She looked at herself in the mirror, smoothening the lines on her forehead. Every line on her forehead said a different story. A story, of an experience that she would not forget. A smile lingered on her face as memories of the 40 bygone years sifted through her mind, some happy, some melancholy, and some bittersweet. And that's what she loved about life, it's sweetness, bitterness, and unpredictability.
Of all the memories, the memories of love stood out. And why not, for isn't love the fodder for one's existence? Love touches everyone differently, every day. It can be a person listening to you with concern, someone hugging you or your cat or dog nuzzling against you, or your family being concerned about you. Yes, the shapes of love are innumerable and it's just up to us to identify them. And one such shape is intimacy.
Intimacy can be casual too, some would argue. But in that casual encounter too, you are perhaps hugging and kissing a person, expressing your passion, which in fact is a form of love too Aanchal thought wistfully as she remembered the first time she had experienced passionate love. She was 27. And he had created the perfect setting, wine, moonlight, and a balcony. It was casual but perfect. She could remember the butterflies in her stomach that night. They talked, kissed, and shared stories. It was a memory that she would never forget, despite being in different relationships after that, each one being significant in its own way.
Was she happy, living like this, without getting married? It was a question she had heard many times. It was a question she would try to dodge, but would often hit her off guard, mid-center, from the most unpredictable and unknown spaces and times
Tring! Tring!
The bell rang, bringing Aanchal out of her reverie. She opened the door and there stood Priyanka. Oh! She looked beautiful. Her hair fell like waves down her shoulders, her lips were enchanting as ever and her smile always made Aanchal get butterflies in her stomach.
'Hey you!', Priyanka murmured, kissing Aanchal tenderly.
'What's going on in this beautiful, sensitive mind?' Priyanka asked smiling.
'Oh, I was just thinking, how lucky am I to have you. But with you being just 25 years Priyanka, I don't know whether we are doing the right thing?'
'Ssssh! Age is just a number!' Priyanka whispered huskily, closing the door with her legs, and clasping Aanchal in her arms, and further adding, 'I love you and that's what matters!'
Aanchal smiled blissfully, Priyanka was a new shape of love that had entered her life, six months ago.
Who says one should stop having fun in the 40s? Aanchal had just started exploring and experimenting. And as Priyanka just said, age is really just a number!