I sat in the farthest corner of the café, my fingers loosely wrapped around my purse in front of me.
I wasn't here because I wanted to be.
I was here because my parents had decided that I needed to meet the man they had chosen for me.
Marriage.
The word alone was enough to make my mood worse.
I will make him deny for the marriage,no matter what.
I glanced at the clock on the wall and sighed quietly.
How long was I supposed to sit here?
Just then, the wind chime hanging above the entrance made a soft sound.
I looked up.
And there he was.
A tall man had just stepped into the café.
My eyes instinctively followed him.
He was handsome.
Not the polished, overly dressed kind of handsome. He wore a simple T-shirt and jeans, yet somehow managed to look effortlessly good. His hair was slightly messy, as if he hadn't bothered to tame it before leaving home.
He stood near the entrance for a moment, his eyes moving across the café, searching through the unfamiliar faces.
I watched silently.
Then his eyes found mine.
For a second, neither of us moved.
He hesitated.
Just for a moment.
Then he started walking towards me.
With every step, I became more certain.
This was him.
The man my parents had decided I was supposed to marry.
He stopped beside my table.
"Miss Vanika?"
His voice was calm, void of any emotions.
I gave him a small nod.
"Yes."
He pulled out the chair opposite me and took a seat.
For a few seconds, neither of us said anything.
I studied him quietly.
He looked nothing like the image I'd created in my head.
And somehow, that made this meeting even more complicated.
Because I had come prepared to dislike him.
Yet the man sitting across from me was making that surprisingly difficult.
Neither of us spoke. My gaze returned to the window, while that man found himself trying to understand the girl sitting across from him.
A waiter approached our table.
"Would you like to order something, ma'am?"
"Coffee."
My voice was quiet. Certain.
The waiter turned towards that man.
"Sir?"
"No, thank you."
The waiter left.
“I should get straight to the point, it will save both of our time.” I initiated the conversation, knowing very well that staying quiet won't change anything.
“That would be great.” He nodded his head in agreement.
“ Listen mister—”
“Vihaan, Vihaan Ahuja”,He immediately corrected me.
I looked at him.
He looked at me.
“I assume you know why we're here.”
“Yes.”
His answer was simple.Neutral.No unnecessary expression.I studied him for a moment.
He didn't look like the kind of man my family usually introduced me to.
Simple T-shirt.
Jeans.
Nothing expensive.
Nothing flashy.
He looked ordinary.
Almost too ordinary for the world I came from.
“I'm going to be honest with you.” I said, I tried to be calm.
“Okay.”
“I don't want this marriage.”
He nodded.
“Neither do I.”
His answer caught me slightly off guard.
I raised an eyebrow.
“Then this should be easy.”
“Hopefully.”
I leaned back in my chair.His calmness began to irritate me. How could he be so calm when he doesn't want to get married in the first place.
I narrowed my eyes.
“You're strangely calm about all this.”
“Getting angry won't change anything.”
I scoffed softly.
“Fine.”
I picked up my cup again.
“I have a career to build. I don't have time for marriage.”
He nodded.
“Then you should focus on your career.”
His neutral tone made it difficult to tell whether he was genuinely agreeing with me or simply trying to end the conversation.
“Then why did you agree to this alliance?”
For the first time…
his expression changed.
Barely.
His jaw tightened.
The hand resting on the table curled slightly into a fist.
He looked away for a moment, taking a slow breath.
When he looked back at me, the calmness was still there.
But something behind it had changed.
VIHAAN'S POV:
Life has always been cruel to me,but this is something I never expected. Here I am standing outside a cafe, to meet someone or more specifically, my would be wife.
I hadn't wanted to come.
If anything, meeting Vanika had been the last thing on my mind. But some things weren't about wanting—they were about having no choice.
I had to remind myself why I am here, and why I am doing this.
The girl sitting in front of me is furious. Anyone can easily tell that she doesn't want this marriage. She was very furious,I could see it in her eyes.
Even with all that anger, I noticed how breadth taking she looks.
“Then why did you agree to this alliance?” she questioned, crossing her hands at her chest. Her eyebrows furrowed. Let me be honest with her. It would be easy.
“Because your father is threatening me.”
She frowned.
“What?”
My eyes remained fixed on her.
“Not just me.”
I paused.
“My family.”
My expression changed slightly.
“And my career. Everything I've worked for.”
I continued, my voice controlled but carrying a restrained anger.
“Your father made it very clear. If I refuse this alliance, he will make sure I lose my job, my family's home, and everything else he has the power to take away.”
“So that's why I'm sitting here.”
My eyes met hers again.
“Not because I wanted to.”
“Not because I agreed with this marriage.”
“And certainly not because I thought marrying someone like you would somehow improve my life.”
My words were blunt.
But there was no arrogance in them.
Only exhaustion.
She remained silent.
I looked down at the table for a moment. I took a deep breath to calm down.
“I'm a mechanic, Vanika.”
“I don't have your family's money or influence.”
“I can't fight your father the way someone from your world could.”
“So when he puts my family's entire life on one side…”
I paused.
“And this marriage on the other…”
A bitter smile touched my lips, remembering that night from where it all begins.
“What choice do you think I have?”
“I don't care what my father do!” She said while throwing daggers from her eyes. “You'll go to my father and tell him that you cannot marry me because you are a gay.”
“ What no—”, I looked at her in disbelief.
What the hell!
“You said you don't want this either.”, she said while pointing a finger at my chest, her eyes never leaving mine.
I remembered her father's words. I can't deny to this.
“Why would you think that?” I questioned her raising my one eyebrow. I hold her finger which was pointed at my chest and continued, “even if I say I am a gay, look at yourself, you can make people forget their own gender.” A smirked appeared on my face and her eyes widened at my words.
“I hate your attitude and everything about you.” Our eyes never leaving each other's. “You'll get habitual to it.” I replied calmly watching every single change in her expression.
It was fun watching her like this, looking flustered and angry at the same time.
“Fight all you want, Sweetheart. But at the end of this, you'll be my wife."
For two seconds, she simply stared at me.
Then her anger won.
Without saying another word, she picked up the glass of water beside her coffee and splashed it straight across my face.
The nearby conversations seemed to die for a moment.
I remained perfectly still.
Water dripped from my hair onto my shirt.
Vanika stood up, grabbed her bag, and looked at him one last time.
"Dream on. Asshole"
And before I could respond, she turned and walked out of the café.
The bell above the door chimed behind her.
I wiped the water from my face with the back of my hand.
For a moment, I simply stared at the door she'd disappeared through.
Then, slowly, that same smirk returned.
Perhaps the meeting hadn't gone exactly as planned.
But somehow, he had a feeling this was only the beginning.
___________________________
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