They were 7 when their eyes first met. He thought she had nice hair and she drooled over his smile. Being the bolder one, she said hi. And they started a conversation that was sure to last for many long years.
They were 14 when she wore that dress. He realized with quite a shock that his ugly best friend wasn't so ugly after all. She drooled once again over how good he looked in that suit. She wished to say something, being the bolder one, but all she could mutter was how ridiculous he looked. He smiled weakly and told her the same.
They were 17 when they walked hand in hand to their graduation ceremony. Their friends asked amusingly whether they'd call them to their wedding. All he did was blush and mistaking his expression for annoyance, she, being the bolder one, scowled at her friends and warned them to stray their jokes away from them as they were just best friends. He stole a glance at her and she caught it just in time to realize that he felt otherwise.
They were 21 as they pursued their carriers. He felt a pang of jealousy as he saw her dance with someone else in the gala at their college. He kept averting his gaze from their grooving figures and she kept dragging hers to him, waiting for him to be the bolder one this time and ask her for a dance.
They were 24 when he woke up next to her, momentarily finding heaven in her morning lit face until he realized what he'd done. He watched her face in horror as he thought he saw his relationship with his best friend sink. She woke up smiling, hoping he finally became the bolder one after all these years. But his regret filled eyes stabbed her heart as she realized it was the alcohol and not him.
It's been 4 years now, since he last called. Although they're successful people now, only their hearts know how miserable they were without the other. He recalls that night with smile kissed lips and tear stained cheeks. She does the same on the other side of the world. Tired of waiting for him to be the bolder one, she dials the number still on her fingertips.
He picks up and says, "I'm sorry".
"But I wasn't", her soft voice cries.
He does not let go of this opportunity like he did with the ones that knocked on his door when he was 7 or 14 or 17 or 21 or 24.
Finally, he becomes the bolder one.
- Excerpt from a book I'll never explain
- Rati
