Recap: Naveen exploded! Literally.

What should I do now? Should I just run away to a deserted island? Because that seemed like a solid plan. At least better than getting a call from my parents!

I paced back and forth, circling the room like a possessed person. My mind was racing faster than my feet, and I could feel a meltdown brewing beneath the surface.

"Aisha! Relax, nothing’s going to happen," Dina said, watching me with concern, though I could tell she was just as shaken by what had gone down.

"But, Dina, did you see how close they were to tearing each other apart?" I exclaimed, throwing my hands in the air.
"Naveen looked like he was about to lose it, and Dhruv was practically begging for a fight!"

Dina sighed, leaning back on the couch. "It was intense, but we got out before anything too serious happened."

I chewed on my nails, feeling the anxiety build.
"Yeah, but it was so close! What if Dhruv tells his parents? They’ll definitely tell mine, and then I’ll have to explain everything. And if they start asking questions about Naveen—"

"Aisha, calm down! Let's just hope for the best," Dina said, trying to keep me grounded.

"I know, but what if they find out? My mom will kill me! God, why did Naveen have to react like that?"

As if on cue, my phone started ringing, and it was Mom. Uh-oh. This was it. The moment of truth. Dhruv must’ve spilled the beans to his parents, and now it was circling back to mine. I was doomed.

I took a deep breath and answered. "Hi, Mom!"

"Aisha," she started, skipping the pleasantries, her tone serious but trying to be gentle. "We heard from Dhruv's parents about some… incident at the café today."

My stomach twisted, and I passed a glance at Dina who was focused on our conversation.

"Incident? Oh, you mean the tiny little misunderstanding? Nothing major, really—"

"Aisha," my dad’s voice came through the speaker, interrupting me.
"Who was he?"

Great, they were both on the line.

"Uh, well, he’s…"
I started stalling, my mind racing for a plausible explanation that wouldn’t get anyone into more trouble.

"Aisha, we just want to understand what's going on," my mom said, her voice softening slightly but still laced with concern. "Dhruv’s parents mentioned that there was some sort of misunderstanding—"

"Actually, I was quite disturbed the way you guys sent Dhruv all of a sudden. Mom, you know how I always mess up." 
Mom sighed out loud, and I heard some movement before she spoke again.

"We just want you to settle. And we aren't pressuring you to get married this instant. We're just helping to find you a suitable life partner."

I felt a pang of guilt swell up in my heart.

"Dhruv was the best choice. We hoped you'd talk things out, but a bruised Dhruv returned. Aisha, we too have responsibility and dignity," Mom added, which felt like salt in an open wound.

"What exactly happened?" Dad intervened again, making my heart race.

Shit, shit, shit.

I gave Dina a swift glance; she raised her eyebrows. I was about to put them on mute when my dad's voice thundered,

"Aisha! Tell me now"

My heart raced, my fidgeting intensified, and so did my pacing. I was walking in circles at lightning speed—I might even be able to qualify for the Olympics!

"Oh, you know, it’s just… boys being boys. Nothing to worry about!"
I blurted out in panic, feeling my face heat up even though they couldn’t see me.

I was terrible at this.

I can't lie! I can't!

The silence on the other end told me they weren’t buying it. I looked back to see Dina gone, probably sensing the coming storm.

My mouth opened before my brain could stop it.
"He’s my boyfriend!"

The other end fell silent— complete silence. I could practically feel my mom’s eyes widening, and I bet my dad was trying to figure out if he’d just heard me correctly. I internally cringed, realising what I had just said.

How did I go from 'boys being boys' to 'boyfriend' in two seconds flat?

"Your… boyfriend?" my dad repeated slowly, clearly trying to wrap his head around the concept.

"Yep!" I said, my voice way too high-pitched to be normal.
"He's my, uh, boyfriend. Surprise!"

"Since when?" mom asked, sounding a mix of confused and concerned.

"Oh, you know, for a while now… I mean, we’ve been keeping it low-key. Super low-key. Like, underground low-key. You know how it is, right? Didn’t want to, uh, make a big deal out of it."

They were still quiet on the other end, and I could imagine them exchanging a look of confusion.

This wasn’t going well. In fact, I made it worse!!

"And Dhruv being bruised, was that also low-key?" my dad asked, getting sarcastic at any point was my father's true identity.

"Oh, that? Just a little… misunderstanding. Really, it’s nothing. We’ve already worked it out. Totally smoothed over. Everything’s fine!" 

I was nodding so much, I probably looked like a bobblehead, even though they couldn’t see me.

"Aisha," my mom finally said, her voice now gentle but firm,
"why didn’t you tell us you had a boyfriend?"

I blinked, trying to think fast.
"Well, you know, I didn’t want to worry you guys. I mean, relationships are complicated, and I thought, ‘Why complicate things?’ So… yeah! But now you know, so… surprise again!"

There was a pause, and I could feel the tension building higher than the Burj Khalifa!

"Aisha, we want to meet him. Properly." My dad demanded straight away. And can I deny him?

Nope! A big No.

I gulped. "Meet him? Like… soon?"

"Yes," Dad confirmed, his tone making it clear that this wasn’t up for debate. "Soon."

"Okay… I’ll, uh, talk to him. See when he’s free. Maybe… next weekend?"

"That sounds fine," mom said, I could feel a relief in her voice.
"We’ll be looking forward to it."

"Great! So… I’ll go… text him now. Let him know the good news," I said, trying to sound enthusiastic but it probably came off more like a robot on the verge of malfunctioning. "Thanks, Mom and Dad! Love you!"

As soon as the call ended, I practically threw my phone onto the bed and rushed out to the small living room, where Dina sat munching on some chocolates.

"Dina, I did something really, really stupid," I said, rushing towards her.

"What now?" Dina asked, sounding both amused and concerned.

"I told my parents that Naveen is my boyfriend."

There was a brief pause; she blinked a few times before the words finally sank in.

"You did WHAT?"

---

I sat at my desk, staring at my reflection on the computer screen. My fingers drummed nervously on the keyboard as I rehearsed the conversation in my head for the hundredth time.

Okay, Aisha, you can do this, 
It’s just Naveen. Just tell him. No big deal… except it’s a HUGE deal!

I glanced around the office, hoping no one was paying attention to the nervous wreck I was becoming. Taking a deep breath, I began to practise under my breath.

"Hey, Naveen, so funny story… My parents think we’re dating now," I whispered, trying to sound casual. "No biggie, right? Just a tiny misunderstanding… because I panicked… and, well, I might’ve sort of… told them you’re my boyfriend."

I winced at how ridiculous that sounded.

There’s no way he’s going to take this well.

I tried again. "Naveen, we need to talk. So, um, my parents think we’re a thing. Like, a real thing. And it’s kind of my fault, but you know how it is! I panicked, and before I knew it, the words just came out and—"

"Aisha, you okay?"

I nearly jumped out of my chair at the sound of Naveen’s voice. He was standing right next to me, eyebrows raised, looking mildly concerned.

"Oh! Naveen, hi! Uh, yeah, I’m… great!" I stammered, feeling my face heat up.

This is it, Aisha. Just tell him.

"Are you sure?" he asked, clearly unconvinced. "You’ve been acting kind of… off all day."

You think? I thought sarcastically but forced a smile. "Yeah, about that… I actually need to talk to you. It’s kind of important."

He nodded, glancing at his watch. "Sure, I’ve got a few minutes before my next meeting. What’s up?"

I swallowed hard, trying to find the words that wouldn’t make me sound like a complete lunatic.
"Okay, so… remember the little incident at the café yesterday?"

"Yeah, hard to forget," he said, a slight smirk playing on his lips.
"What about it?"

"Well, uh… so, after that, my parents kind of found out about it."

Naveen’s smile faded, replaced with a look of mild concern.
"Found out how?"

I looked down at my hands, fidgeting with my fingers. "Dhruv’s parents told them, and they called me to ask what happened… and, um, they sort of asked who you were…"

"And?" Naveen prompted, crossing his arms.

"And… I kind of, maybe… said you were my boyfriend," I finished in a rush, wincing as the words tumbled out.

Naveen blinked, clearly taken aback. "You said… what?"

"I panicked!" I quickly explained, waving my hands as if that would somehow make the situation better. "They were asking all these questions, and I didn’t know what to say, so I just… blurted it out. And now they think we’re, like, together-together"

There was a long pause as he processed what I’d just said. I braced myself for him to lose it, to tell me I was crazy and that he wasn’t going to play along with this ridiculous charade.
But, then again if he flipped off, I had my answer ready.

It was you who dragged the small meeting into a real-time fight like in most of the movies. You complicated the situation, so now you must obliged to my silly little demand and be my pretend boyfriend—

"So… your parents think we’re dating."
He said cutting me off from my dramatic pep talk.

I nodded, biting my lip.
"Yeah. And now they want to meet you. Like, officially. As my boyfriend."

Finally, he let out a small chuckle, shaking his head.

"So, when are we doing this?"
he asked, staring right at me.

What? Just like that?

Is this some kind of dream?

This is so far from my reality, I can’t help but wonder if I’m still asleep!

*****

Status: Tracking the Target...

Target locked.