Rashmi: "Don't give her those stupid ideas of yours, Tia."
Tia: "Seriously! What if she actually runs away? You'll be the one left holding the bag of responsibility."
Ishana: "Ugh, look, it's not like the thought of running didn't cross my mind. But he made it pretty clear that I'd be the one losing out in the end—my family would be the ones facing the fallout. So, I dropped the plan." She let out a weary sigh, reaching for a glass. "Anyway, let's just drink. I want to get properly trashed tonight and just... erase all this depressing stuff from my brain."
Sonali: "Wait, before you lose consciousness... where exactly is this fiancé of yours? You dragged us out here to meet him, and he's a total no-show?"
Ishana: "Yeah, well, he's off with his own friends."
Luca: "Oh, perfect! Then let's go find them. We need to see just how 'hot' this mystery man actually is."
Ishana: "Can't I just have five minutes of peace of mind? Please?"
Suddenly, her phone began to vibrate against the table, the screen lighting up with a familiar name.
Ishana: "Speak of the devil. It's him."
She picked up, her voice instantly dropping an octave into a defensive chill. "Hello?"
Abhi: "Where are you? My friends are dying to meet you. Can you get over to this side of the lounge quickly? You know where I'm sitting, right?"
Ishana: "Are you ordering me around now?"
Abhi: "No! No, I'm not ordering you... I just meant—look, if you don't want to come over, I can come to you. Where are you?"
Ishana: "Fine. I'll be there."
She clicked the phone shut and looked up to find her friends staring at her with wide, judgmental eyes. "What!?"
Maya: "Dude, the guy was just asking you to come over and you sounded like you were ready to commit a felony. You're terrifying."
Ishana: "He was being annoying. That's why."
Tia: "Listen, Ishana... if you have even a shred of feeling for him, just lean into it. Stop fighting it."
Ishana: "Honestly? I change my mind every five seconds. I'm not confident about how I feel, and I don't even trust myself. Why should I give him hope when I'm this fickle?"
Tia: "Spoken like a true cynic. This is your classic move—you never let a crush actually turn into something real. You sabotage it every time."
Ishana: "Because I'm perfectly happy the way I am! Why would I want to complicate my life with all... that?"
Tia: "Whatever you say. It's your funeral. Anyway, let's go meet your... whatever-his-name-is."
Ishana: "Fine. Let's go."
As the girls began weaving through the tables toward the VIP section, Abhi was already leaning into his circle of friends, looking exasperated.
Abhi: "See? She just looks for any tiny opportunity to pick a fight with me."
Nick: "How can you be this dense? Your tone was 100% like you were commanding her to report for duty. When you already know she's on the fence about you, you have to lead with your good side, not the 'drill sergeant' side. How do you not get this?"
Abhi: "Was it really that bad? I was just telling her to come over... I didn't mean for it to sound like an order."
Nick: "When you want a girl to actually want to join you, you have to be pleasant. You say something like: 'Baby, if you're done having fun with your friends, would you mind coming over to meet the guys? Or should I come find you?'"
Abhi: "Wait, didn't I basically say the exact same thing?"
Daniel: "See? He's hopeless. He can't even hear the difference between what he said and what Nick just said."
Abhi: "Nick's version sounded sarcastic! If I said that to her, she'd probably kill me on the spot." He let out a dry, nervous laugh. "Actually, I'm almost certain of it."