She walked into the cafeteria thinking about the project she's been working on. 'A coffee would do good', she thought. Moving towards the counter, she glanced around the place and what she saw stunned her. She was looking at a person who's never seen around except for his bay where he works.
Paying for the coffee, she moved towards the table where he was sitting but stopped short. Deciding against it, she waited for the coffee. Instinctively she looked over his table and noticed he wasn't eating anything. She knew that he was strange. She worked with him a month before in her previous project. He was brilliant at work but dull with people. The coffee came and she walked over to his table without thinking.
"Hey Theo." He looked up and brightened up with a smile on his face. "Hi Jenny". She's always wondered if this is how he always uses short names for everyone.
"It's a pleasant surprise to see you. How's your new team working out, Team Leader?" He started the conversation lightly.
"Well, it's not the same thing like being in your team but it's going good so far."
"You'll get used to it. Whatever you're feeling now, it's common. It'll pass."
She liked the way how he took everything easily and turned the table. Sometimes she hated it as well. Suddenly her mobile perked up. She took one look at the screen and let out a sigh. "Just a sec." She moved out of his earshot. After a couple of minutes, she came back and just stared at the coffee.
"Who was that?" He asked casually.
"My husband." She kept quiet. He didn't say anything but just looked at her lightly. A moment passed and she said, "He wants me to quit. We've been having heated conversations about this for nearly a month." He just listened intently. She was glad he didn't speak up and say something to console her.
She took a sip of the coffee and felt an urge. She looked up at him and asked, "Tell me, Theo, what about you? Do you have a girlfriend?", knowing full well he doesn't. He just smiled. "Not everyone has a girlfriend or a boyfriend but everyone experiences love. Love is universal".
She looked at him like she saw a ghost. She never thought he could've loved someone. "How have you planned your marriage?"
"Nothing grand really. I wanted to settle in my life first. When I finished college, I had some debts to clear. I got into our industry a year and a half later. In another two years all my debts were cleared and I was ready to support a family on my own. In the next two years, I built my dream home where I live alone now. I know her from my high school. Born with talent, that's what she was. She can sing, she can dance, a brilliant student, an excellent organizer. She instilled confidence in me. She instilled a lot of other things in other boys." He let out a controlled laugh.
She listened intently and he continued, "Once I was ready to support a family on my own, I'd talk to her parents with her permission. When they agree, I'll prepare a small wedding where people who really want us together would be gathered. I don't go to marriages so I don't know how its done. After marriage, I wanted her to continue her job. What I earn will be enough for the family and her earnings would be useful for her music and gymnastic classes. Her mother didn't allow this but I wanted to. She once told me that a guest of her college advised her to take gymnast classes to help her in her dance. I have a video of her dance as well."
"She'll be shaping her own future this way, I'll be standing with her, holding hands. I wanted to have two kids. A boy and a girl but not before we complete two years of marriage. I'd take her out once in every month. Other weekends, we'll sleep in together, cook together, watch a movie, play some games or just simply lie together on the couch and fall asleep. If she cried about something, I wanted to put her on my lap and hold her like a mother holds her baby, close to my chest and whisper love in her ears. I wanted to hold her hands during her delivery. I'm not the brightest person when it comes to people but she'd understand each of my word and every second of my silence."
"I never wanted to hug her or kiss her or anything else for that matter. I just loved her and wanted her with me. But if I was hugging her, I wanted to do it like that was the last time, every time. When we kiss, I wanted it to linger in her heart for another couple of days. We'd have silent conversations through our eyes and body language. When we made love, I wanted it to go all night, if we weren't tired. I wanted to forget that she's my life partner each and everyday, so that she'd remind me often. I'll accept her the way she was and I'd change myself for her. I'd sing along and dance with her arm in arm."
She listened to his dream marriage with undivided attention. His words felt like she was in a dream. Suddenly he said something that didn't make any sense.
"And it's getting late. We should start now or you'll miss your bus." He pointed at his watch. She noticed that time has flown by. She felt the coffee and it was cold. She took a sip and it was so sour, she spat it out.
"Come on. I'll walk you." Saying, he started. She took her bag and followed him. In silence, she started thinking about her own life. She married the man she loved but he doesn't understand her now. And the man she thought is not fit for love has loved someone deeply. In a shock, she noticed something. He had used past tenses while explaining his dream marriage.
She boarded the bus and took a seat by the window. "She's a lucky girl, Theo", She said. "Actually, no. I'm an unlucky guy, Jenny". He replied.
The bus roared to life and she was confused. "She got married two years ago", he said it like his nail broke. She felt like he kicked her in the gut but before she could say something, the bus started to move while he turned and walked towards the parking lot. The sour taste of the coffee lingered in her mouth. She couldn't swallow it. Her eyes started to feel cold and her vision blurred.
