Work In Progress - The Dialogue

..."Aren't you Jay? The Managing Editor?". It was a new face. He always liked strangers than familiarities. Moreover it was a female, the weaker sex. He was more at ease now. 'The Managing Editor'...when was the last time someone reminded him of what position he holds in the industry? Jay...and a stranger calling him by his first name and who knows him already by name...yeah the first name, before even they had met? He stretched his hand forward for a handshake, nodding yes with a narrow smile and with a gesture which meant "And you are?". Before these words could make their way out of his snarly thoughts and reach his mouth, she said, "I am Diana...". Their hands met briefly for a quick handshake.

There are moments. Moments when things happen with the speed of time but moments in human minds which would take their own time. Which would run on their own time. Moments like these. When two strangers meet. Each trying to analyze and judge the other person. Logical mind pounding to frame the first impression of the person. As if making a first impression is as necessary as knowing the other person's name. Name is an external identity of a person, but our brains maps these names to the tags that our logic, experience has tagged them with.

To her, the first impressions were most of the times the last impressions. They hardly changed. Not that she was not willing to revise them, but people somehow remained same. Or may be she is good at guessing a person by their first meet. Little details of each person which are unique to them, made it easier for her to come up with tags...boring, fake, lazy, kind, mean, over-confident, difficult, hypocrite and so on. People got more tags added to them, but their first tags she gave them remained. Body language, dressing style, gestures, their choice of words, facial expressions, a handshake...people carry so much of their identity with them wherever they go whether or not they want to give it away.

He was dressed in pale colors, his shirt drooping from his shoulders. With a slight hunchback, to look shorter than he is. She thought he is diffident. She is right, he always underplays except for one, that is his age. She did not know his age, and guessed that he must be in his mid 40's. And she is right again, he makes every attempt to be older than he is, as though he is in a race for aging and he seem to have succeeded. His handshake. Her style is to give a  "Cold Fish" handshake and let the other person lead. It is her trick with strangers to know their personality. And to her surprise he gave it back to her....the cold fish!

Diana tagged him...Timid.

To him, his first impressions were always wrong. Those who he thought were his followers were the people who stabbed him in the back, those who he wanted to put his trust in, let him down. For each of these experiences he blames the people rather than his own judgement of them. And today he is a pessimist who can only look down on each of these mean little creatures on earth who look so small to him.

He realized that he was standing near the emergency exit that leads to the staircase. Diana has come from there. What was she doing there? He thought may be she was on a phone call...with her boy friend?. He dismissed this idea, thinking if she really did have a boy friend, he would be here in this party with her. He fancied with the idea that she is yet another dumb girl who could not find the way to elevator in that building and climbed up the stairs to this place. Or was she also like him, who steps back to watch the rest of the world play for him/her? Was she watching him all this while? How long was she there? His thoughts were interrupted by another voice, which he is so used to listening to everyday. Which he detests. And there was a shadow of frustration on his face, which Diana could see.

"There you are...Jay meet your new troupe member, Diana. She is joining us in two weeks", said James. What? A new member in his team? When did this happen? And without his knowledge? She is joining in two weeks time and he has no hint of it? When was James planning to break this news to him? On the day of her joining? Of course, James was the Chief of Editor, but am the one who is running the department, I need to know who am going to work with on day to day basis. What the hell does this 'silly stupid forthcoming girl' know about writing in the first place? Yes, that was his first judgement of Diana, which was mostly influenced by his anger, fury, frustration.

James took Diana away to introduce her to other people. And Jay stood there helpless. Powerless. After all the stranger turned out to be a mockery at his weakness. A smack on his ego. And so he made her the target of his indifference, reproach, and bitterness in the next couple of months...

[ To be continued...]