The sound of the morning alarm had little to no impact on him on most days. The only way it used to serve its purpose was by waking his mom instead, in the adjoining room, who in turn would ensure with her resounding voice that Tarun doesn’t get late for his school. On this day, however, when she did not hear the booming sound of the alarm even after 6 am, she wondered if the alarm was out of battery. So, dreading the possibility of having to drive him to school, still slumberous, she dragged herself to his room. To her surprise though, Tarun was already in the shower. Certainly relieved, she couldn’t help but wonder: how??.
His mind was flooded with numerous thoughts, plans and anxiousness to put them to test. When he finally crossed the gates of his school and looked at his watch, he realized that he must have walked fast today. Oblivious to the wave he just got from Rahul and Ketan who were strolling towards the classroom, he walked past them, still fast paced. To them, he seemed lost, but he was focused like never before.
Tarun’s plan of action was to observe Priti around his four suspects. So, upon settling in the class after the assembly, the first thing he did was locate his suspects. To his left, Anu was seated on the desk just adjacent to his own, closer to where Priti sits. A quick inspection around the class revealed that others were not in the class yet. He decided to keep his eyes on the door. First, Priti entered the class along with Kewal, her demeanor seemed normal. She approached the desk and took the seat next to Tarun and asked how he was. He replied: I am fine, and you?. She just smiled tenderly. He wanted to say something, decided against it and focused on the door again. Tarun and Priti’s desk was second in the middle row. Priti sits in the middle of the desk with Tarun on right and Deepak on the left. From the last one week, Deepak has been unwell and was advised to rest at home. Just the other day, Tarun and Priti had decided that they should visit him after class one day. Few more minutes passed, Juhi and Richa entered the room along with Ashish. Juhi was talking to Ashish, while Richa looked directly in his direction. Tarun glanced sideways to find Priti turning her face away towards the board. He was curious. Soon, Juhi greeted him with a smirk and took her sit on the third desk to his right. Priti was still looking away. Tarun’s mind was still grasping all he has observed when the teacher came in. He also realized that Neelam did not come to school today. That makes thing a little complicated, he thought.
By the time the second period got over, he was still struggling with his thoughts. Clearly, Priti was uncomfortable, but who made her comfortable. Can he narrow down his list to two now? He did not like sitting idly, waiting for the next chance to substantiate his intuitions. Maybe if he could eliminate, Anu and Neelam from the list, it will help. With these thoughts in mind, he turned towards Priti and said: You know, tomorrow marks 2 months since I joined this school. Time flies so fast. Priti smiled again. He went on: I still don’t know so much about our class. For example, just the other day, I found out that Anu paints really well. Did you know?. “Yes, I know, she said dryly’. He tried again, are you guys, good friends?. We use to be, not anymore. Priti seemed a little stiff now. Tarun, though uncomfortable probed further, What happened?. It is a long story, she chose a side and I would rather not like to talk about it. Maybe I will tell you some other time. On any other day, Tarun would have let it be and not said another word, but it was different today. “You know, Priti. Don’t mind me saying. But you don’t seem yourself from past few days. Is there any matter? You can tell me. I would like to help you in any way possible”. A direct remark like that had a clear effect on Priti. She was taken aback first, but her eyes mellowed down. She needed a friend at a time like this, hesitantly she said: “Well, I am supposed to do something I really don’t want to do”. Tarun saw an opening, he asked, Why do it then?. He soon realized it was a stupid question, considering he knew the reason. A better question should have been- What?. Priti looked a little more uncomfortable when she said- I don’t have any choice, I only have a few more days. Please, don’t ask me anything else. Tarun restrained himself and withdrew by saying-if you ever need any help, please do tell me.
Even though he could not eliminate Anu from the mix, his conversion with Priti wasn’t a complete failure. Priti has not stolen yet. He has a little more time, but it was running out fast. He could not muster the courage to talk to Priti again before lunch. During the lunch, he decided to sit quietly under a tree in the lawn and think some more. A million bubbles of thoughts crossed his mind, but nothing could give him a concrete plan. Disheartened, he walked back to his class when the bell rang.
The opportunity presents itself when you least expect it. As his steps grew closer to the classroom, he heard some loud noise. As he paced himself, he could hear Richa’s voice. “You think, I care”. He could see both Richa and Priti facing each other now. Richa went on saying: “I will take pleasure in seeing you suffer, you deserve it”. They both had just noticed me and couple more of my classmates who entered the room. Richa withdrew. Priti looked at Tarun wistfully and sat with her face in her both hands. Richa, still angry walked towards her desk. As he took his seat, he was feeling helpless. He wanted to comfort Priti as well as give his piece of mind to Richa. He did none.
After calming himself down, Tarun started thinking again. It was clear as a day to him that Richa is the culprit and he needs to do something to stop her from harassing Priti further. He also realized that his original plan of finding some dirt on the culprit seemed much more complicated than he had thought. He did not know Richa well, he rarely talked to her. The only thing he knew of her was her hot temper. But he was growing impatient and did not want to wait longer. Should he confront her? Or use a more tactical way? He chose the later. If he can give her a warning, maybe scare her. He doesn’t need to have any dirt on her now, but if he threatens her with some vague remark, maybe it will dissuade her. Or alert her?. Suddenly it struck him, Richa is a collector of stamps. She carries in her bag, a box, with some of her precious ones to show off. He smiled wickedly and was so glad that he had seen Richa a week ago displaying her collection to a bunch of his classmates boastfully. It took him rest of the period to come up with the complete plan.
So, when the bell rang 7 times, everyone in the class moved hastily towards the ground for the game period. Not Tarun. It was time to put his plan into action. He was tired of observing and thinking tirelessly all day. When everyone has left the class, he sprung into action. It took him less than a minute to reach out inside Richa’s bag and find her box. After safely stowing the box inside his own bag, he quickly ran to the library. He grabbed an old newspaper and came back to the classroom. He began cutting the letters out of the newspaper. He could not risk writing the letter in his own handwriting. It took him 20 minutes to create the note he wanted. Another 5 minutes and the bell will ring. How can he ensure that she reads his note? Even if he puts it in her bag, is there any guarantee she will see it. He was growing disgruntled when he noticed on the board: “Homework due tomorrow, Q. 3, 4, 5,7”. The homework from the math class. Eureka!. His face lit up. Surely, she will open her math notebook tonight.
He joined the class with a library book in his hand pretending to return from the library. He hoped to cast any suspicion about the source of that letter away from him. By the time, he was walking back home, he was exhausted. He was pleased with himself but anxious about what would happen next. He had made his move, all he can do now is wait. However, he could not shred this uneasy feeling. He could sense that another sleepless night was inevitable.
Meanwhile, unaware of the contents of her bag. Richa was walking back home as well. Still upset and angry, oblivious to what awaited her later that night.
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