CAN WE HAPPEN?

PRIVATE DANCER

"Dom."

"Hey, uncle Luis."

Neha didn't expect the place Dominque wanted to take her was his uncle's restaurant, but rare was the restaurants where one could eat authentic cuisine from south America in Paris.

Uncle Luis kept his kitchen a hundred percent Hispanic. Every employee was from South America or a Spanish or Portuguese-speaking country.

The restaurant served culinary staples from Puerto Rico to Angola.

People came far to eat and dance in what people called chez nous [our place].

The decor wasn't sophisticated. On the contrary, the place had this had-lived-many-lives look, with its turquoise fading into navy walls, terracotta floor tiles, and paintings that reminded Neha of interiors of the Havana one finds on Google pics or Pinterest.

Neha's nose tweaked as the scent of exotic spices flirted with her nostrils. She didn't have the time to distinguish the condiments when uncle Luis called her out.

"Doctor, I'm glad to see you. How have you been?"

Uncle Luis hardly smiled. He was of the grumpy lot that huffed and puffed, but there, the broad smile he harbored aroused Dominque's curiosity. Everyone in his family reacted the same way when they saw Neha. Dominque knew she worked in the ward where they admitted him, and she probably attended to him once or twice during his hospitalization; still, he didn't understand the red carpet treatment all reserved for her.

Dominque was clueless concerning her involvement in his recovery. For Dominque, their first encounter was in the hospital's lobby, where Neha's tongue hissed at the man for almost running her over.

Neha's anger that day allowed her to play the script of the first encounter well. Without knowing, she created a form of confusion.

Dominique imagined Kaede was the woman he saw when he woke up at night. The man was grateful Kaede found time despite everything that happened to see him.

Kaede was one of the good ones. A queen in his eyes and Neha refused to change the narrative of the tale Dominque forged by revealing she was the woman he stretched his hand to at night.

The doctor knew how highly Dominque esteemed his Ex. Dominque called out Kaede's name when Neha visited him. He confessed his regret and told Neha how much he missed Kaede thinking she was her.

Kaede would never go away. She was a standard and the expectation. Thus Neha thought she would never be enough. She was ordinary, all in caps, without artifice. A man like Dominque couldn't fall for someone like her. She couldn't stop thinking that perhaps Dominque sort for a woman like her for rebound relationships. Yes, in her mind, she could only be a recreation for Dominque.

"Hi, I've been well," Neha replied with a shy smile while her thoughts wandered into a realm of insecurities.

"I hope my nephew is treating you well," uncle Luis said and gave her a wink.

Dominque shook his head at the inquiry, "what are you trying to say? I treat everyone well."

What he said wasn't a lie, yet something within told Dominque he was wrong. There was one person he mistreated. Kaede gave him everything. She opened her heart, her home. She let him into her garden, and he trampled her feelings.

Neha smiled while praying it would be enough as a reply. She didn't want to sing Dominque's merit, especially when there wasn't anything particular to say. Dominque was a guyㅡa good one from what she saw but weren't most guys like him?

Again she didn't expect a man with his looks to be so plain-living. When she thought of it, Dominque's kindness was sort of exceptional if she listened to the compliments most had concerning men.