The Beginning at The End

As she woke up and looked at the calendar, to her grief, it was only the start of April. As she unwillingly took herself out of her bed, she realized it has only been a month since all this chaos was started. She dragged herself into the washroom, to do her morning routine. She brushed  her teeth and splashed water on her face and got out. 

Alexandra or Alex, was a young girl spending her life cheerfully in Dallas, Texas. She was an accountant and used to work in a well reputed company’s account department. It has only been a few months since the start of her job, when the pandemic hit the world, and a new normal was introduced. All the nation was going under lockdown and no one knew how long it was going to be.

Alex was a 27 year old. She was slim and tall with long wavy brown hair. She had a pale complexion, with blue coloured eyes and small rosy lips. She was a pretty girl with a prettier heart inside.

“Now what!” she said out loudly, sarcastically. “Huh! Follow the same routine of eating breakfast and cleaning the already cleaned house,” as she could not think of doing anything else during this lockdown period. “I wish everything would have not changed and I could have visited around the world,” she said, dreamingly. 

She stood up from her place and went into the kitchen and cooked breakfast for her. She was making a scrambled egg for herself. As she was cracking the egg, she took a glance out of her kitchen window and noticed someone on the opposite side of her apartment. It was a guy, seemed in his early 30’s. She got interested in the scene. She quickly cooked her breakfast, made a cup of tea and went to her dinner table and sat in it, facing the window so she could keep an eye on him while eating. He was a tall guy with an athletic build, he was standing there in his tank top and shorts. It looked like he had just worked out and now he was looking at his mobile. Suddenly, he took his shirt off and Alex almost choked on her tea. She quickly looked away and when she resumed her activity, to her disappointment, he was not standing there anymore. She disinterestedly finished her meal, washed the dishes and started to clean her house quickly. She, after a very long time, had gotten some kind of an activity and she was willing to continue with it. She quickly completed everything and looked out of the window, he was still not there.

Must be in another room or something, she wondered sadly.

She picked up her mobile from her bedside table, and dialed her best friend’s number. After two to three rings, she picked up the call. 

“Hello,” Amanda’s sleepy voice came from the other side.

“Hey Amanda, you are still sleeping,” she found it odd. 

“Nothing,” Amanda replied. “I was just feeling lazy today, you tell me, why have you called me at this time?”

“I have something to share with you,” Alex replied, excitedly.

“What is it, Alex?” Amanda was now fully awake. “You sound very excited.”

“Yes, I am excited,” she replied cheerfully. “Guess what I saw through my window,” she stopped for a while. “Oh, leave it, please do not start guessing,” she quickly said to her. “I just saw a very handsome guy right across my window, in the neighboring house.”

“Tell me about it,” Amanda sounded fully awake and excited as well.

“Well,” Alexandra started. “I was making breakfast for myself, when I spotted him, and then while I was having my meal,” she lowered her voice as if he would listen to her. “He also took off his shirt.”

“Oh my God,” Amanda shouted. “I am going to faint now, I wish I could have come to your place like older times,” she completed, sadly.

“Yeah,” Amanda’s tone fell down too. “But do not worry, I will send you the picture, or we can have a video call as well,” she said cheerfully.

“So, what is he doing now?” Amanda asked interestedly.

“Well, I can not see him now, must be in another room or something,” Alex said, while trying to have a better view of his room.

“Well, as soon as you can see Mr. Hotty, tell me exactly about it,” Amanda said mischievously.

“Yeah sure,” Alex laughed.

“Bye Alex.”

“Bye.”

*******

Alexandra waited for the entire day, but that mystery man did show up again. She even completed her office work on the dining table, waiting for him. The entire day passed by and she could not see him.

Where could he have gone? She thought to herself.

She completed her work and then stood up to get herself a cup of tea, as she passed by the window, she glanced outside, and to her joy, she saw him standing there talking on the phone. 

What room is it? She thought as the light was too dim to figure out and in the morning, she did not notice it good enough. After a while, she realized that she had not even walked an inch and had been just staring at him since she had spotted him, she laughed at herself and moved to the kitchen and filled the kettle with water. She waited for the water to be boiled and meanwhile she kept staring at him. Suddenly, he looked up and Alexandra without thinking, waved at him and regretted immediately and went inside the kitchen away from the window. 

“What was that Alex!” she screamed at herself. “Are you gone nuts? What have you done?”

She quickly picked up her mobile and immediately called Amanda. On the second ring, she picked up the call.

“Hello,” Amanda greeted.

“Amanda, I have done something really stupid,” Alex sounded annoyed and she told the whole thing to her.

“What!” Amanda shouted. 

“What will he be thinking,” Alex said sadly.

“That there is some insane woman living across my window,” Amanda laughed.

“Amanda!” Alex sounded resented.

“Oh come on,” Amanda said carelessly. “Do not worry yourself, nothing will happen.”

“But what if…” Alex tried to say something.

“Alex, he does not even know you,” Amanda said to her.

“Yeah you are right,” Alex agreed with Amanda. Her tea was also ready, she took farewell and disconnected the call. But she was still not ready to face him, so she took her tea and went straight to her bed. 

********

Almost a week had gone by since then, and she had been waiting for him almost every other day, but he did not show up for a whole week after that.

“Where are you my mystery man?” she was feeling anxious. “I have been waiting for you for the whole week.”

But nothing happened, she started doing her routine work, checking after every hour to see if he had shown up, but her wishes were not coming true. She felt sad. She quickly finished her house chores, she was planning to sleep early today, as she had nothing else to do. She ate dinner and went straight to bed. 

********

Almost a month had passed since she had seen him, but there was no sign of him after that. When she took a lunch break from her work and she walked by the window, to her surprise he was standing right there. 

Oh my God! Her heart skipped a beat. 

He was wearing shoulder support, that is usually worn after a fracture. 

Oh! Did he get hurt, she thought worriedly.

As she saw him, she thought he would give her any sign or something because of her wave, but he did not look at her, he was looking down at something.

“Thank God,” she said to herself with a sigh of relief. “Wow!” she exclaimed. “He is so hot.”

As she got to see him for a larger period of time, she also noticed his few features. He had short blonde hair with a long face. He had a clear jawline. She could not see his eyes from this much distance.

Must be deep, that will make you drown, she thought with a smile.

Then suddenly, he looked up from whatever he was watching, and took out his phone, called someone and walked away.

“And that is it,” she said out loud. “The show is over,” she said, sadly.

She finished her lunch and resumed with her work.

How long is it going to go? She wondered.

********

Almost seven months have passed without any further improvement. He used to come to that room for an hour or two and she used to wait all day long for his arrival. Other times, that room remains empty. 

“I should do something,” Alex said to herself.

It was a saturday night and she was thinking about watching a movie. She was sitting on her bed with her laptop open right in front of her, but she was not doing anything, she was only dreaming about her mystery man. 

“Maybe write a note and leave at his doorstep,” she thought. “I mean I can go out for this, I would not be meeting him.”

She took a decision, and decided to write something on a paper for him. She took out a paper from her desk and started writing.

       Hi,

I am Alex, and I do not know what to write. I have been watching you for almost 8 months now, and I really do not know how to put all the paper for you. Well, let me be very clear about my feelings with you, I am falling for you, or fallen for you. I know I do not know you, but I have started to really care about you. And I really do not know how to stop all this. Waiting to have a response from you. 

She folded it and placed it inside an envelope and went outside of her house. These days, she was going out for real emergencies only as it was not safe to do it. She inserted the envelope inside the mailbox, rang the bell and immediately returned her home. She was very excited about it as she knew now they might be communicating through the letters.

Like older times, she thought excitedly.

********

“Dude I am telling you, some creepy girl lives across your apartment,” Henry said. “I went there in the morning to get a bath, as at my place there was some sanitary issue,” Henry was walking inside the room. “And I thought I saw someone, but I ignored it as it could be a coincidence, but then I forgot my shirt there, and later at night when I went there to pick it up, she even waved at me,” he sat down. “I mean who waves at a complete stranger.” he went quiet as someone on the other was saying something. He started to walk towards the kitchen when suddenly he stepped on the oily floor and fell down on his hand.

********

“Thanks Leo, you came, I mean during these days, what would I have done,” Henry was lying on the bed. 

“You are like my bro,” Leo smiled. “ Now, you must take some rest.”

Henry Stinson was 32 years old, and was currently teaching in a school, because of everything being shut down, the learning was being done through the internet. His friend Leonard Williams was a painter. They both had been friends since childhood and used to live in the same building, but currently, Leonard was away on some work, and his apartment was empty. 

Henry was a tall man, with an athletic build. He had blonde curly short hair and owned a long face, with a prominent jawline. He had a beautiful pair of green eyes and a smile that will take someone’s breath away.

“Don;t leave till yet,” Henry said to Leo. 

“Don't worry, you have only fractured your arm,” Leo grinned and then became serious. “I will try to come again, but cannot promise for the next 2 days.”

“Don’t worry, I will be fine,” Henry smiled. “Concentrate on your work.”

“Good,” Leonard put everything necessary right next to his table and left the house.

********

“Well, I do not know, but I am telling she is seriously stalking me,” Henry was on call with Leo, standing in his apartment. “I mean it has been 15 minutes, and she is continuously looking at me, like she has nothing else to do,” he stopped to listen. “No I am telling you, she has been doing this for a month now, I have been coming here just to confirm it,” Henry completed. He left the room, while still on the call and left the apartment.

********

Then it became Henry’s routine, he used to go to Leo's apartment and found that cute girl on the other side of the building, seemed like waiting for him. He never made real eye contact with her, but used to watch her from the corner of his eyes. She was a cute girl in her late 20’s. He had nothing to do in that apartment, but he used to pretend that he was doing some work, although he used to come here just to have a look at her. Whenever he used to see her, he felt butterflies in his stomach. 

********

“So how is it going with your mystery man?” Amanda asked.

“Nothing, I have stopped looking for him,” Alex replied, trying to avoid her eyes.

Amanda and Alex were having a video call when Amanda asked about him. It was the end of me, February, and this year, she spent the Christmass and the New Year in her home, as she could not fly to her hometown. Amanda had some urgent work, so she could also not come to her place. 

“What do you mean?” Amanda asked loudly.

“I mean that I have stopped,” she replied straightly.

“But..”

“Come on,” Alex said. “Are we really going to discuss only him?” she did not want to tell her about it so she simply asked her to stop.

“Ok,” Amanda replied with confusion.

What would I tell you? She said to herself.

********

“I am coming, wait,” Alex said out loud.

It was the end of March, Alex was making tea for herself, when someone rang on the door. She had just arrived home from her office, as it has also started. She quickly went towards the door, and without peeping from the hole, she opened the door, and to her surprise, her mystery man was standing right in front of her.

“You,” she said in a whisper, she forgot to breath. He was even more handsome in person, and his eyes truly were making her drown. 

“Hi, I am Henry,” he smiled.

I am going to faint, she tried to hold herself.

“Won’t you ask me to come in?” he asked.

“Oh sure,” Alex stepped out of his way and let him in.

“You are?”

“Alex, Alexandra,” she could not smile.

“Well, may I sit down?” he smiled again.

“Yeah sure.”

“I had been watching you watch me the whole year from that window,” he pointed at a window, she blushed and looked away. He stood up and came near her. 

“Well,” he started. “That is my friend’s apartment, and I noticed you waved at me, the first time I came here,” she blushed again, he smiled. “I wanted to come again to make sure if you were really looking at me, but I fell and fractured my arm,” he stopped and noticed her face, she was looking down and not meeting his eyes. “Well, I could not come for a whole month but when I got better I started coming again, at first just to confirm if you were really stalking me,” he laughed. Alex was continuously blushing and he was enjoying her expressions. “But then I felt disturbed and incomplete, if I did not look at you, and started coming just to see you. 

Alex immediately looked up at him, and he was standing inches away from her, and looking directly into her eyes. He held her hand and held it tightly inside her both hands. 

“I have built feelings for you,” his eyes looked intense. “And I cannot live away from you anymore, and I know you feel the same for me.”Alex was still quiet, she was trying to build up courage to say something.

“I … wrote you a … letter,” she looked away. “Did you receive it?”

“You send it at my home?” he asked, confused.

“No, I left it in your mailbox,” she looked into his eyes.

“But I never checked the mailbox, as I told you it is not my apartment,” he smiled. “Is that why you stopped looking at me because I did not answer?” 

“I thought you are not interested and I am just making a fool out of myself,” hot tears were rolling down from her eyes.

He wiped the tears from her eyes and kissed her on the forehead. “I could not understand the reason why you have stopped waiting for me, so I decided to pay a visit here,” he stopped. “But now I know why,”  

She looked up at his face and he was smiling with the most dazzling smile, she smiled back. He leaned forward and kissed her on the lips.