Forget Me Not

The Beginning

The lustrous venue, prim and proper people, overflowing alcohol, an unreasonable amount of food. 

Reeva, Oliver's girlfriend, looked extremely proud of herself. She was the one who had organised this grand event. She was sure this event was going to be another step towards her promotion. Leaving Oliver's hand, she strode in the direction where her boss was standing. And Oliver looked around for the bar. Another weird thing about their relationship, they never looked after each other when they had company.

At one point in time the light dimmed, Oliver knew the main event was about to begin. He approached the table that was reserved for Reeva and her plus one.

“There you are.” Clearly, on a few drinks high, Reeva smiled broadly, “I really hope everything goes just fine. The guest we have tonight is just . . .” She couldn't finish her line when the announcer bounced on the stage.

“Hello everyone, how are we all! On this occasion of our The Laureate Event's silver jubilee anniversary, we are very proud to announce that our agency has become the number two event management agency in Los Angeles. To celebrate the success, we have arranged a fundraising programme tonight.” The announcer smiled as if she owns the agency. “So the organisation that we want to support this night is Little Hope Organisation, which has become a worldwide phenomenon for its magnificent participation in the welfare of malnourished children, be it in Asia, or Africa, in the USA or the UK. They have fought against many odds to reach where they are now. . .” 

Oliver sighed loudly, another boring party, with another boring cause. Working for malnourished children! My foot!  He thought. As if he didn't know these things were all but an attempt to whitewash the corrupt businessmen and their black money. He tuned out the rambling of the announcer successfully. He has become a pro at it.

“ . . . And we are honoured to have her on this stage.” She clapped loudly, and Oliver flinched, he slammed down the flute of champagne he was holding and looked up.

Blinking didn't help Oliver. He tried to clear out his vision. Taking a long breath, he tried to calm his heart down. But all went straight in vain. Wearing a simple pink gown, with her hair cascading down to her waist, she looked magnificent.

She . . . Evette Ashford.

The girl who had brutally murdered his feelings in front of the whole student body.The girl who he had loved with all his heart, and the girl whom he hated the most now. 

And the girl who had still managed to sneak into his dreams and he still loved her endlessly.

“Hello,” And he closed his eyes. Listening to her voice used to be his favourite pastime, the reason he had always asked her to speak. Soft voice, but strong enough to put her views in front of everyone. “Never had I imagined that I would get such magnanimous praise here. I thank you all from the bottom of my heart.” She smiled, “I haven't prepared a speech as I am not at all good at it. All I can say is, this organisation is just a little endeavour for those children who are here on this planet but do not have enough food for a living. Thousands of children are dying out there just because they don't have someone to look after. Children . . ."

Oliver just looked and looked. Ten long years. Time only did well for her. Her chubby cheeks were now smoothed down, her hair had grown but it still had that brown tint; But her eyes, those that used to shine like the sun before, now looked a little dull. She looked happy, but only for the world. 

“Thank you so much for this lovely gesture.” She ended it with a smile, the lights lit up on cue of the loud claps, her eyes roamed and stopped exactly on one particular person. 

The smile that was grazing her lips, washed out instantly, and she took a step back as if it had hit her physically. For a second or two, she remained immobile, then as if sensing something she turned away.