Love is Bound to Happen

It says eyes have the power to seal two souls for eternity. The day was very hot and the sun was shining at its full intensity. The café was packed with people. A gentle breeze was a relief from the overwhelming heat. Belle's eyes were happy as she looked at Clara's usual complaints about the traffic. Clara remarked, "Oh, that dust and tan. I look so ugly. Look." She turned her face from right to left. Belle stated playfully, "But that dust makes you more pretty." Clara puffed annoyingly, to which Belle laughed. The waitress placed their orders on the table and both of them started digging in. Clara said with her mouth full, "Have you decided what you want for your wedding dress?" Belle looked up and said, "I have something on my mind. But I will show it only after I get it in that store." Clara said, "Is it Henri's choice or yours?" Belle turned red. "Look, don't include him at this moment." "Aww, you are this shy just at your fiancé's mention." Belle's cheeks were hotter than before. "You are such a tease!" Clara laughed more now. "Tell me, is the dress his choice?" Ble nodded shyly. They both were childhood friends. Their friendship was well known to all their classmates. They had no secrets. But sadly, they were going to part after Belle's wedding. After talking for an hour, they both left the café and entered a boutique. The servants welcomed them both. Belle was taken to the second floor, which had all types of wedding gowns. She was looking at each gown carefully and after that, she was taking it. She had more than five gowns in her hand. Clara was busy shopping for herself. She wanted to look at her best as she was going to be Belle's bridesmaid. Belle closed the door of the trial room. It had a huge mirror at the the centre of the wall. She looked at her face to spot any freckles or acne. Once she found none, she felt satisfied. Like every bride, Belle wanted to look perfect. Each detail of the wedding was thoughtfully chosen by her. Although it was an arranged marriage, she was hopeful of having a happy married life. Belle turned herself and from the mirror, she looked at the zipper of her gown. She closed it. Then she smoothed out the front of her dress and looked at herself carefully in the mirror. She thought — the gown is fine but not the design. She placed it on the table and picked up the second one. This gown was too heavy, so she picked up the third one. She thought — the fit is perfect, but something is missing. She examined the dress carefully. The door was opened and a tall, broad man entered. He placed his palm on her lips and signalled for her to remain quiet. His other hand had a gun aimed at the centre of her forehead. Belle's heart was racing; cold sweats made their way to her upper lip and neck. Both of them looked at each other. No one made a movement for a while. It was as if they were frozen in time and space. Belle's chest was moving up and down. Her heartbeats were so loud that the man could hear them clearly. He looked at her chin, her whole face, which was round, and then her nose, which was slim and small. At last, he observed her eyes. They were black. Her fear was evident in those small eyes. The sound of gunshots made Belle jump in fear. She thought about Clara's safety. The man had a deep voice. "You'd better not make a sound, or else I will shoot you." She thought— as if I can talk! Another man barged in and said, "Boss, you can go now. We will handle everything here." The first man left Belle and turned to his companion. He nodded at him. The second man got his cue and left them alone. Belle shouted, "How dare you come here like this! It is a ladies' room." The man had such a penetrating gaze that it made her scared. But she chose not to show it on her face. The man remarked, "I can see this is a ladies' room..." He paused and looked to his right and left and then his gaze fell on her dress which she was wearing. He looked up and down. She felt uneasy from his gaze. The gown was moon-white with little stones woven with perfection. The man flashed his smile. "I see, you are about to get married. It is considered unlucky to see the bride's dress before her wedding. Sorry — for ruining your privacy and not so good luck." Belle's eyes turned fiery. She thought— the audacity of this man! Instead of apoligizing, he was making fun of her. Her voice turned lethal. "Listen, you arrogant and mannerless character! You have no right to barge into the ladies' room like that. And when you do, a person must say sorry properly. " His smile grew bigger. "I like your boldness." She was stunned by his audacity. He raised his right hand and shot. It was aimed at the person who had just come in. The shot was up to its point —the centre of his heart. The man fell on the white floor with a low thud. His eyes were open and staring at the ceiling. Deep red blood started oozing out from his body. Belle felt dizzy. She held onto the wall to steady herself. She lokked at her dress to avoid the dead man. She tried taking deep breaths, but the air was suddenly removed from the room. The heels clicked as Clara came in. She shrieked so loudly that Belle felt the tingling in her ears more intensely. Belle looked at Clara from her half-closed eyes. Then everything turned dark black, and she fell on the floor. Pauline, Belle's mother, checked her pulse. It felt normal. She sighed in relief. Arthur, Belle's father, asked Clara about what had happened. Clara told them each and everything. Pauline cursed those people. Arthur felt relief that his daughter was safe. Belle's eyes fluttered under her closed eyelids. Slowly, she regained her consciousness. She heard some sounds of people. She looked through her half-closed eyes. As she opened them fully, she saw her parents and Clara. She looked at the surroundings. She asked with a frown, "How come I am here? I was at the boutique, wasn't I? " Pauline said, "It is a relief that not much happened to you." Arthur nodded. Clara answered, "Remember the incident at the boutique and that murder? You fainted at the sight of that dead man." Belle squinted her eyes and tried to recall it. Once she had regained that memory, she gasped and sat up immediately. "Oh, yes. That dead man still makes me feel nauseous." Pauline placed her palm on Belle's arm and rubbed it to soothe her. Pauline asked, "Do you want medicine for it?" Belle sighed, "No, just water." Pauline made her drink the water by placing the glass to her lips. She drank it in one go. Clara said, "When I heard the firing, I was concerned about you, Belle. I should not have left you alone." "That's fine. I am safe." "But still...," she pressed with regret. A hush fell over the place. Pauline hugged her daughter and teared up. She sniffed. Belle placed her palm on her back. Belle said, "It is fine now, Mum. Don't cry like like this. " She broke the hug and said, "Look, I am here - safe and with you." Pauline wiped her tears with the back of her hand. Arthur shuffled closer to Pauline. He took Belle's hand and inquired, " You were in the trial room before the commotion began. Were you safe? Did anyone come or did something happen? " Belle answered, "No, dad. The door was locked abd nothing happened except that murder. Clara came in at the right moment. " Arthur requested Clara, "Please never leave her alone from next time." Pauline nodded and said, "Yes, dear, please." Clara looked at them regretfully. Belle said, "Mom and dad, it is fine. Clara never leaves my side. It just happened. Don't take stress too much." Pauline and Arthur did not leave her side. Pauline helped her to change and freshen up, while Arthur made her favourite soup. Arthur placed the spoon at Belle's lips. She opened them and sipped slowly. Belle tried to lighten her parents' mood. "If I were to get this type of attention, then I would gladly want to have such incidents in life more." Pauline glared at her. "Shut up! Don't talk nonsense. You are the only child of mine. What if something really had happened?" "Then, my mum and dad have protected me." She smiled. Arthur smiled at her. Pauline started lecturing her not to say all these things. Belle had a proud smile and she enjoyed being fed by her father. The weather was turning slightly cold. A strong wind entered the room. Belle felt the coldness on her skin. She looked at the waving curtains. She reached for the window. The grey clouds had enveloped the whole sky. Tiny drops of rain were falling on the street. Then, slowly, the sounds of the rain increased and loud splitter-splatter could be heard. Belle stretched her arm outside the window. The raindrops took not even a minute to drench her entire arm. After a nauseating incident, the rain was both soothing and distracting for her. She was humming a song and playing with the raindrops by splashing them on her face. A black, expensive car was parked near her house. That gaze was watching her every action closely. A photo of Henri and Belle hugging each other with beaming smiles fell on the floor. Its loud thud caught Belle's attention. She stopped and looked at it. She reached for the source. She picked up the broken pieces of glass and a piece pierced her thumb. A tiny dot of blood gushed out. Belle cursed and looked for a band aid. Once she had wrapped it around her thumb, her thoughts drifted to the broken photo frame. Henri had given her this photo frame as a gift. The picture was from their date after Henri's proposal. So, it was an official date after the proposal. They had spent the whole day at the movies, a park, a museum and whatnot. Their wedding had been arranged, but the time they spent before it was enough for them to fall in love with each other. Belle had not expected to find love too soon in her to-be husband. She was grateful. But her broken photo frame made her think about the words that man in the boutique had said: not so good luck. Her mind constantly swirled around this luck part. It was unlucky to see the wedding dress of the bride and now the broken photoframe. Was she really unlucky? — she thought. The wind was strong and chilly now. She reached for the window and closed the windows. She tiptoed to grab the edges of the curtains to close them. She looked at the window screen and her eyes focused on the outer source — the black car. She had never seen that car in her area. It was odd. She looked at it for a moment and then closed it. The curtain fell with a distinct sound.