Synthetic Love

Chapter 17

Tara knocks on Saanvi's door the next day. Saanvi had been over at Tara's the previous evening and had left her wallet, so Tara agreed to stop by the next day to get it back to her.

Saanvi opens the door and gives a small smile, "Hey, thanks."

Tara hands Saanvi her wallet and nods, "No problem. Where's Chris? Shouldn't you two be trying to find some obscure place to fuck?"

Saanvi rolls her eyes, "He's out running errands, he said he had a last minute anniversary surprise he had to get for me."

"Awwww, that's so adorable! Any ideas on what it could be?"

"No, but come on in for a few minutes, I need to talk to you about the conversation he and I had last night."

Tara steps in and Saanvi shuts the door behind her. The apartment was practically just boxes at this point, seeing as Saanvi and Chris would be moving in just a couple of days. Saanvi and Tara make their way over to the couch and Saanvi furrows her eyebrows, as if to be either deep in thought or very confused.

"What's wrong? Is everything okay?" Tara asks.

"I think Chris and I got engaged last night."

Tara gasps and her eyes widen, "What do you mean you think?! Did he propose?!"

"No..." Saanvi says, "Well, sort of? But then I kind of proposed to him? Sort of?"

Tara blinks, "Okay, walk me through it, girl, walk me through it."

Saanvi relays the events of the night before, with she and Chris trying to think of how to solve their problems and move on from the past, from Ravi, so that the two of them could properly begin their lives together.

"It was at two in the morning and neither of us had slept in days, so I'm not sure how seriously he took me or how seriously I should take him. He said last night that we'd talk about it later, but I've hardly seen him today."

"Do you want to marry him?"

Saanvi pauses, then gives a small smile, "I really do," She says, "Not just for my citizenship, but because I love him. I really love him. I've never wanted to spend my life with someone so much before; he loves me for who I am, every bit of me. I've never once felt like I had to go above and beyond my means in order to please him. He makes me feel safe, he makes me happy..."

Tara squeals, "Oh, God, then do it, Vee! You two are perfect together, you're moving in together, why not just completely seal the deal? You know he'll sponsor your green card too."

"I'm just not quite sure yet how we'd go about it. I mean, Chris is such a public figure, if we get married and Ravi finds out - "

"Then you already know that Chris and I will testify on your behalf if he tries to get you deported."

Saanvi pauses, then nods, "Thank you."

"Of course. Now, onto more important matters - I'm gonna be your maid of honor, right?"

x

Tara bids Saanvi goodbye a short while later, then pulls out her phone as she walks out of the apartment building.

"Hey, I just got done talking to her. She's not suspicious of anything, and it looks like she wants to do this. You're good to go."

x

Saanvi looks herself in the mirror as she finishes putting on a last little bit of makeup. She adjusts her hair and takes a deep breath, wondering what tonight would entail. She wore an elegant, royal blue halter dress and an array of gold jewelry. Chris walks into Saanvi's room, wearing a suit, and smiles.