City of Love (1)

 

By Emmeline BIsiikwa, Uganda

I used to believe in love. So much so that I thought my falling in love would be like a fairytale. I would be in Paris, traveling or on holiday and then I would meet my price charming. It didn’t turn out that way. At all.

For starters, I didn’t fall in love when I thought I would. It happened way later, when I had given up believing in love and other such things.

Also the city of love isn’t Paris, it’s wherever you fall in love.

I had all these preconceived notions about who I would fall in love with, his age, his profession, his nature. I couldn’t have got it more wrong. He was everything I never saw coming and that’s just it, I never did.

It happened on a non-assuming day, I think it was a Friday. I was home resting when I got a text. Hey. How have you been? Haven’t seen you in such a long time.

Who is this?

Ricky. We met like 10 years ago.

Where? I don’t remember anything.

Is this Vickie?

Yes. But I don’t remember you.

We met and connected. Hang out a bit.

Really? I think I would remember.

Let me give you a call. I think memories work better that way.

He called and oh boy, his voice was so sexy. I had no idea someone could sound so sexy. He had the warmest voice and an accent that gave me the shivers. We talked and laughed, his banter meeting mine in a seductive dance that made me want to talk on and on. Eventually we hang up and continued texting.

We spoke on the phone almost every hour. He said he missed my voice and I indulged him, after all I too craved his delicious voice. Our phone calls went from 30 minutes, to 40, 40 minutes to one hour, 1 hour to 2. We couldn’t get enough and every time we spoke the connection between us grew.

Somehow he got me. I don’t know how or why or where but he just did. I still couldn’t remember him but I wanted to get to know him. Hardly after a day of talking, had we agreed to meet up. We set up a date and he kept telling me how he couldn’t wait to see me, hug me, look into my eyes and just listen to my voice.

I hardly knew him but I felt like I knew him. With all my heart it was like meeting someone familiar.