THE DATE

  "Sir,would you like to order some food?' asked the waiter. "Later. Right now,I am waiting for my date." I said nervously. My hands were cold and sweaty. The speed of my heartbeat increased and so did the ticking clock.I was getting impatient. Where is she? It's been so long. To distract myself,I looked at the cafe. It was small but beautifully designed. The walls were painted white but there were mural arts around it. The cafe not only looks beautiful but it also smells amazing.The smell of delicious cheesy fries filled the air. I was busy admiring the cafe when the waiter once again came and told me "Sir,we are almost closing. Are you sure your date will arrive? I looked at him angrily and said "Yes,of course she will arrive." I was about to call Aria when she arrived.

Wearing a white dress with a denim jacket. Her dark brown hair cascaded down her back.She closed her umbrella and kept it aside at the entrance. "I'm sorry for being late."she said with the brightest smile. "It's o-o-kay"I fumbled. I was mesmerized by her beauty. How can someone look so stunning? She has been my crush for the past 8 years and now finally I got a chance to be with her on a date. I still remember the first day I saw her in school.

        It was the first day of school and she was standing at the corner of the hall. Tightly holding her father's hand with tears in her eyes.Her father brought her to the teacher who then coaxed her to enter the classroom but she refused. No one could change her decision. She certainly was strong-headed and that's what I love about her.

   Just one look at her and I was head over heels for her. I've seen her grow from the shy,quiet girl to a friendly and confident one. We don't talk much and she thinks it's because I am uncomfortable talking to her, but the truth is I fumble and my mind goes blank every time she talks to me. I have certainly embarrassed myself so many times in front of her. Argh, I don't want to remember that, it's a bad memory.

    There was something special about her though. Something magnetic that makes me want to care for her even if it's secretly. Be it fighting anyone who hurts her,helping her to copy notes when she's absent,buying her chocolates when she is on her period or writing her motivating letters and pasting it on her table when she is stressed out.

    Doing all that for her made me happy. I always dreamt of doing it infront of her but could never muster courage. Just like that, time passed and we entered grade 9.One day she walked to me and gave me a letter. "Hi,I have mustered courage to say this and um....will you go out on a date with me? I wanted to thank you for all the caring gestures you've been doing for me and I also wanted to tell you that I.....love....you...Meet me today at 6pm at my comfort place!"

    After reading the letter, I couldn't stop smiling. I was beaming from ear to ear. The whole day my friends were teasing me. My ears usually turn red when I blush and my friends were curious to know the reason for me blushing. Every time they asked me about it, I smiled and looked at Aria secretly. She too would smile and look away. Time passed slowly that day. Waiting until school ended felt like eternity!

    As soon as school ended,I rushed home and prepared for the date. There was a lot of time before the date but I just wanted to look the best for her. After taking an hour to dress up, I remember buying flowers,her favorite cookies and a small gift for her. A silver bracelet with her name engraved on it.I was so excited to meet her. "Have you ordered anything?"she asked while waving to me. I came out of my flashback and smiled at her."Not yet,come,have a seat."I said while pulling a chair for her. I had to treat her like the queen she is! She sat down and we started talking. It was so comfortable,no awkwardness,no hesitations.It felt as if we had been talking for years. Everything felt magical and perfect. I was on cloud nine and I never ever want this moment to end. "Shall we order something?"asked Aria. "Sure,we could order your favourite bombastic cheesy fries."I said with a wink. I raised my hand and within seconds,the waiter arrived.

    "Two bombastic cheesy fries,actually make it one. I'll share with you."I said while looking at Aria. She was blushing and so was I but I had to act cool. The waiter looked at Aria and walked away confused. Everything was going well,Aria and I were talking while waiting for our food. I didn't knew that she liked me back and she was aware of all those secret messages I used to leave on her table. Suddenly,an old woman came near me and asked me "Young man,may I know who are you talking to? "said the old woman politely. "I'm talking to my date.''I said with a smile, facing the old woman. "There's no one here! The seat is empty!" said the old woman. I looked back at the chair and she was right. The seat  was empty.Aria wasn't there.  I was stunned.I didn't know what to say. 

          The whole cafe was suddenly silent and everyone was staring at me. I looked around and the cafe didn't seem as beautiful as it seemed earlier. The cafe now looked gloomy to me. It felt as if I was pushed to hell. I couldn't stay at the cafe anymore. I rushed out and ran on the road. It was raining heavily but I continued running. I had to go far away from that horrible feeling. What the old woman said was haunting me. The stares,the waiter's confused look,the empty chair. Everything was haunting me.  I ran as fast as I could until I tripped. When I fell, all the memories came back. They were running through my mind rapidly. I wanted it to stop but it wouldn't.  Flashbacks of her accident,her funeral,her confession,her love letter...It was all so fast. I shouted loudly for it to stop and it did stop at the picture of her lifeless body laying in a pool of blood......She was gone........We never had our first date.......She was gone....forever.........