The Introvert

It was as if the sun was asleep on the day he was born

He grew up like a shadow

Shy to the point of being insignificant

He never saw anything wrong with it

It was how he had always been

Within himself, by himself, inside himself

His parents did all they could to draw him out

He would run scared of crowds, even children like himself

His birthdays were always spent with him in the room alone

Any attempt to bring him to the party resulted in screaming and kicking

He just wouldn’t mingle

He was thrown into the boarding house at 11

He didn’t mind

He clung to his bunk like a spider to its web

Even the seniors grew weary of disturbing him

Academically he was deliberately average

He neither wanted the attention of success nor the shame of failure

Anything to keep him in the shadow was game

On his first day in the university everything changed

He saw this babe

She was vivacious, electric, active, vigorous, rhapsodic, vibrant, and glorious

He wanted to walk up to her, say hello…say something

His palm began to sweat, his legs shook, he averted his gaze

She was in 400l, had just a year left on campus

He wanted her attention, wanted her to notice him

He started in the library, studied and studied

In the classroom he took the lecturers to the cleaners, his test scores were perfect

His genius was unleashed

Noise was made about his brilliance but he didn’t notice

It was all to get the girl

She came to him one day

In the library

She: Hi, I am sorry to bother you but I have one carry over course, Anthropology

Can you please explain it to me?

He: For two months, I have waited for a reason to talk to you, I have dreamt of you, day dreamed about you, prayed and waited that God will bring you to me. I will marry you, I have to. You are the only person in this world I have ever felt any form of connection to

She left without a word and consciously avoided him from that moment

What a weird guy? She is at least four or five years older than the guy!

He will marry me! Just like that. What audacity?

She told her best friend, they laughed it off

Randy Fresher!!!

Six years later, her firm sent her to oversee their stand at an exhibition

They had gala night

She dressed to inspire

She was having the time of her life

She saw him and a dam of joy broke in her heart

She couldn’t explain if it was the light wine, the success of the exhibition or something that she had always known at the back of her mind

She walked up to him

He stood

She hugged him

He didn’t say anything, he just held her

God saw that moment was perfect and rested

Everything was blur from there

Life picked pace and raced

Nobody complained about the age difference

They were just left alone, to be happy

Eight years and three children later

She still couldn’t explain logically what happened that night