blind marriage: my husband is from India

The rain was relentless, hammering the windows of The Rusty Anchor like it had a personal grudge against Seattle. Emily Harper slouched in a worn leather booth, her third mocktail—a questionable mix of pineapple juice and regret—sitting untouched. The bar smelled of damp coats and fried pickles, and the neon sign outside flickered, casting a pink glow over her sketchbook. She doodled a grumpy cat in a raincoat, mirroring her mood."Em, you can't just quit love." Jake Torres, her best friend and self-appointed life coach, leaned across the table, his camera dangling from his neck. His dark curls were still wet from the dash through Pike Place Market, where they'd dodged tourists and fish-throwing vendors. "You're 28, not a hermit in a cabin.""I'm not quitting love," Emily shot back, her pencil scratching a lightning bolt over the cat's head. "I'm quitting disaster. Tinder, Bumble, that guy who ghosted me after I paid for his tacos—done." Her last breakup, with a wannabe poet named Chad, had left her heart bruised and her trust in men on life support.Jake grinned, undeterred, and waved his phone like a magic wand. "Then let's try something bold. Destiny Connect. It's not a dating app—it's a blind marriage app. You meet, you vibe, you marry. No swiping, no games."Emily choked on her drink, spluttering pineapple juice. "Marry a stranger? Jake, have you lost it? I'm not that desperate.""It's not desperate, it's adventurous!" Jake's eyes sparkled with mischief. "Think about it. You, in a whirlwind romance, maybe with some hot international guy. You love a challenge."She rolled her eyes but couldn't suppress a smile. Jake knew her too well—her love for sketching bold designs, her habit of diving into projects headfirst, her secret wish for something bigger than her freelance gigs and rainy Seattle nights. Plus, her mom, Lila, had been dropping hints about "settling down" since her recent cancer scare. Emily's chest tightened at the thought. She wasn't ready to lose her mom, or to admit how much those hospital visits had shaken her."Fine," she said, tossing her sketchbook aside. "Show me this dumb app. But if I end up married to a catfish, you're paying for my divorce."Jake whooped, already tapping away. "Female, 28, graphic designer, loves bad puns and coffee, hates commitment—done!" He hit submit before she could protest, and her phone buzzed with a confirmation: Profile Created. Awaiting Your Destiny.Emily groaned, but a tiny spark of curiosity flickered. What if this was her chance to shake things up?8,000 miles away, in a cramped Mumbai apartment that smelled of chai and monsoon damp, Arjun Mehra stared at his laptop. Code flickered on the screen, but his mind was elsewhere. His mother's voice crackled through his phone, as persistent as the horns blaring on the bustling street below."Arjun, beta, you're 30. Time to settle down!" Priya Mehra's tone was equal parts love and exasperation. "Your brother would've wanted you to carry on the family name."Arjun's throat tightened. His older brother, Rohan, had been the golden son—until a car accident stole him five years ago. Now Arjun was the one his parents leaned on, the one who had to honor traditions while chasing his tech dreams in a new country. He'd moved to Seattle for work, but Mumbai's chaotic energy—its street vendors hawking vada pav, its colorful Ganpati festival floats—still tugged at his heart."I'm trying, Ma," he said, running a hand through his hair. "But I want someone who gets me, not just someone you pick from the community."Priya sighed. "That's why I sent you that app, Destiny Connect. It's modern but keeps our values. Find a nice girl, Arjun. Your father and I aren't getting younger."He opened the app, half-expecting a list of traditional brides his mother would approve—someone from their Marathi community, ready to cook perfect dal and host family pujas. Instead, the interface was sleek, promising "love through destiny." On impulse, he filled out his profile: Male, 30, software engineer, loves Bollywood movies and chai, seeks a partner to bridge two worlds.As he hit submit, a notification pinged: Match Found. Meet Your Destiny in Seattle. His heart skipped. Seattle? That was his new city. Maybe this was fate—or at least a good story to tell his cousin Maya.Back at The Rusty Anchor, Emily's phone lit up with a notification. She froze, her sketchbook forgotten. "Jake, what did you do?" she hissed, snatching her phone."Destiny Connect," Jake read over her shoulder, grinning. "You've got a match! Arjun Mehra, 30, from Mumbai. Oh, this is gold. He's probably got a sexy accent."Emily's stomach flipped as she opened the profile. Arjun's photo showed a guy with warm brown eyes, a shy smile, and a crisp kurta that somehow looked cool. His bio was earnest: Looking for someone to share chai and dreams, across cultures. No red flags, no shirtless gym selfies. Just… sincerity."Okay, he's cute," she admitted, her cheeks warming. "But marriage? In 30 days? That's insane."Jake leaned closer, his voice dropping. "Em, I looked into this app. It's got a weird history—some couples say it mismatched them, like, epically. You sure you wanna roll the dice?"Her pulse quickened. A glitchy app? That sounded like a recipe for disaster—or a thrill. She thought of her mom, who'd always said, "Life's too short to play it safe." And then there was the letter tucked in her drawer, the one from her father, unopened, nagging at her. She'd spent years building walls around her heart. Maybe it was time to take a risk."Fine," she said, her voice steadier than she felt. "I'll meet him. One date. But if he's a creep, Jake, you're dead."Jake raised his glass. "To destiny!"As Emily tapped Accept Match, her phone buzzed again, confirming a meeting at a Pike Place coffee shop in two days. She stared at the screen, her heart pounding. What had she just signed up for? And why did the name Arjun Mehra feel like the start of something she couldn't undo?Across town, in a sleek Seattle apartment, Arjun's phone pinged with the same confirmation. He smiled, picturing a woman who might love chai as much as he did. But as he closed his laptop, a text from his friend Vik flashed: Heard about your app match. Be careful, bro. Some secrets don't stay buried.Arjun frowned. Secrets? He shook it off, blaming Vik's flair for drama. But a seed of doubt planted itself, just as Emily's own past whispered from the shadows.