I was in for a surprise when I reached Priya’s house.

When she said a party at her house, I was expecting a small gathering of her close friends and sorts.

Even though the function was not huge, based on the cars parked outside, the celebration was in no way small. Considering the amount of time involved in organizing and inviting everyone, it was not a small feat.

When I entered the house, I was directed to the backside, where the party was organized around the pool.

I realized that I hadn't fully seen their house the last time I was here. I had severely underestimated her family’s financial situation.

I couldn't help but be a bit envious. But I brushed aside all those thoughts from my mind.

I searched through the crowd and quickly realized I didn't know anyone here. Even though I was not close to my college friends, I should have recognized some of them. A quick look around, and I could not even find a single person I knew.

I got a drink, sat in a corner and decided to just wait it out.

Most people seemed to know each other, and they were enjoying each other's company.

Surprisingly I felt at ease not knowing anyone. The food and drinks were good, and I decided to just enjoy them.

After a while, no new people were entering the venue anymore. It seemed like everyone had arrived.

No sooner had I thought than I heard a clinking sound from somewhere near the centre. Someone was trying to get everyone's attention. Everyone went quiet and looked over there.

I saw an old man standing near the centre. Priya was standing next to him, and from their similarities, I would guess that was her father.

"Hello, everyone. Thanks, everyone, for coming. Especially at such short notice. I'm happy to have all our close friends and relatives here to celebrate this very happy occasion. Just so everyone knows what this is about. I had made a bet with Priya sometime ago that if she got into the Top 1000 rank in her University, I would buy her a car. I thought that would be the best way to save my money as that seemed a really unrealistic goal.”

After a dramatic pause, he continued with a smile.

“But today, her second-year final exam results have been announced, and she has once again proved how determined she can be when she wants something. She has gotten 990th rank in her University, and I'm proud of her. I am going to honour our deal. I have already placed the order for her preferred car, a Mini Cooper and expect it to be delivered to her soon based on availability. Congratulations to her once again. “

I felt proud somehow. Felt like it was part of my achievement. I tried not to react differently from the rest of the crowd and just stood and clapped like everyone else.

After the speech, people continued to interact with one another

I went back to enjoying the food and drinks.

After some time, I was interrupted by someone. It seemed like Priya had found me among the crowd.

"Here you are. I was worried that you wouldn't come. “

"I was here all along. Though a bit surprised I can't find anyone from our college here. “

She smiled a bit sheepishly.

"The whole party thing was my Dad's idea. He was super thrilled when I told him about the results. I'm a bit ashamed about it. Don't get me wrong. I'm really proud of my results. But celebrating getting 990th rank while I have the 19th rank in front of me doesn't seem correct to me.”

“I don’t think that’s the right way to think. You deserve to be recognized for your efforts. You did really well. I’m sure others would agree with me. You should have invited them as well.

“I don’t think so. I'm sure a lot of my other friends from college would have performed better than me. So I didn't want to be seen like a hypocrite. Thus I didn't invite anyone else. But I had to invite you. This is a big deal for me, and it wouldn't have been possible without you.”

Before I could reply, another person joined in our conversation.

"Ha. There you are. And who might this be?”

It was Priya’s Father.

"Dad. Meet Jacob. I'm sure I must have told you about him.”

"Oh. The boy genius. The one who cost me all the money. To be honest, I never planned to buy her a car. I don't want her to get spoiled. Well, I mean more spoiled than she already is. So I thought if I gave her a seemingly difficult but impossible goal, she would leave me alone. And here you came along and spoiled my plan. Still, a bet is a bet, and I will honour it.”

Even though he was trying to sound unhappy, you could make out from his tone and expressions that he was delighted and proud of his daughter's achievement.

"Well, enjoy the party. And I hope you can continue to inspire my daughter more.”

He soon left to entertain his other guests.

"Hey. I have to meet everyone else as well. Most are old family friends who I haven't seen in a long time. Hope you won't get too bored alone. “

"It's ok. No problem. I understand. Enjoy. You are the star of the hour. And you deserve it. “

"Thank you. Also, don't think I forgot our bet. You owe me something. I still haven't decided what, though.”

She left smiling.

I hadn’t forgotten about it. But I wished she might have. Guess there is no way out of it. I just hope it wouldn't be anything ridiculous.

I stayed for some more time and left back to my home soon.

I reached back home late at night.

I was experiencing a different feeling that night.

I was feeling really happy for the first time in my life for someone else's success. I couldn't stop thinking about Priya’s smiling face. It filled me with so much happiness.

At the same time, I was feeling a bit worried as well. Now that she had won her bet, would she stop having our sessions? Or worse, would she stop interacting with me at all. I couldn't understand why I was feeling like this. I was having really mixed feelings about all this.

I took a deep breath and calmed my mind. I realized I was experiencing feelings I was not used to, and I was having trouble controlling them.

I realized I had slowly unknowingly started caring for Priya. I had to remove such unnecessary thoughts as soon as possible. She was from a completely different background. She belonged to a family that had everything. We could never be together.

We also belonged to different religions. This might not be a huge thing anywhere else. But in India, it mattered more than anything else. No matter which way one looked at it, it would never make sense.

But sometimes, understanding some things logically and making your heart accept it can be very different.

I thought about my Mantra again.

Never be a slave to your emotions. Your emotions should be your slave.

But today, I silently added one more line.

Because you don't have a choice