Hide & Seek

Fishy

"Why?" I asked as we approached the canteen premise.
"The debate team." Eshani answered and trudged forward.
I frowned. "But I'm not in the debate team."
"But you are the performer before the competion. The grand peformer."
Right. "And," She continued, " we will be sitting with them till October."
Yes. The grand debate competition is in October before that the semi finals in September. However, my friends are dead absolute they will make it. They even tried to make me sign for it. But really, I'm not into such things and my dance teacher surprisingly had other plans for me by signing my name for the welcoming performance. I was reluctant, though, she pressed  I was good enough to perform in front of the entire school. Even Reya agreed.

We reached the table and sat down. There were two boys from commerce. Two girls from science and one particularly missing.
Miha sighed. "Why is he always late?" She complained.
"As you know, he has gone to the library to issue this new physics book...somehting. I don't know."
My eyes widened at the physics part. Studious?
She glanced at me. Priya. Right. "You don't  want to be near him more than ten minutes. He's a physics freak."
I tilted my head. "Then why is he..."
"Oh," Miha interupted. "Nicholas is very good in this debate thing. We need him."

Nicholas.
As soon as I heard  his name old memories jangled back.
Nicholas.
That name reminded me of her. My best friend. A couple of houses away. She was obsessed with this name. She had this idea formed that a Nicholas-nonexistant will come and take me away like a damsel. I would just laugh at her. That time I didn't knew I would encounter her much treasured name.
After we moved I never knew what happened to her. At this moment she probably would be scrunched somewhere reading or writing or crying over a book until someone finds her. Leaving her was heartwrenching. When I told her I was moving she didn't talk to me for days and then on the last day as we were loading our luggages she ran out and jumped at me. We toppled down on the  ground and cried until our eyes hurt. I miss her. I miss us and specialy our games. Once we made tiny clothes out of paper and opened a Neverland shop. I guess I still have some of those somewhere stacked in the attic. And this other time we made tiny little notebooks and played Teacher-Student game with a our other  friends. And our best-loved, actually mine. Doctor-Office. I would be patient and she the doctor and God, how did she came with unprecedented x-ray, surgery, medications ideas I do not know. Those were the best days.
I've tried to forget her. Because  scenes of those last few moments and the last image of her would always hunt out its way to my heart and it would  feel like a lump of metal inside my chest. Threateneing to break  through. And the few weeks I've been with Miha, that name had become a persistent reminder and reeking out old forgotten memories.

Nicholas
I had heard his name enough times to know he is Anglo Indian. His parents were physics professors in a University. And he, himself is a physics freak and gets 100/100 in every physics test. I mean, How could someone love physics like that? There are scientists out there. I understand that. But someone in vincity was dreading news. I hate maths. Always have. God. I never got more that 40 in any test.
So, when, Shruti, from science warned. "Do not ask him if he says anything and you can't understand it. It would be something physicist. He won't shut up."
I made up my mind not to get involved with this nerd as Reya stated, "you need calm, classy, and enthralling people in life," I was better off with eccentric friends.

"Ah. There he is." Apparently Miha, knew him so I turned and my eyes forthwith fell on a scrawny guy in rimmed glasses with a big book in his hand treading towards our table.
At that moment I thought. Damn him! He's really a nerd.
Like I wished otherwise.
I sighed and looked up again and this time amongst  the swarm of navy blue blazer uniforms was this guy sauntering, momentarily easy to notice but difficult to look away. He had his button of his blazer undone, tie loose around his neck and hair a lump of messy streaks in formal good sort of way with a knowing grin in his face as he surged forward and then as I stared at him my heart started beating faster. Not the first-sight-fiasco-oh-he-is-super-good-looking sort of way but much of harrowing. In those cleaving seconds as I registered he was walking towards our table my heart bled to cry out loud. His imperceptible face and newness of the surrounding, I wanted nothing but to crawl under the table  and let the tears fall stinging  at the back of my eyes. Which was literally irrational. I didn't even know this guy and like that at his first sight my heart tugged harder, tortuously. I clutched  my chest.  It felt as if the days of painful heart had returned in that instant.

He kept on his tread to our table.
Oh, shit! I thought. Does he know me?
He frowned as he approached us. "Wow. Some party here."
Then his eyes fell on me. He smiled. "Hi, there." I nodded and turned away. Blinking my prickling eyes. I was absolute of the a strange look he must had given me but probably  I had not the manners to wait on.
He greeted everyone and settle beside Shruti. By then the scrawny boy  had sprinted past our table into the canteen.
"Man, Nicholas, next time you are late, we'll start before you." Rishi  clapped him on the shoulder. Nicholas gave an apologetic bow, grinning.
I lowered my head. Patting my chest I muttered softly in the furore of the school canteen. "It's okay. It's okay. You are fine. Everything is fine."

After lunch while I was taking notebooks of geography to submit Nicholas's voice called from behind in the empty corridor. "Hey."
I turned and shussed him.
"I'm Nicholas." He drew closer.
I pursed my lips. "I know that."
"Yeah, right." He nodded. "We are in the same team."
"Yes."
He fiddled for a moment there then met my eyes. Damn the tug! "You have bring lot of fries."
I scowled. "Excuse me?"
"Just and observation."
"Wow. Wonderful," I swallowed, ".....observation. Really."
He shook his head. "Oh, no. I mean....they looked rathet good. The  colour and stuff."
"Thanks." I said and stared at him wondering what the hell did he really wanted.
"Really yummy." I didn't know where he was taking the conversation but I had an impulse to smile at that and resolved to give him a wreck.
"Right, well, I've got some left if you want?". I waited and  he just stared as if wondering if I was jocking which I was.
He took a full circle of corridor then stopped in front of me. Closer this time. "Jesus christ! We are, really, like, really talking for the first time and we are discussing fries."
I tilted my head. I couldn't believe he was accusing me of this. "You started it."
"Yes. And you went on with it. Okay wait," he took a deep breath. "I'm Nicholas William."
He waited and I knew I couldn't get away with this so I sighed. "Ileesh Moitra."
"Thats a nice-" He stopped and frowned. "Wait, that a fish."
"Yeah, I know." I snapped and begin walking away.
"Hey fishy?" He called.
"Do not call me fishy!" I glared at him.
"Well, you responded." He protested.
My mouth hung open. "Nicholas William!"
"Sorry." He said and started walking  beside me. "So, why would-?"
"Do not ask why my parents named me that."
"Oh, okay. Sorry." Scratched his head giving me an apologetic look.
See. Everyone. Literally everyone ask this question. I mean who names their daughter after fish, right? Unfortunately, while doing so my parents didn't think it through.
He waved at me and rushed into Chemistry  lab while I to the geography and decided  that was all the conversation  I was to have with and now none at all.
My heart stopped paining and I had acclimatized to the normal beating but now this guy had had it afflicted again which I was not going to welcome.