Dom Darcy & the Daquiri Diva

"I have simple tastes -

I am only satisfied with the best"

-Oscar Wilde-

I realise all I’ve written about is Dr. Dish. But there is a Mr. Darcy in the fringes of my life … never actually physically present (as Dr. Dish is), but I (still) can’t seem to get him out of my mind. I wonder if that is why I’m avoiding pursuing a commitment with Dr. Dish … our arrangement suits me fine, because I’m holding out for something better.

Something like Mr. Darcy.

It has come to my attention that people are confused whether or not Mr. Darcy is a real life person of the 3D generation or a "template" I’m basing my requirements of Mr. Right on. The answer is yes … and no. I do refer to my Mr. Right as "Mr. Darcy" … but I believe I have found him.

I am still in the Elizabeth-esque throes of hatred, though. The Mr. Darcy referred to in these excerpts is a real life person who I think epitomises the character created by Ms. Austen centuries back.

He may wear Armani instead of a cravat and a tux instead of coat tails and a top hat (at least not since his public school boy days - sue me, I'm a sucker for the posh English types. I guess a Malaysian Anglophile comes close?). My Mr. Darcy has no fashion sense to save his life, but he exudes that arrogance and confidence from every pore, that unfortunately, I have found difficult to resist, despite his blatant rudeness.

(Very much like Elizabeth Bennet - "It would be most inconvenient since I have sworn to loathe him for all eternity.")

It’s been almost 3 years now since we met, and he’s done the following in that time:

1 Made me fall for him. (I never say love until I’m 100% sure … but there’s certainly something there! On my part, at least)

2. Befriended me, then cut me dry, with no rhyme or reason. (Well, the reason is his pride, but he’d never admit to it!)

3. Dated my good friend (neither of them who told me about it – hence he ruined my friendship too)

4. Been a complete Prat. (no two ways around this one.)

Our history is simple enough - we met, we clicked instantly, in a way that was undeniable to anyone who witnessed it. There were literally sparks in the room when we were both in it, making it impossible for us to be just friends, or mere professional colleagues.

I’d had just arrived in KL, after almost a decade abroad. Not only was I still reeling from the devastation of my failed relationship with the Rotten Ex, but I was also trying to acclimatise myself to my home ground once again, having been a "Londoner" for so long. Not only had I needed to rebuild my life again, I also had to jump-start my career. Romance was furthest from my thoughts.

It all changed the day I walked into my new place of employment and saw Mr. Darcy. I never believed in love at first sight. (Yes, romantic that I am -I do have my practical moments!) But after that first introduction, when our eyes first met … I find it impossible that he didn’t feel the sparks I did.

We’d found, in a miraculously short span of time, that though diametrically opposite in character, we were, at heart, innately compatible. Coming from a similar upbringing and background, we had the same principles in life. We even shared the same fears and insecurities, as well as the same hopes and dreams for the future.

At the end of the day, no matter how different you are on the outset, that’s what counts, wasn’t it?

However, there has been no happy ending (yet). I’m afraid to say, it did not work out the way it could have. I was the Romantic Idealist, he was the soul of Practicality. (He was Sense to my Sensibility.) Love got in the way of his 5 year plan to climb the Corporate ladder - he didn’t want love in his life, he didn’t want to make time for romance, and my pride wouldn’t let me pursue him. I can’t explain why ... for someone who’s used to throwing caution to the wind and just doing, I was powerless to make this very important thing happen for me.

So with me resenting him for being a coward and not taking a stand, and him blaming me for complicating his life …it all turned to extreme tension and all that tension then turned into a love-hate type relationship. Instead of becoming friends, we became friendly adversaries …. at first. He constantly nit-picked at me, and often, I gave back as good as I got. He couldn’t just talk to me, he had to find fault with me which lead to furious debate and heated argument. Unfortunately, I was the louder and less likely to censor myself (especially when I was right!). Guess he didn’t like being taken down his pedestal in public, but I wasn’t the sort to care - then.

This "rivalry" turned to hate with the final straw coming and going without me even realising it. Instead of resolving things with me, he took the chicken’s way out and just cut me out of his life completely. He’d go so far as to not even acknowledge my presence, whether I was seated next to him, or across the road from him. In Mr. Darcy’s world, I simply did not exist.

It wasn’t hate … Mr. Darcy, like his namesake can act completely devoid of emotion. He acted like he was incapable of feeling and warmth, and pretty much everyone but me believed it. I’d seen the softer side. Perhaps he was appalled he’d shown so much to me?

Even though I’ve now left those offices behind me, and Mr. Darcy is no longer part of my daily life … we still keep bumping into each other. Sometimes he’s charming – deigning to acknowledge my presence, sometimes he’s a boor, walking right by me like I was nothing more than part of the furniture.

So far, there is no happy ending in sight …. but my romantic heart is ever hopeful. However, whether or not Mr. Darcy would ever cotton on, I do not know. I could very well be "labouring under a misapprehension".

I must state for the record that Mr. Darcy’s thoughts and feelings in this matter are all entirely my own perception (and perhaps imagination?). I could be deluding myself, and he could just be not just that into me… only I really don’t think so.

Like a mutual friend recently said to me (after only meeting us for a only couple of weeks then going back to her home across the Atlantic) – she thought our lives were like a Hollywood chick flick. "Fun, energetic chic girl, meets arrogant, hard-working serious boy, and fall in love, despite their differences, (after several horrible run-ins, of course) when they realise, deep down, at heart, they are innately compatible." I couldn't have put it better myself.

We’re still on the horrible run-ins stage, but the credits are by no means ready to roll.

Watch this space...