"Free? Would you like to meet over a coffee on Saturday?", his message read.
Her tightly packed schedule had pretty good free time on Saturday, she thought. "Sure", she replied.
They were going to meet today after eight years. She did not like waiting, but still she reached the cafe ten minutes before time. To her surprise, he was already there.
"Thank God, you are on time. I hate waiting", she said with blinking eyes.
"I am before time for a change", he said with a broad smile on his face.
He was so tall, she thought while they were entering the cafe. A man of imposing height makes a lady feel protected, she had read somewhere.
The cafe was vintage, lit with yellow halogen lights. The walls were painted in dull colours with some abstract paintings hung on them. A huge old fashioned wall clock and some random and surprisingly incomplete quotes complemented the classic look of the cafe.
"This is really a good place. Pretty interesting", he said.
"Yeah. It's nice", she said trying to make sense of an incomplete phrase written on the wall beside their table. "Mais ce qu’a lié l’amour même..." It was written in French. She knew the meaning of only one word - 'l'amour', love.
"So, how is life?", he interrupted her thoughts about what the quote would likely to mean.
"The usual stuff. Bank, home, reading, gardening and Leo. My life is pretty simple unlike yours, Mr. Pilot", she gazed his face and smiled.
"Miss Banker, I crave for the simple life of yours, you know that? I am competing against the clock. It has been years I have met my friends. I am meeting my family after three years. Living in India is tempting at times."
Sudhir was a successful pilot living in US. He had left India eight years back. Navya had admired him since the time she met him in a friend's wedding. They both had many hobbies in common and so they connected immediately once they met. They had hardly met twice in ten years of span. But they would have long, meaningful conversations over phone. That too reduced gradually as they were living in completely different time zones and both had been occupied in hustles and bustles of life. They would talk once in a while about life or books or philosophy. They were sitting in the cafe talking about the same things for last one hour. Different songs being played in the background remained unnoticed as they were deeply immersed in their talks.
"Excuse me, sir, would you like to take something? It has been quite some time", a waiter approached the table and asked.
"Yeah, just in a few minutes", replied Sudhir.
Meanwhile Navya noticed the soft song being played in the cafe.
'If I could save time in a bottle, the first thing that I'd like to do, is to save every day till eternity passes away, just to spend them with you...'
It was Jim Croce's song. Navya had heard it before, but she noticed now how beautiful the song was.
"Do you like this song, Sudhir, it's a classic timeless."
"Not really. Actually I have heard it a few times forcefully as it was a colleague's caller tune", he laughed. "It's pretty unrealistic. I mean, who thinks of saving time in a bottle for spending it with someone till eternity passes away!", he laughed again.
"Maybe", Navya nodded joining him laughing.
"By the way, what will you take? The grumpy waiter will kick us out if we don't order something now", Sudhir asked flipping the pages of the menu card.
"Sudhir, I know it sounds a little weird, but I won't take anything. Actually, I don't like coffee much and the tea here is pathetic. I had come here last Sunday and had ordered a tea. You can't imagine how bad it was. You order a coffee for yourself. I know, you love coffee."
"We would have met somewhere else if you had told this to me before. I had no clue that you don't like coffee", said Sudhir.
"It's okay Sudhir. The ambience here is so good. I love it. I wanted you to see this place. And anyway I have a bottle of chikoo milk shake with me in my bag."
"Navya, you know what, you are crazy. You have invited me in this vintage cafe where there is a great variety of irresistible coffee available and you have come with a bottle of Chikoo milk shake! Who does that?", Sudhir laughed loudly.
Navya noticed that whenever Sudhir laughed, his eyes filled with tears.
"Well, I do that. Come on now order a coffee", said Navya taking out a small bottle from her bag.
Sudhir ordered a cappuccino coffee with hazelnuts after reading a line on the menu card - 'If you think, too many choices make life difficult then choose cappuccino. You won't regret it.' It's interesting he thought and laughed.
"Have you ever tried cappuccino, Navya?", Sudhir asked.
"Long back. It was okayish."
"Why don't you try it here today? And anyway, I am finding your chikoo shake quite tempting. I will have it."
Before Navya could speak anything, the waiter came with the coffee and put it where Sudhir was sitting. Sudhir pointed towards Navya's place and asked the waiter to put the coffee there. The waiter looked a little puzzled, but anyway he put the coffee there and left.
The coffee was served in an exquisite cup. It was layered with white foam on the top with the design of a heart.
"Sudhir, I am allergic to hazelnuts. You please have the coffee", Navya slowly passed the cup to Sudhir and smiled.
She thought how suggestive it was. She was passing a heart to Sudhir. She found this idea very romantic and played it in her mind a couple of times while drinking her milk shake.
"Sudhir, I was thinking to ask you about this. I mean not sure, but I think as we have met today and..don't know when we will meet again..I mean, whether we will meet again...so..You might think it weird, but I don't know.." Navya couldn't complete the sentence.
"What is it Navya?"
Finally Navya asked him in very plain words, "Can we think about a life long relationship?"
Sudhir was taken aback a little. He didn't know how to answer her question though he already had an answer.
"Navya, I am really sorry, but I am getting engaged the next month. Everything is decided. That's the reason I have come to India. In fact, I was going to tell you today, but we got busy talking the other stuff. I am really sorry, Navya".
Sudhir was looking at Navya's eyes as if trying to comprehend what was going on in her heart.
Navya laughed and said, "Congratulations, Mr. Pilot. Finally you found someone who would fly with you. I am really happy for you. Is it an arranged marriage?"
"No, it's a love marriage, Navya. But I never knew that you love me. I am sorry Navya if I have hurt you, but believe me I had no clue."
Navya tapped his hand and said, "When did I tell you that I love you? I don't love you. In fact, I doubt if a person can fall in love after certain age. I thought you were single and I am single too and that we get along well..so just thought practically to save ourselves the time of looking out for a partner. That's it."
Sudhir took a breath of relief. He knew Navya was an emotional person and she would have definitely reacted if she were heart broken. At least he could have read it in her eyes or on her face. But her eyes were looking at him very casually. There was no sign of any pain or any indication that she was hurt. In fact, her eyes were sparkling. She looked happy with the news of his getting engaged. He thought she was probably right. Sudhir finished his coffee and showed Navya the photo of his girlfriend.
"She is pretty. I wish you both a life full of love ahead", said Navya.
"Thank you thank you, but I want to see you getting married before I leave India. I will find a guy for you."
Navya smiled. She didn't know why but she felt a sense of completion. She was happy.
"So when are we meeting again?", Sudhir asked Navya after paying the bill. "And next time we will meet where they serve good tea", he added.
"Sure. I will give you a call", said Navya.
Sudhir left in his car. Navya waved at him and started walking.
A few days passed, but there was no message from Navya. She didn't even reply his messages. Sudhir was concerned and thought if she was really hurt. He had to help her out of this situation. Finally, he gave her a call.
"Hello Navya..this is Sudhir here."
"Hello, Sudhir, I am Navya's mother. Actually, Navya is no more with us", she said and started crying .
Sudhir could not believe what he heard. A lot of things were going on in his head at a time.
"Oh, when did it happen?", Sudhir asked completely shocked.
"Two weeks ago, on 17th morning."
Sudhir hung up the phone. He was not able to understand how it was possible. There must be some mistake. He called up Abhilash. Abhilash was their common friend and was very much in touch with Navya. Abhilash explained Sudhir that Navya was dead. There was a robbery in the bank where Navya was working on 17th morning. It was Saturday. Navya was shot by one of the robbers. Sudhir could not believe it. He had met Navya on 17th evening. How was that possible, he thought.
He kicked off his bike and reached the cafe they had met. He sat on the table where they were sitting on that day. He looked around and called the waiter who had served them coffee.
"Last Saturday we had come here, right?", Sudhir asked the waiter.
The waiter did not expect this question, but answered with a confused look, "Yes, sir. I would not have remembered, but you took unusually long time to order coffee even though you were alone."
"I wasn't alone. There was a lady with me, right?", asked Sudhir.
"No, Sir. As far as I remember, you were alone. Would you like to take anything, Sir?"
"No", said Sudhir and asked him to leave.
Sudhir sat there in the cafe not understanding what was happening. How was that possible. Navya had already died before meeting him. A storm of thoughts had invaded his mind. He noticed a quote on the wall beside him. It read: Mais ce qu’a lié l’amour même, le temps ne peut le délier.
Sudhir faintly remembered that the quote was incomplete when he had first visited the cafe. He called the waiter again.
"I don't think this quote has been like this, right? It was incomplete when I came here before."
The waiter replied, "Yes, sir. The quote was incomplete earlier. We just got it changed a couple of days back. Actually, there was a lady customer who had visited our cafe and gave a suggestion to put the complete quotes. Especially, she requested for this one to be completed. Unfortunately, she died a few days ago in a bank robbery. We have considered her suggestion and have had the quote complete. This is the only complete quote you will find in the cafe", the waiter said.
"What does the quote mean?", Sudhir asked.
"It means: But what love has bound together, time cannot unbind", replied the waiter.
Sudhir could not believe it. He thought it could not happen. It was so unrealistic. While leaving the cafe, Sudhir noticed a song being played in the cafe.
'If I could save time in a bottle, the first thing that I'd like to do, is to save every day till eternity passes away, just to spend them with you...' The Jim Croce's song.
P.S. The story is incomplete yet. To be continued...
