Chinese Okra - An Anthology

III. Next

In which a woman is scrolling through strangers on an online video-chat website and finds herself falling in love with a man.

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The Woman's index finger glided across the sleek mouse, its cold surface emitting a faint click as she pressed the "Next" button.

Moments ticked by, filled with the crackling hum of a perpetually unreliable internet connection, until the screen finally unveiled the visage of a striking man. A flash of pride emanated as the Canadian flag anchored his origin at the bottom corner of the monitor.

An anticipated silence settled between them, thick with the awkwardness of strangers pretending to be long-lost acquaintances. After a few tense heartbeats, the Woman took the reins of conversation. With a gentle wave of her slender hand, she leaned in towards the camera, greeting him in an enthusiastic whisper, well aware that her apartment's paper-thin walls had ears of their own. Meanwhile, the Man remained engrossed, clutching an e-pen in his grasp, seemingly oblivious to her efforts.

Maybe he's drawing, the Woman pondered. His face looked very charming, especially his gracefully sculpted chin with a neatly trimmed thin beard. And oh, those blue eyes! They were so... beautiful.

"Helloooo???" the Woman exclaimed, her impatience bubbling over, her voice no longer tempered by concern for her slumbering neighbor, even if it meant being a tad annoying. Flicking her mischievous fingers playfully in front of the camera, she hoped to capture the Man's attention and break free from the suffocating tedium. It worked. The Man's focus abruptly shifted, his e-pen abandoned in haste.

"Oh, hey! Sorry, I was completely absorbed," the Man apologized, scratching his short-cropped hair, his hand alternating between itchiness and embarrassment. "Yeah, I've been swamped lately too," the Woman replied, nonchalantly shrugging her shoulders. Her gaze momentarily drifted to the stack of papers on her desk, a sight that carried the weight of exhaustion. It struck her as humorous how such a seemingly insignificant pile could burden her life, casting a shadow of sorrow.

"By the way, what were you sketching earlier?" the Woman inquired, attempting to steer the conversation towards a subject.

"Oh, I wasn't drawing. That wasn't an e-pen; it's a highlighter. I've been agonizingly marking my friend's clients' phone numbers in his old notes. The stack is quite thick, and I've been at it for two whole days," the Man explained, concluding his sentence with a sigh.

"Oh, I thought it was an e-pen, sorry," replied the Woman, nodding apologetically and conveying her sincerity through subtle gestures. Inadvertently locking eyes with the man's mesmerizing blue gaze, her mouth slightly agape, she snapped herself back to reality, dispelling the foolish daydream that had momentarily ensnared her.

"Oh, not at all! If anything, you're giving me a much-needed respite," the Man reassured, flashing a warm smile that mirrored the blossoming one on the Woman's face. "And how about you? How's life treating you?" he inquired, his gaze fixed directly at the front camera of his laptop, as though piercing through the screen and into the depths of her being, causing her heart to flutter uncontrollably. His eyes seemed to sparkle brighter, their intensity captivating her for a fleeting moment, and she couldn't help but wonder if he, too, was falling under her spell.

Am I'm in love? Could this man be the one I have been searching for?

"Um, well..." the Woman stumbled for a moment, but quickly regained her composure, her words flowing more smoothly. "My boss is simply an ass. I don't know why, perhaps he has a personal vendetta against me, but who knows. What I do know is that because of him, my workload seems endless, and now I have less time for sleep," she replied with a hint of frustration, realizing that there were more pressing matters than getting lost in the virtual realm. An exasperated click of her tongue escaped her lips as she cast a fleeting glance towards the stack of papers that seemed to chant her name, beckoning to be completed like a persistent mantra.