The Sum Of My Parts

Chapter 2: Turquoise Eyes

As I was walking off the stage, I caught a glimpse of turquoise eyes shining somewhere in the darkness below.

Thankfully, I was still holding Celine's arm or I would have tumbled down for sure. That would have been humiliating after having given the performance of a lifetime.

I was holding my flower bouquet tightly to my chest as I left the stage under the applause of the crowd.

Tonight had gone exceptionnally, I had performed the four pas de deux with ease and judging by the crowd's reaction, I had perfectly portrayed Des Grieux's complex emotions.

I felt proud of myself, I had finally achieved my dream and could let go of this life and move on to the next. We had arrived at my changing room so I let go of Celine's arm and went in, not before bidding her adieu.

I should have been basking in the glory or in the sadness, instead I was hyper fixated on those unnatural turquoise eyes. It seemed they were calling to me in the darkness, beckoning for me to come closer.

I put the bouquet down and sighed, what if I had just passed by my destiny ? What if this was my shot and I missed it?

I pushed the thoughts away, I needed to change and meet my friends out front.

Tonight, I would be eating good!

Still, the sight of those eyes lingered in my mind as I changed and got out of the building.

It was dark out already, I was afraid of not recognizing my friends amongst all the people that were now leaving the building.

Just as I reached for my phone to call them up, I felt a hand abruptly touch my shoulder.

I turned around to be faced with none one than the turquoise eyes from earlier. Or at least, I hope she was the woman who had caught my attention earlier. I mean, how many people with turquoise eyes can there be in one building?

I stared at her like an idiot for a full minute, taking in her soft features. She had a sharp jawline and high cheekbones, her skin was a golden beige. Her eyes were almond shaped, their turquoise color was more vivid than the Caribbean Sea. Her hair was a lovely mulberry shade, although you could see her dark roots showing.

She was utterly breathtaking and as I tried to talk to her, I found myself unable to. After a few minutes of awkward silence, she finally spoke up "You're looking for Laura and the others, right ? I've come to fetch you. They said you had a hard time finding people when it was dark out."

She turned on her heels, not aknowledging how awkwardly I gawked at her and started walking. I followed her from behind, still unable to make conversation.

For some reason, I was both in awe and emotional. I had seen my fair share of beautiful women, but this was the first time one had such an impact on me.
I felt cold and empty now that I could no longer feel her touch or see her eyes, it also felt like my heart was being squeezed painfully and I could feel the tears ready to spill out.

I was grateful for the darkness now as she couldn't see the strange effect she had on me.

After a few minutes of walking, we reached the group and everyone gave me a hug and flowers. My arms were overflowing, I was smiling but it felt forced as I still yearned for the stranger's touch.

Dali turned to me "This is Miri, she is a friend of ours and we wanted to introduce you."

"Oh", I simply replied and forced myself to extend my hand and shake the woman's hand.

Sol chimed in "Just as you're the grandpa of the group, she is the grandma. So we thought the couple should finally meet." He smiled wildly at me and I blushed.

We headed for the restaurant and on our way there, surrounded by friends, I was finally able to talk to the beautiful stranger. I was eager to glean some information about her, but she seemed quite secretive. All I managed to squeeze out of her was that she was Korean and had known my friends all her life.

It was odd, I had never heard them mention her and yet they seemed so close, like family.

As we read the menu and began discussing what to order, Miri's bag spilled out on the floor. I bent down to help her pick up her things and my eyes fell on a book. "The myths of Imugi" it read, for some reason I wanted to flip through its pages but I held myself back as it would be rude.

We sat back down after picking up all her items. Fortunately she didn't have anything small enough to get lodged in the cracks on the floor.

She turned to me "I saw you eyeing my book, are you interested in Korean mythology?"

I hesitated before answering "Not particularly no, but it's not too late to start."

As the others were ordering for the table, she got the book out of her brown handbag then slid it towards me. "Here, since you're interested, you can have it. I hope you enjoy reading it."

I was flustered, me, a 30 year old man was flustered for some reason. "Are you sure ? I can certainly pick it up at my library."

She nodded slightly "Yes, I have many books about Igumis, I was named after them so I don't mind parting with a book."

"Th-Thank you." Great, now I was stuttering.

As we waited for our food, happily chatting away, I felt full. The woman in front of me, the woman who made me stutter like a teenager, felt like the destiny I had been waiting for.

Not only had I found what I yearned for, I also had a good book to read tonight.

Life was good.