Recollection 12 : Melted

I was hungry, and tired. All I wanted was to be left alone. It was a bad day. Losing two rounds in a day wasn’t exactly the standard I have set for myself. I boarded the last bus. ‘I will just eat at the hotel.’

And then she came, and said, ‘Please let me take you out for dinner, you should try our food.’ I was hesitant. I was not particularly in a good mood. But I obliged. It was something I never regretted.

There we were, a local and a foreigner, trying hard to communicate in my language. Quite a sight at the local marketplace. She was so earnest, and sweet. My weariness melted away.

She ordered food for me. And I asked ‘Aren’t you eating?’. And she replied ‘I don’t eat after 6, I want to just accompany you so that you won’t be alone.’ I melted even more.