I turned to Gabriel, who sat in the passenger seat, as we sat in the parked Sequoia. "You ready?"

        He released a deep breath. "This is my first time seeing your dad in more than five years."

        I perked a brow. "And your first time seeing my mom and Alisha."

        He averted his gaze. "Your mom and sisters aren't a problem."

        I couldn't rebut that. My father wasn't an ass to Gabriel, but he didn't feel much for him either. Some people thought indifference was worse than hate.

        "Come on." I opened the car door. "Let's go."

        We got out of the car, walking in step with each other. We stayed as close as we could without it being suspicious. At first, it was hard—not being able to act like a couple in front of people—but it got easier. I didn't know if it was me manning up or being complacent.

        Today, my family was taking photos. I thought it would be a great idea to have Gabriel be with us. Me and him could take some pictures, too, and it would be a great way to have him around my family again.

        The closer we got to my parent's backyard the slower Gabriel walked until he was a few steps behind me. I glanced back at him. "You'll be fine."

        I wish I could hold his hand in comfort, but we didn't have that luxury in public. Certainly not at my parents' house.

        When we reached the backyard, that was when I noticed the setup. The table had refreshments like dhokla, samosas, bread pakora and mango lassi. The photographer was a tall, lanky white man with a pointy nose and brown curls. What I didn't expect were the people in front of him.

        Anushka and her parents.

        I halted in my steps, and Gabriel did as well, his eyes traveling where mine were. "Isn't that..." he trailed off.

        "Beta," my father announced my presence, and everyone turned our way. My father made his way over to us. He disregarded Gabriel, focusing on me.

        "Papa." I stared at him, confused. "Anushka..."

        "Isn't it wonderful?" he said. "We're all family now, so it made sense to invite them."

        "Gabriel." My mother came forward, and she pulled him into a hug. "Great to see you."

        "Long time no see," he said as Alisha and Nila made their way over as well. "Alisha. Nila." My sisters took turns hugging him.

        My father continued to focus on me. "Come on." He placed a hand on my shoulder. "Take a picture with your wife-to-be."

        "Papa, Gabriel," I said, and he sent me a confused look. "You haven't said 'hello' to Gabriel."

        Gabriel sent him a shy smile. "Oh," my father said, a look of disinterest. "Hello, Gabriel."

        "Hello, sir," Gabriel replied.

        My father led me away, and I peeked back at Gabriel with my mother and sisters. "Why is Gabriel here?" my father asked.

        "I want him to take a picture with me."

        My father stopped in his steps, and I did as well. "This is a family occasion."

        We maintained eye contact. "Gabriel's staying."

        He narrowed his eyes, but I didn't break my stare. Eventually, his features relaxed. "As you wish."

        "Gyan." Mr. and Mrs. Kumar headed my way, and I met them halfway. "Nice to have you here," Mr. Kumar said.

        I gave them each a hug. "Glad to be here." My eyes flickered to Anushka, who smirked at me.

        We continued talking for a minute or two until the photographer got our attention, wanting to start the photo shoot. His name was Tom, and he was particular about time. We started off with the main families. My family. Anushka's family. Then my father made Anushka and I take pictures with the other person's family. Then we took pictures together with each other's family before taking one together with just the two of us. I didn't like the idea of Gabriel sitting off in the patio next to the refreshments.

        "Gabriel!" I called out after my picture with Anushka, and he looked my way. "Take a picture with me."

        He smiled as he walked over to me. As soon as he stopped in front of me, my father approached us.

        "Gyan," he started, "come on."

        Gabriel and I glanced at each other. "I have to take a picture with Gabriel."

        My father shook his head. "You have to take pictures with Anushka."

        "I already did."

        "One," he pointed out. "You need to take more."

        "Papa," I groaned.

        He clapped his hands in urgency. "Let's go."

        He led me away, but I kept peeking back at Gabriel with an apologetic look. His expression was unreadable. Anushka and I took some more pictures, but my attention kept shifting over to Gabriel, who stood off to the side alone. He looked around, obviously bored. I was more than relieved when Nila went over to him, and the two began to chit chat.

        "Gyan, focus," Tom said, and I moved my attention forward, forcing a smile.

        When it was the parents' turn to take pictures, I sighed in relief. I went to the refreshments table, needing a drink. While I gulped down the mango lassi, Anushka came to stand beside me.

        "Gyan Gupta," she said as we stood side by side.

        "Anushka," I responded. "Haven't seen you in a minute."

        We stared ahead, me drinking while she munched on a dhokla. "The game is over," she said after swallowing. "What's there to see?"

        "Game, huh?" She had my attention. "That's all I am?"

        "It was exciting." She met my gaze. "What we thought was sexual tension." She leaned towards me. "But we all know that's a lie."

        I smirked. "Don't take it personal."

        "Oh, I don't," she said. "You're hot and all, but trust me. There're plenty of other hot men out there. Everyone is replaceable. Anyone who says otherwise is either arrogant or delusional."

        "If you love someone, they're not replaceable."

        "They are," she said, not relenting. "Just because you won't let something go doesn't mean you can't find something else."

        "That's bullshit."

        "Even you're replaceable, Gyan Gupta."

        Gabriel wasn't replaceable to me. Was I replaceable to him?

        "We all think we're so special and unique," she went on, "but we're like a grain of sand on a beach."

        My and Gabriel's eyes met. "That's really depressing," I said.

        "What's depressing is your situation," she said, taking in Gabriel. "He's your main squeeze, but the rest of the world thinks I am. How does he feel about this? Our families celebrating our fake relationship? Us talking right now?"

        "I don't know," I confessed. It must not have felt great, but I didn't know the full extent of his feelings.

         "Maybe, you should." She took some mango lassi, too, while I disposed of my cup. "You can always call off the engagement."

        I could, but it wasn't that simple. I chose not to say anything.

        "Remember." She wagged a finger at me. "He can always find someone else."

        Gabriel walked into the house. "Thanks," I said with as much sarcasm as I could while Anushka walked away.

        I walked quickly into the house, catching sight of Gabriel, and I trailed behind him. He entered the closest bathroom, but I stopped the door with my foot before he could close it.

        "Gyan, what are you—?"

        My lips claimed his, cutting off his words. I pressed him between me and the door, kissing him with everything in me. His arms stayed to his side, and my lips easily overpowered his. It was like he wasn't even trying. I kissed him harder as my hand caressed his cheek and neck.

        "You have no idea how much I wanted to do that," I whispered in his ear before planting kisses along his neck.

        His fingers finally impeded themselves into my hair. "Gyan, why are you here?"

        My hands moved to his jeans, unbuttoning them. "Let's see how fast I can get you off."

        "No." He stopped me before I could drop to my knees. "Do you think that's going to fix this?"

        I knew what "this" was. "No," I answered. "I just wanted to—"

        "You know what, I don't have to use the bathroom anymore."

        I kept the door shut even as he reached for the knob. "Don't."

        He avoided my gaze. "We have to get back to your photo shoot...with your wife."

        I couldn't even stop him anymore, and he walked out, leaving me in the bathroom. I didn't know what was wrong with him. For a couple days now, he was more distant. I wondered if it was because of Steven.

         But something told me it was something else.

        When I wrapped my head around what had happened, I exited the bathroom, heading for the backyard. We continued taking more pictures, and every time I was supposed to take one with Gabriel, my father intervened. After some time, Gabriel said he was taking an Uber home. I refused, wanting to leave myself. My father wasn't happy, but he got his pictures.

         The rest of the day, Gabriel and I didn't talk much. He even left the apartment to spend some time with his sister.

        He came back around nine, not long after I came back from the pool, needing a swim. After taking a shower, I walked into the kitchen to spot Gabriel finishing the last of his glass of orange juice.

        "Hey," I greeted.

        He walked past me. "Hey."

        "Gabriel, wait." He stopped, and we faced each other. "I know you're pissed at me."

        "I'm not pissed," he said. "I'm just tired."

        "Can we talk about today?"

        "I'm tired," he repeated. "I wanna go to bed."

        "I want you to sleep in my bed tonight," I said. "I'll understand if you don't, but I'll really like you to."

        He may have denied it, but I knew he was pissed. Maybe it was a tired sort of pissed, but it was there, nevertheless.

        I waited for him to say something, but he turned around and walked away. I shouldn't have expected anything else. It didn't make it feel any less like a blow to the ego, but I got into bed, and I got settled in, ready to sleep.

        To my surprise, my door opened a couple minutes later, and the bed dipped as a body moved beside me. An arm wrapped around me, and I knew it was Gabriel. I smiled as he snuggled against my body, not saying anything verbally but his actions were all I needed.

        I relaxed into his arms, knowing this was the best part of the whole day.

        Then it hit me. Gabriel and I never took a picture together.

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* What do you guys think is up with Gabriel? Gyan and Gabriel's relationship? What's going to happen next?

* I'm officially employed. Even though I graduated college, I still have to study for the MCAT. So, I'm going to have to balance work, studying and writing. Luckily, the job I got has a good work-life balance, so it's very possible.