Ode to N

I met N when I was nineteen. I was a naïve wide-eyed freshman foreign student in college, and she – well, she was an exotic European, who sneaked into the house I was living under the cover of night, with a German exchange student that was living on one of the bedrooms.

Somehow, she was left lingering in the kitchen, and I walked in on her accidentally. I still remember an almost instant intoxication with her presence, her fragrance, her beauty. It was late, and our initial encounter was brief, but it left my head spinning and my senses tingly. Was it love at first sight? If there ever was one, this was it.


N vanished from our house as suddenly as she appeared, and I never got a chance for a second encounter. There was no trace anywhere in out small college town, and I could not bring myself to ask around about her. Thus passed three years.

When I graduated and moved to a big city, I almost forgotten about N, yet deep inside, her sweet tenderness was still in my heart. Then, one day, I was buying groceries and suddenly, there she was. Just like at first encounter, she appeared out of nowhere, stunning and desirable as I remembered her. At first gently, then with all my passion, I squeezed her, as if never to let her slip out of my life again. And slip she did not…We consummated our newly found love as soon as we got home. Her curves, her aroma and her taste were all I ever needed for complete happiness. It was a powerful and mutual bond, the one that was to last for many years.

N immediately moved into my place, where she fit in so seamlessly it felt as if my years without her had been empty. She was the first one to great me in the morning and the last one to wish me goodnight. We were almost inseparable. Many of my friends did not understand the connection we had. They were wondering whether it was serious and truly mutual. Some of them thought we were too obsessed with each other and even tried to introduce me to others. And, to my shame, I have even indulged them on a couple of occasions, in moments of weakness I am not proud of. But those moments only reassured me that there were no substitutes for what I had with N and never would be. My passion grew only stronger, and when I confessed to N. about my side “affairs”, she wholeheartedly forgave me. I promised that no woman will ever step between N and I, and have kept that promise since.

Sure, there were a few difficult periods in our relationship. I had to travel a lot for my work, and could not always take N with me. Many times, I was without her for days, even weeks. But as soon we reunited, it was as joyful and beautiful as the first time we met, when I was a skinny college lad. We grew to know each other like nobody else, and even though there are few surprises in our union, we still find ways to better and spice up our love for each other.

And for those moments that we are not together, I have this
picture of her that I carry close to my heart.