She gazed out over the Sea, feeling the faint breeze against her face - eyes shut, the white sand warm between her bare toes. The place was beyond belief.
It seemed such a long time ago now.
Angel let out a sigh that was filled with pain and regret. She did not want this to come to an end. She wants this to be infinite. Could she do something to move on with new dreams? How could this beautiful place, with its lush green coastline, eternity of azure blue sea and endless sands be a place for the agony she felt now?
I stood there, watching from the edge of the palm trees and couldn't take my eyes of the dark-haired angel standing at the water's edge, gazing out to sea as though she was waiting for something - or someone. Her slim figure dressed in a loose flowing white cotton dress, her crazy hair and bright black eyes not far off the colour of the sea itself. It wasn't her looks that attracted me though; I had come across many beautiful women in my life. It was her loneliness and intensity that lured me. Even at some distance I was aware that she was different from any other woman I could meet.
Angel sensed the man approaching her even before she turned around. She had been aware of me standing there, staring at her and had felt strangely calm about being observed. I walked slowly towards her and we held at each other's gaze. It felt like meeting after a long time.
Later, sitting at one of the many restaurants on the resort, sipping juices and beverages we began to talk. First pleasantries,the quality of the food and friendliness of the locals. Our conversation was strangely hesitant considering the naturalness and confidence of our earlier meetings. Onlookers, however, would have detected the subtle flirtation as they mirrored each other's actions and spoke directly into each other's eyes. Only later, after the alcohol, in me, had had its loosening effect, did the conversation deepen. We talked of why these other people were here and finally, against her judgement, angel opened up about her worries, at home. She told me of things that had been locked deep inside her, able to tell no one. She told me how she had felt after marriage and how she was able to pursue her passions and dreams.
Living in a joint family had itss own advantages and disadvantages.
Looking up, Angel could perhaps see her pain reflected in my eyes. She didn't feel alone, for the first time since we met. She probably felt the unbearable burden begin to lift from her, only a bit but it was a start. She began to believe that maybe she had a bright future.
Piano lessons had progressed two days and the satisfaction and pride in my angel was visible. "I enjoy every moment and feel that I haven't had enough." That is a good start. I could not believe that it was the same shy woman who was playing on the stage to a very learned audience!
It was monsoon. The evening atmosphere was deceptive even when it was just past mid noon. The journey on the highway wore a mystic shroud. Dark clouds looming over the horizon was rather scary coupled with the music on the car audio system - Chris Rea singing 'This is the road to Hell'.
The intermittent slip-slip of wipers maintained its own rhythm, independent of the song. The road was hardly visible and I decide to turn off the ignition. Darkness had gathered silently around the car by the time it got into the city.
The pavement was thick with the slippery brown mulch of fallen leaves and the smell of roadside muck wafted across the air. A thin mist clung around the windshields. Sounds outside were muffled and movements around lethargic. Cars slipped slowly by on a film of dirty water. At her gate I delayed, unwilling to break the stillness with squeaking hinges; not yet teatime and the city was being put to sleep.
The terrace before angel's house hugged the curve of the road and into the gloom. Bending around the edges of her vision she was conscious of curtains being swished closed, stone faces bathed by the grey light of televisions, broken roof tiles, satellite dishes, bay windows, the whole higgledy-piggledy collection of guttering and skylights. For a moment her home appeared strange. I've been here many times, to drop her back from work. Yet, the surroundings seemed so unfamiliar.
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