Minimal Clouds - Part I

The sky was filled with bare minimum clouds. A minute streak of white, much like a streak of paint accidentally spurted on a canvas, adorned the sky. But one could not miss the skillful hand of nature. It was a streak of revered order. It was as if the streak was meticulously draw by Picasso himself. But not everyone had either the time or the knack to notice these subtleties.
It was on this day that the fateful handglider was spotted. It moved gracefully over the heads of many reminding some the very smoothness with which a sharp scissors takes on new silk. It's speed was tough to gauge with not many clouds in the sky. But one could see that the glider was headed East, for it pursued with great interest the "Sun". While a nature photographer cursed it's appearence which led to a unfortunate sudden flight of what he affectionately referred to as his work of life, the villagers flocked and marvelled at the blot of red that supplemented the infinite blue.
Rising far above the ground, from an eagle's eye view; pun unintended, few birds bothered about the huge contraption that flew beside them. For the flock, it was just another big bird that seemed harmless. They soared, migrating gradually, like scale changes in an elaborate musical piece. The glider soared with its purpose unknown to everyone except the one man inside it.
What ill fate befell the man no one knows for the purpose he knew remained unhelpful to everyone including himself, for he was nothing more than a lifeless mass ironically having a flight of his life.

It all begins with the first phone call

The Scene:

The Girl is a 23 year old investment banker working in London. The Boy is doing his residency in Manchester and was given her number by his mother, who is a friend of the Girl's aunt's brother-in-law's cousin's uncle's wife in Leicester. Parenthesis are unspoken thoughts.

Monday night, 10 pm

Girl: Hello?
Boy: (Shit, she's home!) Umm, hi! Is this ---?
Girl: Speaking.
Boy: My name is ---. I don't know if you know who I am- (God, what if she doesn't know who I am? I'll sound like a complete idiot.) Hell, I already sound like a complete idiot. I don't even know why I'm doing this!)

Girl: Oh, you live in Manchester, right?
Boy: Yeah. (Ok, she was told about me, that's a relief. I wonder what she was told - He's a resident, tall, and fair, and he graduated from Ivy League school!" God, she probably hates me already!)

Girl: Yeah, my mother mentioned you had my number. (I can't believe he actually called!)
Boy: So, how are you?(Oh yeah, that's real original, but what the hell else I am supposed to say- Umm, hi, I don't know you, but do you want to be my wife?)

Girl: I'm fine. And you? (Ok, this is off to a great start...)
Boy: I'm good. (Ok, think, think!) So, I heard you're an investment banker? (Oh, that's a real winner. Now I can be a bad conversationalist and an idiot!)
Girl: Yes.
Boy: (Ok, she is not helping me at all!) Where do you work?

Girl: Merrill Lynch.
Boy: Hey, that's a great firm! (I sound like a complete moron. I should just hang up except my mother would somehow find out and kill me!)
Girl: Yeah, it's a nice place to work. (God, this guy sounds like a complete loser)
Boy: So... (Stall ,stall!)

Girl: So you're doing your residency in cardiology? (Like my mom didn't tell me that 500 times already!)
Boy: (Ok, I can handle this...) Yeah, I'm in my second year.(Alright, now say something else, but what do I say? Do you drink ? So, what you like to do in your free time?
Girl: (Umm... get wasted...) Oh, you know, hang out with my friends, go to movies.

Boy: Where do you like to hang out in London?
Girl: (Shit, what am I supposed to say? This guy could be some religious freak! I can't say bars - I'll say clubs, you can go to clubs and not drink...) Oh, sometimes we go to the movies, or there's a couple clubs that are good... (That was good, I made it sound like I like clubs, but I'm not really into them...)

Boy: (Ok, she goes to clubs, that's a good sign. If she was really religious she wouldn't do that.) Yeah? I like to dance also.
Girl: (He likes to dance- that's a good sign. He can't be that stiff!) So where do you hang out in Manchester?
Boy: (Should I say it- alright, I'll say it, what the hell!) Umm, the same, bars, clubs, stuff like that.
Girl: (He said bars! So he probably drinks. Good sign. I should explore this further...)Are there any good bars in Manchester?

Boy: Yeah, there are some nice ones, I mean, I'm not a huge drinker, but I like having a good time. (Ok, that gives the impression of someone who enjoys drinking but is not an alcoholic - pretty good, if I do say so myself!)
Girl: (That sounds really positive. This guy sounds kind of cool. But if he's so cool why is he calling me? Shouldn't he have a girlfriend? Or not need to call random girls his mother tells him about? God, what if he's completely ugly? Or has never been kissed?) Yeah, me too. Although I hope my parents never find out.

Boy: Yeah. I know exactly what you mean
Girl: (Ok, so he didn't freak out at the living a double life reference- another good sign. I just wish I knew what he looked like...) So...
Boy: (Or she could be really fat with a huge mustache. Well, there's only one way to find out!)So, I know this sounds a little crazy, but I'm visiting some friends in London next weekend and I wonder if you'd want to get together for coffee sometime.
Girl: (Coffee. That's totally safe. If he's totally nasty I can have a quick espresso and run like hell!) Yeah, that sounds great.

Boy: (Alright that went pretty well. Coffee's pretty harmless. And who knows, maybe she'll be cool. Now I have to get the hell out of this conversation...) So I have your e-mail, should I just e-mail you soon and we can figure it out?
Girl: (E-mail is sooo much better than the phone. Thank God for e-mail!) Yeah, just e-mail, I check it all the time at work, so- (God, this is getting painful)
Boy: Alright, I'll e-mail you soon. (Meaning in two days cause I don't want to look too desperate, but at the same time I don't want to look like I'm trying not to look too desperate...)

Girl: Cool. Well, I'm glad you called. (I think...)
Boy: Me too. Well, I'll see you soon. (Please be hot, please be hot!)
Girl: Alright. Bye. (I can't believe he called! Too late to back out now. Besides, maybe he's cool. He didn't sound so bad on the phone.
Boy: Bye. (I did it! ..)

Soaring in the heavens.. .

The sky was over-cast and except for a solitary eagle mounting high in the air, there was silence all around them...
"What desolate creatures they seem to be... you rarely find them in a flock....", she said looking up at the eagle.
He looked at her for a minute before looking up at the sky.
"Which is probably why they soar great heights...' he replied, "You reach great heights when you can be sure that there are hardly anybody around to pull you down"
She looked at him, " True... but you can't deny the fact that people matter"
"Not unless they share a common goal or purpose in life as you do and can be used tactfully to your advantage... the rest of them... don't even bother... they are a mere a waste of time... for they simply pull you down... and tear you apart!", he spoke in a manner that reflected a calm quietude.
His words rang through her head.
"Everything around you... everything... rests on the principle of "all for oneself'... Involve people - the right people - but get as less as emotionally involved as you can with them... and you will reach that far", he said, pointing his long well-shaped finger at the eagle which now seemed to disappear into the horizon.
A single raindrop settled itself on her eye-lash. It had begun to drizzle.
Pause.

"Yeah" she finally said "But I don't want to find myself THAT isolated either"
He smiled, his eyes fixated upon the horizon. "You already are, in case you didn't know... we all are... the only difference being, WE choose to wile away our time brooding over our state of isolation and loneliness, while the eagle probably uses it's state of isolation to realise it's strengths... and soar to great heights... "