Saturday, December 13, 2008

Half Empty, Half Filled


Even with the suffering economy, restaurant businesses have been thriving. At least, my favourite ones are. As I walked in, the bustling restaurant immediately gave a huge greeting. “How many, Sir?”. I raised my finger (No, it is not the middle one) to indicate that I am alone. Lately, all my meals have been in the quiet company of solitude.

As I was directed to a table, my eyes met another’s, someone also resting alone. Her half empty orange juice and almost empty plate of bread suggest that she had been at her table for a while. Then I did something I have never done before, waved away the waitress and walked up to the lady, “May I join you?”

Usually, fear of failure would have paralyzed me before words exited my mouth but I had a strong feeling that she would not turn me down. Before my seat got warm, we were sharing a nice lunch together. Nothing fancy - a little calamari to indulge in, surprisingly fresh fish and chips and the most delicious cheesecake to finish. By sharing I mean we ordered one and shared. The ambience was anything but romantic and sitting across her, half the time I had difficulty hearing. Then again, the laughs and constant flirting of the eyes were fun, very fun. If anything, this was a different kind of lunch, almost like a date.

The half filled orange juice suggests that she has been here a while.

“You haven’t touched your drink”, I said.

“Oh, it isn’t mine.” Her smile hinted a bit of naughtiness.

“Oh?” Not quite what I have expected. Then again, today is just one of those days.

“Imagine what you did except that when you sat down, I left.”

Our laughter was simultaneous.

“Oh, sweet irony.”, I waved for the waitress. “One order of orange juice in two half filled glass, please.”

2 comments:

Poeticcrap said...

To my friend who read this and thought it is real.........

It is called creative writing.

Mewer said...

oh...so real...(in your world of fantasy)...