I AM HIS, HE IS MINE

'We're just too different.'

I hit the send button, and closed my eyes as I took a deep breath.

A moment later I heard the all too familiar sound.

The notification.

I opened my eyes slowly and stared at the phone screen.

His response had arrived.

In a jiffy.

That's why we're made for each other.

My heart glowed. I smiled inwardly.

And then I did something I didn't remember doing in a long, long time.

I sprang off my bed and danced, flung my arms and legs, turned and twisted my massive 80 kilos, running and scurrying from one end of the room to the other.

I was a woman possessed, felt deliriously happy like never before.

I danced till my lungs gave out, my legs heart!

At age 45, I had finally found love.

Was in love with a man the polar opposite of me.

Excessively fat, quick to anger, bipolar, divorced, having serious trust issues and on the wrong side of 45.

I was all of these!

Kind, super patient, loving, caring, ever cool and composed, incorrigible optimist, late 30s, divorced yet minus any baggages- Harish was all of these and more!

A mismatch like nothing!

Yet, I was in love.

We were in love.

The kind of love that I knew lasts a lifetime; the kind of love that I thought I had experienced once, some two decades ago.

The kind of love that I know will stay with me till my last breath.

And then I did one more thing I thought I wouldn't ever do ever again.

I grabbed my phone, and texted back: Come over, my love.

The next nano second I saw the screen come alive with two blue ticks.

A  emoticon followed.

***

I wasn't like this. Definitely not until the day I met Harish.

Until the day he walked upto me one evening in the park when the sun had set in and I had just sat down at the corner bench, dog tired from no less than 15 rounds.

Though we'd met, albeit casually, a few times earlier- exchanging nothing more than a casual 'Hi', Harish had coolly sat down on the adjacent bench, and without any preamble intoned in that soft husky voice of his: I want to tell you that I find you sexually very attractive.

I remember almost losing it...remember getting up and walking away, my mind by a melange of confusing emotions.

That night I cried, wept through the night.

How could he! How could someone ever say something such as this! Something so scandalous!

I had felt guilty.

Was it me? Did I give some wrong signals.

But then, as he persisted, as he didn't give in, as he loved, I realised I was equally in love.

***

The door bell rang.

My eyes sparkled. My heart soared.

I ran up sans slippers, sans my dupatta, sans all shame.

Harish had come.

My soulmate had arrived.

Yes, opposites attract. Opposites only attract.

We're different; therefore similar.

HE IS MINE, I AM HIS

By Neel Anil Panicker

'We're just too different.'

I hit the send button, and closed my eyes as I took a deep breath.

A moment later I heard the all too familiar sound.

The notification.

I opened my eyes slowly and stared at the phone screen.

His response had arrived.

In a jiffy.

That's why we're made for each other.

My heart glowed. I smiled inwardly.

And then I did something I didn't remember doing in a long, long time.

I sprang off my bed and danced, flung my arms and legs, turned and twisted my massive 80 kilos, running and scurrying from one end of the room to the other.

I was a woman possessed, felt deliriously happy like never before.

I danced till my lungs gave out, my legs heart!

At age 45, I had finally found love.

Was in love with a man the polar opposite of me.

Excessively fat, quick to anger, bipolar, divorced, having serious trust issues and on the wrong side of 45.

I was all of these!

Kind, super patient, loving, caring, ever cool and composed, incorrigible optimist, late 30s, divorced yet minus any baggages- Harish was all of these and more!

A mismatch like nothing!

Yet, I was in love.

We were in love.

The kind of love that I knew lasts a lifetime; the kind of love that I thought I had experienced once, some two decades ago.

The kind of love that I know will stay with me till my last breath.

And then I did one more thing I thought I wouldn't ever do ever again.

I grabbed my phone, and texted back: Come over, my love.

The next nano second I saw the screen come alive with two blue ticks.

A  emoticon followed.

***

I wasn't like this. Definitely not until the day I met Harish.

Until the day he walked upto me one evening in the park when the sun had set in and I had just sat down at the corner bench, dog tired from no less than 15 rounds.

Though we'd met, albeit casually, a few times earlier- exchanging nothing more than a casual 'Hi', Harish had coolly sat down on the adjacent bench, and without any preamble intoned in that soft husky voice of his: I want to tell you that I find you sexually very attractive.

I remember almost losing it...remember getting up and walking away, my mind by a melange of confusing emotions.

That night I cried, wept through the night.

How could he! How could someone ever say something such as this! Something so scandalous!

I had felt guilty.

Was it me? Did I give some wrong signals.

But then, as he persisted, as he didn't give in, as he loved, I realised I was equally in love.

***

The door bell rang.

My eyes sparkled. My heart soared.

I ran up sans slippers, sans my dupatta, sans all shame.

Harish had come.

My soulmate had arrived.

Yes, opposites attract. Opposites only attract.

We're different; therefore similar.

HE IS MINE, I AM HIS

By Neel Anil Panicker

'We're just too different.'

I hit the send button, and closed my eyes as I took a deep breath.

A moment later I heard the all too familiar sound.

The notification.

I opened my eyes slowly and stared at the phone screen.

His response had arrived.

In a jiffy.

That's why we're made for each other.

My heart glowed. I smiled inwardly.

And then I did something I didn't remember doing in a long, long time.

I sprang off my bed and danced, flung my arms and legs, turned and twisted my massive 80 kilos, running and scurrying from one end of the room to the other.

I was a woman possessed, felt deliriously happy like never before.

I danced till my lungs gave out, my legs heart!

At age 45, I had finally found love.

Was in love with a man the polar opposite of me.

Excessively fat, quick to anger, bipolar, divorced, having serious trust issues and on the wrong side of 45.

I was all of these!

Kind, super patient, loving, caring, ever cool and composed, incorrigible optimist, late 30s, divorced yet minus any baggages- Harish was all of these and more!

A mismatch like nothing!

Yet, I was in love.

We were in love.

The kind of love that I knew lasts a lifetime; the kind of love that I thought I had experienced once, some two decades ago.

The kind of love that I know will stay with me till my last breath.

And then I did one more thing I thought I wouldn't ever do ever again.

I grabbed my phone, and texted back: Come over, my love.

The next nano second I saw the screen come alive with two blue ticks.

A  emoticon followed.

***

I wasn't like this. Definitely not until the day I met Harish.

Until the day he walked upto me one evening in the park when the sun had set in and I had just sat down at the corner bench, dog tired from no less than 15 rounds.

Though we'd met, albeit casually, a few times earlier- exchanging nothing more than a casual 'Hi', Harish had coolly sat down on the adjacent bench, and without any preamble intoned in that soft husky voice of his: I want to tell you that I find you sexually very attractive.

I remember almost losing it...remember getting up and walking away, my mind by a melange of confusing emotions.

That night I cried, wept through the night.

How could he! How could someone ever say something such as this! Something so scandalous!

I had felt guilty.

Was it me? Did I give some wrong signals.

But then, as he persisted, as he didn't give in, as he loved, I realised I was equally in love.

***

The door bell rang.

My eyes sparkled. My heart soared.

I ran up sans slippers, sans my dupatta, sans all shame.

Harish had come.

My soulmate had arrived.

Yes, opposites attract. Opposites only attract.

We're different; therefore similar.