After the rain

Pause

  The noise died. Its echo faded into the distance. The drops were now two seconds apart. Gradually, they grew further and further away from each other. Their marks on my window were fading. The dim light began streaming in through my windows. The water seemed to glisten under its influence.

  I sat next to the window, elbows on my desk. My apartment was on the 40th floor, the highest floor. I could see the neighborhood.

  I just sat there, staring at the dying rain. Looking at my city. Covered in metal, coated with people, clad in skyscrapers, my city is perfection. The perfect grids drawn from the east to the west and the exact angles of the buildings as they tower above us. They gave our city perfect order, gave us a city where no strain of chaos was present. From the silent and submissive voices to intricate and accurate planning. Every single thing would fit into its place perfectly, and we are no exceptions.

  It was a city with a hot tropical climate, but with air conditioning present in every building, you couldn't possibly feel hot, could you? No, it had a hot exterior and a cold interior, the opposite of most living things. Our body temperature is usually higher than the temperature of our surroundings in most cases, is it not? But my city is strange, this its performance in he academic field is strange, is it not?

  I was done with what I had to do. I could do nothing more to save my results. At that point, no matter how much last minute cramming you did, your results were already set in stone. I had already done my best.

  So I just gazed at the 6.9 million minions wandering around. With the voice of someone far away playing in the background. Someone from the other end of my world.

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  I was sleeping in class again when I heard a familiar voice.

  'Good morning,' she said.

  People around us were too busy studying or sleeping to care about our conversation. Politics within the school was dying down as people realised the need to spend time on their studies instead of finding people to put to shame.

  'Good morning,' I said with a tired voice.

  'It's break you know,' she said.

  I got up and walked out of the classroom. She followed me. Then I stopped.

  'I'm not even hungry,' I turned to face her.

  'Can we talk?'

  I nodded. She took my hand and dragged me somewhere. My head was too fuzzy.

  And we ended up in some secluded corner of the school. I just wanted to sleep.

  And she began to talk about her life and her family while I was half awake. I would've slept but I tried my very best to stay awake because Skye was my friend. She was precious to me.

  'So Len, what shall I do?'

  Surrounded by green, faint sunlight reaching us as it climbed in through the trees. The silence of nature.

  The silence was sudden. It was also strange.

  I rubbed my eyes and forced myself to sit upright. My eyes, now awakened, stared straight into hers. Captivated by the light dancing about, I just kept looking at them. Although she was retained, there was some fundamental will to continue in her. Even after the accident, after getting retained, she managed to survive somehow.

  'Len?'

  'Just tell them.'

  She turned away from me and stared at the ugly pigeons in the garden. It's funny how they were not in the canteen.

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  'Why didn't you tell us earlier?'  

  I apologized for my failures again. My parents were disappointed, but more so because I did not tell them about my retention.

  Eventually, they stopped pressing me with questions and went to their room to cool down. I didn't know what to say. It was rather irresponsible of me. Firstly, I should've studied harder. Secondly, I should've updated them on whatever was going on in my life.

  My parents were friends with the principal of this fine institution and that was how I got in. We were wealthy and the wealthy always have the upper hand in this game. I had everything on my side and yet I failed.

  Len always looked at the sky. He told me he could not understand it though he loved it. I was often to preoccupied with my daily business to notice its beauty. But one day I looked up and I realized something.

  The sky seemed infinite but it was not. Nothing is infinite. We could not see beyond the sky but we could go beyond it if we had help.

  I finally understood why Len loved the sky so much.

  I knew what I had to do.

  In the end, we have no choice but to get up and face reality. Or do we? Death is a possible escape. 

  But I had responsibilities. Responsibilities to my friends, parents and myself. I could not abandon them for it would render my life meaningless.

  'Crying won't help you,' thats what adults would tell you. But it's true.

  When my parents were fast asleep, I took out my journal and my economics textbook. I had another year to make this right.

  So I'll sieze this opportunity to shine.