“But soft, what light through yonder window breaks?
It is the east, and Juliet is the sun.”
I was at a dinner date with a musician whom I had always fancied. We were conversing about the Shakespearean romance, Romeo & Juliet. Having heard of the rigmarole for over a gazillion of times, I had reached to a conclusion that the play was nothing but merely a story of the love affair that had turned into a “gone-case” because of the conflicts between the Montagues and the Capulets.
We have been seeing each other since quite a while. As he and I were from different walks of life, we carried contradictory opinions about most of the matters. We were always able to hold an intelligent conversation for hours and maybe that’s why we never got bored of each other. Every time we talked, I would seek into his soul just to explore the rooms of his intellectuality but it seemed like an endless journey. I had never met someone with such an immense intellectual capacity ever before. He was magical and I was sinking deep in his magical island with each passing day. I noticed that he was slightly consternated to hear my unromantic take on the most classic romance of all times and eventually began sharing his perspective on it.
The dining hall looked exquisitely beautiful amidst the darkness of the night. There was power outage; the inverter had run out of charge. The entire room was lightened up by candles that were placed in the most exotic candle stands I had ever seen. I looked into his emerald eyes as he was being vocal about his opinion. Words popped out of his mouth in the form of pure poetry. His strong sheffield accent fascinated me. I was so lost in looking through his soul that I barely paid attention to what he was saying. “The cyclical nature of the universe demands it adheres to some of its rules,” he said at last. I nodded my head in agreement even though I was totally clueless about the context of that statement.
Is it really impossible to forget ‘first’ love?
Something caught my attention. It was 1975 on the radio with the song “Somebody Else.” He liked the band as much as I did. When I was singing along, he asked me if I want to take more wine. My head was spinning a little and I was high on the music. “I am high already on the perfect company and the perfect music. So, No, Thank You!” I said as I smirked looking at him. He smiled the perfect smile upon hearing my words. The song ended and I heard the time-check on the radio. I had to get back to the dorm by 11. It was 10 pm already.
“I’ll get the car keys. See through the window the view of the city lights and feel the music run down to your soul. I’ll be right back,” he said. The power supply was back by then. The city was glorified by the luminescence of the diversely colored lights, the sight of which was breathtakingly beautiful.
Suddenly, I heard him call my name. I was totally clueless about where he was until I saw him standing under the palm tree in the front garden, holding a ukulele on his hands. I had no idea about what was on his mind. I rested my hands on the wooden frame that carved the window and looked at him.
“I have been searching from
The bottom to the top
For such a sight
As the one I caught when I saw your
Fingers dimming the lights”
He sang to me. He knew that an Alex Turnersong would make me feel weak in the knees. The song served its purpose. His voice synchronized perfectly with the tunes of the ukulele. Everything was beyond perfect. My eyes were filled with the tears of joy as I ran downstairs and hugged him. We sang the song together. I felt something different that night. It was love. The night was about love. His sweet serenade was just another reason that made me fall for him. It must have been love right when I first met him beyond the borders. The love felt different. I felt loved.
The writer is a student studying to become a Chartered Certified Accountant.
