Never say You won't

Here’s another story to keep the festive spree alive.
He isn’t the one to be domesticated. He isn’t the marriage material. He loves his freedom too much to be sacrificed. Neither does he believe in the concept of monogamy. “How can you continue to survive with the same good old daal-rice?” he questions to people in a committed relationship.
His other point is that he can’t be in the race to win affection through constant attention read long hours over the phone, keeping in touch through texting or whatever. He told himself never to commit and sacrifice his singledom. Afterall he was too old.
Hence, at his mid 40’s he was happy to live life, his own style. Stickler for routine he would indulge in few pegs only over the weekends. Over the working days he would hit the gym, cook his maid-cooked meals and watch the television happily till sleep would embrace him. Mornings were jam-packed with work and clients. He was living the perfect dream. Career was going places and he was seeking new territories too. What more could you ask from life?
Then life took a strange turn. His eyes travelled to her in a crowded metro station. There was something different about her. She wasn’t making any effort to gain his attention yet his eyes wouldn’t stop looking at her. She was not conventionally beautiful, dusky, middle-aged and lost in her book. She didn’t even notice that he was gazing at her.
That night he had a strange dream. Her eyes woke him up and he couldn’t sleep later. The meetings became more frequent. She never noticed him while all he did was make his way through the crowd just to catch a glimpse. He stopped himself but couldn’t succeed. The feeling was strange and funny. How could a complete stranger have that power to hold?
Maybe the forces above had a plan for him. One fine day, he found her at his office as a client. He was delighted and couldn’t help blushing every time their eyes met. Her gaze was too hard to ignore. The night that followed rendered him sleepless. Her eyes left him tossing and turning.
Next morning he pushed himself through the crowd just to see her. And there she was lost again in her book. This time he was more confident and interrupted her with the usual pleasantry. She was surprised. The surprises became a routine then. Soon there were more meetings for work too. He planned to meet her at every pretence he could create. From strangers they became friends and he knew that she was single but not ready to mingle.
He liked her unapproachable demure. He also liked the fact that she was completely in love with herself. Made no effort to impress anyone, made no qualms about gaining attention, loved her job as much as he loved his. She was simply no-nonsense person which made her even more irresistible to him. They became friends and he cherished the friendship.
Friendship became more personal and they would discuss things outside work. The more he got to know her, the stronger was the attraction. Now he wanted more than friendship but was scared of losing her because she wasn’t like any of the girls he dated before. The fear of rejection made him weak. The idea of being with anybody else made him uncomfortable.
He would have continued for life like this if she wasn’t leaving the country for good. He was shell-shocked. Didn’t know what to do but couldn’t bear the thought of living without her. Critical situation demanded something out of the ordinary from him. He wrote a mail to her. Got no response for two days, the toughest days of his life. She wasn’t reacting at all to his mails neither has she given a sure shot answer, he was living in confusion. Finally he did ask about the fate of his mail as a matter-of-fact manner.
She replied, “What mail are you talking about? I haven’t got any.” He re-sent her. Crossed his fingers and kept waiting. The wait wasn’t long enough. She called within an hour. All she said, “I was wondering when you’ll pop the question. Thank God you asked.”
They laugh about it now. He is everything now that he promised he wouldn’t ever be. He is domesticated. Eats the same good old daal-rice and has eyes only for her. She doesn’t seek his attention though, because her busy schedule takes care of her time. So much so that she sometimes doesn’t take his calls or gets no time to call back. But he doesn’t mind. Rather that is one of the things that make him fall in love with her. He doesn’t express it in words but let his actions talk. Like the patient wait outside the shop while she shops. Mind you, he hates shopping but it becomes a little more bearable when she is around.
The God Almighty is having the last laugh, now.


Pic Courtesy: Google Images