My brown-eyed girl

Their eyes met across the dimly-lit, crowded room. She was with her gaggle of friends, finishing the last remnants of a cheese cake. He was alone, as usual- the lone wolf, strong, silent and rugged, moving with a quiet grace.

She had heard about him, his fame had traveled far and wide. Legend had it that he had survived a nuclear holocaust. His struggles had made him cynical, world-weary. He had seen turbulent times- she could make out the ever-so-slight limp with which he walked.

In the room, crowded with so many eligible, sprightly young males, she had eyes only for him. She was drawn to his wry smile and odd manner. He liked her wide-eyed innocence, her naiveté, the demure way she stole glances at him and how she hung on to his every word. It was love at first sight.

They would meet in secluded corners, away from prying eyes. But she would scurry away frightened, when daylight washed over them. Times were lean and resources in short supply. He would save her a slice of stale pizza, hardly gourmet material. But in the first flush of love, even such slim pickings seemed a lavish feast.

Theirs was a whirlwind romance, the stuff of legends. Soon, they settled into connubial bliss with sanction from the elders of their community. The going was good, at first. Then came trouble in paradise.

The exacting demands of life and parenthood, took their toll. Her wide-eyed innocence became jaded. He realized that she was no longer was regaled by the tales of his adventures. The harder he tried, the remoter she became.

She no longer had eyes only for him. He saw her ogle the new guy in town, nonchalant about the effect her betrayal was having on him. He realized that “fidelity” was a dirty word and monogamy, a myth.

He sometimes wished he were an elephant or a sparrow and not a cockroach. Filthy mammal and bird though they were respectively, and proud as he was of his insect heritage, elephants and sparrows were known to practice monogamy, unlike cockroaches whose affections tended to be fickle.

There she went, antenna-in-antenna with her new found love. He played the helpless bystander, his heart broken to smithereens. He would be no match for this young, alpha male. He would not even try to win her back; he had too much dignity. So what if he was only a scavenging cockroach. She had not even spared a thought for the kids.

Whoosh! He scampered under a couch and into a nearby crevice as fast as he could, his head just peeping out of the tiny aperture. New guy wasn’t so lucky and, had caught the chemical spray right in his face and collapsed in a heap.

He hoped she had the good sense to run away. He would take her back and all would be forgiven. Wishful thinking never pays. He heard her scream and all was quiet. So, this is how it ends, he thought. Well, Karma’s a b****, he smiled wryly.

No woman, no cry, he sang softly as he crawled out of his hiding place, when he deemed it safe.

Their eyes met across the dimly-lit, crowded room...