Love at first sight

love at first sight



         I never actually believed in fairy tales, especially those that would end up in a happily ever after. Reality is cruel they said, and life is unfair. The same goes for Love. Everywhere you go you could hear people say those three dreaded words- “I love you.” And you could see those quotes and poems about how great love is posted everywhere. I didn’t believe that, too many times I have heard people utter those words of affection without actually meaning it. And because of those empty words people break down sobbing rivers of tears only to stand up again without the slightest trace of that feeling left and proclaim their undying love to another hopeless victim.

I especially didn’t believe in love at first sight, how someone could love the other by how they look, I do not know. I always wonder how Romeo could unconditionally and irrevocably love Juliet without even knowing who she was or anything about her for that matter- and how Juliet could return those feelings fearlessly back to him knowing that she could trust him with her heart. She opposed her father, whom had raised her since the day she started breathing only because of someone she had met coincidently in a dance. It didn’t make any sense and I am sure- or was so sure that it could never happen outside the book.

Now when I look back at it I felt like laughing at how ironic everything was. Everything that I thought was impossible were all happening to me. Me! Of all the people out there the cupid had chosen me as its next ignorant target and had strung its bow where the arrow had bulls eyed straight into my heart. And the scariest thing is, I simply didn’t care.



It all started under the shelter of bright little diamonds glittering brightly in the dark space. The huge radiant of light hung high above shining magnificently in snowy white. The earth was dry, the flowers slowly closing back to its bud while leaves faded out of their green shells. It was the end of spring, the leaves turning into a dark shade of auburn signaling the looming of the early autumn. The singing of the crickets which are hidden by the darkness were like hush whispers compared to the booming music blasting of the speakers.

The people cramped on the dance floor waltzed along with the loud beat, rocking their hips back and forth. The gym was decorated with balloon arches and pastel crepe streamers festooning the otherwise plain walls. Tonight was a special night where all the guys took the liberty to take out their dad’s set of tuxedoes while the ladies were all dressed in the latest gowns of chiffon and silk. Every one of them was concealing their identity by one way or another, ranging from gas masks to Mardi gras masks as they entertained themselves in the school’s Masquerade ball. Some took pleasure in the fact that no one could recognize them and others were relishing the attention they are getting.

         In one corner standing idly was Sarah Gomez surrounded by a number of males asking her for a dance. She coldly rejected them all, only interested to step in the dance floor with either one of the hottest guys in school. She had little luck with that, the guys mentioned were all respectably wearing masks as well and none were practically interested in her. Sarah Gomez was another cliché head-cheerleader and Queen Bee of the school with many desperate suitors trailing behind her. It wasn’t surprising since she is very beautiful, especially in these kinds of occasions where she stood out brilliantly with her designer gown of striking red framing her tall and slender body. A matching mask adorned with Austrian crystals accompanied it, hiding her dazzling electric-blue eyes.

         I was her exact opposite, still maintaining my position as the new girl and also literally invisible. I honestly didn’t mind the status I have now mainly because I have my fair share of ‘being popular’. I transferred here a month ago from Indonesia, where the foundations of my life were shaped. Back in my old school I stood out like a sore thumb mainly because my locks aren’t pitch black like all the others. It wasn’t as light as mom’s golden curls, or as dark as dad’s mocha colored hair but my natural chestnut shade still stood out. I’ve never liked being in the spotlight- be it on stage or a small presentation in front of the class I would always chicken out. To most people the attention was something to be proud of but to me the stares were just simply unnerving. Maybe if I had looked like a foreigner then I could have mingled better with the crowd. Sadly my physical attributes betrayed me, I wasn’t tan, blonde nor blue eyed. I didn’t even have the excuse of being tall and slender like Sarah.

         Right now I’m feeling smugly tall being the same height as all the other average females. That is one good factor of being forced into a pair of deadly heels. That little factor still couldn’t make up for my aching feet and the long torturous training my friends put me through to walk with these shoes. Even after hours of endless teaching they have only managed to train me to walk a fair distance without tripping. A major accomplishment considering that I was born without balance coordination and invulnerable clumsiness. My butt was still sore because of the many times I had fallen like it was magnetically attracted to the floor.

That was the reason why I stay rooted to my spot instead of socializing with the crowd. That’s right- blame it on these shoes of torture and death! I fear walking anywhere but a few steps not wanting to humiliate myself in public. I couldn’t even walk, much less dance with these death traps.

         It was boring to stand in one spot the entire time watching others mingle and have fun. I got bored watching the crowd under the blinking disco lights sway the same way over and over again, it was nothing special. My eyes swept across the room packed with people. None of them captured my interest. Well, except for one.

         He was leaning against the wall at the other side of the room. His hands were in his pocket and his blank white mask was tilted in the direction of the dance floor. He wore the black and white suite like all the other guys in this room only with the top part unbuttoned in the infamous bad boy style that had slightly reveal his well-defined chest. It was not my first time to see someone like that, in fact I’ve seen and known a lot of guys who looks or at least tries to look cool with the outfit and the pose. There was just something different about him, something appealing that make him stand out from all the others though I couldn’t put a finger on what it was.

         The said boy shifted slightly and inclined his head in my direction looking straight at me. Pink colored my cheeks as I dropped my gaze, embarrassed that I was caught staring.

         “That guy is staring at you,” one of my friends, Brigit informed me observing that someone from over my shoulder.

         “How can you be so sure?”

         “He’s been staring at you for a while now. Oh look, he’s heading this way!”

         “What!”

         “Hello,” the mentioned guy greeted with a surprisingly smooth voice. Grudgingly I turned to face the source of the beautiful velvet voice resisting the urge to drop my jaw and gawk at him shamelessly. He was so much better up close I wouldn’t be surprised if he had been a runway model or another celebrity. He seems more suited for the Hollywood red carpet rather than this boring old gym. The guy was inhumanly gorgeous with well kept muscles visible underneath his coat and a perfect lean figure-he is ridiculously the most beautiful person I have ever seen.

         Contrary to his bad boy appearance he is also almost a perfect gentleman. Without warning he took my hand in his, causing jolts of electricity to flow through me at his gentle touch. I hated how my stomach was reacting to the feather light kiss he planted on my unworthy hand, the same way they usually do in movies.

         “Will you honor me with a dance?” he asked in the same alluring voice.

         “I c…can’t dance,” Mentally scolding myself for stuttering.

         “We’ll see,” he smirked I could not tell if whether he was amused at my embarrassment or my weak protest.

         “She really does suck at dancing,” declared Ruth, another friend I had made during the last month. Well she’s couldn’t really be considered a friend since she had been holding a grudge against me from day one of my coming here and didn’t mind showing her dislike towards me, like now for example.

“Would you like to dance with me instead?”

         “No, I asked her,” Ouch, cold rejection! He didn’t even remove his gaze from me while he said this and that only made Ruth’s glare stronger.

         “Go ahead he’s hot,” encourage Brigit, the friend still loyal to me.

         “Um…ok,” I regretted the words as soon as it left my mouth but I was sadly too late. He was already holding onto my hand and dragging me to the center of the dance floor.

My breath hitched in my throat and my legs felt like jelly when he faced me once again. He was nearly a head taller than me even with the heels and I had to angle my neck to look at him. It was the first time I noticed his eyes from the slits of his mask. His breath-taking sapphire orbs were the most beautiful shade of blue I had ever seen it had completely entranced me. I’ve never seen anything so beautiful or as captivating in my life. So enchanting…so mysterious…so...so…I run out of words to describe it, none of them seems to be up to the mark to fully describe just how stunning they are.

I was lost in his eyes, drowned so deep in the pools of never ending blue that I didn’t even notice him slid his arms around my waist or how we start to move with the rhythm. His eyes held my complete attention as I stayed lock in his intense gaze.

“You’re wrong,” he started, his smooth velvet voice bringing me out of my thoughts and rescuing me from the depths of his eyes.

“Huh?” I asked completely clueless,

“You’re a brilliant dancer,” he explained and it was only then that I realize we were twirling around gracefully. I was impressed by how my body was moving fluidly and so effortlessly to the song. What’s more I was astonished to find that I have no trouble with my footing ever since we started dancing.

“That’s because you’re leading,” I finally replied giving him the credit of my surprising ability to dance without causing a scene. He stayed quiet though I was generously rewarded with a stunning crooked smirk which graced his already perfect features. I pondered whether I was starting to loose my sanity because I was almost sure that my heart’s fast rhythm had just skipped a beat.

The only time I was forced to break away from his eyes was when he twirled me. My back was to him as he held me tightly yet no where near to causing me the slightest amount of pain. We were so close that I could feel his hot breath tickling me and the sound of his heart beat which was surprisingly fluttering along with mine.

I only started to realize the rest of my surroundings when I lost contact with his eyes. We were the only ones on the dance floor creating a huge empty space where we remained in the spot light. Others were bordering the circle, their scrutinizing gaze peeping from underneath their masks

I always hated being the center of attention and the fact that the entire high school student population was eyeing me was definitely not helping. I suddenly felt light headed and my legs wobbled weakly as I stayed under their intense scrutiny.

“Ignore them,” he whispered huskily beside my ear somehow sensing my discomfort with the attention.

“There’s only you and me.” He pronounced slowly making sure that each word sinks in.

He whirled me around and I was facing him again almost instantly forgetting the crowd. Again, I hated how his words had immediately played out and now there’s only me, him and the music playing for us. Everything else seems unimportant as they all faded to the dim background.

As the saying goes, all good things must come to an end and it was time for my fairy tale night to conclude. A guy had suddenly burst through the crowd deliberately ruining the moment. He wore the same plain mask as my dance partner and from the way things are looking I was sure they are companions. I must admit that he was also very gorgeous even with his sturdy and muscular figure. But I found nothing fascinating about him- Nothing which sparked up my interest as much as the one holding me right now.

“We have to go,” he announced with urgency. I glanced back fearfully at the blue eyes which were now clearly torn between two decisions- the urgency to leave and the desire to stay.

“I’ll be fine,” I lied and it didn’t sound convincing.

“You should go,” I continued even if in the inside I was screaming for him to stay.

“I’m sorry,” he muttered before releasing me and rushing towards his friend where together they weaved through the crowd quickly disappearing to the night.



It was still quite early in the night when I had reached home. I didn’t find the white full-length coat at the hook beside the door and guessed that Joe must’ve been called to the hospital again. His wife who is also my cousin, Olivia was there to greet me.

“How was your night?” she asked.

“It was great,” Great is an understatement, the night or more specifically the dance was Magical.

         I excused myself and escaped to my room before she could attack me with any more questions. Instead of bolting through the mahogany door and collapsing on the bed like I always do, I stood by the door and examined my sanctuary. The walls were coated with light lavender wallpaper and the feathery cushions atop my queen sized bed were violet with matching floral blankets. Purple lace curtains adorned the full length window leading to the small balcony. I had always loved my room, deeply touched by how Olivia had accessorized it with my used-to-be favorite color. But now I wished she could have decorated it in blue shades.

         I sighed loudly as I strode towards the bathroom taking the liberty to check my reflection in the mirror.

The girl in front of me was wearing a strapless dress of bold splashes of colors complimenting her ivory skin. The bodice which was wrapped tightly around her small curves flowed freely from below her hips revealing her slim and petite figure. Her long chestnut hair is held up in a messy ponytail revealing her slender neck and two dark locks cascaded down the sides of her black mask framing her heart shape faced. I have to admit that she was pretty at least for tonight. But I knew I was lying to myself, I couldn’t find anything attractive about the plain girl looking back at me-especially nothing that attracts a mysteriously gorgeous stranger. Sarah made a thousand times better a candidate than I will ever be. Even Ruth and Brigit seem more conceivable.

Finding no justified reason on the stranger’s weird choice I turned away from the pallid girl and went in the showers to clean myself after a long tiring day of partying.

I couldn’t sleep that night with my mind that had annoyingly kept recalling the dance or more specifically the stranger I had danced with. I couldn’t fall asleep until after midnight where even then I was hunted by his images.