At first sight

She immediately caught his eye…through the haze of pollution, dust, blaring horns, pleading beggars and other miscellaneous sounds and sight that accompany a traffic light turning to red.

She was behind a tinted window, this girl. She was talking into her phone while unconsciously brushing her hand through her hair silky brown hair..

He knew it. It was nothing more than a gut instinct, but no lesser, either. The way she looked at him, he knew she had a thing for him. He was a master at the game, always playing to win.

It struck him. She was in a BMW, while he, well, never mind. She wore a custom tailored designer dress, he wore one of those tatters you justify by calling ‘old favorites’. How in the world could he go up to her and even say hello, leave alone flirt.

The time meter below the signal caught the corner of his eye..10 seconds to go. Now or never. If he did not speak to her now, he may never see her again. Urgency pushed him into action. He put on his best smile and strode confidently towards her car. Damn, this limp ! always makes me look like a clown..5 seconds to go, he reached her window. He doubted himself even more as he saw a well dressed, robust man sitting on her side.He had not noticed this man earlier and was a little startled by his sudden appearance.The man said something to the girl while pointing a finger at him. He entertained the thought of turning around and running for an instant but the look in her eyes..those eyes!! they pulled him towards them.

She flashed him the most brilliant smile he’d ever seen..He gulped, and the words got stuck to the back of his throat. “Should I open my mouth and spoil this trance or play along with her and see where it goes”, thought he.2 Seconds, the light was already on orange. She dipped her hand into her bag to fish out a small object. She took her hand into his and placed the object there. A thousand things rushed through his mind..a momento? A visiting card ? a gadget?? He dint want to look down and spoil the surprise. As the light turned green, the BMW surged forward and she was lost in the buzz of the city. He clenched his fist tightly before looking as he made his way to the side of the pavement. The flesh on his hand was still tantalized by her touch, and his mind was racing to imagine what the rest of her felt like.

Finding himself in the familiar safety of the road side, he opened his fist slowly to see what she’d given him..goosebumps of anticipation formed on his skin.

The goosebumps disappeared and were replaced by a single tear to acknowledge reality as he saw what lay in his hand..A shiny 2 Rupee coin for the beggar at the traffic signal.