Intrusive relatives can be very annoying, especially when they have a million questions to ask you. They keep an eye on your every move when they are around and question every decision of your life. One of my biggest fears has always been that I’ll be out somewhere with my boyfriend and a relative will catch us red handed in a compromising situation. Well, this is about the time when my biggest fear became a reality and how I got through the situation.
Rohan and I had been dating for more than a year now. Our honeymoon phase still wasn’t over even after a year and we were still very touchy-feely when out in public. We loved exploring new places to eat, hang out and shop at because we had bonded a lot on our love for food and clothes. We made it a point to go out somewhere at least once a week.
We were out for our weekly date one Saturday afternoon and had planned everything in advance. First we’d go eat somewhere nice, then dessert, followed by shopping and a movie! We were finally going to visit a bakery that had recently opened up in the city. It had been on my to-visit list since it opened. I was literally jumping with excitement all the way to the outlet. Rohan, being the sweetheart that he is, was annoying me by pulling my arm, kissing my cheek and laughing at my childlike excitement. Needless to say, the two of us were having an amazing time.
We entered the bakery and I ordered desserts for both of us. We were sitting by the window and I was feeding him my chocolate pastry (yes, we are cheesy like that!), having a generally good time, when suddenly Rohan got this weird look on his face. The very next instant, I heard my name in a very familiar voice. I turned around immediately to see my Maasi standing there with a friend, looking at me angrily. At that moment, I was sure my heart had stopped beating for a few seconds.
Finally, after a few seconds, I got my wits back and walked up to her. I smiled and pretended like I wasn’t caught doing something I shouldn’t have been doing. ‘How are you Maasi? What are you doing here?’ I asked normally, like I was surprised to see her here and she was the one who got caught doing something wrong. I marvelled at my own audacity. ‘Does your mom know you’re here with some boy?’ she asked. ‘Umm… Yeah, I told her I’m going to be here. Why? Is there a problem?’ I was still pretending like I just couldn’t understand her issue. (I could, believe me, I could and I was so scared inside.)
She looked at me suspiciously and told me she’ll see me later and left. I went back and sat down and had a tiny panic attack. At that time, even the chocolate cake couldn’t calm me down. Rohan and I discussed what I would say when I reached home. We decided that I’ll say that it was me, Priya (my college best friend) and Rohan together but Priya was in the washroom when I met Maasi. I even called Priya to explain the situation to her and tell her what to say in case my mother called.
I reached home at the time I told my mom I would. When I entered the house, I tried to quietly sneak into my room because she was in the kitchen. But, in her typical mom way, she called out and said ‘where do you think you’re going?’ I turned around to face her, so scared of what was going to happen next.
‘Is Rohan your boyfriend?’ was the next sentence out of her mouth. In that split second, I do not know why though, but I decided that honesty was maybe the best policy. The most that would happen was that I’d get a slap but she would, for sure, stop the matter from escalating and reaching dad. ‘Yes, he is. But I swear Priya was with us. We weren’t alone, you can call her and ask. She was in the washroom when Maasi saw us.’ I spoke without even stopping for a breath.
‘Do you think I’m stupid? I’ve known he was your boyfriend for a while now. Why else would he call you 10 times a day and message you all day long.’ I could not believe my ears. My mom was cool with me having a boyfriend? I was literally dancing on the inside. ‘Also, the next time you go out with him, tell me and go so that I can cover for you. I’ll also make sure it doesn’t reach your dad,’ she continued. I stood there, shocked, for two minutes and then hugged her so tightly that I literally knocked the breath out of her. ‘Thank you mom, thank you, thank you, thank you’ I kept on repeating. I just could not believe my mom was so cool about it.
The only notable thing that happened after my boyfriend and I bumped into my maasi was that my mother became my best friend. Now all my secrets are safe with her. The cherry on the cake is that she and Rohan get along like a house on fire!
* Names changed to protect privacy
Images: Shutterstock
