Tuesday, May 23, 2006

...long lost love

« hello Ana … »
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A lazy afternoon lying on my couch, smoking a duty free cigarette from Finair, I got a call from him. Who? Him? Which who? which him? some guy from Dubai, someone I met 6 years ago on a flight from Paris to Shanghai.

I vaguely remember that due to overbooking, I got upgraded to first class and there I chatted with this French guy. I have zero memory of his face nor figure nor what he did for life, but apparently I gave him my number. Was it because he was cute? or simply rich? Or that after 12 hours sitting next to each other I could not say no?

6 years, it has been 6 years, he moved from US to Swizterland and then to Belgium and then to Dubai, he kept my number the whole time, I am so touched, and then he called me using “vous” (vousvoyer as the polite, formal and distant form in French). He was so proper and calm and confident on the phone I could not make an excuse and hang up.

This is all so intriguing:

- He did not call me 6 years ago, because he was married or engaged? 6 years is enough to get married and have 2 kids and then divorced… or maybe he is still married…just looking for an adventure?
- He did not call me 6 years ago, he was working for the secret service? Now the war (whichever one) is over, he is retired? But retired in Dubai?
- He did not call me 6 years ago, because he was a gigolo, supported by some rich 80 year old woman, now she is dead in her armchair surrounded by 20 cats and he inherited all her assets?
- He did not call me 6 years ago, because he misplaced my number and after all the moves, my number suddenly showed up on his desk?
-He did not call me 6 years ago, because he was not sure if he liked me, and now he finally made up his mind.
- He actually called me 6 years ago, and we had a great time together, not sure where, and had wild sex in his hotel, but I just don’t remember?
-So Sunday afternoon, he must have been extremely desperate and lonely after having called everyone whom he could have called in his little black book, left him no other numbers except mine.
- He actually remembered what we talked about 6 years ago, so maybe I told him I was with someone, yet no questions asked this time, only an invitation to dinner?

So he is in France visiting family and proposed dinner Sunday night, should I?

- What if he is a complete waco?!
- What if he is short and fat and ugly? I have no memory at all and I could not ask him that over the phone either. “hey, are u fat?”
- Would you invite a girl you met 6 years ago to dinner? What if she is fat and ugly and old and pregnant now?
- What the xx, I need some excitement in my life.
- He could send whoever to dinner, I wouldn’t even know. And I could send whoever to this dinner and he will not notice either. How perfect!
- Maybe it is a scam, he will ask to borrow money …and then disappear in the bathroom.
- Maybe he will kidnap me although my family has no money at all. Should I ask some friends to go to the same restaurant that evening to protect me? Just in case I mean.
-Maybe I got partial temporary amnesia from this recent trip, he is really a long lost love of mine?

Should I at least pretend from now on until Sunday that he is indeed my long lost love? Isn’t life all about faith and believing? Isn’t love all about convincing oneself? To my long lost love of life.