Back to Zayn though, he expects me at the café every day at 6:30 p.m. sharp. It’s been so for about four years now. After completing my course at New York University, when I joined Beta and moved to Chicago, I had to find something to fill my lonely weekends with because I barely knew anyone in the city. Most of my classmates and roommates had scattered across the States. I often planned touristy escapades for myself, like visiting the Navy Pier, Lake Michigan, Devon Street (which is Chicago’s mini India), the museum, the opera and the library. The best, however, was booking a Broadway show every weekend. The shows weren’t as grand as the ones I watched in New York, but they were good enough to keep pulling me back in week after week. That’s where I met Zayn, at a local Broadway show on a Saturday. We were seated next to each other, and we ended up speaking to each other at length that night. From discussing the latest piece of bullshit pop music to debating an art exhibit of Van Gogh’s work, we connected at various levels. Zayn is a struggling sound producer who works at Josie’s to pay his bills. He also writes and performs poetry and experiments with multiple forms of artistic expression. We’re both immigrants, so we’re kind of sailing in the same boat and it’s life’s circumstances that have kept us glued to each other.

I used to walk back to my apartment after work every day and feel miserable about spending the evening alone. That’s when Emma, my colleague at work, suggested that I become a regular at a café. That’s what most Americans do, she said. So, I chose Josie’s, Zayn’s place. Emma also suggested that I get a cat or a dog, another very American thing to do. She mocked me last year, on my birthday no less, for not being in a relationship with someone. She said, ‘Most Americans would’ve been married at least once and have had multiple children by now. You’re not even in a live-in relationship with someone!’