Oh! This Is Love

By Tejashwini P Hiremath

I wish it was a typical love story. The kind that falls under a troupe, enemies to lovers maybe. From he is such a pain! I can't stand the sight of him: To, he occupies my heart and is all over my mind. I can't bare to be away from him. Somehow this is not the case. Most rom-coms have a bit of jealousy, sprinkled with possessiveness, calling her mine and the hush hush dates and then here's mine. The one without an outline. Love just barged in and left even before I could recognise and register the emotion. That's another addition to the trophy shelf of broken hearts. My heart is definitely not pleased with this.

What else could I expect from love at first sight?

I sat on the boulders by the beach, the waves crashed and dispersed into delicate ripples. The moonlight was bewitching on the surface of the waters. It was nature's flex. The reflection broke and pieced itself together like a puzzle, except that it still remained mysterious. The cold air made my summer dress dance, my skin had goosebumps that turned me into a porcupine in an instant. The sea was tempting. A strong desire was aroused in my heart to dive in and be a part of the interesting conversations between bubbles of water, as if they transmitted encrypted messages between - I can't really guess. More than 80% of the sea remains unexplored, I couldn't conjure up anything beyond that.

I cave in to my temptation. My weight breaks through the air, the gravity clutched my waist and pulled me closer to the deep ends of the sea. As my back hits the water, it awakens every nerve, the last brain cells that made me jump into the freezing cold water at 11:00 PM. What was I thinking? It was too late to turn back, I let my body sink until I had privacy from the moonlight. Out of sight, seemingly unreachable at the moment. I raise my arms, in an attempt to break through and find the shore. I caught sight of something strange. A mermaid? A figure that looked monstrous swam swiftly in my direction. It had been a perfect day. And it would end with cops pulling out my dead body. The reporters on the news channels would make me the next sensational story.

Maya Oliver, a 24 year old student of architecture, falls into the sea and is found dead. The cause of death is undefined, could be killed by a sea creature or drowning. The marks on her body are yet to be thoroughly examined before determining the cause of her death. Reports have revealed that she was under the influence of alcohol which might have caused the accidental fall. Yet another brilliant girl was captured by the deadly waters.

I didn't realise how long I had been holding my breath. It seemed like a minute or so before my body started reacting. Strong hands gripped around my waist and pushed me upwards. The fingers tightened, I felt an unfamiliar body dangerously close to mine, my heart was chaotic with confusion. Should it skip a beat because a man was holding me in his arms or activate the body's defence response to the situation?

I was on the shore, coughing up water, trying to sit upright, while a hand rubbed my back and a soothing voice kept repeating, "Are you okay?"

"You scared me! What were you thinking?"

To be honest, I should be thanking him and what I said was a little ungrateful.

"I should be the one asking you that. Why are you out here alone at this hour?"

He sounded agitated and I didn't dare to look at him. I don't know why, it was a mix of embarrassment and nervousness.

"Do I need a reason? I was just minding my business."

He scoffed. "Minding your business? And then you decided to jump in and play dead?"

"What's your concern? I know how to swim and I was a little tipsy when I made that choice."

"Amazing. So you are drunk too. No wonder you forgot your manners."

"Well. Sir. Thank you. And I am not drunk. I just had a sip and I felt like swimming. Thank you for saving me when I didn't need it."

"Any rational person who sees a girl jump off into the sea in the dead of the night would only assume the worst. I did what felt right in the moment. Next time. Make sure no one is watching you doing such stupid things."

"Did I look pretty?"

"What?"

"You said you were watching me. So do you find me pretty?"

"You are insane."

He walked off and I glimpsed at his broad shoulders and hurried strides towards the resort or his car, I don't know where he went next.

By the rules of probability, the possibility of me seeing this man again should be anywhere between zero to one. Given that it was my first and last visit to that beach. But what are the odds?

Autumn. 3 years later.

Strolling in a park covered with yellowish orange shaded trees. The pavement was decorated with autumn leaves as if purposefully scattered to make it look alluring. The air smelled of hot cappuccino. The coffee truck just outside the park had attracted enough customers to keep the owner busy brewing coffee. As I was admiring the leaves floating in the air, before making a descent and resting like a carefully placed mantle, I failed to take notice that someone was standing behind me.

"It's you again? What crazy idea do you have now?"

I turned around and I think it is an understatement to say that the world stopped. The tick tock beats on my watch froze, the leaves caught themselves mid-air, unwilling to follow its course, the steam from the coffee cup froze in a perfect curve, the impact was greater than I thought. Did the world just come to a halt to let me savour this moment? I forgot how to blink, not sure if I still had my pulse, my lips slightly parted, enough for words to escape but they stayed in my throat.

Is that what love at first sight is?

A handsome man, tall and lean, in a glamorous suit, hands in his pockets, sunshine illuminating his aura of awesomeness. I wonder if God paid extra attention in bringing this beautiful man to earth. I bet he's fallen from the heavens and now he fell into my heart.

A snap of fingers resounded in my ears.

"Hello?"

I come back to my senses. Looks like I had been staring at him like a creep all this while, being lost in my thoughts.

"Uhh..." It takes me a minute to recover from the slow motion drama that had begun to play in my mind.

"Do I know you?"

"Your memory is that poor? I am the one who pulled you out of the water the last time I saw you."

"Oh. I see. It was dark and I don't remember much. Sorry I didn't recognise you. And thanks for what you did back then."

"Woah. You've changed a lot."

"Sorry?"

"I mean, our last conversation wasn't exactly like this. You sound a lot different from then."

"People change with time. I guess."

"Right. Right."

So it was him, how did I run into him out of all the people I have come across in my life. Should I stamp it with the seal of destiny and admit that he's my one true love? Okay now before my brain directs me into a magical world of imagination, I better slip away.

"Okay. I should leave. See you." (Hope not. I don't want to fall in love and disrupt my plans. Who says I am willing to call you mine?)

"You stay around here?"

"Yeah.. the company has arranged for a stay. I am only here for a project.. I'll be leaving once it's done."

Why did I have to utter so much? This piece of information has no importance to this stranger you are talking to. He's a stranger. STRANGER.

Maybe my expressions gave me away, maybe he took the hint, (did I even give a hint?). He smiled. His dark brown eyes looking into mine, he said, "I didn't introduce myself. I am Atlas."

Atlas.... I am starting to believe that he is a Greek God who is going to turn my life upside down. And this story will never be accepted as reality, I will be called crazy for saying it out loud and the fiction industry will make money off this marvellous love that went beyond time and space and era and dimensions.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Maya."

"Do you want to take a walk?"

"Sure."

And that's how it all began. How far had we walked? Some miles? Oh. Of course not. I am one hundred percent sure that I am aged by at least two years, crossed a dimension, blurred the lines of reality, my mind can now perceive what the ordinary is not privileged to see, I have entered a realm that is so familiar and home-like. Makes me want to turn around and run away even more.

We had a few conversations, knocked off now and then with long silences. He held my hand, and trust me when I say this, this is all I ask for. The images changed from autumn to rain and we shared an umbrella. The world had turned grey, the red umbrella outshined the rest. We walked and walked, hand in hand, now sealed with comfort and some love, the raindrops fell harder, could be out of jealousy.

We had a home, he said all the things I wanted to hear, the little things he did for his love gave me butterflies. The kind that slid his hand to cover the edge of the table and I bent down to pick up the fallen spoon. The kind that listens to all my gossip and asks me to spill the tea, while sipping on one. The kind that ruffles my hair and says I am adorable.

Now stop judging me. It's the small things that matter the most. The attention to details. If a man is reading this, I advise you. This is a foolproof way to win over your dream girl. Be cheesy, go all in when it comes to love and yes it makes a difference.

For me, he was ‘the’ kind. The kind that defined my definition of love who just walked in and claimed a spot in my heart as his. This love made me happy. I blushed more often, smiled wider and I probably had a different pulse. He made my heart do somersaults more often than athletes.

Such a beautiful picture.

The song Dandelions played in my ears and I sat there blushing and smiling and giggling like an idiot. All out of love.

I sat there. Where was I?

I lift up my head, my hair frames my face, and I catch the sight of people giving me confused glances, some laughed, some turned away. Wait. Wait. What is this place? I look around and I am surrounded with people carrying baggage and holding a slip of paper in their hands. The announcement buzzer comes to life as the lady behind the counter speaks.

Good afternoon. Ladies and gentlemen, this is the pre-boarding announcement for Flight 678A from Mumbai to Paris. Please head to Gate 5. We are now inviting passengers with small children, passengers who need special assistance to begin boarding at this time. Regular boarding will start in ten minutes. Thank you.

The man in front of me is the same as the one who was all over my mind about five seconds ago. He glanced at me and looked away like I was someone insignificant. As the crowd dispersed towards boarding, he walked away too. My gaze followed his back until he disappeared into the crowd.

And this was the story of my airport crush. My mind curated a beautiful day dreaming session. I am sure to have embarrassed myself in a short while. Call it a talent for being lost in the world of my own. I guess this is what love is. The kind that makes you weave tales in your imagination that is far less likely to come true. But it is adequate to release the happy hormones and make you forget the surroundings you stand in.

There was no beach, no co-incidental meet-cute. However, there is an emotion that cannot be precisely mapped or traced which comes in the moment and leaves like it was never there. Destiny and meant to be are phrases that undermine the beauty of that very moment, that doesn’t catch the essence of what’s felt. Guess we have our own little love fantasies, hoping it would pan out like it did in our minds. Replayed a hundred times over, the probability of it occurring lies on the line that differentiates fiction and reality. It's not love at first sight.

By Tejashwini P Hiremath