Jivika~

"Good morning students, I hope you all enjoyed your holidays?"

The greeting, quite successfully, shattered the walls of my ears. The sickening smile plastered on his face did not make it any better. His eyes scanned throughout the class, searching for his handpicked gems. Unfortunately, we too were a part of that treasury.

However, I could only think about the fact that if it were yesterday how I would be buried under my fluffy duvet, snoring to my hearts content.

Life was brilliant till this thing called 'reopening' happened.

Embarrassed  by the lack of response, excluding a few yawns, our teacher continued with the lesson.

Oh, let me be specific, our 'English sir'. Now, these language teachers are always entertaining. Always.

If I had the right to name him, it would probably have been "Mr. I-lost-a-couple-of -screws".

I really hope you get what I mean.

Trying to fetch a textbook from the students, I saw most of them hiding their books. Resorting to his favourite students, Parth and Amaan, he grabbed their book before either of them had a chance to protest.

If looks could kill, Mr. Rane would be dead by now.

Skimming through the pages of the brand new textbook, he raised his eyes from the printed words and stared at Parth. Or in other words, caught his student sticking out his tongue at him for stealing his textbook.

"Sorry sir."

Mr. Rane stared at him for a couple of seconds. His smile returned to his face along with a shining glint in his eyes.

"At last I found my Shylock!"

The glee in his tone was not understood by the whole class. Parth himself could not understand what he had said.

If only he knew, how he was to be pulled in the sixteenth century world, forced to say, "Hath not a Jew eyes?"

Dissolving the topic for the moment, Mr. Rane, once again, started skimming the pages. Confused on where to start from, he gave up at last and decided to take our help.

"Let's start with the next chapter which is, which is, children which chapter are we supposed to start?"

The class, uninterested, lazily ran their eyes through the syllabus. Silence held its place, foundation firm. But.

But.

That was, till our eyes fell over the name of the chapter.

It started with whispers. Just the way every gossip starts. The way an inside joke spreads like a wildfire. The same kind of whispers which unfurled throughout our class in eighth grade, during a 'particular' Biology lecture.

No one bothered to respond to the desperate teacher.

A muffled voice, Kajal I think, spoke up. My fellow class monitor, truly fulfilling her duties unlike me and few others.

"Sir, 'The Ball Poem'!"

Whispers which were not whispers anymore, smiles and smirks, squeaks and laughter. A very rare sight, I assure you.

Gosh. I don't think the class has ever been this enthusiastic.

"Class, maintain discipline please! Lets proceed with the chapter."

Sure thing.

Once again, the class was silent. Not out of boredom. Rather, waiting to strike at the right moment.

But there had to be exceptions.

Lo and behold!

Lavanya, Rhea, Laysa and Amaya are already busy cackling. And I'm sitting next to Lavanya, I don't know how long I can hold back. What a day I chose to sit next to the queen of laughter!

Shooting a quick glance at Maahi and Kiara, I mouthed, "Save me!".

My misery, led them to hysterics. What great friends!

Mr.Rane, after a pregnant pause, started with the poem.

"What is the boy now, who has lost his ball,"

Laughing. Very few were laughing and most of us were trying not to.

"What, what is he to do? I saw it go"

This is going to be more difficult than I thought.

"Merrily bouncing, down the street, and then"

Oh my god. Man stop doing that eyebrow thing.

"Merrily over — there it is in the water!"

This is why I said he had lost all his nuts.

"No use to say 'O there are other balls':"

I lost it. The whole class lost it.

"An ultimate shaking grief fixes the boy, as he stands rigid, trembling, staring down"

I can't stop laughing. Even sir is laughing!

"All his young days into the harbour where, his ball went. I would not intrude on him;"

Of course. At this stage who would 'intrude' on him?

"In a world of possessions. People will take balls, balls will be lost always, little boy."

"Little boy ... little boy ... oh my god!" Lavanya was wheezing by this time.

Kiara snorted.

"What was John Berryman trying to do?"

Laysa, struggling to speak, somehow let out the answer.

"He must have been telling the boy, 'Hey kid, I'll make a man out of you!'"

"By what, taking away his balls?!"

Doubling over with laughter at Maahi's question, I heard another laugh. A familiar one.

I turned, only to see a pair of suggestive eyebrows.

I looked.

He looked.

We looked away.

And we looked back again.

~

A/N: Poem by John Berryman.