Just accept

"I can't."

The words fell out of my mouth for what felt like the hundredth time that day, my voice laced with equal parts frustration and disbelief. I slumped into the chair across from Zara's desk, my hands gripping the armrests as if they might keep me tethered to reality.

Zara, perched casually on the edge of her desk, looked at me like I'd just declared I planned to swim across an ocean.

Her hair was slightly messy, as usual, and her sharp eyes narrowed at me with a mix of amusement and exasperation. "You told Elara's father what?"

"I told him I can't," I repeated, throwing my hands in the air. "What else was I supposed to say? He told me to marry her, Zara. Marry her! Like I can just slap on a ring and call it a day!"

Zara's laugh was loud and unapologetic, the sound echoing in the small office. "Oh, Aaliyah, you're killing me," she said, wiping an imaginary tear from her eye.