**Winner 2024 Amby Awards**
Fiza has everything planned-medical school, a respectable future, and an engagement she never wanted. Determined to escape a loveless match, she creates a checklist to find the perfect husband her father will approve of.
...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
Mownika.
My whole body went rigid. What was she doing here? I distinctly remembered her saying she'd only come to campus for events that actually interested her. Today was just the final rounds of debate, some personality contest, and anthakshari—nothing I thought would ever draw her in. Yet, there she was, scanning the room.
A cold knot tightened in my stomach. Maybe I should have sent her a text before I left. Maybe I should have waited. But I hadn't wanted any conversation, any emotional morning-after entanglement. I had just wanted to get out.
I saw her coming. Of course I did. She had caught me watching her the second she walked in. I kept my head down, pushing pieces of dosa around my plate, only half-hearing Fiza talking beside me. This was always the worst part—the morning after, when the reality sets in and they want something you can't give.
I checked my phone. No messages from her. I let out a soft breath. Get it together. You've handled this before. So why did today feel different?
Then Fiza's hand brushed mine. And it hit me. The tension wasn't about Mownika. It was about Fiza. I didn't want her to see this. I didn't want her to know.
I decided to intercept Mownika, to pull her aside before she could make a scene. But as I looked up, she was already there, standing right over our table. And she wasn't looking at me.
Alarm bells screamed in my mind.
"So, Fiza, right?" Mownika asked, her smile wide and utterly fake.
Fiza just nodded, offering a polite smile back. I could see the confusion in her eyes, the forced friendliness.
"Would you like to join us for breakfast?" Fiza asked. No. No. No!
Mownika tutted, dismissing the offer without a second thought. "So, is Alan your boyfriend?"
Fiza's eyes shot to me, full of confusion. I kept my eyes locked on my plate, my focus entirely on a piece of potato. I couldn't look at either of them.
"No," Fiza said, shaking her head. "We're just good friends."
Mownika wasn't done. She leaned in, her voice taking on a predatory edge. "Let's keep it that way."
As she turned to leave, I finally found my voice. "I thought I'd been clear that I don't do relationships, Mownika. Being with the same girl more than once only leads to... complications."
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Fiza take a sip of water, looking like she wanted to be anywhere else. This was it. This was the moment she would see me for what I was.
No one will ever love you. Look in the mirror!
"Well, I had a good time last night," Mownika said, winking. "You don't need to worry about... complications... with me." She made air quotes with her fingers, smirking. "You'd be flattering yourself if you thought I'd want anything but sex from you."
