The Dance

I just couldn't wait. There was still so much time, but I had already started planning for the dinner. The dinner was going to be attended by the who's who in town, and of course, I was going to be one of them. And what made me even more special was.. I was travelling from very far to attend it, and many were expecting me. I was looking forward to meeting the old faces, and some new ones too.
Everything just had to be perfect. Today, I wasn't just an attendee- I had earned a respectable status, and I had to live up to him.
The biggest question was... whom would I go with? The person standing next to me should be someone who'd make a statement just by the way he walked, and posed and conversed. He should have a flashing smile, and a sense of importance reflecting in all directions around him. Tall and handsome, more from inside, than out. And he's the one who would be by my side. Just for fun, really.
This was tough, very tough. I sifted through the names of my friends... none of them seemed to be that good! If I asked them to accompany me, they would... but I had to think carefully about which one who make the impression I wanted. And of course, with the two of us together at the dinner, it just had to be a blinding light.
I had a little friend who really missed me a lot, and he held me in high regard..so I asked him casually if he'd like to go with me, and he jumped at the opportunity. That was rather an impulsive decision of mine, but perhaps I could consult a friend and ask her what to do.
Which I did, and she asked me.. "why does it have to be a guy??"
"Well..... because it's very far, and I'll need a ride... and if I'm gonna get a ride, it's most likely gonna be a guy... so if it's a guy, why not get a good guy!"
It definitely sounded hilarious. She gave me a couple of names. But really, this is absurd. I can't go with someone I don't know well enough. He just wont act right. And I didn't want to be with one person all evening, because I had many people to meet, and many conversations to make, so I wouldn't want to hurt my friend.
"Listen, I can come...let me mark my calendar".
"Are you serious? If you're coming, I don't need a guy! But all you girls are busy with something or the other; or you're not interested in the dinner, that's why I didn't ask".
Then a few days later I thought about it. I had decided the dress I was going to get tailored, and the colours too. But I had to make sure the guy I was going with wouldn't wear something that wouldn't contrast well. How would I ask him what he was going to wear? He'd think I'm making a big deal of the dinner. Hmm... I had seen him wear only two suits. A black, and a brown. What other choices do guys have anyway? Grey and blue. Perfect. All these colours would go with my beige evening dress, I just had to make sure he wouldn't wear a shirt that's coloured purple or green!
I loved my little friend, even though I never used to see him a lot, but he was always full of humour and debate. I call him little because he was younger than me, and acted like a kid all the time. But he wasn't tall. Would that be a problem? He didn't fit the description I was craving.. so I went through my MSN lists, and my emails, and also facebook. A few names popped up, but no...
It was just depressing. My glamourous idea was just going down the drain. Well, it seems as if I was just going to have go with my backup.
...
The little friend was ecstatic about her coming to visit after so long. It had been years, and she had no idea how he spent the time. He'd think of her stuck in traffic, at work, and definitely when trying to learn the Qur'an. In the last few years, he didn't realise how much he wanted to be close to her, as he collected information about her discretely. He wanted to know everything about her- her past, her deepest secrets, her desires and her future. He just didn't know why. The reality was, it had been so long, her picture was not in his mind; only what he felt about her, in his heart. And that was a big problem. She didn't have him in her heart, and he didn't have her in his mind. And the matters of the heart and mind can be very misleading. In short, he wanted to grow up, and marry her. And he felt very positive, since she asked him to accompany her to the dinner. After all these years. Why else would she ask?
Too bad there was no dance at the dinner, he thought. It's true that wont be halal, but...it could be halal if only the woman and her mehram were allowed to dance....
And his regular, unnecessary thoughts trailed off.
...
So, what's going to happen at the dinner? We'll find out July 2007.