Sharon looked down from the top of the Eiffel tower. She was on the 3rd level. The city of Paris stretched below her. Near her, three young men were talking excitedly in French. They all held champagne glasses in their hands. Everyone around her was having fun, taking in the beauty of the most romantic city in the world , from above. Two three couples surrounded her, arms around each other, lost in each other's embrace.
She remembered all those times she had spent with Swayam, his arm placed protectively around her. Not that she was a fan of PDA. But she always loved having his arm around her, knowing her would always be there for her when she needed him. He had promised her that day he had told her he loved her.
But he had broken his promise. He had left her alone forever, never to return.
Sharon didn't believe in true love. How could she? Her parents had divorced when she was only five and throughout her childhood and teenage years, all she did was shuttle between New Jersey and Mumbai, trying to fit in.
So she ran away. She grabbed the first opportunity she got to just get out. The day she received a scholarship to study in the best dance school in Paris, she knew it was her chance. Her chance to start life afresh, her way.
She moved to Paris. C'mon, her parents could afford it. That was all they could do anyway. Buy her. With expensive gifts instead of with love. Plus, it wasn't like she wasn't planning to pay them once she started earning.
But little did she know she would find love here. Of all the places, she met an Indian boy in Paris. He was training at the dance institute too. They were the only Indians, rather Asians there, so they hit it off right from the beginning. She had never met someone so passionate about dance. After her,of course. She was very passionate about dance. Or maybe he was more passionate. She never found out. But she knew he was passionate about a lot of things including her.
The more time she spent with him the more she began to realise how much she cared for him. And how passionately she felt for him as well.
The day he told her asked her to marry him was the happiest day of her life.
They had been in a relationship for more than a year .There were only 2 more months left before they would receive their certificate.
They were walking down the Champs-Elysees, watching the street performers dance. It was around Christmas time and the air was filled with happiness and fun. As they walked down the road, hand in hand, she realised how happy she felt when she was near him. His mere presence made her happy. Their dance instructor had said ' When they danced together, they created magic. They were attached to the hip. Sharon was incomplete without Swayam. And Swayam was incomplete without Sharon.
It was around 6 o'clock and they were walking along the river Seine. The Eiffel Tower loomed ahead of them , tall and majestic. The sun was setting slowly and the street lights were being turned on. Soon it would be time for them to turn on the lights on the Eiffel Tower. Oh how Sharon loved seeing the Eiffel Tower all lit up. It looked so beautiful then.
They walked on and on, nearing the Eiffel Tower .Sharon was so used to walking by this route that she didn't notice the way Swayam was walking. He was excited and he was impatient.
They crossed the road and walked into the park which surrounded the Eiffel Tower. A man sat on the ground playing his guitar singing a romantic French song. Children screamed and ran around, blissfully unaware of their surroundings. Old people sat on a bench, smoking and chatting loudly.
The line leading upto the Eiffel Tower was short at this time. It was dark and cold. Nobody wanted to stand in the line right now.
As Sharon stood there admiring the beautiful lighting, Swayam admired her. He slowly removed a small box from the pocket of his over coat. Sharon didn't notice him doing so.
He turned to look at her and suddenly bent down. Sharon gasped loudly and stared down at him.
He opened the box, revealing a small diamond ring, shining in the dark.
Sharon's face lit up. Her eyes shone more than the diamond. They filled up with tears. Tears of happiness.
"Sharon. Je t'aime trs trs .Will you marry me?" He said, looking at her earnestly. His eyes showed his love and devotion for her.
"Oui Swayam." She said, bursting into tears.
Swayam immediately got up and put his arms around her. A small tear escaped from his eyes too.
People had gathered around to see the sweet spectacle. The man playing a guitar had walked up to them and began playing a song.
Swayam took Sharon's hand and pulled her close. They began to move slowly in time with the music. Swayam twirled Sharon around and brought her closer to him. He opened his palm and showed her the ring lying on it. He slowly put the ring into her finger. It shone brightly and it's light radiated on her face making her look like a goddess.
They moved away from the crowd and walked hand in hand back home. It was as if the two of them were walking in air. They couldn't care less about what the world thought about them. Today was their day , rather night and they were going to enjoy it to the fullest.
They spoke about the plans they had for the future. Their future together. They would open up their own dance institute in Mumbai. Yes, they would go back to India and settle there. They had seen enough of Paris. Enough to burn a huge whole in their pockets.
They stopped by at a little roadside caf and bought chocolate crepes.
They ate like little children. Swayam wiped off the chocolate that was smeared all across Sharon's mouth. But Sharon couldn't care less.
They half-danced on the way back to the dormitory.
As they entered Sharon's dorm room, Swayam stopped and turned Sharon around to face him. He played gently with her fingers. She smiled and looked at him lovingly. He kissed her fingers slowly.
She looked down, refusing to look at him.
"What's wrong love?"
"Swayam we're getting married."
"Oh really? I wasn't aware!" He said, with a huge grin on his face.
"No I mean..we're so young and we're-"
"Do you love me?"
"More than anything Swayam."
" So there's nothing to worry about. As long as we're together nothing can ever go wrong."
"But will we always be together?"
"Together forever." He said, kissing her softly on the lips. "I promise I will never leave you alone. Never."
He kissed her again, this time more passionately. She kissed back with equal passion.
Less than 5 years into their marriage, they learnt that he had more than 7 blocks in his heart. He would have to have a surgery. But destiny plays strange games. He lost his battle with death after 8 days.
He left her broken and alone. For months, she was haunted by the pain of him not being near her. Every second of the day, she would long for his presence. After almost a year of extreme torture, she began to learn how to move on. She got her life back on track.
The institute was a success. But Sharon was a disaster. She could never recover. Her mother tried to make her meet numerous boys but all in vain. Sharon wouldn't look at any other man.
"Let's make a promise." He had said once, totally out of the blue.
"What promise?"
"That one day, after'say 10 years we'll come back to Paris and re-live all these moments."
"Havent you had enough of Paris yet?" She had asked.
"Yes, but I can never have enough of beautiful memories with you."
It has been 10 years now. Sharon was still living alone, handling the institute all by herself. She had waited for 10 years and had saved up enough money to take a long vacation and go back to the place where she had first met him.
The city of love lay in front of her but all she could do was remember all those times she had spent with him walking around the city.
All she had were memories to keep her going.
Sorry I might take time to send PMs. My net's behaving cranky.
SwaRon OS : Sasural Genda Phool
SwaRon OS : It's A Christmas Miracle!
SwaRon SS : Chalk and Cheese(with Mihika aka tanha29)
Hindi TV Shows
Bindi
Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi 2
Jodha Akbar
