I’m sure you’re all aware of my interest in sports, walking, and jogging, as well as my passion for fitness, biking, and trekking. I write about my long-distance walking for fun and charity, so I am like an open book anyone can read anytime. Most of you know about my interest in fitness activities, but how many of you know about my love stories?
How many of you know about my love stories?
I met this girl, let me call her Julia (not her actual name), during the first year of my business school days. She was from a distant state whose father was working in the central government services. She joined the same batch as I did in that prestigious business school with a high rank in a tough selection exam.
My reaction when I saw her for the first time was, "Oh wow, what a gifted girl! I thought this was the girl I had in my mind all the time and now God finally sent her on earth for me. By the way, I was never the playful type as far as girls were concerned. I never tried to befriend a girl before, apart from normal friendships and outings in groups.
But you know when a guy falls in love, he falls flat on his face. He wants to do everything to show it to her, and I was like, "Oh yeah, this is the girl." However, the way she looked at me, I wasn’t very hopeful. When I said hi to her, she didn’t even act as if she was interested in me. Her eyes did not show any sign of interest in me, but that did not deter me a bit.
I was trying to gather the courage to tell her everything, though, but that was not as easy as I thought. I felt hopeful, romantic, and kind of a magical feeling inside me, which I had never encountered in my 17 years of education and all of my 23 years of age.
I must admit that despite being a popular person in college, I was not that active in the social circles of the college groups. My problem was I was kind of shy when in the limelight. In fact, I was never too talkative or knew how to flirt with girls, and this hesitation put me into this situation. I didn’t know how to tell her about my love for her. And then she was never alone but in the company of her other batch mates.
But I was keen, so one day I went straight to her in the library and said, "Julia, I want to talk to you". She gave me a casual look and waved her hand toward a chair. I sat down and tried to gather the courage to tell her about my feelings for her. She said, "I guess something is eating you up!" That made me even more nervous. I said nothing. I was planning to go to this movie (I had no name in my mind, so I just said the name casually).
She looked at me, smiled, and said, "Are you sure you want to watch this movie?"
I was a bit confused so asked, "Why, you have something else in your mind?"
Julia laughed aloud and said, "You will have to watch this movie sitting at home. This movie is no longer running in any cinema halls. Hey, which on-demand movie service are you subscribed to?
And then she blinked and asked, "Now come out with the actual story."
I felt a little too embarrassed, so I admitted, "Actually, I wanted to watch a movie with you".
She laughed aloud and said, "I was expecting that, so you’re inviting me for a movie and then dinner and perhaps then something else, hum?.... She smiled and left her sentence incomplete. I was looking at her face all the while but waited for her to speak. She spoke again after a while, "But why do you think I should go with you? I am not interested in movies, especially with you."
That was like a punch in my face, but I didn’t give up! But it disappointed me a little. I asked, "How about dinner? Would you like to accompany me for dinner?"
She smiled and said, "Okay if you insist."
I gave her a few names of some restaurants of my choice, but she said "no" to all of them and finally gave one of her own choices. I agreed instantly to her choice and made an appointment for a 7.30 pickup on Saturday evening.
That was our first outing, and that was not the only one, but we kept meeting often and almost in the category of relationship. Then the relationship changed hand-in-hand.
Can you see her? Image from my album (Auburn National Park, Sydney)
We went on outings and talked about serious topics pertaining to matters of life. We talked about almost all subjects under the sun. And my curiosity knew no bounds about her as I kept asking questions about her.
Meanwhile, we worked together on different marketing projects that helped me stay in her company for a longer time. So, the entire duration of two years of business school passed, and finally, the campus selection.
Our course was completed, and as expected, a multinational selected her for a posting in the USA. She was happy about her success story. I was to return to my job in the company that had provided me with this opportunity to do an MBA at this management college with a stipend (after my engineering degree).
So when I met her before she was leaving for her home, I expected to hear her plans for the future and also expected to be a part of them. But nothing happened like that. She talked about everything, her future, my future, my job, marriage ideas, almost everything under the sun, but nothing about our future... together.
That's how I feel about my wife but my friend will still remain as they say "Before Anyone Else"
Now we both are married. I mean both of us, but not to each other. We are friends and we often talk and meet each other. She is happy with her husband and her job, and so am I, with my wife and my job.
Now, years have passed since we both got married and are living in different countries. Our lives are full of adventures, but separately. We’ve traveled the world, but not together.
Finally, I should mention it here that she is still in my mind and heart, but as a true friend. She comes to meet us whenever she comes here and stays with us and my wife knows all about her. I will tell you about my other love stories when the time comes. But trust me, I still put her before anyone else... barring my wife, whom I met later in the same year in a nearby mall and we soon became close friends.
Anyone wants to join BAE by
@galenkp/before-anyone-else-bae-a-posting-contest
Disclaimer: This is a true story, so nothing to worry about if you see a similar one under my name and signature.
Header image from my album edited in MSPaint