The Soulful Atom

She sat at the table with a friend. They had ordered some red wine or perhaps some sangria. They seemed to be having a good time, laughing and chatting. They’ve been here for some time now, thought its still the first drink. Maybe they aren’t close friends. Maybe they are getting there. They're probably not friends. The effects of age and/or fatigue are visible on one face. She is trying to be in the moment but there is something eating at her. Perhaps she wanted to be someplace else, not tonight but for most part of her life. Maybe she is bitter now, trying hard not to be, because she isn't inherently so. The other one seems to be happier, bubbly. As if she has got control over her life, made peace with her struggles. She talks happily, animatedly. I don’t understand why she hasn’t taken the bag off her shoulder yet though. It does seem to be weighing down on her, but neither one seems to have noticed that. Maybe she always keeps it on her shoulder, like a constant companion. Maybe it soothes her, lets her know she isn't alone. Holding all of her secrets, all her whims and fancies, all the pieces of her broken heart taped together some unwillingly, some forcibly with tears and grit and sometimes just plain resolve.

It was a small café. It boasted of six tables on the ground floor and four on the top with the singles bar at the balcony. The glass door and windows at the entrance on the ground floor were set in dark brown frames and had fresh white curtains made of satin. Which at the moment were rolled away to the sides and tied with soft red wool. They were probably unfurled in summer afternoons to stop the harsh sunlight from coming in, or maybe they were just there for décor. Nonetheless they granted a homely feeling to the café. It was one of her favorites in the city of dreams, Mumbai. The other one was right besides which served delicious Srilankan curry with fish but didn’t afford the luxury of sitting for hours together as it was always crowded with people waiting to be seated and served.
She had taken some time off from being in the same city as her family and friends and wanted to be someplace no one knew her. To be surrounded by strangers. She sat and wrote, whatever that came to her mind. It was a peaceful day, the first week of the new year. She smiled as she thought of the year that went by and was tickled by the thought of what would lie ahead. She was always excited looking ahead, thinking, imagining. A sudden image flew past across her day dreaming eyes and it left her gasping for breathe. She had to clutch her chest and rub her eyes and for a brief instance. It had been such a long time since she felt that thinking of that face! And why would she see him now out of nowhere!! He wasn't even connected to this city in anyway. Their bond was from someplace else! Could it be that thinking of the future brought these thoughts to her? She wondered somewhat scared n then smiled shaking her head. The thought seemed to melt away with that shake, but she knew it was deeply rooted in her very being. That was love in its truest sense. Even though there weren't together as being together goes in the literal sense, they would always be together in their hearts.
This cafe seemed to the perfect place for this. Watching the passers-by and wondering about what their lives must be like instead of thinking about the mess that her life was for a change. So many people, so many lives, so many thoughts.. Her mind buzzed with crammed thoughts and emptied at the same time as the sun slowly sunk behind the high-rise buildings leaving a warm glow in its aftermath.