It was cold and windy.My watch struck 6pm.I was sitting on a bench near the public pond.There was a couple chit chatting on the other side of the pond.The welkin was the colour of the evenfall.The dusk of a typical Christmas eve.I was in deep thought. ....
Two days back,she invited me to dinner at her home for Christmas eve.We are good friends and she doesn't have a clue that I love her!
A little girl was ushered by her father to the nearby candy store.I was sitting there idly watching all this and enjoying the vista, while trying to come up with a perfect Christmas gift for her. She was the perfect girl. With a sweet smile and cute face,she stole my heart on the first day I saw her.
Its been a year after I saw her first in my office.we were assigned the same job and we became friends thereafter. Every second I spend with her is like magic to me. The way she smiles and the way she move is enchanting. And after a long time, I got a chance to meet her at her home and have dinner with her. Of course its a Christmas dinner, but this is the first time I got invited to her place.
I sat there thinking about what gift im supposed to give her for Christmas. And as normal as it sounds, I have no idea what to give her.
An old lady sat beside me and smiled. I smiled back. She sat there silently , lost in her own thoughts. I began thinking seriously. Rapid things came to my mind. Fancy items, pets, books, etc., but nothing seemed to be perfect like her.
The old lady looked at me,smiled again and suddenly started talking. She said,"My husband and I used to come here and sit beside this pond every Christmas. It was the day we were married. We never missed this day to come here. It was our own special day. Nothing in the world mattered to us during our visit here. We ate and talked and kissed. .hmm...those were the days.."
Since I had nothing else to do, I was listening to her with keen interest. I was a young lover myself right? ...what's wrong in listening to an old lady's love story? So I waited for her to start again.
After 5 more minutes she continued ," Every such day my husband and I used to fly a paper lantern up into the sky and watch it together. It was the symbol of our love. We used to forget all our problems and just watch it fly away into the heavens. And after it disappeared, we went back home happily. A care free couple in the middle of the city just walking hand in hand by the side walk."
There was a pause and this time there were tears in her eyes. After some time, she started again ," Son, my husband is no more with me but I come here every Christmas eve to remember him and fly a lantern. Will u be a darling and help me fly it?"
Saying this, she took out a paper lantern from her bag and handed it over to me. We both stood and lit it and flew it. I watched her watching it fly away. Her watery eyes reflected love. I could sense her love towards her husband just by watching her happiness. It was a heavenly love..
I watched the lantern fly away until it became a dot in the sky and lost in between the infinite stars that adorned the heavens. And then, I had a wonderfully stupid idea. I held the old lady's hands with mine, told her a sweet and slow thank you, kissed her on the cheek and started walking. She stood their smiling and watching the sky, while I walked towards the city. It was a beautiful evening. Christmas trees and lights prettified every corner of the city. I bought the thing that I wanted to, packed it and set of to her place.
My watch struck 8 pm. I was standing in front of her door. I was rethinking my choice for her gift. I was very confident before. Now im scared to my spine. I considered leaving and buying her a different gift. A normal one. But I knew what I bought was the perfect one. If she doesn't like it, let it be that way. I gathered my guts and reached for the calling bell.
The door opened even before I rang the bell.She stood there smiling, in a pink top and blue jeans. She was gorgeous. I smiled. She said (in a mocking voice), " You took your time!its time for dinner already. Now don't loom over there. Come in! Don't be shy."she giggled.
I knew I was dead. I went in all tensed. She was smiling and saying something. She always talked . Sometimes I don't hear what she is saying, I will be busy admiring her eyes in my mind. I always got lost there. This was one such moment.
I sat on the sofa and she brought me a lemonade. "Dinner is already set on the table. I was waiting for you. By the way, I have a surprise for you. I hope you will like it!" She said.
"Oh! I have one for you too!but surprise me later. I mean after dinner. You know me..I am damn hungry."
"You are right. I am hungry too.thanks to someone!lets have dinner. Come on!"
There was a Christmas tree on the corner of the dining room near the window. It was a nicely decorated room. The food was good too. Roast turkey, beans, chicken wings, wine and everything else I liked. But I didn't have much of an appetite. My mind was all set on the gift I bought for her. She was talking all through the dinner and all I did was nod and laugh. It has always been like that. She talked and I listened or at least I pretended to! She was never bothered by that. But she knew me like the back of her hand.
She cleaned the table while I sat on the sofa thinking. She came back laughing and said, "Well,..Surprise me!"
"No! You surprise me first!"
"You know this is my home and I am the princess here. I rule over you and I order you to surprise me!" She was using her boss-voice. She always acted funny like this. It was also one of the reasons I fell in love with her.
"Fine I will go first." saying this, I took a small gift from my pocket and gave it to her. Looking at it she smiled and grabbed it from my hands. She tore the wrapping and opened it. It was a diamond ring. Her face became blank. I stood on my knee looked at her and said, " Judy, will you marry me and be my partner till the end of my life?" My heart was beating like a pump.
Her face was blank. She was still like a statue and suddenly she ran to her room and closed the door. I felt my heart drop into my stomach.
What the hell did I do? I never told her I loved her. And suddenly one day I come to her home and ask her to marry me! I didn't know what to do. I knew what I did was a stupid thing .So I got up silently and walked towards the door. The world felt very rude to me. Everything was feeling so bad. I hated the old woman and her stupid lantern. Her story made me think stupid things about my future. I wanted to go to that pond like the old couple with Judy and I wanted to fly lanterns with her too. Damn!everything felt so stupid to me. I reached for the door knob and suddenly Judy's hands were under mine and she was hugging me from behind. I knew she was crying. She said, "You idiot! I love you and I knew you loved me. I was fed up waiting for you to tell me you loved me and so I wanted to surprise you today by telling you myself. But you took me by surprise you idiot!..and my answer is YES! YES!YES!"
And that was it. I still remember that day clearly and the next Christmas eve, I went to the pond along with her and the old lady was not there.We waited for her. But she never came. So that year and the years to come, we lit two lanterns. One for us and one for the old couple who rest peacefully in the star filled heavens.
