Anjali was fuming and full of blame.
"Aunt Lata, this is all your fault! You did not give me a proper background check before setting up that blind date. You made him look like a $2,400 salary security guard struggling for rent! That is why I treated him so casually. Had I known he owned an $800,000 villa, do you think I would have acted like that?!"
Aunt Lata stared at her phone, speechless.
Typical. When things do not go her way, she starts throwing blame on me now.
She had no choice but to take the call seriously now. After glaring at her phone like it owed her rent, she called Alex.
"Alex, you really fooled us all. I had no idea you were sitting on such a fortune!"
"A villa worth nearly $800,000? Why did you never say anything?"
She was not mad at him, just regretful.
If she had known Alex was this successful, she would have introduced her nephew, not Anjali!
Alex already guessed what happened.
Yup, this had Anjali's drama written all over it. She probably called Aunt Lata to play the victim card.
He sighed inwardly and said, "It is not that I was hiding anything. I do okay, but I never thought it was something worth flashing around."
"You call that okay? You own a villa. That is not normal okay."
Aunt Lata could not wrap her head around it. If someone already has that kind of money, why would they still be working security shifts?
Alex chuckled lightly. "Some things money cannot teach. I wanted to experience life a little differently. That is all."
Aunt Lata was quiet for a second, then nodded. "Fair enough. Not many people your age think like that."
"But tell me, what exactly happened on the date?"
Alex gave her a brief rundown: how Anjali showed up late, was rude from the start, and clearly judged him based on appearances.
When he finished, Aunt Lata was clearly annoyed. "She is completely out of line. Late, rude, and now blaming me? Ridiculous."
"She does not even try to understand people. Just sees how much someone earns and decides how to treat them. That is not how relationships work."
"She is not the kind of person I would recommend to anyone again."
"Alex, honestly, you can do way better. You have got your head on straight, and you are not chasing attention. I know someone who might be a better match. Smart, grounded, and knows how to talk to people with respect."
Before Alex could say "I am not looking right now," she had already ended the call.
He stared at the screen.
Classic Aunt Lata. Well-meaning, but always moving too fast.
She meant well, but he really wished she had asked before turning into a matchmaker again.
-------------
On the other side...
Snort!
"Anjali, you silly girl! I introduced you to someone out of goodwill and now you are blaming me?"
Aunt Lata muttered angrily as she grabbed her old notebook from the kitchen drawer, the one with half-written phone numbers from her housing society's group.
Yep. The auntie alliance.
She flipped through the pages, found the number, and dialed.
It was Rekha's number, Anjali's mother and Lata's old school friend.
The call went through quickly.
The moment Rekha picked up, Lata started firing off like a machine gun.
"Rekha, listen carefully. Your daughter has really crossed the line today."
"I introduced her to a perfectly decent boy for a blind date. And not just decent, tall, educated, polite, and let us be honest, loaded. And what does she do? Not only does the date flop, but she calls me later to complain."
Lata did not hold back.
"She came late, acted rude, judged the boy poorly. You know how long it took me to convince Alex to even agree to the meeting? I only did it because you and I go way back."
She paused for effect.
"In fact, if it was not for you being an old friend, I would not have bothered introducing such a boy to someone like Anjali."
"Alex owns a villa in Mumbai and drives a car worth over $100,000. And he is still working, humble, not like these show-off types. Girls from all over are queuing up for a chance to meet someone like him."
"But your daughter? Late to the date, mouth full of attitude."
Rekha's face stiffened on the other end.
At first, she did not think it was a big deal. Anjali has always had a temper, so what? Being late by half an hour was not that serious. So what if she was a little blunt?
In her mind, her daughter was just being herself.
But the moment Lata mentioned the villa and the luxury car, Rekha shot up from her sofa like her seat was on fire.
An $800,000 villa? That too in Mumbai?
She went from indifferent to meltdown.
"Oh no! That is way too much. What was Anjali thinking?!"
And just like that, Rekha did a full 180 degree turn.
"You are right, Lata. My daughter really messed up. She was late for a date with a boy like that? And on top of that, she had the audacity to act smug? Unbelievable!"
"She does not even know what kind of opportunity she just threw away!"
Now she was not angry about her daughter's behavior. She was furious because they missed a chance at serious matchmaking gold.
"This girl is going to drive me crazy! I will call her right now and give her a proper earful. She needs to get her head straight before she ruins every chance that comes her way!"
"Well, you had better teach that daughter of yours some manners. If she continues with this, I will not be introducing her to anyone."
Rekha made a nervous laugh.
"Do not get upset, my dear sister," she hastened to say. "I will see to it that naughty girl of mine gets the message. Do not be angry, Lata."
But once she had hung up, Rekha's strained smile disappeared. She was seething with nothing but anger. Who could possibly be happy after being reprimanded like that?
Not losing a moment, she phoned Anjali. The phone hardly rang when Anjali picked it up.
"Hello? Mom?"
Rekha did not even say hello.
"Are you out of your mind, Anjali? Aunt Lata brought you to meet such a wonderful boy, good-looking, tall, from a rich family, and you still managed to be late?"
Anjali was stunned.
She had only just steadied down after unleashing her frustration on Aunt Lata, but now her mother's voice cut through her once more.
"Mom, it is not my fault!" she complained. "Aunt Lata never said a word about him to me. How could I have known Alex was so rich and handsome? If I had known, I would not have been late! All the other boys who wish to date me wait like dogs. They do everything I wish. But Alex actually reprimanded me for being half an hour late!"
Rekha's voice went up even higher.
"You should have your head examined! Do you know who Alex is? He is a wealthy young man, a real gentleman with money and prestige! He could snap his fingers and have ten girls who are better than you. Who do you think you are? Where do you get your nerve to behave like this?"
Anjali clamped her lips shut, too stunned to answer. Her mother had never spoken to her in this way.
Rekha went on, not bothered by how mean she sounded.
"Listen to me, Anjali. I do not care about your excuses. You need to win back Alex's heart. Be with him! This is your greatest opportunity. You better not mess it up, or do not come back home!"
Anjali wanted to cry.
"Mom, this is too difficult. I already apologized to Alex, but he did not even hear me out..."
Rekha came back with a snap.
"I do not care! This is your mess, you fix it. A boy as good as Alex will not come around again. As long as he does not change his mind, do not come back here!"
The line went dead before Anjali had a chance to utter another word.
Beep. Beep. Beep.
She sat in shock, staring at her phone. Today had been a nightmare. Rejected by Alex, scolded by Aunt Lata, screamed at by her mother.
She felt like screaming.
"My mother wants me to win Alex back..." she kept repeating in a soft mutter. "How am I supposed to do that?"
Deep in her heart, Anjali was only able to wail silently.