He was waiting for his flight at the airport and reading a business article as a sudden chill passed through his veins. The fragrance of perfume from the back seat reminded him of someone. Someone he had forgotten long time back. It could be anyone, he thought as he couldn’t gather the strength to look back and find out. As he was trying to make up his mind, he felt a kid’s hand pushing his hair from behind. What happened next, took him years back in his life. The memories he tried hard to hide in the closet were freshen in a blink of an eye. He was again a 23 year old boy trying to hide his affection.
“No beta, don’t do that, uncle will get angry” the lady sitting behind him told the kid.
It was her voice. He didn’t know what was more painful; her memories or the fact that she was with the kid? He never thought they would ever meet again and so did she. They both froze for a moment when they looked into each others’ eyes. And then she said those words “Oh my god, you are fat!” That was enough to break the ice. And just like old friends who meet after a decade, they started talking about the good old days.
Coincidence can be good or bad, but sometimes, they are neither. As they were waiting for the same flight they decided to move to the coffee lounge. The child was fast asleep and they were having a nice talk. “I have to say, you have changed a lot. I remember you being childish and irresponsible. You sound mature now” she said. “Oh! Really? The way I recall it, you, were arrogant and boring, snapping on silly things” he replied. “That was because of you, everyone in the office except you, knew you had a crush on me. And you used to act crazy, well, as I said childish”. The last statement opened the Pandora. Both of them felt a breeze of memories they couldn’t hold to themselves.
He said “Hello, you use to ask me for lift all the time”. “You use to stare at me all day in office” she replied. “You use to come to my seat to talk, at least 5 times a day” he said. “That’s because my best friend was sitting next to you”. “But you called me at midnight to wish on my birthday, when you were on a family trip” she replied. “You gave me a separate birthday party” he reminded. “Because you asked for it and why did you mess only with my face on your birthday cake cream?” She asked. “You used to accompany me for lunch when I got late” he continued. She did not stop either. She continued “You used to pay for my favorite ice-cream after that. Also, why did you walk me to station after office every day and take a bus back home? “I can see you are still arrogant and stubborn just like old days, didn’t change a bit, did you?” He asked.
She smiled and replied “if that’s true, how is it you always came back apologizing, even when I was wrong and convince me to talk with you? And tell me something, where were you when I was getting married?”
The last question brought him back to his conscious. He remembered how he could not digest the news of her getting married to someone else and quit his job. He moved overseas and avoided being in touch with everyone he worked with, just to run away from it. He opposed arranged marriages ever since. Everything was crystal clear now. He knew what he had to do to come to terms with this part of his life. He did not have to hide it in the closet anymore. This, was his opportunity to overcome the regret; to express what was unsaid and most importantly, know, the answer.
His smile was calm and composed. He leaned back on his chair, folded his hands and took a deep breath. As he was feeling the rising chill inside him, and confessed; “Actually, you are right, I did have a crush on you. It was the first in my life and I did not know what to do. I acted crazy, childish, and I am sorry if that bothered you or created embarrassing situations”.
Surprised by the honest reply, she did not know what to say. There was pin drop silence in the coffee shop. He finally struck the conversation, “I need one more coffee, do you want one?” She nodded in reply with a mild tongue-tied smile and he went for coffee.
Standing in line, waiting for the Coffee, he felt the gravity of the situation. His heart beat was so fast, his heart could explode anytime; but that’s not gonna happen, is it ?? His task is still incomplete, he is yet to ask the question and needed the answer that would free him from his agony………