Short Story| Of Love & Lobsters

*Reposting this for Valentine’s Day!*

Flight no.213 is now boarding from Gate No.22!

The announcement broke her out of her reverie. She looked around to make sure her laptop bag and purse were on her. Her head seemed heavy – she decided to sleep the minute she settled into her seat on the flight. She hadn’t slept well the past few days – the goodbyes, the packing and the anxiety of moving to a new country had kept her up! Her dream was coming true and yet, she felt like another was ending – she was in purgatory. She watched as people began to queue up for boarding – unsure why she wasn’t on her feet and walking towards them. Hope – she reached for her phone in her jacket pocket – maybe there would be something in the notifications to ease her anxiety. She scrolled through the posts her friends had put on the gram to wish her luck but that one she needed wasn’t in her notifications. It had been 3 weeks since she’d held his hands in her own – wishing for a different ending to their story. It has been her dream to move, his to stay, theirs to be together forever. A lump formed in her throat as she opened their chat window, his last message to her – “Don’t worry, you’ll do good”. As she queued up, she half hoped that like Ross, he’d coming rushing through the bustling airport, screaming her name and convince her to stay. Hadn’t she always swooned at that scene as Rachel let go of her dream Paris job to stay back with the love of her life – her lobster? Why didn’t she feel the same way? Why didn’t she choose him over a job miles away from her loved ones? Was their love not even real enough as Ross and Rachel’s reel love? The last few weeks had been so rushed that she had buried all her feelings deep in the back but now alone, she could sense them rising. Had she really chosen the cold of winter mornings in a new city over warm hugs from her loved ones? As she inched closer to the boarding gate, she felt like she was snapping the tie that had kept her together these past few years, her bond with him. Her phone buzzed, she reached down and saw his name flashing on her phone. Relief and confusion drowned her – part of her wanted him to ask to her to stay and part of her wanted to board the flight to her dream job. She nervously answered the call –

Babe, I have a feeling you’re going to have a freak out sometime about now – so I’m going to stay on the phone with you till your flight is ready to take off. Did I tell you what happened yesterday? I had the funniest conversation with…….

He wasn’t her lobster, it wasn’t forever but it was love.

—-xxx—

“Love is that condition in which the happiness of another person is essential to your own.” – Robert Heinlein

PS: For people who haven’t watched FRIENDS, the story is that lobsters mate for life and as they age they hold claws and walk around.

Did you like the story? I always read love stories where a relationship ending indicates that it wasn’t love or the love is over. I wanted to write something more real. True love isn’t always about big gestures, giving up on your dreams for the other person, changing yourself – sometimes true love is accepting your different life paths and letting go. Cheesy much? 🙈

If you liked this post, give my other posts a read too –

Photos from Google.

23 Comments Add yours

    1. Happy Panda says:

      Thank you so much 😊♥️

      Liked by 1 person

  1. ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

    Liked by 3 people

  2. Nathi says:

    I don’t usually enjoy love stories because they’re most often predictable – it’s either happily ever after or unimaginably painful heart break”.

    But your story was different. It was kinda reassuring to know that one doesn’t have to give up on their dreams to prove their undying love.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Happy Panda says:

      Thank you! ❤

      I hate those stories too – where someone has to make a big gesture to prove their love.

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Nathi says:

        My pleasure 💜
        Keep writing and inspiring ✨✍️

        Liked by 1 person

  3. This was genuinely such a lovely story. I really enjoy your musings! Made me think of my partner and how I eventually hope to move overseas. Although we’d be together then, not apart. On another note, Animals have the cutest habits. It’s just like beavers holding hands to sleep so they don’t drift apart.

    Liked by 3 people

    1. Happy Panda says:

      Awwww, hope you’re with your partner soon. ❤️

      IKR? Animals are so cute. Like when a penguin male wants to woo his partner, he searches through tons of pebbles to find the best one to present to his partner. ❤️ Beavers are adorable.

      Like

      1. Thank you so much. Oh, that is too sweet. So innocent, so cute. Animals certainly have their own way!

        Liked by 1 person

  4. This was such a beautiful story!🥰😊

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Happy Panda says:

      Aww thank you ❤️❤️

      Liked by 1 person

  5. Simon says:

    I liked the way you took this story, and that funny meme 😂😅 very nice. I’ll keep following your stories 😍 you are amazing 💐Have a lovely weekend …

    Liked by 2 people

  6. kosha31 says:

    loved it! 🙂 checkout my short story on similar line – https://koshamajmundar.wordpress.com/2017/12/20/cashew-biscuits/

    Liked by 1 person

  7. Lovely post 😘📯 and the feature picture is soo cool!

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Happy Panda says:

      Thank youuuu❤️🤗

      Like

  8. Loku says:

    Lovely expressed. Explore and recognise the love around you.❤️🤗

    Like

  9. sakshisoni says:

    You r so correct…love is something which sets you free and lets you grow in all the aspects of life if its binding you or holding you back it’s not worth it…
    Thank you for writing this!😄❤️

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Happy Panda says:

      Aww. Thank you for reading. I’m glad you resonated with the story 😊

      Like

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