PART 1 - AN IRRECOVERABLE FALL

AN IRRECOVERABLE FALL

(A short story)

PART 1:

“I was not meant to love,

And I was never meant for you.

My life was decided,

But your love-

It made me forget everything.

It took me to a new world.

Hope was there in it.

My lost past was there in it.

But finally I broke you I know.

Words won’t help,

But I have nothing else to offer.

I can only say this again and again,

Inside my heart,

I am sorry, I am sorry.”

Shanila, a third year engineering student, was biting her nails and turning the pages of her lab record fast. It was her 3^rd year, 6^th Semester Electrical Lab exam. She had done all the hard work for the exam and her parents even doubted whether she had lost weight during the strenuous preparation session. But when the exam was just minutes away from hugging her she was not able to remember anything. The formulas seemed new to her eyes. The drawings looked incomprehensible and entirely random. Thus, the confidence level in her plummeted to an all-time low. The last glimpses she passed of the record book were making her head swirl like her imagination of how the Bermuda triangle would look like. Her batch would be called in any moment from then on and her heart beat was at an all time best with a burning chest. She closed the book, shut her eyes and sighed with tiredness.

On opening her eyes she saw the peon entering the classroom and say, “Batch No: 3”

Shanila was like thunderstruck. “Batch No: 3”: the words echoed in her head. She closed her eyes even tighter this time, took a deep breath and started walking along with the randomly chosen others from the ‘Batch No: 3’ to the laboratory.

After a while the exam commenced and her experiment to do was ‘Load test on three phase Induction motor’.  She had studied this experiment very thoroughly. But sitting in that classroom and staring at the question paper in her hand, she was not able to remember anything of it, save the name of the experiment. Only the previous day she had practiced drawing the diagrams of it five to six times without even the slightest reference from the lab book. But at the moment, she was surprised that she could only faintly remember it. Shanila was close to tears.

Most of the students in the hall had finished the drawings of their concerned experiments and were submitting it to the Lab Teacher. The procedure was such that, the drawings were to be initially approved by the Lab teacher before proceeding to the practical part. Out of the twelve members of her batch, only three were yet to finish the drawings and she was one among them. Some students were discussing with each other and some were asking questions symbolically by means of their hand to the ‘preppies’ who had finished with the initial procedures. She was a very silent girl in the class and had only a very few to call as friends. Her only friend was ‘Fathima’ and she was to appear in another batch. She had none to ask for help in the exam hall. Tears had welled up in her eyes and were about to flood all throughout her cheeks any moment. Shanila was feeling suffocated. She drew the outline of the diagram with quivering hands, but which she knew was completely wrong. Tension had mopped the memories from her brain leaving only some debris behind. And she knew very well that the debris won’t help her get the pass mark in the exam.

Shanila knew not how to continue. She was thinking whether to swap the question with the Lab teacher or not which would end up her loosing fifty percent of the total allotted marks; meaning that she would eventually fail in the exam, for sure.

She put her head down to the bench and closed her eyes. A final resort would be a prayer. Her beautiful face was all red with pressure. Suddenly she heard a sound, “Shhh….”

She didn't lift her head up. Then she heard it again, “Shhh…Shhh…”

She lifted her head up to see from where this sound was originating. She heard it again. And this time it was a very powerful and long sound, “Shhhhhhhhhhh…”

She turned her head sideways and saw her classmate Anoop looking at her in a very shrewd and stealthy manner. He had a pair of very beautiful eyes and an expressive face. He asked, with his sound mixing with the air thereby adapting sort of a hissing sound, “Which one?”

Shanila didn't say anything. She kept quiet, gaping at him. She was too shocked to respond.

The next moment Shanila saw Anoop suddenly retaining the posture of a studious student writing. Shanila didn't quite understand why suddenly this change in demeanor occurred. Then she saw the teacher passing in front of him. Quickly after the teacher crossed, like a chameleon, his color changed. He switched back to his stealthy mode, professionally. He asked again aerially, “Which one yaar?”

She fumbled at first but then said in a hissing manner, “Uh.. 3 Phase induction motor… Load test”

Anoop suddenly went back to his studious-mode and then he was seen keeping his pen to his forehead as though thinking something very deep, like recollecting something that was just there. His other hand went from above the table to his pocket and came back. He then started writing again. After that he was seen lifting his head up and check with his 180 degree eyes if anyone was watching him. In a flash, he threw something at her. For Shanila it was like a scene from an Opera with a much unanticipated climax.

Shanila felt like she was shot with an arrow but it was a just a light weighted paper ball which hit her forehead. The paper ball landed up on her table. She gaped at the paper ball in front of her in disbelief. Her eyes were wide open. She was shivering and breathing heavily. Perspiration bedewed her nose tips. She then looked at Anoop in awe.

Anoop sort of shouted, “Take it idiot”

She shuddered initially, but then soon came back to her senses and swiftly took it. Shanila had worn her purdah. She then slightly shifted the tip of its hood to the table and took the paper very easily without anyone’s notice.

Anoop was shocked to see this. He thought, ‘Girls have this talent by birth. Damn.....’

Shanila had become very sharp all of a sudden; her hidden talents were taking birth. She then opened the rolled paper between the gap her long purdah and the bench provided. Her eyes were shining. Her brain was working perfectly. Unlike the last time she felt when she had opened up her lab record in the classroom, this time with just one single glance at the hand-drawn diagrams and the formulas inside the paper bit, everything became clear to her mind.

She was ready to put it back in her pocket, crushing it, to relieve herself from the tension of getting caught. She had never been in this kind of a situation before in her entire life. She heaved a deep breath and looked at Anoop and smiled. He looked at her and said alarmingly, “Don’t crush or tear it” 

He pressed, “I need it back”

Shanila knew not why he wanted it back. She had no idea that it was his back up plan.

She nodded her head and after neatly rolling the piece of paper, she carefully slid it inside her churidar pocket.

Anoop, in five minutes time, saw Shanila go to the lab teacher and submit her answer paper.  When Anoop completed the drawings and formulas in another half an hour’s time, he saw Shanila calling the teacher for checking her ‘Output’ for the given experiment.

Anoop thought, ‘Bloody Girls’

This was when Anoop was called in for Viva. Viva question and answer sessions happened according to the new roll number allotted to each student in the batch. Shanila was waiting by his side as her turn came next to Anoop’s.

The teacher started asking Anoop questions on electrical engineering. She then downed the standard to a lesser level and asked him on the experiments in the lab record. Then she again stepped down and asked him on the experiment that he was supposed to do. Then she asked with a sigh, “What do you know son? Tell me that and I shall ask according to that”

Anoop’s friends were laughing. But Shanila was really hurt seeing Anoop struggle. But nevertheless Anoop was full time smiling at the teacher. Like ‘Gautama Budha’ who with his tranquil smile spreads peace, he was trying to spread and build peace and compassion in his teacher’s heart for him.

The exam was over. When the batch got out of the exam hall, Shanila came to Anoop running and said, “Thanks”

Anoop was shocked to see her come to him. He exclaimed, “You? You talk?”

Shanila laughed a bit shyly and said, “Yeah I talk”

Anoop smiled and said, “Hey, I was just joking. You would pass right? I screwed up yaar. I wrote an experiment in the starting. Then I realized that a pocket-confusion had occurred. I found that I was writing the answer for some other experiment. Screw that Benny! He was the one who arranged the bits in order for me. Then I had to start from the scratch. And between this bloody scene, the teacher’s viva. Ooh. Damn!”

Shanila’s beautiful face was covered with sadness, “Oh am sorry”, she said in a sweet and soothing tone with a look of concern and sympathy.

Anoop reacted to this in a surprised tone, “Sorry? For what? Are you mad? Anyhow I heard Amal screwed up his exam as well. He forgot to write in the bit paper one single experiment. And he got the same experiment as question to my good luck” Anoop was laughing heartfelt.  He continued, “Anyhow I have a company next time”

Shanila was shocked at this response from Anoop. Anoop suddenly asked her, "Oh Yeah! I forgot. You have the paper bit still with you right? I really don't wanna write this bullshit again for the next exam"

Shanila was shocked on hearing this. She asked in a doubtful tone, "Next exam?"

Anoop looked at her like she was some illiterate girl. "The supplementary exam my dear"

Shanila was fumbling for a way to respond. Before she could think of anything, Anoop was called by Amal from a distance, “Anoooop. How did it goooo?”

Anoop with a smiling face, showed his middle finger to him. To Shanila’s surprise, she saw Amal running towards Anoop and hugging him. And they both left laughing.

Shanila threw an appalled look at the joyful figure of Anoop walking with his friend. Her mouth was wide open. But then she smiled unknowingly, very rare for a preppie as well as desolate girl.

(to be continued...)

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Hemanth Sreekumar

+91 8197560094