They were the only two left in the class when the bell rang and the teacher came to collect their papers.
"I am not good at Inorganic chemistry, get a grip on those chappies." That was the only thing he spoke before dashing out of the class. He didn't even wait for her to finish her half uttered - half swallowed 'Thank you'
Why did he have to be such a jerk? An excel sized bubble of contradiction! A million questions were floating in her mind as she walked out of the class absentmindedly. The entire class was huddled in clusters outside, discussing what had been a nightmare of an exam. Only, she was alone.
Well, she had been alone most of her life, but her loneliness took a whole new meaning when her best & only friend, Navya, took a transfer, right after the board exams (Class 10 th final). Her father had finally got a posting at his hometown, Patna.
They say it is always lonely at the top. Other than being the best in studies, Nandini was a rather ordinary girl. She should have had a bunch of friends just like anyone else but some of her batch mates were jealous of her, some were intimidated by her consistency and some carried a preconception that she was mean.
None of which were true though.
She studied hard, not with the intention of scoring big but because that was the only thing she felt happy doing. Books were the only place she thought she belonged to. For if one were to ask the mirror, she stood nowhere compared to her peers. In her own words, Nandini considered herself socially awkward. 90% of her conversations happened within the periphery of her tiny brain. Not that she couldn't speak, infact she could speak for hours as she used to with Navya. Just that she couldn't do small talk. Trends, fashion,make up, gossip, she would just go quiet when any of these were being discussed.
"We heard about your parents.....I don't exactly know what to say...I am very sorry" One of her classmates came up to her. Following her, many others came along. Nandini didn't know how to react. One can't smile, nor can one cry. She should have asked Amms about the right words one must use to reply to condolences. She heard hushed whispers too, as she made her way towards the staircase. One that particularly caught her attention was from Alya, who along with the rest of the FAB5, were sitting on the stairs "You sure her parents died? I mean how can one study when.....I lost one whole year when my parents.... Did you see, she was the last one to come out. Defo she will top this time too."
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"Yes she will top this time too and let's give it to her, she has always been a star!"
Nandini's heart skipped a beat. He couldn't wait one second to hear her sorry but here, in her absence Manik just called her a star, that too in front of his friends, the FAB5.
"Wat's the matter with you Manik? You praising her a lot today?" Mukti counter questioned.
"Why not, she let me copy her answers, I am sure I will get good grades this time. I am to thinking of sitting beside her even for the rest of the exams."
Again, a mystery...why can't this boy be normal? Why did he lie to his friends ? It wasn't her, it was he who had answered all of the questions and forced her to copy them. But then, no matter how much she cursed his dual nature, it was his duality that actually drew her towards him.
For some reason, she always saw two distinctly different personalities in him, one that the world knew and one that only she had stolen glimpses of, every once in a while. He was more than a damn good looking, flamboyant rich guy who was always surrounded by friends or admirers. She had seen him sitting alone, staring at no one or nothing in particular, lost in his thoughts. More than once she had caught him helping someone or the other under the false hood of arrogance. But never was it more prominent than when he sang. While girls swooned over his good looks whenever he performed, she couldn't go beyond his eyes. They were melancholic and together with his soul stirring voice, they clearly told her that Manik Malhotra was a lot more than what met her eyes. But the problem was that every time she thought so, he either confused her or proved her completely wrong.
Did he just say he would be sitting next to her for the rest of the exams. That means, he had been serious about the 'inorganic chemistry' part. Was he going to help her again? Only time could tell because no one except God knew the inside geography of Manik Malhotra's brain.
"Hey Nandini, how are you?" Nandini stopped and turned back. It was Dhruv.
"I am Ok." She said.
He stood up and came down towards her "I am sorry, for whatever happened. I wish I could help you in any way."
"I am really ok Dhruv." She didn't want to drag the conversation further. But as she turned around to leave, for one millisecond she caught Manik eyeing her before swiftly moving his eyes somewhere else.
She had always liked Dhruv, for his calm nature and sweet demeanour. He appeared to be the only human in their MadHouse group. But for whatever reason, today his words sounded fake. He wished he could help but he hadn't. And he who no one had a clue could help, had silently done more than what anyone could have imagined. Such are the ironies of life.
Nandini suddenly realized that in the last two months, this had been the longest period she had thought about anyone or anything other than her parents. But the very thought that she would have to return to those same hollow walls paralyzed her limbs with fear.
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Author note: No promise on the timeline for next update. Whenever I can. :) n may be no replies either :):)
