Believe me or not, coffee has got a brain. When your mood is bright, even strong black coffee would taste warm and sweet. When grumpy, cream stuffed cappuccino would taste bitter. And today’s coffee tasted worst and bitter. So I left my cup of bitter coffee on the kitchen table and decide to sneak into my favorite cafe.
I sat at my favorite spot, ordered my coffee, took out my book, and started reading.
“Heyy, is it Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell? I loved that story, and I have this weird habit of talking to people with similar fiction choices.”
An unknown voice suddenly rang in my ears. A tall boy, no wait! A tall man with a little long hair, sharp voice, wearing a yellow shirt with sleeves folded till elbows, wearing a black digital watch with a laptop in one hand. Eyes twinkling and face with a bright smile. I don’t know if I was dazed. I managed to put on a smile.
“Yes,” I replied after I stopped staring at him. “Fangirl, story of twin sisters and fanfic.”
“That’s nice. Happy reading.” He moved his hand through his hair and rushed towards his destination, and I kept on watching him exiting the cafe. And my coffee? Got bitter again.
I tried to finish my Fangirl, but I couldn’t. My mind kept going back to that tall man in the cafe. It continued until the next day in college. Lectures were like some lullaby in the background, and I continued thinking that how a man looking so professional and ambitious got time to read this super romantic and silly book like Fangirl. He was no Levy. He was more like Wren. Or Reagan.
“Nerd!” My best friend, Sagar teased me and sat beside me on the stairs. “So who’s the guy?” He asked me. “What?” I looked at him questioningly. “Novel in hand and yet these eyes focusing somewhere else.” I made a face and hit him with the book.
“Seriously, tell me.” He got serious. I told him the entire story of that unnamed guy I met.
“Oookay! So this nameless guy finally got into a never-into-relationship best friend. That’s interesting.” He smirked. I made a face, I think, and tried letting it go.
“Instead of simply reminiscing, why not going back to your cafe sometime later and be smart enough to ask? He can’t eat you unless he’s cannibal, you know!” And started laughing at his joke. But I did consider that part of going back there.
On Sunday, I went back to that cafe. My one eye on the door and another one on the novel. Cather at least knew who Levy was. And she was not a fool like me to fall in admiration at first sight. When I was so sure that it was just a momentary coincidence and was almost leaving, I saw him coming. With his laptop on, putting on earpods, he settled in a corner table beside the window and got drifted in some virtual meeting. He caught me staring at him like a fool. I must have blushed and tried smiling and left.
One, I still don’t know his name, and two, he just saw some clumsy girl gaping at him. So I might just stop thinking about him and focus on my lectures and novels. Yet, my heart didn’t want to give up. So, I kept going back. While my bestie kept on teasing me, I tried all my ways to get away with it.
Days, weeks, and then months. He was there sometimes and other times it was me pretending to be cool and finishing this never-ending Fangirl. I don’t know exactly why I kept on waiting. But I did.
I was thinking all this rubbish when a known voice echoed. “So you are still with this novel?” So finally our second conversation. “Yes, don’t get much time because of assignments and all.” This time I was prompt and made sure I was not looking like an eejit.
“Coffee?” It came out even before I knew it. I had startled him, I think. He agreed, and we had a long talk about the only thing I knew in this world, fiction. It continued for an hour and later on the same night, I realized I forgot to ask him and still didn’t know who he was.
“What?” Sagar snapped. “You are an eejit, proved. How can you talk for an hour and still don’t know his name?”
“I forgot. That’s simple I guess.” I retorted.
“Well, then we better search for second-best love for you. You are hopeless.” He left.
He was right, though. I was determined not to think about it. But only for the next four days. I went back next week and found him working there. He smiled and waved. He was busy. So I got myself another table. “Order no. 36, Mr. Ayaan.” I saw him rose from his table. So I finally got his name. I had left early that day. But I had left my novel in the cafe.
I had to go back to get it. Ayaan was standing outside with my book. “Hi, thank god you came back. Here, your book. We both happen to come across each other, I would have kept it safe.” I thanked him and left.
While I was walking down the road, something fell on my feet. It was inside the book. I didn’t remember putting anything inside it. I picked it up and started reading, “Hi, I wish I had asked your name. That’s such an idiot of me.” Ayaan wrote that. And I had my pulse rate going 1000.
“Sweetest fangirl! You are Cather in all ways. That cup of coffee the other day was too special. And did anyone tell you, you have the prettiest smile? Not because you are reading Fangirl! With the lovely pair of eyes and charming smile, you give me every time, I always thought, if I could be your Levy. But I never knew if you have any real Simon in your life. I am taking a chance though! Do you think we can be Cather and Levy? I would be as good as him. If yes, let’s meet on Sunday morning, at our favorite place.”
I stopped in my tracks. This was no dream. He was real. This was all real. I was about to twirl and dance when I observed people looking at me. After all, my Cather got her Levy.
Not all love stories are fairy tales or fiction. Some do come true.
Originally published at https://soumi2395.wixsite.com on February 21, 2021.
