I MEET HER

They met each other at an art exhibition. He was looking at a painting titled ‘A hot mess’ – it was many colours brushed on the canvas in such a chaotic manner. It was that chaos that really intrigued him. May be because it represented his chaotic life. Where nothing ever seemed to be in place. He drowned in the painting. So much so he didn’t notice this beautiful lady standing right next to him. She was holding a glass of red wine on her right hand and gently pressing it on her red lips. Her eyes lost in the painting. An elderly man spotted the two staring at a painting and walked towards them, curiosity caught the best of him.

“Excuse me.” The elderly man said as he squeezed himself between the two. They both looked at the elderly man and then at each other.

It was at this moment that their eyes locked into each other. Magical.

“What is it with this painting?” The old man asked Cupid’s victims.

“It is just many colours smudged on a canvas. It does not make any sense.”

“You see sir, it’s an abstract painting. Its beauty is not on a physical level but a metaphysical one. It’s where it takes your heart and mind.” The young man tried to explain to a visibly agitated old man.

“Well it is making my heart feel distained and my mind disturbed. Is this what you children call art nowadays?” the old man asked.

“No sir, this is arti…” the young lady cut him short. She had this mellifluent voice. Brown eyes that matched perfectly with her caramel skin. She had on red lipstick that made her round lips pop and look graceful. Her hair was all natural, curling and twisting on her head. She had on a white tank top and blue jeans that hugged her figure perfectly and on her left hand was a leather jacket to complete the look.

“Sir, what he is simply trying to say is that you connect with it. How chaotic the colours embody how most of our lives are. There’s beauty in a mess.”

“Well my life is not in shambles like all of you younglings here. I pity your generation. You pretend like you have everything under control with all your technology yet you are more messed up that we were back in the day. Tragic.” The old man lamented as he walked away.

“Wow. It is like you took the words out of my mouth. Hi, I’m Stephen.

“I’m Tracy.” She responded with a smile that lit her face to elude an even more beautiful glow. “Last time I checked the painting was metaphysically beautiful. You are in tune with your artistic side.” She said sarcastically.

“Oh it’s like that now huh?” he asked her smiling.

“It’s like that Stephen.” Tracy said. Like she was taunting him for a face off.

“I see you Tracy, now are we going to grab a drink or not?”

“Already got mine, I don’t know about you.” Tracy said while slightly raising her glass.

The waiter passed by, on cue, with a silver plate with glasses of whisky on it.

“Excuse me, let me take a glass. Thank you.” Stephen gratefully said to the waiter as she walked away.

“So what’s a beautiful girl like you doing here?” Stephen asked as he sipped on his liquor.

“I just came here because my home-girl bailed on me to be with her boyfriend and I needed to get out of the house. I found this on EventsBrite. Looked sophisticated. What about you?”

“I only came here because my friend was exhibiting some of his work here and came to support him. Plus the free alcohol.” Stephen said, trying to sound funny but Tracy only showed a half smile.

“So, you don’t have a boyfriend huh?” Stephen mentioned.

Tracy laughed. “I did not say that.”

“So you do have a boyfriend.”

“I did not say that either Stephen.”

“Well, I’m going to dive in with an assumption.”

“And what assumption would that be?”

“Walk with me and may be, I’ll tell you.”

Tracy gave this I-see-what-you-trying-to-do-and-I-like-it look as Stephen guided her. Stretching out his elbow for Tracy to put her arm around. Gentleman-y. They spent the better part of the evening talking. Making jokes and making fun of the people around them. They clicked instantly and they realized how much that had in common. The things they loved and most of all, they shared high levels of sarcasm. At the end of the exhibition, Stephen bailed on his friend to walk Tracy out to get a taxi.

“Got to say, this is by far the best art gala night I have attended and trust me, I have had my fair share of them. I got to meet the most beautiful art piece of all, you.”

In her adult life, Tracy never shied away from a compliment but this one knocked her out.

“Thank you Stephen. You do know how to make a girl smile.”

“Only when the girl is as beautiful as you and I haven’t seen a lady more beautiful than you.”

Tracy just looked at him. She felt something. She was all excited but didn’t want to show it. She had to keep her cool. A taxi appeared from the bend and Tracy hailed it down.

“Got to go now Stephen.” Tracy said as she leaned in gave Stephen a gentle kiss on the lips then she stepped into the taxi.

Stephen just stood there. He was mesmerized by that kiss. In his mind he was creating a future where he had seen Tracy walking down the aisle towards him in a white angelic gown.

It wasn’t until the car disappeared that it dawned on him.

“Dammit, I forgot to ask for her number!!”