When I first saw her, she was fighting with the gali ka sabji wala bhaiya who was conning her. I tried intervening but she respectfully declined. Said she needed to learn.
She had just moved here a week before and I couldn't take my eyes off her. I wanted to talk to her but didn't know how to. I told a friend to find out more about her.
Within a week, my friend told me that Danielle was here for a job and would be staying for almost a year. And also that she was 5 years older than me.
I was naive back then and gave up the idea of talking to her and went on to hunt for girls my age.
After a while, one of my older friends became friends with her and invited her to a club with us. She came looking like a daydream.
I was drunk and blabbered to my friends how I had a thing for her.
10 minutes later, she comes up to me, compliments me and asks me if she could buy me a drink.
We hooked up that night. In the morning, she told me that she was seeing someone but would still like to continue this.
I asked her if she loved the guy. She said it was a question for another time.
We continued our thing like any normal couple. Her guy never came up. We spent the entire days together and I had her undivided attention.
She was aware of the eyes lurking at us but chose not to bother. She would pull me close and kiss me like hell in public.
We talked about important things. Shared opinions on things that mattered. Discussed future plans.
I asked her what she thought of marriage. She said that marriage was for the weak, the ones who couldn't live by themselves. It seemed to her like a method of bounding yourself to just one possibility. She would rather put faith in uncertainties.
She had her own school of thought. And her own moral compass.
Everybody I knew called her a slut for cheating on her boyfriend. I for one always thought of her as a fearless girl. And fierce. One who wasn't afraid of putting herself out there.
It's been 5 years since our fling. Throughout this time, the thoughts of her suddenly kept showing up in my mind.
But today is different. Today I am reminded of her because of this post sitting on my table. This post that carries her wedding invite.
YOU ARE READING
Indian Unfolding: Musings Of A Small Town
Short StoryA Collection of Short Stories from Indian Neighborhoods. These are my first works as a writer, short stories that I have written with inspirations from the life I have lived.
