When I came back from work, I was surprised to see a mail in my mailbox, it came as a surprise, as I never get any mail, I get bills and lots of it. It was a wedding invitation, ‘Sameer weds Parul’. I quickly called Pooja and enquired whether she got the card or not, apparently she didn’t. Sameer was a college friend, I didn’t particularly hang out with him, but he was more of a friend of Pooja’s. He would talk to me just because I was always with Pooja. ‘Why are you so surprised that he is getting married?’ Pooja asked. ‘Cause I thought he was gay’ I shrieked. ‘You think everyone’s gay’, she sounded disinterested. ‘I do not, and I have reasons to think of him that way, remember his handshakes’. Sameer was one of those who would shake your hand and wouldn’t leave till he is over with all of his pleasantries. A man shouldn’t hug or shake another man’s hand for more than three second, it just gets awkward. ‘Oh yes, I remember, he once told me that he found you hot’ she chuckled. ‘Get lost, I will talk to you later, bye’, I disconnected the call. Holding the letter in my hand, I went through all that was written. “In each other, we found our soul mate”, damn it was tacky but then I started to wonder, how does a person know whether the guy/girl they are in a relationship with is their respective soul mate. I called Pooja again and told about the tacky tag line on the card, we had a laugh about it, but then I asked her, what did she thinks of all this soul mate business. The answer I got from her wasn’t expected, I thought she would outright laugh at me for asking such things, but she believed in the ideology of having a perfect guy, who is just perfect for you. You are incomplete till you find that person and then everything will become perfect…perfect…perfect, I actually was feeling nauseated listening to all the perfects. I personally don’t like the idea of a single girl who is just made for me; I have two reasons for it. Firstly that means I am incomplete till I find her, and secondly what about all the other relationships, do they become runners-up for my soul mates. On the wedding day, I was trying on everything in my closet, just to hide my ugliness. I did finally manage to find an old suit which made me look halfway decent, and then I took some pictures of myself, self-obsessed, which reminded me how wrong I was to think I could look anywhere close too good. I finally gave up trying, and took the car to pick up Pooja. Waiting in front of her house, my eyes were fixed on the door; she knew I hated this habit of hers, but God forbid if she would ever be on time. And then the door opened, wearing a pink saree an angel moved slowly towards me taking small steps. She had her hair untied, a dark pink blouse and her white skin shone brighter than the moon that night. It was great that she couldn’t see me inside the car, or else she could have seen me drooling. I quickly got out of the car to open the door for her, I could see her surprised, and I was amazed as to how beauty of a woman has made me a gentleman. I kept quite all through the ride. I tried catching glimpses of her every few seconds; she was having trouble managing her saree. She kept fishing for compliments, and making faces or nodding, as though she didn’t know that she looked the most beautiful girl in the world. Upon entering the venue, I surveyed the crowed; no one even came close to giving Pooja any competition. She looked like the beautiful lotus one would see, surrounded by mud around her, mud being me. I could see everyone looking at her as she slowly walked towards the stage, I found it funny as she was having great trouble walking in that tight saree wrapped around her. We stood at the start of the stage, where few guest were getting their pictures taken with the bride and groom. I imagined myself and Pooja on that stage, wearing a maroon coloured lehenga, standing beside me, and everybody would be saying that guy is lucky to get a bride as beautiful as her. I stood there smiling like an idiot, like that could ever be possible. We congratulated the couple and got our pictures taken with them. Sameer was giving me a curious look, I think he wanted to know, if I was dating Pooja or not. I also winked at him and gave a sheepish smile, something to make him jealous. ‘They both look good together’, she said. ‘Yes they do’ I replied. You would make the most beautiful bride, marry me. ‘You also look great tonight, I think that girl in black dress was checking you out’ she said it with the cutest of smiles. ‘Who me’, I started blushing. Marry me! ‘Do I look good in this saree?’ she enquired ‘You look amazing’, I replied. She is crazy to ask such a question, if I was to die right now, I would have a smile on my face, and how can someone have such an angelic face. If this was some other day, I would have scanned all the girls in black dresses, but maybe it was the marriage atmosphere or that she holding my hand as we walked through the crowd, I was having variety of feelings in my heart. I could even feel my heart stopped altogether when she held my hand. We looked like a couple, and nothing could remove the big smile which was on my face. The thought of soul mate again popped up in my head. Could she be the one who will complete me? I always found her attractive and this was the first time we both were single together, I could only imagine this as a sign from God. I started having a conversation with the guy above ‘Hey God, so is she the one for me?’ ‘Yes of course, I had already planned this when you were born’ Yes even my imagination had given me the green signal; she and I were meant to be together. We took a zillion pictures of us together that day; of course she looked great in all of them, I on the other hand must have gotten one or two pictures in the okay category, those which I can show to my grandkids without scaring them. I even stopped trying to look good afterwards and started making funny faces, soon she also joined me and both of us were laughing like monkeys on cocaine. I was smitten on her, I was ready to be the purse which was held under her elbow or the plate which she had in her hand, I was so hypnotised by her beauty that I felt like an insect that gets attracted to the bright light and flies towards the light. During the drive back, my head was clouded with thought of tasting the nectar of those pink lips. I could sense sweat running through my hair on my forehead. I parked the car in front of her house and quickly jumped out to open the door for her. She smiled at my antics as she came out of the car. ‘I had a wonderful time today’ I said. ‘Yes, me too, if this were to be a date, I think, this can be the best date I had ever been on’ she said. I was shocked; my mind had started the countdown and was ready to blow up. What did she mean, ‘if this were to be a date?’. I wish you were mine, and then we would go on dates like these all the time. I had to come up with something clever. ‘This was a date, didn’t I tell you, I planned this marriage just to go out with you’ I smirked. ‘And you know what comes after the date’, I couldn’t believe I just said that, but I did. ‘So you mean to say a good night kiss?’ she said with a grin on her face. I don’t know what came over me; I just closed my eyes, said a prayer, and leaned forward. I must have blacked out because when I gained consciousness we were making out. The feeling of touching her lips was like flowers when they bloom, the scent of the first rain, lying on the ground watching the shooting starts. When our lips parted, I confessed my love for her; she didn’t reply and walked away. I did finally have my answer; no, she didn’t say I love you back to me, but the question regarding soul mates. Yes there might be a perfect girl for me somewhere in the world, but here is the thing. I am not travelling anywhere soon, and frankly I feel I am happy right now with the not so perfect girl who hasn’t replied to my confession of love, and you never know, she might be my soul mate, I guess a guy unlucky in love as me, has to get his heart broken a thousand times to finally meet his soul mate.
