Sofie was mumbling to herself, sipping on a hot cup of coffee and making last-minute changes in her presentation. It was one of those Monday mornings when most of the staff were suffering from a bad case of the Monday blues and had walked into the office low on energy. The weekend effect took some time to wear off.
Nicole trotted over to Sofie’s desk with a gleam of excitement in her eyes. She tapped Sofie’s shoulder to distract her and said, “Morning, Sofie!”
“Oh, hey! Morning!” Sofie said and took a glance at Nicole as her eyes moved back to her laptop screen.
“Any luck?” Nicole repeated as her eyes widened, waiting for an answer.
“For what?” wondered Sofie and looked at Nicole.
“Did you speak to him?” Questioned Nicole.
“Who?” Said Sofie looking puzzled.
“Allen!” Nicole snapped back.
“Oh my god! Here we go again!” Said Sofie rolling her eyes and waving her hands in the air.
“What? I’m just asking. At least take a look at his profile on Facebook,” Nicole protested.
“Nicole. Sweetie. It’s Monday morning! I have a meeting to rush to right now. Let’s talk about this over lunch shall we?” Sofie suggested.
Sofie stood up and gathered her things as she headed to the boardroom.
Surprisingly, all she could think about was Allen then. ‘Why is Nicole so keen to set me up with this guy she went to school with?’ She wondered to herself.
‘Focus Sofie focus! You can’t do this to yourself right now. You need to think about the meeting you’ve been preparing yourself for all week!’ She told herself.
Later that night, Sofie and her parents binged on a delicious meal prepared by her mother. It was the usual chatty banter at the dinner table like any other day.
Sofie and her family had been living in Goa over the past eight years. Although they were from Germany, her father had set up his own architecture company in Goa which set the ball rolling for a brighter future.
Before going to sleep that night, Nicole’s big gleaming eyes crossed her mind. ‘Let’s check out Allen’s profile on Facebook. Maybe Nicole will get out of my hair tomorrow at the office!’
It was the first time she saw Allen’s picture. ‘Wow! He’s so dark and how can someone miss his smile!’ she said to herself and messaged him ‘Hi!’ followed by details of her connection with Nicole. This was the beginning of what was to become a never-ending conversation.
As the text messaging went on for quite a while, they finally decided to meet on a Sunday at Taverna, a small pub in the Miramar area in Panjim. Allen, being a gentleman, wanted to pick Sofie up from her place but it was raining cats and dogs, making it impossible to hop on his bike and step out of the house. Sofie picked Allen up in her car, and they finally reached Taverna at 7 pm. Their first so-called date went on till the wee hours of the morning. They spoke about everything under the sun starting from past relationships, work, family, friends and of course they silently thanked Nicole for setting them up.
It was the beginning of a new chapter for both of them. Allen and Sofie met regularly after work and over weekends. The text messaging went on throughout the day, and they had so much more to say to each other when they met in person.
A month later, Allen was in love with Sofie and couldn’t wait to make the first move. Allen was a kind-hearted, happy-go-lucky, fun-loving type of guy, with an adventurous side that brought out the best in him. His smile stole Sofie’s heart, and soon enough Sofie was in love. They spent a lot of time together at Allen’s place post-work, binged on good food and watched movies together.
Allen loved to play any type of sports, but his passion was cycling and running. Just the feeling of fresh wind hitting his face gave him a thrill. His adrenaline would go high. This passion got brushed off on Sofie too. Together they started taking part in running and cycling marathons. Allen, as usual, has won several medals for his achievements.
As time went by, their relationship grew stronger. After a year, the twosome took a short trip to Nepal and enjoyed the scenic view of the Himalayas. However, Sofie did complain of getting a sore bottom after sitting on a bullet for 9 hours during their ride to Pokra. But they made memories and had a fabulous trip together.
A turning point in their relationship was when Sofie’s parents decided to move back to Germany for good in October 2019. Allen and Sofie went with the flow and moved in together.
It was mid-December, Allen was riding his Duke with Sofie comfortably seated behind. They were heading to a shack for dinner. She had her arms wrapped around him and held on tight. She rested her head on Allen’s back when he asked, “What if I ask you to marry me?”
“I mostly won’t say no!” she chucked and they somehow started planning their wedding.
It was not long before Allen got down on one knee and slipped the ring on Sofie’s finger.
Allen & Sofie exchanged vows in February 2020. It was a crazy, fun-loving wedding surrounded by loved ones who came from Germany, USA, UK and India to celebrate Allen’s and Sofie’s love.
As per the German tradition, the to be man and wife don’t have to share any lines or say anything except ‘I do!’ But it was a catholic wedding there were a few changes here and there. Elvis Pereira, one of Allen’s best men, had the honour to give the bridal bouquet to Sofie upon her arrival at the church.
As Sofie entered the hall, she could feel all eyes on her. Poor Sofie was so worried that she would forget her lines. As she slowly moved forward, her heart was pounding, and she caught a glimpse of Allen. He looked handsomely sexy in his fantastic suit. Sofie saw tears in his eyes as she walked down the aisle in her pure white wedding dress, looking gorgeous as ever, when she forgot about all her worries. Allen’s best men, Elvis, who had been best friends since college and Bogart his school friend in Bombay, were standing beside him. Sofie’s bridesmaid Leonie who studied with her since kindergarten and Sofie’s sister, Sarah, felt nothing but immense joy and love. They stood together opposite the two best men in their maroon dresses looking pretty as ever. They couldn’t have been happier for both of them.
Sofie’s father folded his daughter’s hand in Allen’s, and they continued to the altar to proceed with the ceremony. The entire ceremony was so touching and beautiful. After the never-ending photography shoot and other formalities, the newly married couple decided it was time to party, ‘Goan - German Style!’ The celebrations kicked off at 7 pm at the perfect venue. All the guests formed a circle on the dance floor as the gorgeous bride and handsome groom made their entry to the song ‘Forever,’ sung by Chris Brown. The celebrations were a combination of Goan and German traditions. The guests threw rice on the married couple instead of confetti which was a German tradition followed by the cake cutting and opening a bottle of champagne. That’s when they hit the dance floor and got the party started. They all danced till half-past eleven until the management turned the music off.
The happily married couple were supposed to wrap up their lives and begin a new chapter in Germany. They both resigned their job as they were busy planning to move. The nationwide lockdown zoomed in like a tornado. Everything came to an abrupt halt, their flights got cancelled, and the job interviews were put on hold.
Allen’s mother always told him to save for a rainy day. During the lockdown, they lived off their savings and spent their time working out and making fitness their primary motive. Sofie taught Allen the German language to make it easy for him to settle down since knowing the language was compulsory.
Today Allen and Sofie have moved to Bergisch Gladbach, West Germany. They are excited as they are living their dreams together. It won’t be long before they would happily announce the arrival of a new member to the family.