all just two years elder to me. Why is she asking me silly questions too?

I remember her as a young girl. She was better than this.  But ever since she got married and gave birth to her two kids she's become very inquisitive just like a mini version of her mom.

Why can't she just act like a young person and mind her own business? I will never understand brown girls that change their entire personalities after marriage and I can never imagine myself being this nosy or dumb.

I mean, maybe work is supposed to end at a particular time but that doesn't mean we all have the privilege to leave office right at 5:00 pm, Zainab. Some of us have tasks to complete before we call it a day.

Anyway explaining any of this to these people is of no use. One, because they're never going to understand and two, I don't want to sound rude. So I just smile and say "because of traffic".

They don't stop there. They ask further stupid questions and I finally go to my room after 15 minutes or so.

As I change my clothes in my room I can hear the word "broker" being mentioned in the hall. "Broker" is a term used by brown Muslim families to refer to a matchmaker. I can hear my aunt saying that she knows of a talented broker who will find a husband for any girl no matter how dark or fat she is.

"Thanks for the unwanted concern in my life aunty" I mutter under my breath and grab my phone to check Sameer's last message and I see that he has sent me an image. Probably a TV show image, I think to myself and click on the notification to find a photo of a fair-skinned girl, which is followed with another message from him saying "Pretty, isn't she? 😉"

What the hell? Who is she now? His next target? Why would he use the wink emoji? Oh crap! Was I wasting my time listening to his stupid story and consoling him all this while just for him to send me a picture of his crush?

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Who do you think is the fair-skinned girl? 😏 Let me know your guess in the comments below ♥️

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