Salim and Kayal #Watty's 2016 # YourStoryIndia #ProjectWomanUp

Bridegroom/Scapegoat

Kayal's POV

Monday morning started off really well. For me as of now, any day which starts with Idli is a great day. Good food, good life. I went to Mugilan Uncle's place on Saturday. I had a nice time there. But, I returned by Sunday afternoon because Sara had gone out with John and we didn't want Jaanu to stay alone. No, Sara doesn't call it a date. The reason is, she went to a Church and had to go to a restaurant because they were starved for food. After that they watched a Malayalam movie because John wanted to learn Malayalam. No, it was not a date according to her. Just hanging out. In the evening I convinced the cook to let me make batter for Idli. So I made some batter with Idli Rice and white lentils. I had bought the ingredients myself. I also made some Poriurundai (Puffed rice balls made with jaggery). Jaanu also helped me in the kitchen. We were the only two girls in the hostel. Everybody else had left, either to their parent's place or for a date. Sara joined us and decided to make her specialty, cup cakes. It seems she can bake, but not cook. Her cup cake was amazing.

So next morning, I made Idli with the fermented batter and Sambhar (a semi liquid side dish), whereas Jaanu made a heavenly chutney (a spicy condiment made with vegetable/s and Indian spices). She made it with simple onion and tomato. It was yummy. We were asked to finish our cooking by 6:00 in the morning because the cook didn't want us lingering around when she started cooking for all the students.

With the happiness created by Idli, Sambhar and Chutney, I went to my class with a smile. Salim was back. I again prayed to God for his well being. Professor Usha divided us into groups for a presentation. Salim, Rohan and Megha were in my group. Sometimes when we like a Professor, we may get more interested in that subject. Professor Usha had that effect on me. I was enthusiastic about our topic. We normally don't carry our laptops to our classes. So, in the break I went to our internet café and browsed through all the subjects which we have to cover under the topic. I made a list and took a print out of it.

On my way back to our classroom, I grabbed a cup of coffee. I finished it after entering the class and had to go out again to throw the disposable cup because we are not allowed to eat or drink inside the class. After our classes I called in everybody to discuss about the topic. Salim looked better but not best. I couldn't ask him about his health directly. Salim selected the second toughest topic. After that we had to decide on our field trip, Megha arranged it within minutes. We had a meeting with a bureaucrat on Thursday.

I shared my notes with all three of them and asked them to give me their feedback in evernote app. I really like that app. It is so convenient. Following me all three of them shared their notes. I knew Salim might not be feeling convenient to share his mobile number with girls. That is one reason why I chose evernote app because it requires mail id only. Salim's research work was awesome. I never knew he had so much talent. Rohan's work was also great. Megha's work was a little lacking. So, I suggested her to add few more stuff. When all of us were done, Salim offered to make Power Point Slides. I was so happy about it. That is a really boring job for me to do.

On Thursday, all of us took our Permission from our HOD, Professor Trivedi and left for our meeting. I called Raju Bhai to pick us up from our campus. He is a trustworthy driver. As soon as I boarded the auto, I got a call from my best friend, Feroz. "Hai Feroz, how are you? What's up? How about Reshma, Prince and Vidhu?

To this he laughed, "Ask one question at a time. I am fine. All of us are fine. How are you? I can hear some noises. Where are you?"

I replied, "Thank you. I am fine too. I am on my way for some field work with my classmates."

"Fine then. You carry on. I will call you in the evening."

"Okay, cool, bye then."

"Bye."