Jivika~

Our half yearly exams were over, at last. Amidst all  the drama, we managed to write our exams. Two sections of our school, the students and the teachers, held different views regarding our 'cupboard conundrum'. The former were in awe of our class, while the latter chose to insult us every passing moment.

Today morning, for instance. Sonika ma'am, the lady took a leave the whole exam week and today was her first class after that mess we created. And clearly, she did not mean to let the issue down. It was quite strategic of her, to not trouble us with it during the exam period, but chew over it the very next day.

She was disappointed by the class. She expected better from us, I suppose.

Did I mention that she was the most caring and professional teacher you could find in this school? Today, she lost her cool.

Calling up the three boys, Arnav, Sourav and Pranav, she screamed at the first two. That moment, we were terrified. We thought that it could not get worse. But we were proved wrong when her star student, Pranav's chance came. The terrifying conversations of today morning, replayed in my mind.

"Why did you sit inside the cupboard Pranav?"

"Ma'am sorry."

"I need an answer! Why? Even if you had not completed the work, how long could you do that? What if one of you got suffocated and died? Especially considering the fact that Arnav is an Asthma patient!"

"Ma'am so—"

"I don't want your sorry!"

She had taken a deep breath. Her knuckles white, clutching the board marker as if her life depended on it.

"Leave all that. How did you manage to pull the entire class  along with you, that none  of them told me about it! Did you threaten them?"

"No ma'—"

She slapped him. That shut all our mouths.

"Kya kiya aisa, ki ek insaan tak kuch naa bol paya? Ladkon ko dhamki di ki pakad kar maarenge? Aur ladkiyon ko chedenge? Yahi sab karna hai tumko? Yahi kiya hoga thumne!"
["What did you do as such, that not a single person snitched on you? Threatened the guys of beating them up? Threatened girls by harassing them? This is what you must have done!"]

Shuddering, I paid attention to Rane sir, who was discussing the question paper. The only person in the whole school who has no idea about what happened. We were his 'baby-class'! So innocent were we! Alas!

After the terrific performance, Sonika ma'am had called their parents to school. Pranav and Arnav's mothers had come today morning. Arnav's mother, as soon as she saw the cupboard, she ended up laughing. That grin on her face and twinkle in her eyes could not be missed.

"What happened when Mijbil was taken to—"

Rane sir looked at the man standing by the door.

"Yes sir, please come!"

Sourav ran towards the door before our English teacher could start talking. Oh. His father. He was too late by the time he reached. For Rane sir had already started the conversation.

"What happened sir?"

"Sir, I was called by his class teacher."

"What happened Sourav? What did you do?"

"Sir, I — I— sa—t inside the cupboard."

"This cupboard?" asked our English teacher, pointing towards the back of the class.

"Yes sir."

Rane sir looked at the cupboard and then at the boy. Again at the cupboard and then at the boy.

Eyes as big as saucers, he let go the father-son duo to face the fire. He chose not to comment on it, and let the matter slide. After the English period, Sonika ma'am swept into the class, taking all of us by surprise.

"I want all your notebooks, complete, till the fourteenth chapter by the end of the day! And yes, unless the work of each and every child in the class complete, this period and the next period, that is your games period, will be cancelled. I repeat, even if one child doesn't submit the book, none of you are going for PT period!"

Fourteen chapters?

What. the. fuck.

I was stuck somewhere on the tenth chapter. Lavanya and Kiara where at the eleventh chapter. Maahi was at the eighth chapter. She really knows what payback meant.

"I want each and every question!"

Grabbing Prajakta's notebook, Maahi and I sat together, completing our work. Copying down the notes like a madwoman, Math was not making sense to me at that particular moment. Everything was gibberish, I did not even bother to correct the blunders I had created in my answers. Drawing a cone-shaped vessel, I proceeded with writing the formula of its volume but stopped. The cone which I had drawn in a hurry, was not looking like one. Blindly I had drawn over the two lines, making it just one.

"Maahi, give me the eras—"

I watched the girl who had around three more chapters to complete, sit lazily, decorating each curve of the heading of the chapter, 'Surface Areas'. Sweeping the brush-pen around the curve of each letter, she smiled at her piece of art, satisfied.

"What the hell are you doing?"

I almost yelled at her. At this rate her work wont be complete. Did she not realize this?

Closing her eyes, she smiled.

"Relax Jivika. Relax."

"But your wo—"

"Shh. You complete your work Jivika. Eraser right? Here you go."

Confused, I was thoroughly confused. Nevertheless, I moved on with my work. She was always one of those types, the ones who would never complete their work but topped in the exams. Her notebooks were blank, textbooks so clean and neat, she would not even underline them.

"What's the point of underlining, when every word has to be memorized just the way it was?"

Ya. I know. Weird logic.

After twenty minutes, even I realized that this was never going to finish. No wonder she did not even bother trying. I looked around, only to see that people had given up way before I did. So our games period was bound to be wasted. Would she let us go home?

Sensing the same, ma'am gave out her new instructions.

"If you don't submit your notebooks, I wont let you go home as well children!"

Few murmurs among the students. A hand shot up. Sachin, it was.

"Ma'am that is okay. Can we get our game periods at least?"

To say that Sonika ma'am was baffled, would be an understatement. Glaring at him, she was about to reply. But that's when she was called outside by Annie ma'am, a fellow Math teacher.

"Sonia, come here!"

"Yes Annie ma'am?"

"We need to complete the syllabus of class tenth. Take extra classes and finish it off quick! This second Saturday an extra class, how's that?"

"Ma'am I have no problem. The children should agree. Wait I'll ask th—"

Before she could say anything, we chorused 'No ma'am!' and puppy eyes. She was pissed at us, angry even. But still, she smiled at Annie ma'am apologetically, waving away the question of an extra class. But that teacher was still stubborn.

"Sonia, you don't need to ask them! Just tell the—"

"Sorry ma'am. I cannot do that."

Respect. That's what I felt for her. A single emotion which weighed down all the irritation I held against her. She was an admirable lady, no doubt. A teacher like her, was difficult to be found. You know why Math is hated in general? The teachers. How lifeless they can be while teaching, how emotionless they can be when it comes to life.

But she.

She was an exception.

And that's when I realized. Let me be fifteen or fifty, only once in my life I was going to come across a Sonika Sehwat. Unique piece that one, and won't find another one like her. Her dull shaded Kurtas, her only flower designed Kurta reserved for Parent-Teacher meetings, her perfectly set voice, her concern, her care, her innovative ways of making me understand her point, her disappointment, everything. Just everything.

She was what made this class, this  class.

I watched her convince Annie ma'am. Smiling all the time. Bearing the brunt of her colleague, due to her incapability of shunning us down, her children.

You'll be in my heart.

I knew, I just knew, that whenever I would remember this class, she would be where I would start from. It was the future which I could already predict. Overwhelmed, I did the one thing which I used to. One person who I would look upto, expecting them to feel the same.

I looked.

He looked.

We looked away.

And we looked  back again.

~