Chapter 4
School Clinic
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Nitin was lying o his back, his fingers locked together on his chest. The bed was as comfortable as it could be. The blanket was encouraging him to doze on further, but he was curious. When his eyes opened, he saw a fan rotating on the ceiling. Nitin had woken up with a smile. But then he realized it was horrible. Whatever had happened…
Before he could remember the snake incidence, images of his mother flashed. Her eyes had momentarily flared green.
Nitin had trouble deciding whether it was just a dream or something big. It might had been his thirst for knowing his mother that he dreamt of something silly—like when there were exams the next day and he would dream of solving the tough paper. Something told him he was not right. He had felt himself there. The wind, the snow, everything. It had been real. Then why did he see it?
Before he could ponder any more, a boy (he was setting his hair in place) and a girl entered (her palms joined).
Nitin was in the school infirmary. The room was large, large enough to accommodate 11 sick people at once. Similar white beds ran throughout the clinic. The smell was there, the smell he always felt in the medical wings.
Nitin smiled at the visitors. Vaibhav and Heena. Least of whom he had expected.
Vaibhav, possibly the most impossible boy, had jus been paired with him in chem practicals. Nitin again wondered what was there in him. Vaibhav was taller than he was. Practically he wasn’t a bully, but arrogant all the same.
Heena was a quiet girl. She minded her own business and did her work without help, and she was the most obliging girl of the class.
“Hi,” Nitin said in a weak voice.
‘God,” exclaimed Vaibhav, “you fainted and lost half your voice.”
So good of him to be cynical.
“Yeah,” Nitin said, “I fainted.”
“Are you okay now?” Heena looked up.
Nitin smiled at her and replied, “I am feeling batter, thank you.”
“I came he—I mean we came here two say get well soon.” Vaibhav eyed Heena for a fraction of second.
“So kind of you, Thank you.” Nitin was getting irritated. They were thinking I had endured a heart attack. “But really, I am okay. I just fainted.”
“But how?” Vaibhav demanded. “I mean that stick just broke off and then you fainted. Did you get a fragment knock on your head?”
“Vaibhav!” Heena complained.
“Okay, you need rest, I understand. By—wait a minute! You didn’t reply last night.”
“So you sent me that! In the dead of night!”
“But you wee awake, weren’t you? Fiddling with your canvas.”
“Well, no. But you have gotten me into a great trouble! My phone’s confiscated.”
“That is sad. I just wanted to ask for help. For Bio, you know?”
“You do homework that late?” I couldn’t control my surprise.
“That doesn’t matter. I had piled up everything. Bye.”
“Bye.” Heena smiled.
Then they left.
After some minutes had passed, Dr. Maya emerged from deep inside the room. Her hair was clipped in a bun. Nitin had heard dr. Maya didn’t get as much attention as other teachers, so she took on trying a frame a day for a week. Today she was wearing wide red framed spectacles. She wore a white coat above her blue sari.
“Oh dear, you woke up,” said Dr. Maya. “Is there any ache in your head?”
“No.”
“Are you feeling like vomiting?”
“No. I—”
“Are you feeling weak?”
“No. I am per—”
“Great then. You want to rest or go?”
Her body language is always comical. Some claim she is literally mad.
Nitin had fainted during the break. If had been unconscious even for as long as twenty minutes, then still it would be math. Oh c’mon, he thought, there’s no escaping from math. One day or the other you have to face math.
Nitin decided to go.
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Nitin realized his decision had been for good, or he would have missed an important portion. Every portion in math is important!
As Nitin stepped into the class, every eye was pointed toward him. Apart from having stage fear, Nitin’s nerves trembled when a crowd looked at him, analyzing all his actions. He became more aware of his action that way, and tend to do every movement perfect. And if perfection didn’t come, he would play the dumb-role—pretending to hit something while getting up, straightening his shirt and holding hands together.
This time, gazes were mixed with whispers.
Even Mrs. Nagar looked up from the thick book. “Come in.”
The first one to ask Nitin what had happened was Ketan, my partner.
To say truthfully, Nitin himself didn’t know what had happened. The snake hadn’t attacked him. It had stared at him. And then he had raised his arm, and the splinter…Nitin decided it would be better if he postponed his thinking time.
And Nitin knew, before the school was over, the whole class would have been enlightened with three golden (used for escaping really, really tough situations) words: I don’t know.
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