Like at first sight

I nose dove in like. Yup! This one is for real. Haaahaaa

I did not know anything about her, all I had was a smile and eyes that were full of joy. It could have simply been that she had come well prepared to this exam. Yes, it happened in the examination hall. She was a final year Computer Science student and was sitting for, oh! it doesn't matter, does it? Anyway, I was the invigilator in her hall. Oh! Come on! Don't look so scandalous. I know what you are thinking. I am a teacher and she was a student and you think it is wrong. Hey! We haven't even come to the stage of the story where it is appropriate to be shocked.

In my defence, though I am a teacher and she a student, she wasn't MY student. Hell! She wasn't even in the same college. Yes, this was in a college where I had been appointed as an external invigilator. So, as you can clearly see, she wasn't my student and I had no scruples holding me back.

Holding me back from what, you ask me. I had fallen in like at first sight. Don't roll your eyes. I didn't say, LOVE at first sight. I simply liked the way she held herself and thought that this was a person I could be comfortable around. You know, it is quite natural to like or dislike a person based purely on first impressions. Of course, first impressions can be misleading but how can you know that unless you had a chance to make second and third impressions.

That, therefore was the plan. I wanted to ask her out for coffee. Don't laugh at me. I know it is an alien concept here but a coffee date is safe and simple. I mean, it takes up less energy, time and money. And there is ample time for conversation and an hour with a person should give you enough data to decide if you wanted to invest on another date. I should admit, though, I didn't know how she would react.

The bigger problem was how was I going to ask her? And perhaps more importantly, when? Surely, even if I gathered enough guts to ask her and knew the words to do that, I couldn't ask her in the middle of an examination if she would come out with me.

I thought of a cunning plan. Yes! you are right. I had too much time to kill. Three hours of doing nothing but walk around a 25x20 feet room.

Logistically, I would have very little time after the exam to make my move, if I had any. A minute at the most. And there would be people around; other students. And logically, there was always the off-chance that she would slap me or start crying or get her classmates to kick my butt. Make that most probably.

Don't get impatient. I am coming to my cunning plan. I decided that asking her out is an elaborate process and since I did not have time for that now, I should create time for it later. Obviously, I couldn't meet her again (remember it is not my college) without being obvious that I am interested in her. So my cunning plan was... wait for it... to give her... are you ready for it: a note.

Stop laughing. It is not funny.

Maybe it is. A little.

But that is not all. The note wouldn't be something lame like, 'I like you', or 'You are so beautiful' or even 'Will you have coffee with me?'. The note will have my blog address. That's right! This very blog.

Laugh all you want but hear me out, will ya?

The idea was to not get slapped. I mean not put her or myself in an embarrassing situation. Nobody could blame me for asking her to check a website. They might think I was desperate for some readership but that wouldn't be so bad. I could do with more readers.

OK! She got the note. She thinks it is a weird request. She wonders if I am crazy. What next, you ask me.

The plan was to get her curious enough to check out my blog. There I could put up a post asking her out for coffee. If she was interested, anonymous commenting is enabled, she could leave me a message. Or mail me at the email id in my profile. And yes, it would also help her form an opinion of the kind of person I am.

What! You think she wouldn't want to go out with me after reading what I put up on my blogs. You don't know that. Lots of people think I am adorable. Anyway, I think it is only fair that she knows what to expect of me. She needs to be prepared if she was going to accept.

What if she wasn't interested? Simple. She wouldn't leave a message. Or worst case... leave a crappy one, calling me all sort of names. Well! I am the moderator of my blog, right? I could just delete it and nobody needs to know.

Either way, I couldn't lose. The plan was perfect.

Is the suspense killing you? Are you dying to know if I did ask her? I am not going to tell you.

What do you think? Did I or didn't I?

Coming into light

I woke up disoriented, not knowing where I was or what I had been doing before. I wasn't even sure if I had been sleeping. All I remember was being aware of the darkness that surrounded me. There must be a switch, I thought and I will turn on the light. Then there will be some illumination and I will know what place this is. I can find out everything. If only I could find the light switch.

I felt my way through the walls, bumping into pieces of furniture; a chair here, a bed there. I felt a mirror (that could have been a picture frame) and a picture frame (which could well have been a mirror). The room was large and I was getting impatient. Where is the damn switch? Why can't I find it? My knee was badly bruised and I was a little afraid too. What if I don't find the switch? And then I heard a voice.

It was a woman's voice. I knew the voice just as well as I knew that I was alone in the room. I knew because when I hear voices, they are always of this woman. And she said to me, "Open your fucking eyes, asshole. The room is lit"