Love at Second Sight

Prologue

A graceful taunt is worth a thousand insults.

~Louis Nazer

***

The crowd was roaring with laughter and a chorus of boos. She had been publicly humiliated, not more than a second ago, by the college's most lionized guy. All the girls in the college fawned over him, strived for his attention. One single glance, and they were done for. Including her.

All it had taken was a single insulting word from him. She'd always known that this would turn out to be a mistake, but now, looking at the wild crowd, she was certain.

Was she so horrible, that he couldn't stand her even for a bit? She'd seen him smile at other girls when they approached him, but he didn't for her. Maybe she wasn't as attractive, or as beautiful, or as confident, as the other girls that he hung out with.

He'd said, "You really think I'd hang out, or even be seen with a girl like you? Are you delusional or something? You know, I have some advice for you, next time you speak to a guy, just have a good look at your reflection in the mirror." He snickered.

"Tell me one thing, why did you even feel that I'd talk to you? Because you're fat and chubby with distorted and ugly hair, or because you're shy and timid, or because you're a bookworm who doesn't have a clue what the real world is like. Huh?" He paused, looked at her and smirked. "Uh-oh, there she goes. You know what, you just added to the reasons I wouldn't want to be seen with you. I dislike crybabies. Come to me when you've made something out of yourself," he said, and walked away.

Was she really so horrible? She knew she was fat, and she was working on it, but was it something to be so embarrassed about? Was she so ugly? Would no man ever want to be seen with her?

"Oh, look at her," someone from the crowd yelled. "You were rejected by him, girl, what a shame," she screamed and was followed by another series of mocking laughs, hoots and boos.

The whole college was talking about her. Now, ideally, it should've been about the insensitivity with which he'd humiliated her, but no, this was about how horrid-looking for a girl she was. No one cared that she'd just been body shamed. All they cared about was how the college Adonis had put her in her place.

Crying, she made her way home. She was relieved when she saw the note her mom had left for her, saying that she'd gone to get groceries and it would take time.

She sobbed into her pillow for what seemed like a century, but unfortunately, it'd only been an hour. Getting up from her bed, she walked up towards the mirror and looked at herself. Yes, she had nothing—absolutely nothing—a man would want in his lady, a boy in his girl. He'd been right when he called her what he had. She was zilch. A nobody.

What in the whole world had made her think that he'd want to be seen with her? She could clearly see why not. Still, she'd been stupid enough to approach him, with that unpleasant body, those ugly looks.

She wasted the next good hour on messing with her looks, trying to rectify her... flaws. Hair, face, body, clothing and every other possible error in herself. But, nothing looked good on her. Her hair was a bird's nest despite every hack she used. Her torso openly displayed her love handles, and her legs thick and flabby. And her face? Oh, that was a different story altogether. It looked like a close-up of the moon—cratered and uneven. The only difference was, the craters adorned the moon, but they marred her.

Oh Lord! Could she never be good enough for any man? Would no man ever want her, desire her—sexually, physically, emotionally? All these questions clenched her heart, twisted it. She wasn't desirable, she wasn't beautiful, she wasn't confident, she wasn't outgoing. She wasn't anything.