I noticed him before I actually met him. There was no way not to notice him. Something about the way he sauntered past me made me stop and stare. I could gaze at him for hours on end and never get bored. He wasn’t your typically striking young man, but the way his eyes sparkled with a hint of mystery made it very difficult not to watch and wonder…

Tailored suits, ties and those elegant Italian shoes made him stand out from the crowd. His attire was more like something you would wear in the late two thousand’s. How does he make something look so retro? I have to get to know this young gentleman before these unanswered questions drive me completely insane, I thought.

He caught me staring at him and before I could swallow the crisp, citrus white wine in my mouth, he sauntered over towards me. And without a stammering in his voice, he introduced himself.

“Good evening, my name is Benjamin.”

Just like that I was lost for words.

“I noticed you looking at me and being the polite gentleman I am, I thought I would come on over and introduce myself.”

There was something so genuine and honest in his voice and the way he spoke to me, so charming and complementary. This was definitely not the typical young man you would meet while out at a bar.

We spoke for hours, although it felt only like minutes, before I knew it we were the only two people left in the bar. A sweet, soft voice behind me said, “I am terribly sorry to interrupt, but we would like to close up now.”

The two of us looked at one another, and without any hesitation, we burst out into laughter.

“Have we really been speaking for the last five hours?” Benjamin offered to take me home. For once in my life I found myself fighting between what I knew I wanted and what I knew was wrong, but the allure of his charm and wit made me reconsider life as I knew it. Sensing my reluctance, he gently placed his hand on my lower back and whispered in my ear, “I don’t want the night to end so let’s enjoy it while it lasts and walk till the sun rises?”

With those sweet words all my fear and inhibition was whisked away. As we walked, the moon in the distance, the stars twinkling in our eyes I felt ourselves intertwine; words were spoken with no real meaning as the world passed us by. As the night drew on and the temperature dropped, without me realising he had put his jacket around me, he held me close and made me feel so secure. In this moment, with no distractions, my spirit was at peace and my heart in limbo.

As I looked into his eyes and he looked into mine, I feared I had fallen for a person I just met. A million things ran through my mind but his soft sweet voice calmed the rough seas of my soul. It seemed like forever but it was just a few moments that we stood in awe of each other without a word being said. The birds were chirping in the background and the sun breaking through the trees, signalling the end of the night and the start of a new day.

I could not help but wonder as I was standing in this perfect moment, how the sun breaking the horizon not only marked the dawn of a new day, but the beginning of a new storm.

His sweet voice pulled me back into reality but in all fairness, it still felt like a fantasy. He pulled me closer than before when unexpectedly a vivid memory flashed across my mind.

***

Tell us: Do you believe in love at first sight?