The Last Dance

Image courtesy: The Book Club

It was going to be their last night together. They had decided that it would be best to part ways now to avoid the heartbreak that was inevitable later on. Anaisha took out the exquisite red gown that she had bought for the occasion. The soft net flared around her ankles; reminding her of the many fairy tales she had devoured as a little girl. But things just don't happen like that in real life, do they? It never was that uncomplicated. In life, things were not always in black and white. Sometimes, you have to open yourself to the existence of grey shades as well. 

She pulled back her hair and secured it at the nape of her neck; accentuating her dark eyes and high cheekbones. She gave a final look in the mirror and satisfied by the result she saw, went to open the door as the bell rang, announcing her visitor. There he stood; the man she fell in love with. The only man she thought that her heart would be capable of loving. It was the first time she was seeing him in a tux. The two day stubble gave him a sophisticated, mature look. But the twinkle in his eyes remained unchanged. 

"You look beautiful. I wish we could just cancel dinner and spend time here." 

His words got her blushing. But no, it had to be a clean break. There had to be no unresolved issues by the time they parted ways. 

The ride to the hotel where he had made dinner reservations was both short and long. It was torturous and toe curling at the same time. How on earth was she going to get a grip on herself if he kept nuzzling her bare shoulder and kept whispering sweet nothings in her ear?

As they reached the venue, he held the door open for her. He had arranged for a private dinner where they would not be subject to public scrutiny. The selection of wine was her favorite. It was details like these that had drawn her to him in the first place. He listened when she spoke; he knew that she had a weakness for red wine and cheese, he knew her favorite movies, he knew that she felt flowers were overrated and for this reason he had never, not once resorted to those cliched gestures of romance. In her eyes this made him all the more appealing. He may not be perfect, but he was good enough for her. 

As she was sipping her last glass of wine, he took her hand and swept her across the dance floor. He did things like this; throwing her off, catching her at a vulnerable moment and making her love him a tiny bit more each time. Spontaneous acts that took her breath away. As he held her close and danced, a slow seductive dance that had always ended in her bed on previous occasions in the past, she sighed and leaned in close to him. 

It was only when his mobile buzzed was she brought back to the stark reality. She knew that it was time to leave. He had a family to get back to. And back home, Anaisha knew that her daughter would be waiting up for her. As they parted reluctantly, they held on to this last shard of memory knowing that this too would get tarnished over time. 

Back home, as she tucked her five year old daughter in bed and read to her, Anaisha told her a story about a princess who knew better than to run away with a prince. A princess who was content with what she had in life and no prince could take that away from her. With that, Anaisha kissed her daughter good night. 

This story is written for the above photo prompt for The Book Club. 

Linking this post to Write Tribe Pro Blogger Challenge.