Hani and Ishu's Guide to Fake Dating(64)

“I mean …” Aisling rolls her eyes. “Come on, you know what I mean. I figured you’re still making up your mind. Whatever you want, is what I mean.”

I shake my head. “Aisling … you know that I’m bisexual. That’s not swinging one way or another way,” I say. “I don’t know why you’ve been so weird about it.”

Aisling sighs and folds her arms over her chest. “I don’t know why you’re being so weird about it. It doesn’t have to be such a big deal. You’re going to end up with one or the other at the end of the day, so.”

“That doesn’t mean my sexuality changes. Is that why you’ve been calling Ishu and me lesbians, because you think two girls being together have to be lesbians?”

Aisling rolls her eyes again. “Why is this even a thing? Everyone knows that you’re going to be with a guy at the end of the day, and this whole bisexuality thing is your way of seeming interesting or whatever. Like you’re so Muslim you won’t even drink a drop of alcohol and you want us to think you’re for real gay?”

“Wow.” I shake my head. I’m not even sure how to respond to her, or how to set her right about Muslims and gay people. I had thought that she and Dee were finally coming around, what with them actually spending time with me and Ishu, and actually seeming to get along with Ishu. It seems like the whole thing has been off-track from the beginning. Maybe Aisling and Dee were never going to come around, no matter what I said to them.

“I should go to class.” I swing my bag over my shoulder. Aisling just looks at me with that frown on her lips. For a moment, I think she’s going to say something more, try to defend her position more. But as I turn and head away from her, she doesn’t say another word.





chapter thirty-seven


ishu


NIK AND I DON’T TALK DURING MOST OF THE DRIVE. With each turn, I get more and more nervous. The road we’re driving down feels disturbingly familiar.

“What exactly are we doing?” I ask.

“Fixing things,” Nik says, staring straight ahead. “Don’t worry, you’ll feel a lot better after this.”

By the time we’re taking the last turn, my stomach is in shambles and I’m pretty sure I’m going to throw up.

“Nik … I didn’t come to school today for a reason!” I exclaim. “Why are we here?”

“Trust me, okay?” Nik reaches forward and takes my hand into hers. She gives my fingers a reassuring squeeze. “I would not bring you here if I didn’t know exactly what I was doing. Come on.”

It’s two o’clock, so lunchtime has thankfully already passed. The hallways are deserted as Nik and I enter, Nik with her head held high and me all but cowering behind her.

“Hi … we have an appointment with the principal,” Nik says, tapping on the secretary’s glass separation.

“Oh …” Anna looks up from her phone. Her face transforms from confused to happy as soon as she recognizes Nik. “Nikhita!” she says. “So good to see you!”

“Oh … same.” Nik puts on her best polite smile. “Principal Gallagher?”

“Right … you can go ahead. She’s in her office.”

“Perfect, thanks.”

“Nik …” I say as I trail behind her. She has a laser-focused gaze as she marches toward Principal Gallagher’s door. “I just don’t know if—”

I don’t get to finish my sentence, because the next moment, Nik has opened up the door to the principal’s office. Ms. Gallagher is on the phone, in deep conversation. She glances up at our arrival, her face darkening when she spots the two of us.

“I’ll call you back. I have a meeting,” she mumbles into the phone while waving the two of us in. I take a seat, the same one that I was sitting on yesterday when my life got turned upside down. Nik stands, her arms crossed and her feet tapping loudly against the floor.

“Nikhita!” Ms. Gallagher says as soon as she’s hung up the phone. “It’s so great to see you again! How is UCL?”

Nik rolls her eyes. “Ms. Gallagher, I’m here about my sister. It seems she’s been unfairly accused of cheating. By you.”

“Not … not by me,” Ms. Gallagher recoils in feigned shock. Like she wasn’t the one who ambushed me in her office with Ammu and Abbu to tell me about Aisling’s accusation.

“By a student, whatever.” Nik waves her hand like it doesn’t matter either way. “It’s a false accusation. I know that Ishita hasn’t cheated. You know that Ishita hasn’t cheated. Prolonging this process with your ridiculous investigation while disallowing her to run for Head Girl is deeply unfair.”

“An investigation is just how the process works when a student has been accused of cheating.” Ms. Gallagher’s voice is full of sympathy, but there is none on her face. I suspect there’s even a little glee dancing behind her eyes. Like she’s beaten me and my sister down. After all, we have both been top of the class for our entire careers in this school. “There’s really nothing I can do about it. I’m sorry that you’ve come all the way here to—”

“Can I see the tests?” Nik doesn’t even seem to be listening to her words. “Both of them?”