Chapter 4

The senior building was a 4 storied building. It was an elegance to look at. On a board, roll numbers of students with their name and section were given. I searched mine.

Section B.

I found the class and entered it.

After that incident with the girl back in assembly ground, I had thought, I’d never show my face to her. Or if by mistake, I do happen to see her, I’ll just run in opposite direction. God is Crazy! That girl was sitting in the class I entered. Just as I saw her, I grew nervous. I started to look around for any boy who would be kind enough to welcome me so that I could get carried away. But there was no one in that class whom I knew. Slowly, I caught the strap of my bag, emptied the books on the class shelf and walked straight past her towards the end of the class. There I sat on one of the desks in piece. There was a pile of notebooks beneath each desk in the classroom. I took out one pile and wrote my name on them.

Suddenly, there was rumbling sound of boys and girls standing. I looked up and found a dark guy in the front of the class. I too stood up and (first impression, Sunny) wished him.

“Good Morning, Sir” Yeah. That’s right.

“Good Morning”

And just as I thought everything was alright…

“Why are you sitting in the last bench? Come here” And he pointed the empty seat near that ‘Fry-Girl’.

“Sir, actually, I have already written my names on these books” I pointed at the notebooks on which I wrote the names.

“It’s Ok. Come here now.” This time, he’s tone was a little disturbing.

With no choices left, I picked up my books and settled in the Frying Pan.

“Ok. Everybody sit down. I’ll take the attendance now”

I gave a quick glance at the girl beside me. Her eyes were kind of inclined towards her forehead at the end. You know, cat-eyes kind.

“Anita Khadka?” The teacher called out the name for attendance. We weren’t familiar with our roll numbers yet.

“Yes Sir” The fry-girl raised her right hand and said. So, her name is Anita Khadka!

Maybe, I just went out of my mind or something, but I started admiring her.

“Bijita pathak?”

“Yes Sir.” The girl on the other desk beside me stood and answered. I looked at her. She was the thinnest girl in the class. Didn’t her parents give her vaccination? Or is it that she isn’t well fed?

The teacher continued calling names and different boys and girls answered him.

Anita really was beautiful.

“Sunny Sawrav?”

Her figure was the best in the class or better, in the school.

“Sunny Sawrav?”

I heard my name and hastily got up.

“Yes Sir.”

“Be careful, Sunny. I won’t tolerate it again.”

I didn’t answer. God really liked messing up with me.

“Do you understand?”

“Yes Sir.”

Soon, attendance was over.

“Ok. Let’s have Introduction.” The teacher said, “starting from me.”

Bring it on!

“My name is P. Devanand and I’ll be your Science teacher.” He moved to the other corner and then continued. “I’m from South India” South India? How did he get here? “Ok. Now, you, Sunny Sawrav, tell me about you.”

Deep inside, I was actually waiting for my turn to speak out. After all, I wanted to be known.

“What all do I have to say, Sir?”

“Where you live, your hobbies and what would you like to become”

“Sir, actually, I’m from Bihar. But..I was born in Assam….” I didn’t know, if I should tell something more or not. “Due to my father’s job, we kept moving places.” It wasn’t that bad, now was it? “I’m interested in music and play keyboard very well. And I want to become Computer Engineer.” I don’t. I had always dreamt of being a big businessman or do something in Videography. But being from Bihari origin, my father thought that Computer and Doctors are the only saviors of the World. So, even if I didn’t want, I had to get myself high up in computer. “And I’m good at Computers”

“Good. Now, you, umm….” He referenced the names once and spoke “Bijita Pathak”….. The introduction continued for around half an hour and then ended.

That day, we didn’t have much, but just introductions in all the classes. I returned home and explained the day to Mom.

“Be careful from next time. Ok?”

“Ok”

“Mom, Nashta?

“I’ll make it. You go and freshen up” And she was off.

Chapter 4

Monday morning, me and my sister were ready and waited for the bus to arrive. The bus finally did arrive. It was a red Swaraj Mazda with a little white lines here and there.

“Sunny, tuck your shirt in properly”, my Sis, didi, always keeps acting like Miss Right.
“I’ll do it”
“I’m telling you, you’ll get into trouble if you don’t. Remember what Mom said?”
“I’ll do it”

Now, maybe you wouldn’t have seen the movie ‘God Must Be Crazy’, even I didn’t, but must have heard of it. I think it’s true. God keeps messing with me all the time. And what have I got to show my anger to God? Nothing.

As soon as I got in the bus, there was this almost bald-headed guy who called me up and tucked my shirt in. I should have listened to didi. First impression?

“Ummm…. What is Ooo…your Ke Re? Name?” The almost bald-headed guy asked. I think his English also was almost bald-headed. No, totally bald-headed. Or worse, no-headed!
“Sunny Sawrav,” Remember, Sunny, first Impression, call him sir, “Sir”.
“Which umm… class?”
“8th standard….. Sir”
“You can…. Can you…ummm…. speak Nepali?”
“Not much. A little bit….. Sir” Ok, I think, enough of the First Impression thing.
“I’m your Nepali Teacher” No ‘Umm…. Ooo…. Ke Re?’ this time. Should I ask his name?
“Sir, what is your name?” I’m dead.
“Ke Re?” His right eyebrow raised. Come on Sunny think of something.
“No Sir, just to remember. I have to tell my Mom no!”
“Damodar Dhungana”

I didn’t dare to speak much after that conversation. I was always scared of Nepali, you see. And he was the Lord of the Nepali!

I gave a quick glance at everybody around. There were some small kids who seemed to be of KG or 1st and 2nd standard. Some stared back at me and I looked away. I made my face all grave and pulled my tummy in to give them the impression ‘If you don’t do what I tell you to do, I’ll screw you!’ There were even some other good looking boys and looked graver than me, I suppose. I quickly withdrew my Screw-You look!

Everyone was in uniform but without belt and tie or the badge. Our uniform was white Shirt for everybody and maroon skirt for girls and pants of same color for boys. Typical should-be Nepali school uniform, if you ask me. That’s right, the typical Nepali school uniform is white shirt and Grey pants and skirts. I liked the maroon color because it matched the green mountains found everywhere in Nepal better rather than grey.

The bus took a turn into a gravel path from Chainpur – 4 chowk. It went this and that way round and ended up at the entrance where once me and my father had come for my admission.

We entered the administrative building, the fabulous administrative building and gave our names. That’s for their record. For our record, let’s just know that the building was colored white and had Mosaic all over the floor. Slippery, sparkling, black finish, comfort Sofas, all that you would want here in this office. The director, G.N Thapa used to stay there. On the 1st floor. Oh, and I forgot, the engineers who built this school were hired from Disneyland, Japan! So, I don’t think, you would ever need much explanation about that school!

We gathered in the assembly ground. From here, you could see the Boys Hostel. A black guy was shouting at the boys so loud that you could hear him scream. The boys were laughing. What jerks! I felt pity for that black guy.

“Eh, Sunny!”
I turned towards the person who called my name. I couldn’t believe, it was Avatar, my friend from CEBS.
“Wow! Avatar! So, you are in this school! How come you never told me?”
“Sorry man. Actually, dad’s decision was so sudden, that even I didn’t know. Only yesterday, he came and admitted me. I’m in hostel though. You? Are you joining hostel, or Dayscholar?”
“Dayscholar” He got admission just yesterday? “Wait a minute, did you say, yesterday? You got admitted just yesterday? I mean, what about the Admission Test?”
“I don’t know. Was there a test? Maybe, they didn’t want the test after all then. Just the money.”
“Bastards!” And I was proud for past two days that I am one of the brilliant students who passed the test!

“Get in line!” The black man shouted again.

“Avatar, who’s that black guy?”
“Oh, he’s our HS. That motherfucker!”
“Don’t say so. He’s your HS man.”
“Even you’d say so. He just keeps shouting commands throughout the day.” Then he imitated the HS. “Do this, do that. Give me a break! We are in a co-educational school and not in some military one.”
Suddenly, I felt my joy evaporating bit by bit. I had thought that I would enjoy here, but it seems the World was other way around.

I suddenly recognized a faint voice behind me. As I turned, I saw which I should have seen coming. Didi was speaking to some boy. He was good looking. The girls these days, they always go for some handsome and hope him to be their boyfriend. Even you look at girls here and there! Who said that?
She was just looking around, perhaps searching for me, when she saw me and just smiled. I returned the favor.

“So, what happened between you and Richa?” Avatar asked.
“Nothing. I think… I think we will break up soon”
“Will? You are still going on?”
“Yeah. Why? Aren’t you happy, or what?”
“No..”
“I know you wouldn’t be”
“Fuck you man!”
Now, I knew Avatar very well. He uses this sort of words very often. So, did it have any effect on me? Fuck it!
“Ok. Ok. I was just kidding”
“If you ever irritate me again…” And he lifted his sleeves to reveal his biceps. He could have conveyed ‘I’ll hit you’ message even without lifting his sleeves. But if I wasn’t wrong, then he wasn’t actually showing them to me, but the girls behind me. He had this advantage with him to attract girls to him. Those real good form of muscles in him. Oh, I was so jealous of him just because of this.
“Ok. I won’t”

“Everybody stand in a straight line” A short man on the dais commanded.

All of the 8th standard boys and girls stood in one line. I was standing just behind a beautiful girl. Just then somebody pushed me from behind. I tried to control myself but couldn’t as I was standing lose and my belly had already taken the momentum. God, why did you make me fat? Miserably, I touched the back of the girl. She instantly turned back and glared at me in a ‘I’ll eat you’ way.
“I.. I’m really sorry. Somebody pushed me from behind” And I looked behind. And to make my misery worse, the next person behind me was almost 5 steps back! I turned back to the girl.
“I swear, I didn’t do it” Did you push me God? And for an instant, I was sure, he did.
“All the boys in one line and all the girls in the other line” The same man from the dais commanded again. Shit! Am I the reason for this?

The girl’s stare grew more intense from ‘I’ll eat you’ to ‘I’ll fry you first’.

After the National Anthem and a short prayer, we were off for our classes.