A Coffee at Dawn

Chapter 31 : Joy Of Love!

There stood my girl, my eternal strength. The contest did not really mean anything now. I had won what I wanted. She was just a few steps away. I could see her walk about the stage, I could make out she was talking but the joy of seeing her had turned my ears deaf. I sat on the chair and only stared at her. She looked stunning. The command she had over the stage reminded me of our college days. More than being happy seeing her, I was happy that she had grown to be an independent girl.

The entire hall went out of focus to only let my eyes capture her. Since the time I left to Mumbai and I came back to Bangalore, my eyes were starving to see her. Now, when she was right in front of me, my eyes refused to shift their base. I looked close and recognised that she had worn the same black dress I had gifted her during her birthday and I must say, the dress looked pretty because she wore it. She had let her hair lose and it went down for few inches down her shoulders. Those pretty eyes of her's that I used to die for, were constantly moving across. But the smile on her face was not the same she had a few years ago when we were together. This smile was the one which came after an act of 'let-go'. I was smitten by the way she was conducting her self. I sat there and waited to see what happens and thinking of when I could get to meet her. As every moment passed, I kept heaving for breath and my heart kept pounding.

"Let us welcome our contestants on stage and get to know each one of them," she said and moved aside to the podium. I was scared to walk up to the stage, she would get to know about my presence. Without my knowledge, my fingers started fidgeting with one another. I took deep breath to calm myself as she called out four of them and they finished their introductory speech. I was not really bothered about the introduction. All I had to do was to gear up the courage to walk onto the stage.

She called out a few more before it was my turn. My eyes were fixed onto hers.

"And the next one, " she said and paused. I could sense the intent of the pause. I could see her gulp the lump down the throat. "from Bangalore," she said and again paused. Her face was lit and I could see glitters in her eyes. She raised her head and looked straight at me as I had already stood up. "Mayank Sharma" she called out my name and giggled slightly trying to stop the tears formed. She bent her head as I walked up to the stage. Before walking onto the stage, there was a table on the way and I picked a rose and went on to the stage.

I walked up straight to her and handed her the rose and I could see her face grow pink. She fixed her eyes into mine and I could see her lips tremble and her eyes fill up. She had the best smile on. I took the mike from her hand and moved to the centre of the stage. I could hear a few claps and hoots across the hall.

"Thank you for calling me up the stage with the right pause, pretty lady," I said looking at her and she curtly nodded her head and stood by. I suppressed all my joy within and looked at the people sitting in front of me. I gave a decent introduction which spoke of my inclination towards dance and event organising. People seemed keen to know and I had done my job. Before leaving the stage,
"Looking forward for more such pauses, Miss," I smiled with a wink and left the stage which was followed by an applause. The proceedings went on usual and Amyra the professional, carried out the rest of the stuffs like nothing ever happened. All I did the entire time was sit and gape at her. In between she did share a few stares at me which still sent shivers with in like the good old college days. After a while, I could see people disperse to the lounge for dinner. A beautiful setup was made. Caterers from a five star hotel had done the arrangements for the food in an impeccable manner. I was not hungry, I had better things to do before I could hog. I rushed to the back stage in search of her. I looked around but could not really find her. I waited outside the green room thinking she would come out.

"You won't find her here," said a voice from behind. I turned back to see a lady in her mid forties. I baffled for words and stood in front of her without knowing what to talk.