I bring you this story, from my Silver Box…
During 1960’s, when I was born to my parents – and was named ‘Diane’, being the first female born in 2 decades in my family; I was given all the love, attention & care, more than what my 3 elder siblings received. My father was a factory worker much like today, except that it was during the Industrial revolution back then and there were tons and tons of jobs available out there and life was easy back then. But father being the sole breadwinner of the house, feeding the family of 6 was getting difficult day by day. We had a small farm and my Ma would grow vegetables to support my father & the house. My Ma was a simple women and liked to spend her day with us & in her farm which she was very fond of, she took care of her plants like she took care of us, just like her children.
My father would return from work and tell stories about how he started working at a the tender age of 11 in factories in the summer and after school to save money so he could buy a bicycle and how proud he was for doing that. Every night there was a different story about the incidences in the factory , I could tell my father was proud of his job and always told us to be like his Engineering supervisor, who was a gentleman. He would always say how his factory engineer was a knowledgeable man who has travelled the globe.
Since, then I was fascinated by the word engineer, the curiosity around the word engineer kept growing; it became my dream to become an engineer. I first finished my High-school and topped in my school, and was awarded with the Honourable Governor’s Award; my Ma & Father were proud of me. But I was growing up, and i had a mind of my own and slowing I decided to study Art, my father was not really happy with my decision, but he was happy for me, so I joined the most reputed collage in the city and had to move from my hometown to city life. Ma passed away within 1 year of me joining collage.
Collage life was great, it was like opening new gateways to the secrets of life, exploring life in next level. I was very focused in my studies and was called Miss Diane by everyone back then, I was very favourite in my hostel for every small thing everyone would come to me to crib about small things in their lives like a vent out their worries, emotions & anger on to me : be it breakup with boyfriend , studies , hostel issues ‘MISS Diane’ please look into the matter, sometimes i felt that , I had become more like a guardian who needs to protect and take care, than as a friend. I wondered why everyone would add the ”MISS” Tag before by name, few people told me they often find me more mature & focused than my age so would call me like ‘MISS Diane’, few blunt and straightforward friends told me that I looked a more older than my age so the ‘MISS’ Diane Tag like a respect you would give to elderly people. I always ignored it, not that i really liked being called by the ‘MISS’ Diane tag.
I was often called a nerd or a geek as I alway topped in my class. It never affected me either ways , I was too occupied by studies and focused on my goal. My class mates would come to me to ask for notes & collage assignments , teaching & explaining the concepts of studies to them. I was more of a tomboys thanks to my brothers which whom I hanged out a lot. I was not like a regular girl who would indulge herself in long hours of makeup , dressing & showing of her Style Statement in collage. I would rather invest my time in library referring notes & studying theories & concepts , doing practicals, submitting assignments. Professors loved me and I loved literature – it gradually became my favourite subject , I loved William Shakespeare ,Thomas Dekker, Jane Austin, Sir Thomas Malory ,William Blakes not to forget Charles Dickens ; along with English poetries and sonnets they made, within those books I created my own world, where I would sometime imagine myself a Queen who would take right decisions for her subjects, or I would be a peasants wife waiting for her husband return , and sometime I was the widowed mother taking care of her children ; my books became my world, they made me happy. I never knew much about the makeup & stuffs, use of compacts , carrying the plastic smile. I was in my own world of things , I felt these were useless, and shouldn’t waste my time. The girls in my collage would treat me more like their advisor and guardian then one amongst themselves, I found that disheartening and hurtful.
I wanted to hangout with them, go have fun just like others did, but then I would counsel myself that may be, I am different from others , so I do things differently, but no one to be with .Girls would look at me and make fun behind my back, guys would ignore me or change their route; I ignored it most of the times – rather I guess, I got use to this kind of behaviour. My classmate Ally was my closest she recently broke up with her boyfriend , and was looking for new one now. She was the one because of whom I got the glimpse of nightlife, clubs; Ally was beautiful, with blonde hair, long legs, beautiful green eyes and what I liked the most about her was her confidence; she very popular due to her participation in Theatre Plays, she wanted to become a Theatre artist or an Actress. She would always want me to know and do more things beyond books & collage library. She treated me like a friend, than others who pretending to be friend with me to get my notes. Ohh ! By the way we were roommates too.
There was a big collage festival coming up, and the atmosphere was very energetic full of enthusiasm; where the main event was – The DRAMA COMPETITION ,where 20 collages were participating in a theatre competition and a very esteemed Hollywood Director was coming to judge the festival, Ally was excited to be a part of that drama group aiming the lead role; which she missed last year, so was more determinant that last year . She was intensely preparing for that role and she dragged me for her audition for that role. Last year our collage came 3rd, but this year the atmosphere was more intense , you could feel the energy , the excitement pulled on to you, with more focus. The Director of this Play was William Ralph, popularly know a ‘Willie’ , why was 2 years senior to us. Willie was a very handsome and rich man, whose great great grandfather was a General who fought the ‘American War of Independence’ later to become the Governor, Willie father was an industrialist , but Willie was different , he wanted to pursue Theatre.
William came out of his huge classy car, calling and shouting at everyone on the stage to line-up for audition. ‘What are all of you doing here wasting my time? we are time bound and we have one role left , that of the Female lead role’. By this Ally standing next to me whispered in my ears, ”OMG!! he is so handsome and cute , Look at his dimples they are zoo cute, I am going to grab that lead role and play his lead, at least in the Play if not in real life’. I said Cute – are you serious ?? What does he thing of him himself — such attitude, he looks like a monkey to me , just because he is the director he can’t treat everyone like this ?! saying goodbye I was just leaving the backstage , I heard ‘ Hey you – curls; what did you just say i have got attitude !’ , You think this is easy ? Managing a play isn’t easy, and can you act, you say so much ? this angered me , in the fist of fury, I said, ‘yes I can!’ this made me nervous ,and i was handed over the dialogue paper , I trembled, just some random things came out of my mouth , of which i have no idea what i said in my southern accent – yes I made a fool of myself , and people started to laugh, todays days should be declared as the ‘World’s Most Embarrassing Day!’ ; there I was, i ran across the stage , straight into my bed and cried my eyes out! Thinking this is not where you belong , you are not beautiful, you can’t fake liking people. Then there was a heavy knock on the door, it was Ally – she was happy, she got the lead role, and asked me to accompany her in her daily rehearsals, I denied but in vain.
I was reading at night , but my concentration was lost in Willies thoughts , where everyone came to me for their help & query, he just came and fired me, insulted me – this brought tears in my eyes again, yet I counselled that at least he didn’t treat me like others did, he treated me just like others, any REGULAR girl, and with this though I slept whether tomorrow I should go or not .Next day I went to Ally’s rehearsal, everybody was busy in some work except for me, yet my eyes were busy looking for this person who insulted me day before! I don’t know what it was , anger or something else. Then someone behind told me , ‘I am sorry for my yesterdays behaviour , i shouldn’t have talked to you like this , in front of everyone.’ It was Willie , I said ‘ I apologies for my behaviour , I shouldn’t have said that too’. He said, ‘You don’t look around here’ I said, ‘ I am from Texas – Studying Arts’ …Hmm so you texicans don’t laugh? i faked a laugh. You will have coffee ? he asked, before i could deny, he moved ahead , his other friends were waiting for him in collage cafeteria. he screamed again, Diane its an apology coffee from me. For the first time in 2 years of collage I was having coffee with a guy! I was happy someone asked me for a simple coffee with any intensions or motivations behind it, he would make me laugh at his stupid jokes, I felt this time should just freeze here. Sometime I faked drinking coffee so it doesn’t end soon.
All his friends would come to the cafe and he would introduce me to them, hey Ron – this is ‘Diane’ studying Arts. All his friends started calling me ”DIANE”. I was no more MISS DIANE, just Diane! He said pay the coffee bill, I refuted why me, you called me for Coffee, you pay! He smiled , don’t start the fight again ! Yet was happy, at least next time we can meet over a cup of coffee. Reaching my room I realised i had a message from an unknown number, ‘Diane next coffee is on me’, it was willie.I asked him ‘ How did you get my number?’, he said ‘Think ‘, He messaged again ‘Don’t think so much, got from Ally’. i smiled, but didn’t reply. After a while i got another message ‘ After the rehearsal will meet yo in the Cafe – don’t forget to come – your coffee is still left on me 7.00 pm’. That night I couldn’t sleep, i kept going from pages to pages, first reading my favourite author but couldn’t read beyond a page, looking at my cellphone if it rings or for new messages, couldn’t do anything clearly. I was being pulled between my heart and brain… Heart said you like him and was happy with this thought, brain said no its Ally, he wants to be her friend and he is using you.
Next day, I couldn’t gather courage to reach in Cafe, I feared rejection and insult.But hey he never called back either to ask why I didn’t turn up. At 10.00 in night, I got a message , it was form my Dad, he was missing me asked me to call in morning, poor dad, after my mother passed away, I reminded him of her, & missed him too. Next day in class a friend gave me a small letter, ‘Miss Curls, why didn’t you come yesterday? today at 7.00 p.m. cafe Sharp,your Coffee is on me.’ This time I had to go, couldn’t stop myself from meeting him. I suddenly felt free, i was happy, we winked, did naught things , I would hit him, I never did such thing in my laugh. We were in a different world, he would treat me like any other girl, and this was what i wanted to do. But this was just for some time, as they say ‘All good things come to an end’.
Me – Things that I felt were not me, I felt beautiful, when with Willie. For the first time I was more in Cafe than in Library, late for assignments and On time for Coffee – I was changing. One night, on my way to my room, I overheard some girls taking my name, ‘She is not doing good, she is eyeing Willie’ . I didn’t feel good about the gossip which girls were talking about me and willie, I was in tears. Anne came to me and told me that she is not that kind of girl that william will fall for, she was just a friend, she should understand her type of girl don’t get handsome hunks like willie. I went through my phone messages i would read our Conversations/ chats/ funny videos / crazy selfie pictures … these were memories of time that we spend together, they became my world – I deleted them all! I cried whole night! then he called me – but I couldn’t reply his calls, I decide that I wouldn’t want to be a part of collage laughter particularly not Willie, for him – I started ignoring him, and submerged myself in collage assignments for upcoming semester exams.
It was our graduation day, we took our last picture together, I told him I wasn’t meant for him, we are on that crossroads who after meeting go separate directions… our destination ends here’.
It has been 10 years since, upon receiving an invitation to my collage festival , it remainder me of my collage days , this time it was my husband – William Ralph, who is made the Judge for the Collage Theatre Festival, and for me I am a Broadway Play Writer; Ally my best friend is our lead – and now one of the leading Hollywood ladies.
HOPE YOU LIKED THE STORY FROM MY IMAGINATION!
DO POST COMMENTS , YOU INSPIRE ME TO WRITE MORE AND BETTER !! 🙂
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