How did we get here?

It's 6.30pm. I've been on the LRT for almost an hour. The crowds surged forward as the train slowed and the doors opened. I slowly made my way to my usual spot in front of Topshop in KLCC. As I sat there twiddling my thumbs waiting for D to arrive, two guys walk up to me.

"Hello." He said nervously.

"Hi?" I mumbled suspiciously narrowing my eyes.

"I see you in college all the time. Urm, do you think I can have your number?My name is A."

"I've never seen you in college," I said tersely. After all, I hardly spent any time in college.

" You go to K college right? I always see you walking down the road," he said as he smiled nervously.
"You think I can have your number?" he asked again.

"How about this. You give me YOUR number, and I'll call you, ok?" I said, proud of my ingenuity in shooing away a stranger, who was admittedly quite cute in his tshirt and black slacks.

"Okay, it's 013-4303330. Call me okay?"

I nodded. Sure, will do that.

I never called of course. Only because I got one digit short and the call could not go through. Weirdly, I actually tried calling. What does that mean? I have someone in my life now. Someone for the past 2 years and here I am giving, or tried to anyway, another guy my number?

A few weeks later, I meet him in college. I waved a hello as he hurriedly walk towards me. We made our way to the cafeteria. I found out his elder brother was in the same college I did my A-levels in. "Surely it's not H who is your brother?"

"Yes it is!"

And his two cousins were also in that college. "You mean Lz and Ln?"

"Yes!"

"I guess I've met your family AND your extended family already," I joked.

Days turned into weeks which turned in months and eventually became almost a year. We were friends, he wanted more, and so maybe did I, but I did not have the courage to walk away from my relationship of 3 years. And he's different. He's culturally and religiously different. How could I ever commit to that? It's too hard.

I walked away from him, sending him a "Please understand why we cannot be friends anymore" letter.

Five years passed by. In between I will receive a random missed call from a mobile number and I know it's him. Sometimes I receive a sms from an unknown number saying "I miss you" and I know it's him. But I've never replied.

5 years passed and he found someone else. 5 years passed and I was still with the man I chose to be with 5 years ago.

One day I realise, it's been 7 years and I am not happy. I walked away from the man I had spent the last 7 years of my adult life with. It was heart wrenching and emotional but I walked away from a life of comfortable living. Of mediocrity.

I deserved to be overwhelmingly happy. Everyone does.

The phone buzz while I was taking a breather from the smoke in the club and J yelled "where ARE you? I just met A! He's here!"

A? I've not seen him for 5 years. I made my way up the stairs and he stood, looking slightly scruffy, but still cute, grinning at me.

No hello, no how do you do's. "I'm sure you are married now?!" he said.

I shook my head and smiled. No I am not married. In fact I just broke up. He stared at me. "Your number is still the same?"
"Yes, your random messages still reach me."

"Do you miss me?" he yelled over the dint of the music in the club.
I smiled.

2 years passed. He got down on one knee and said he wanted to spend the rest of his life with me. We are soul mates. "I knew it from the moment we met that we are meant to be with each other for the rest of our lives."

                                                          The rest they say, is history.