Meeting over a coffee
The coffee shop rendezvous
It was a busy evening at the cafe, I could see orders flying around from all corners of the cafe. I was surprised how the waitress was managing all the chaos. It seemed like she was roller-skating between tables!
My thoughts were interrupted by the cuckoo’s chirping as the clock struck six. This is it. The hour has arrived. Initially I was never into this, but I realised how much I was looking forward to this meeting right after sitting at the table.
She was supposed to meet me yesterday, but she got busy. Work! Who doesn’t have work? was my initial reaction. But I was intrigued on how one such meeting goes and I wanted to go ahead with this. This was my first time, meeting a prospective bride. So technically you could call this a date.
This is the day where I need to showcase all my skills to an unknown girl to impress her. Never I’ve been this tensed where I need to be knowledgeable, witty and spontaneous. I’ve asked my roommate several times how I look till the point where he agreed I look great without even looking at me. I’ve read all articles on how to impress a girl on a date. I was all prepared and confident.
We decided to reschedule the date to today — six o’clock. I looked up at the clock, it was a half past six. Seriously what is it with these girls, they always manage to come late. Here I am waiting for her from quarter to six, wanting to impress her the very first moment. For all she cared, she could have given me a heads up that she might run late!
I was just about to get up from the table and leave, when a girl in violet dress entered the cafe in a hurry. She is carrying a sling bag hanging to her right and a mobile phone with a flip cover which she opened with a single swift movement. Her hair moved to back and flowed to one side. She looked pretty at that moment.
She made a call from her phone whilst searching all corners of the shop for someone. I was hoping me. I was observing all this while sitting two seats in front of her by the side of the tinted glass window. She heard the ringing mobile in front of her on my table. I smiled at her and she smiled back at me, there is a dimple in her cheeks when she smiles. I like that very much in a girl.
“Vamsi?”
“Yes. Rachana?”
“Yes, I’m Sorry for the delay. My manager was sitting in front of me the whole day. I couldn’t escape without him noticing.”
“That’s fine. I just came sometime back.” Yes, just an hour back I thought to myself.
“So, what do you do?”
“I can get all technical here but I don’t want to bore you.”, I said with a broad smile. I wanted to start off on a lighter note. But she couldn’t sense the humor in my speech. She was frowning at me.
“I’m a senior software architect”, I continued after an awkward silence. I could sense that she was evaluating me at this point. That’s fair enough for a beautiful girl. She might have seen many prospective grooms before me. This was my first and I was anxious for this to go well. I took out a dairy milk silk chocolate that I had picked up for her two days back when originally the meeting was supposed to happen. She took the chocolate and the frown diminished to a straight face.
“So you love chocolates?”
“I do. Thank you for the chocolate”
Scored. I gave myself a virtual high five.
“so what do you do, Rachana?”
“well, I’m a developer working for a MNC, I love painting, I am classical dancer too. I’ve been into various inter cultural festivals in college. I’ve plans for MBA and do not want to get married right now.”
I was taken aback by the last few words. I started wondering why would anyone come for a date with a prospective groom and say to his face that they do not want to get married.
“However if I meet the right guy, I would fly into his arms.”, she continued.
My heart skipped a beat. That’s a clever way of saying I DON’T HAVE A BOYFRIEND and she is interested in me. That’s a good sign for me.
“I don’t know dancing but I like watching it on TV. I like artists and their passion for something. “, I continued making conversation based on dance. I sensed her losing interest in what I was saying and I was taking it too far on dancing and dancers (not my cup of tea). All I wanted to do was praise her in a subtle manner but it was not working.
“Coffee?”, I asked changing the subject to which she obliged. I’m not the kind of guy who would visit coffee shops often and spend money on coffee that doesn’t even taste as good as the roadside ones. I was out of my depths with the menu. I safely ordered a cappuccino and she came up with Irish latte. I have never heard of this before. She seemed to know this. This was natural to her.
“Do you watch films?”
“Yeah. A lot!”, She exclaimed while sipping her hot Irish latte. A good topic for me to converse is finally here.
Our discussions on films have prolonged with me delivering some witty dialogues on every sip. With every sip, her smile was broader and stronger.
“Rachana, I like that name. It is so apt for you.”
“What? Why… are you saying something like this suddenly?”, she was questioning me with fading smile.
I was serious in middle of all the talking. I was recollecting why I said that. I said that just because it occurred to me at that moment.
“You’re so beautiful. Your smile, your talk, everything just fills me. Before this meeting, I was void of this vibe that we are having right now. I like you. Do you?”, I looked at her expecting her to reply immediately on the spur of the moment, just like me. But I realised it wasn’t going to be that straightforward. She was going to make me wait, and crave for her to give that one yes that was going to change both our lives forever.
“I don’t know. You’re good, honest and humorous. But I can’t decide that in a meeting. I think I need some time” saying that she kept her cup down. She was looking away from me, biting her rosy lower lip. That is a sight I could cherish until the next meeting.
“I need to leave now. I’ve a friend waiting for me in hostel.” She got up without finishing her Irish Latte. Maybe I pushed her too much on the very first meeting.
I stood up and gave a firm handshake like a business meeting just happened. She took her mobile again and booked a taxi even after insisting that I would drop her wherever she wanted.
“Rachana, I’ll be waiting for you”
She smiled, with her eyes and faded into the traffic.
