Five Years Later..........

Pushing the doors open, James slowly walked inside the restaurant. Looking around as he walked to the corner table he had occupied the last time he had been there, he was surprised to find the restaurant unchanged.


Almost the moment he had reached the table and sat on a chair, a waiter appeared with a menu:


“In your service, sir.”


“I am waiting for someone,” James told him, amused at surprising familiarity in the situation.....

***

Almost the moment he had reached the table and sat on a chair, a waiter appeared with a menu:


“In your service, sir.”


“I am waiting for someone,” James told him with a smile on his face.
The moment the waiter left, the doors of the restaurant opened again. James got up, his eyes filled with light as he watched the girl who hurriedly entered the restaurant and started walking towards him.


“I can’t wait. I must go,” the girl spoke even she had reached James.
Both still standing James looked at the girl as she spoke again:


“I must go, James”


“I love you Lucy,” James spoke, his voice calm.


“Oh James....”completely disregarding the presence of other people in the
Restaurant, Lucy hugged James tightly.



“I’ll always love you James,” James told Lucy his one hand in her hair and other on her back.


“I’ll always love too,” Lucy replied, breaking apart to lock her promise-filled hazel eyes in his green.


“We’ll meet again, this same place,” James spoke, there eyes still locked.


“I’ll return five years later,” Lucy said, her voice trembling like five years were more cruel a punishment than a death.


“Lucy,” James said breaking the eye contact and turning his back to her.
“We’ll meet five years hence at the same place someday. Now leave before it becomes impossible for me to let you go.”
“James...”she left.

***




“James......”the same voice that was echoing in his mind spoke aloud, bringing him back from his memories.
James froze as he looked up at the real version of the girl in his memories



“Day dreaming,” Lucy spoke again, sitting opposite to him.



“Ya...” James spoke now recovering back.



“You haven’t changed much,” she spoke in a pleasant tone. But beneath the pleasance James could trace disappointment.



“You wanted me to change?” James asked in a tone of mock anger as the waiter reappeared.



“A coke for me and...”



“Whisky for me,” Lucy completed.
Dumbstruck James looked at her.
WHISKY!



“Seems like you have changed a lot.” James asked after a moment of silence.



“Yes” Lucy said, her tone serious.
Waiter reappeared with two glasses



“Let us be clear James,” Lucy spoke, picking her glass of whisky as the waiter left. “What do you do?”
The sudden change in her tone took James by surprise.



“Su...Susan motors....”




“How much do earn?” Lucy interjected before James could complete.





“Three thousand...”




“Three thousand!” Lucy cut him again.“ I earn ten times you Mr. James Simpson.”
Shocked, James kept looking at her face. Somehow he felt she wasn’t the same girl he loved; not the same girl he had waited five years for.




“Look,” Lucy said, getting up, “I know you love me but I can’t live with you, James. I had thought you would have someone successful....but no...James I’m leaving” she added, seeing James showed all signs of interrupting.
She got up, stamping her feet.




“I’ll pay,” she spoke, “I don’t think you can afford in such a low salary!” she added in a sarcastically pitiful voice.
James tried to get up and follow her as she left, but he was too shocked by the abrupt change to recover fast.




Slowly, after sometime, he got up and walked out of the restaurant......


***


The lights of the Mercedes’ Guardian switched on automatically the moment its owner inserted the key.




Pulling up the left sleeve to check time in the light of the car, the person revealed a golden, gem- embedded Rolex watch.
Leaving behind the restaurant, the owner of Susan motors, one if the richest men in Europe with income over 3000 million, James Simpson, drove away, with tears in his eyes yet a smile on his face.