Sunday family lunch at the home was a tense affair.
Gabi could feel the intensity of her mother's gaze on her as she tried to distract from it, playing with the food on her plate. Every laugh, every move she made seemed to be scrutinized with an unnerving level of attention.
"You're unusually quiet today, Gabi," Mrs. Marta remarked, her eyes narrowing. "And you and Ravi seemed to have disappeared together for quite some time yesterday..."
Ravi, seated across the table, swallowed hard. His fingers tightened around the fork with enough force to turn his knuckles white.
"We were helping Uncle Carlos with the new fence," he lied, his voice steady, but Gabi saw the muscle in his jaw twitch.
"Really?" Gabi's mother didn't seem convinced.
Gabi felt a bead of sweat trickle down her back. She
