The second meet – 22-Apr-2019 – Evoke 2.0 resto lounge, Velachery, Chennai. 🤩🤩
Choice is always hard. It is every harder when the food on the menu is a lengthy list of gibberish. We both were expecting the other to make a choice. Finally, it was Manoj on the blind folds and pointing the finger randomly while I ask him to stop. It was Potato wedges and a drink that we don’t even remember. some sort of mojito/crushers like the ones you get at McDonals’s or KFC. Two introverts trying to socialize. What a funny scene !
Our third meet – 26-Apr-2019 – Anjappar Hotel, Pallikaranai, Chennai 💗💗
I freaked out that the plan was to have the wedding in 2019. I had hoped for at least 2 years of gap between engagement and the wedding. Fear and tears brought along by the pressure. After a ____
A family dinner at Anjappar
The fourth meet 29-April-2019
After having met at Hema’s place, we went to Cafe Coffee Day, Medavakkam, Chennai. It was funny that they didn’t have a single variety of tea that Manoj wanted. Finally, he settled for the green tea. At least we thought it was a healthy choice. We had a long chat along with my coffee ☕. As we started speaking and sipping our drinks, Manoj realized that the green tea was a really bad choice. He then decided to never have green tea again 😁
After coffee, we took a ride to the beach in ECR. As we were about to get out of the car, I started complaining like a little kid about the salty air, sticky skin, and the frizzy hair if we go and stand at the beach. And I never expected, but you did get a little annoyed. Somehow, I showed some cuteness and dragged him towards the beach. This was somewhere near Pannaiyur where there were only a few other people taking an evening stroll.
As we stood there looking at the horizon in silence, I felt shy and had no clue what to say. The more you insisted that I talk about something, the harder my struggle became to think of something. I wanted to talk to you, but never could come up with the words.
The fifth and last meet of the year – 30-April-2019
We developed this strong connection in this short time, and we were already fearing the emotion of missing each other once we are long distance. It was painful and we are already hoping to be united again. It was with a heavy heart that I bid adieu to my dear “partner in crime”. Hiding my tears, I went back home hoping that Manoj would have a safe journey back to Italy. Things always don’t happen the way we want it to be.
Manoj’s return trip, as painful as it already was, got even more stressful. His connecting flight got canceled unexpectedly. After the 2019 Balakot Airstrike, the Pakistani airspace was closed which we had no idea of. As a consequence, the connecting flight from Delhi-Milan was canceled and re-routed with a 24 hour delay.
Later the same day, he was made to accommodate in one of a not-so-bad hotel in Delhi with poor internet connection. After hearing this agonizing news, with more tears, I wanted to fly to Delhi and be with him. I even checked flights. He sounded really stresses out and sad. It sounded like he was breaking down and I had to be there with him. Anyway, things don’t always stay the same. The next day, he got a flight Delhi to Austria and we had the first ever video call during his layover at Vienna. We were so happy to see each other again. Missing each other more. The next flight on the 2nd of May 2019 he flew from Austria and reached safely in Milan. I believed him when he said this trip from Chennai to Italy was the most stressful journey ever in his life. The next time we met, it was going to be the biggest day ever in our life. Looking forward to it.