A Lunch Time

    This is the fourth time I am seeing him, but this time he is looking completely different. He was wearing a Red T shirt in black jacket, his hair and beard looked perfect, Black denim bottom and Black shoes. He realized I was staring at him. I immediately took my eye off him.

    "It's OK, carry on" He uttered, taking a sip of beer.

    "What?" I asked

    "It is ok, you can carry on staring at me" He replied, making eye contact, smiling.

    "No, I just… You look good today." I replied, stuttering, and then regretting what I said. 

    "You look sexy today," he said, winking at me.

    "Thanks," I replied, avoiding eye contact and taking a sip of beer.

    We both remained silent with each other. He kept cheering up Lucas, whistling, making noise at him.

    The waiter came with a glass of Dirty Martini on his tray, and handed me over a tissue written on "May I buy you a Drink?"

    Waiter pointed me at the Bar counter, I saw Austin smiling at me from there. I smiled back. I wondered why he was still stuck there. I know Austin to be a crazy dancer. I just don't want him to wait for the dance until I join him. Waiter was still waiting for my response, standing beside me. I picked pen from tray and wrote back side of the same tissue,

    "Show me your moves first." 

    "Boyfriend??" Denver asked immediately after the waiter left.

    "EX" I replied smiling, 

    "Haha silly break up-patch up games couples play" He said laughing,

     "It's not what you think, We broke for so long". My eyes were still on Austin

    He sent the waiter again with the same tray, but another msg on tissue, "Watch me"

    I saw him moving towards the dance floor, smiling at me, and pointing to the dance floor. I picked the glass of Gin in my hand and kept some bucks on the tray as a tip.

    "Yeah being into your ex again isn't a bad idea either. You already know what mistakes he's gonna repeat, so you stay prepared." Denver said, trying to stretch the topic. 

    "Yeah I know, but my life is already fucked, I can't make or bear the same mistakes." I said, lowering my voice, smiling back to Austin dancing in the crowd, and cheering him up with my gesture.

    "Be thankful, you have life" He replied, smiling, standing up to leave.

                                                                                               ***

    Its been 3 days since club night, and each word of Denver kept running in my mind. I kept looking for him around me. I saw many other technicians from his Agency, but couldn't see him anywhere. He is new for his job, maybe because he would be allotted less complaints to resolve. Good for him. I thought if I registered a complaint, they may send Denver for Service, but my computer was working perfectly, and I could not risk my job by making a fake complaint again. 

    I found many changes in myself after that night, but it wasn't only me who has changed behavior, I saw many changes in Austin too. He was trying to get closer to me. He is approaching me in about every 2 hours. Asking me if I need help, trying to pamper me, taking extra care, texting me morning-night wishes. I am worried about his behavior, I don't want him to live on impossible expectations, I can't get back to him, I am not ready and I think I will never be. If I could ever go back to him, I would have never left him. 

    These 3 days were toughest for me. Is really difficult to tackle the situation, when someone keeps thinking about you, but you are thinking of someone third.

    I attending the stupid service call, saw Austin coming towards me, I smiled at him, It is his 3rd visit to me, since I came.

    "Coffee??" He asked after waiting for me to end my call.

    "It's 10 minutes left for lunch Austin" I replied without looking at me.

    "Yeah, I just saw you working since long so I thought" He said, trying to explain. 

    "That's sweet, but it's not time for coffee, you too wait for lunch" 

    "Yeeah, Right, Will you join me in my cabin for lunch?" He asked me in a convincing tone.

    "Sure"

    Linda, hearing us, turned to me immediately after Austin left. 

    "I like this Austin Version 2.0" She said in a teasing tone.

    "Sure, I will tell him to think about you then" I smiled sarcastically and left for Austin's cabin.

                                                                                            ***

    "Knock Knock, May I come in Mr. Supervisor." I asked Austin, teasing Austin.

    "This is all yours" He replied, still in his serious tone he has been carrying since club night.  

    "What will you have?" keeping the phone on his ears he asked.

    "A regular canteen meal" I replied, looking all around the cabin.

    It's been months since I visited his cabin last time. When we were dating, I personally used to come to give my files to my supervisor boyfriend. But our break up made me more professional, so now I keep my files in supervisor's box, so the office boy forward it to him, with other's,

    "Does it remind you of anything?" he saw me staring at the heart shaped paperweight I gifted him back.

    "Maybe, but it's too late to remember anything." I replied, Looking away from it.

    "Maybe, it's never late for some things" He said, looking into my eyes; I remained silent.

    Breaking the silence in the cabin, the office boy stepped in with a tray in his hand. This is another benefit of being on higher post, you have special services like this. You can have service at your cabin. Though Austin is sincere, he doesn't avail these services regularly. Once he told me, he like eating outside, in the canteen, with friends, gossiping about other staff. 

    "May I ask you something, if you don't mind" I asked

    "Please, and lets it be not formal, I request" His tone was more formal than mine. Never mind.

    "Is there something wrong with you? I mean since sunday night I find you a little distinct." 

    "Its nothing like that, I don't know what you are talking about,"

    "Good then" I replied. Trying to believe his answer.

    I was almost done with my lunch, I was waiting for him to finish. We both were silence, eating and smiling in between at each other.

    "Are you dating Lucas" He asked, breaking awkward silence, making this lunchtime more awkward.

    "This is the second time you are asking, I am not dating him" I replied frustrated. I stood up, he too     stood up, and moved his hand forward stopping me, I gave him weird look, 

    "I thought you were leaving" He pulled his hand back.

    I made him sit on a chair, and I slightly sat on his table. Taking his hand in mine, I asked "What is bothering you? I asked you no to rush already, I am not liking this new version 2.0 of Austin, serious about every small thing even, can you please behave less caring, less serious."

    "I feel like I'm losing you" He said in a lowered voice.

    "You already did, You already lose me in back, we have broke up since so long Austin"

     "I know, But I thought it was just a temporary break you needed, I never felt, break up would last this long."

    "We were never serious about that relation, and you yourself had acknowledged it, and it was just a few month relation Austin, Don't act like it's been decades we spent together."

    "I regret now, I miss you, I miss us being together."

    "What you miss about us is our friendship, memories that we created together as friends, we never acted like a couple, it was all a friend thing only."

    "And what about the kisses, smooches, what about everything we did as partners?"

    "It was all hit of the moment,  casual thing, we celebrated those moment in that way, but it doesn't decide the relation to be permanent"

    "Are you into someone else?"

    "No, I am not, but this doesn't mean I am available for you, please understand Austin, what you expect is impossible for me"

    "What stops you Helena?"

    "I don't want to hurt you again, But you know I never loved you, so you do, If I would have ever loved you, we would have never broken. You know I am leaving ADC Soon."

    "Yeah I know, you denied to renew your contract, that's another reason for me rushing, I want to fix things between us before you leave."

    "I appreciate you trying to fix things, but as a friend, I want you to be part of my life as a friend forever, sometimes I think, dating you was my biggest mistake because I lost my best friend in you Austin, I have 6 months in ADC, after that I will be leaving this city too, I want my these few months to be great, I want you to help me for it,"

    "That means I also have only 6 month left, to get you back, I will try my best to impress you, to make you stop, for me. I will keep trying, until you give me reason to stop trying, I won't repeat my old mistake, this time I won't let you go."

    "Denver, you need to understand, More expectations, more try, leads to more disappointments"

    "Did you just call me Denver?" He asked, changing his expression from emotional to curious.

    "No, who is Denver?" I asked, stuttering.

    "Exactly, Who is Denver, you called me Denver?" He asked, looking straight into my eyes, doubtful.

    "Get some sleep Austin, I think you need it" I left his cabin, making a grumpy face.

                                                                                        ***

    It is first Monday of this month, I am feeling exhausted, attending stupid calls. I looked at Linda, She is Busy working. Sometimes I think she pretends to hate this job, but she loves ADC, more than its owner. She always does her work with full concentration. 

    I put my head down on desk, just to have small break from stupid calls.

    "388??"

     I heard someone calling me by my cubicle number. I don't remember registering complaints or ordering anything from the canteen. It must be Denver, come here to surprise,  I excitedly lifted my head and turned.

    "388?" the man stood facing me, with Monitor in his hand, repeated. It wasn't Denver, but must be another technician. He disappointed me.

    "Yes?, But I haven't registered any problem" I replied

    "It is for your last complaint, the monitor you are using currently was given to you temporarily, now I need to replace it again with yours."

    "Oh, Yes I remember, Carry on" I got up and stood in the corner of my cubicle.

    Last time Denver was working on my complaint, I wanted him to come again. The technician replaced the monitor and was ready to leave with his monitor.

    "Is Denver in office?" I asked, stopping him.

    "Who Denver?" he questioned back.

    "Denver White, the technician who was working on this monitor issue."

    "I don't know anyone with this name yet." He replied managing the weight of the monitor he was carrying.

    "Ok Thank you"

    It's been more than a week since I saw him last time, and the reaction of this technician was shocking. Maybe he doesn't know Denver by his name, Denver is newly joined. What if Denver was on probation and they rejected him.     

    Damn, I need to call Lucas and ask, if everything was ok with Denver, or I can ask for his contact number, but what if Lucas asks why am I so interested in Denver suddenly. Bad Idea. I decided to call Lucas but not to ask him about Denver directly. 

    "Hello, hows ADC doing without me" Lucas Laughed.

    "It is sucked" I replied and continued taking a pause "Hey, do you remember me sitting on couch in Wolf Night"

    "Yeah I do, you looked stunning" 

    "Ohh thank you, then why did you not tell me that day." I replied with a smile on my face.

    "I told you already" He laughed, "But what's about that day?"

    "Oh Sorry, Actually your friend Denver, He was there, sitting on the next couch and I lost my bracelet that day, can you please ask if he saw it fallen there?"

    "Ok, but isn't it a little weird asking him if he was looking at you, especially observing your jewelries, I mean he barely knows you right?" He asked, laughing.

    "Can you please take him on call?, I will ask what I want," I asked, raising my voice.

    "Calm dear, Hold on" Lucas put my call on hold, to add Denver to the conference. And continued retrieving my call "It's switched off, is it urgent ?, I gonna meet him soon, I can ask then"

    "No it's OK, actually it was little precious for me, no issues, Thank you" I said in an apologetic tone and cut the call off.