Meet Ira.

Age: 27.

MBTI: INTJ.

Average-looking (whatever that means). No makeup. Loves comfy clothes. Too cool to care.

Works in a company for sales and advertisement design.

Lives alone in an apartment, enjoying the peaceful single life—or so she tells herself.

Ira is done with love. Every guy she dated had the dumbest excuses for dumping her:

"My mom doesn’t approve."

"Astrologer said our stars don’t match."

"I’m not ready for commitment." (Later, he gets engaged within a month.)

Meanwhile, her friends are getting married one by one, and now her parents won’t stop nagging her.

Present day-

Ira is walking through a busy street, minding her business, when her phone rings.

Mom (excitedly): "Ira! Your little brother has a girlfriend now! They might get married soon!"

Ira stops in her tracks and after 2 min silence she start walking.

Ira: "…My younger brother? Before me?"

Mom: "Yes! When are YOU getting married? You’re getting old!"

Ira (deadpan): "Oh wow. Love is now like milk—expiring by the day."

Mom: "Ira, I am serious!"

Ira: "Yeah, yeah. Bye, Mom." – Hangs up.

She sighs. Great. Even her little brother is securing a relationship before her.

Lost in frustration, Ira barely notices where she’s walking. When she looks up, she realizes…

She has no idea where she is.

A colorful tent catches her eye. The sign outside reads:

"Find Your Soulmate – If You Have One."

Ira squints.

Sounds like the beginning of a scam… but hey, what’s life without a little entertainment?

She steps inside.

A mysterious old lady with piercing eyes sits behind a dimly lit table.

Old Lady: "You seek love but cannot find it, right?"

Ira (raising an eyebrow): "Let me guess, my face screams 'single and desperate'?"

Old Lady: "No, but your aura does."

Ira: "Great. Even my aura is laughing at me."

The old lady pulls out a glowing necklace.

Old Lady: "Wear this tonight while sleeping, and you shall meet your soulmate—IF you have one."

Ira: "Sounds like a scam."

Old Lady: "Then stay single forever."

Ira rolls her eyes. Nice marketing strategy.

She reaches for the necklace—

Old Lady (😁grinning): "That’ll be 5,000 rupees."

Ira: "…EXCUSE ME? FIVE THOUSAND?? ARE YOU SELLING A NECKLACE OR A FULL HUSBAND PACKAGE?!"

Old Lady: "Your choice, dear."

Ira grumbles, but hands over the money anyway.

Ira (pointing a finger): "If this doesn’t work, I’m filing a police complaint."

Old Lady (smirking(⁠^⁠^⁠)): "Sure, dear."

The moment Ira blinks—

She’s back on the street.

--

Ira stands frozen.

Ira: "Wait… what the hell? Was I dreaming? Did I just zone out??" 😭

She looks up at the sky.

Ira: "God, I am so single, I’m HALLUCINATING love scams now?? Just send me my soulmate already!"

A kid nearby overhears and bursts out laughing.

Kid (mocking): "Hehe, aunty is talking to the sky about her boyfriend!"

Ira (glaring): "Mind your business-_-", tiny human!" AND I M NOT A AUNTY!!!

She power-walks home in embarrassment.

Back in her apartment, Ira lets out a deep breath.

Ira: "That was weird. Whatever. Time for a shower."

As she takes off her earrings—

She notices something shimmering on her neck.

She freezes.

Slowly, she touches it.

It’s the necklace.

The same one.

It’s real.

Ira (whispering): "No way…"

Her stomach drops.

Ira: "SO THAT WASN’T A DREAM?!"

She grabs her head in frustration.

Ira: "Damn. My 5K."

I GOT SCAMMED!!!!

TO BE CONTINUED…

Fresh out of the shower, Ira stands in front of the mirror, drying her hair. She glances at the necklace sitting on her dresser.

Ira: "Might as well get my money’s worth."

She wears it, takes a few selfies, and strikes a pose.

Ira: "Wow. My 5K is finally doing something for me."

She tilts her head, staring at the glow.

Ira: "What if this actually works?"

…

Ira: "Pfft. Yeah, right."

She yanks it off and tosses it onto the sofa.

SMACK. It lands perfectly on a cushion.

Ira: "Good night, scam necklace."

She sleeps.

It’s Sunday. Ira stretches, groaning.

Ira: "Wow, a day off. Time to be useless in peace."

Then she remembers—

She has a birthday party to attend.

Ira scrambles to get ready, throwing on a cute but comfy dress. She looks at her jewelry.

Nothing matches.

Ira: "Ugh. Of course."

Her eyes land on the necklace.

Ira: "Well… you cost me 5K. You better make me look rich."

She wears it.

Ira: "Wow. My 5K on my neck actually looks perfect."

Satisfied, she heads out.

At party-

It’s loud. Kids are running everywhere, parents chatting, couples being lovey-dovey.

Ira regrets coming.

Then—

A tiny 4-year-old hurricane crashes into her legs.

Kid (grinning): "SINGLE AUNT! What did you bring for me?!"

Ira: "Cutie, first of all, DON’T call me ‘aunt.’ Second, here—an Elsa doll."

Kid (gasps): "Elsa!"

Ira (smirks): "Yep. Like us, she don’t need a prince."

Kid (proudly): "But I have a boyfriend, Aunt!"

Ira: "WTF. YOU’RE FIVE, BRUH."

Kid: "Mom knows!"

Ira turns to her friend Annie, the kid’s mom.

Ira: "You LET her have a boyfriend?"

Annie (shrugs): "Yeah. What if she ends up single like you? I don’t want her blaming me."

Ira: "…F* you."**

Annie: "Oh, don’t be mad. You’ll find someone someday."

Ira grits her teeth.

Ira: "Actually, I HAVE a boyfriend. We’re getting married soon."

The group of friends stare.

July: "Oh? Really? When do we meet him?"

Ira: "Uhh… he’s busy. I’ll let you know."

She escapes.

Ira faceplants against the taxi window.

Ira: "WHYYYY. WHY AM I LIKE THIS?!"

She groans.

Ira: "Does anyone sell husbands?! Anyone??!"

The taxi driver side-eyes her.

She went to bar.

Ira drowns her sorrows in alcohol.

Ira: "Screw it. Cheers to my invisible fiancé."

She drinks too much.

At midnight, she stumbles home and collapses on the bed, still wearing the necklace.

--

Ira wakes up in a strange place.

Except—

She’s not herself.

She’s a duck.

Ira: "WHAT THE FU—QUACK?!"

A cat approaches her, holding an egg.

Cat (seriously): "Take care of your soulmate."

Ira: "HUH?!"

Suddenly—

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

Her alarm rings.

Ira jolts awake.

Ira: "Holy crap. What a WEIRD dream."

She groggily stumbles into the kitchen.

She reaches for eggs—

…

And freezes.

Sitting in the basket is—

The same egg from her dream.

Ira: "…"

Her soul leaves her body.

Ira: "WHAT THE—"

TO BE CONTINUED.

Ira: "Ugh. What even is this? Did I steal someone's groceries last night?"

Shrugging, she cracked the egg into a pan, added some spices, and made an omelet.

Ira: "Might as well put it to good use. Protein is protein."

She took a bite.

For some reason, it tasted… odd.

Like… destiny, disappointment, and a lawsuit waiting to happen.

She paused, staring at the half-eaten omelet.

Ira: "…Nah. I’m overthinking it."

She finished eating, got dressed, and—without thinking—slipped on the necklace again.

Ira: "Huh. It actually looks good on my wrist. Why didn’t I notice this before?"

(The necklace has a hidden watch inside)

---

At Work…

Ira was stressed.

She was working on a big advertisement project when suddenly—

A random old man walked into her office.

Old Man: "Miss, I have an offer for you."

Ira (tiredly): "Sir, if this is another insurance scheme, I will call security."

Old Man (smiling): "No, no. I want you to marry my son."

Ira: ???

Old Man: "He’s a good man. Very responsible. Had two wives before you He is just 47."

Ira (flatly): "And where are they now?"

Old Man: "…Dead."

Ira: 😐😐😐

Old Man: "No one knows why. But third time’s the charm!"

Ira (without hesitation): "Uncle, your son is 47. It’s time for him to retire, not get married."

Old Man: "So that’s a no?"

Ira: "It’s a hell no."

Old Man (sighing): "Kids these days. No respect for tradition."

He left.

Ira slammed her head on her desk.

---

Later That Evening…

Because she was distracted all day, Ira made a mistake in her project.

Her team leader ripped her apart.

Team Leader: "Ira, this is unacceptable. We have to redo the whole thing!"

Ira: "I'll fix it."

She stayed late, rewriting everything. By the time she finished, it was nighttime.

Exhausted, she put her head down on her desk.

And then—

---

Ira was back in the weird dream world.

As a duck. Again.

She waddled in frustration.

Ira: "WHY AM I STILL A DUCK?!"

A familiar cat appeared, staring at her like she was the dumbest creature alive.

Cat: "…Girl. Did you really eat your soulmate?!"

Ira (blinking): "Wait. What?"

Cat: "The egg I gave you? Yeah. That was your soulmate."

Ira: "…"

Ira: "OH MY GOD I COMMITTED A CELESTIAL CRIME??"

Cat (sighing): "Okay. Clearly, you can’t be trusted with something edible. Let’s try again."

The cat handed her a tiny fish.

Cat: "This fish will become your soulmate in five weeks. Don’t eat it."

Ira: "WHY WOULD I EAT IT?!"

Cat: "I don’t know, you tell me, Omelet Murderer."

---

Reality – Back in Her Apartment

Ira’s friend woke her up.

Friend: "Ira, go home. Its so late already.

Still dazed from the dream, Ira packed up and left.

She went home, showered, and stepped into her kitchen—

Only to freeze.

Sitting on her counter was a fishbowl.

Inside was a tiny, golden fish.

THE SAME FISH FROM HER DREAM.

Ira: "…You have GOT to be kidding me."

She stared at it.

It stared back.

Ira (rubbing her temples): "Fine. I’ll keep it. But if you turn into a ugly short Man, I swear to God, I’m suing the universe."

She grabbed fish food and sprinkled some into the bowl.

The fish swam happily.

Ira: "…Ugh. At least you're cute."

---

TO BE CONTINUED…

---