September 26, 2006, 18:00 hrs
D V School Main Gate
"I am telling you, she is behind all my missing notebooks," Mitra vented out to Vishal.
They were done with their classes at 4 pm and the two hours of mandatory study hours after that. As the day closed, Vishal walked Mitra till the main gate of their school, on his way to the cricket ground for a late evening match.
"Look, that is all circumstantial," Vishal tried to cool down the raising temper of Mitra.
The disgruntled look on her face as he said those words altered his approach. "Okay, she might have been the culprit, and we kind of know she has something against you. But we don't have any proof for the thefts. Without that it would be hard to pinpoint her as the suspect. I am sure our class teacher, supervisor and even the principal would say the same thing. So, let's be careful for now. Lock your bag always, with those tiny locks we use for suitcases. If it repeats, then we will think of some way to prove it's her."
Mitra was very sceptical of the idea of wait-and-watch. Yet, she trusted her best mate's judgment. Besides, she knew she had inflicted some heavy humiliation that evening on Lekha by pointing her finger at her in the midst of all her classmates. Mitra wanted to assume that Lekha, or the actual culprit if it wasn't Lekha, would back off for some while.
"What's that book?" Vishal asked, pointing at a thick volume clutched protectively in Mitra's arms.
Mitra beamed at him as she held the book out, displaying the title. It was an introductory book on computer networks and programming.
"Why are you studying that?" Vishal was confused.
"This," Mitra flashed the book as she spoke, "is my dream now. You see in all those Hollywood action movies, there's always a guy who is a hacker or programmer, who hacks into systems and gets all the information, discovers the secrets and saves everyone's lives. It looks so cool, doesn't it? I want to be a programmer and hacker like that. So, I am beginning to study computer programming, little by little."
Vishal gave her a look of tiredness as he said, "You are scaring me now. When will you find time for this? We are in the tenth standard now. With all the board exams and studying to do, you would barely be able to touch that book."
"I know," Mitra pouted and said sheepishly. "Still, there's nothing wrong with dreaming and trying."
Vishal shrugged and patted her shoulder encouragingly, muttering, "Good luck with that."
As he headed to the ground for his regular cricket match, Mitra made a slow march to her home, her head bent down in deep thought. She had walked past two streets when a couple of girls stepped right in her path, making her snap her head up in confusion and return her senses to the surroundings.
It was two of her classmates, Shruthi and Bindu, who had stopped her on the way and were standing too close to her. They looked very determined as Mitra searched their faces for an explanation for blocking her way. They barely spoke two words to her in a week in a classroom full of opportunities.
"We need to talk to you," Bindu said quite impassively to Mitra.
"Okay... about what?" Mitra was genuinely nonplussed.
"Not here," Shruthi stated. "Let's walk to the next street." She turned around as Bindu grabbed Mitra's hand with a tad bit too much pressure, pulling her along the road.
As the two girls made the turn to cross the street with Mitra in tow, she caught a glimpse of Lekha standing a few feet away, with two other girls of their class, waiting for Mitra.
And then, it all made sense to Mitra, what the "talk" meant.
"What do you want?" she asked, stopping in her tracks.
"We just want to have a few words with you, clear up a misunderstanding about today," Shruthi tried a softer tone.
Mitra wanted to believe otherwise, but she thought they might know the actual culprit of all the suspicious things happening in their class. Maybe it was all really a misunderstanding. Maybe she had jumped the gun about Lekha due to the prejudice she had. Maybe they could clear up all the misunderstandings and remove the bad blood flowing between them both.
It was a tempting offer. They had never spoken about the issues they were having; maybe speaking openly about them might solve the problem and make school life more peaceful for Mitra.
Yes, things would be more peaceful if they could clear up all the prejudices and misunderstandings. Mitra could show Lekha and their classmates how good a person she is. Then she wouldn't have to be an outcast anymore.
Mitra followed her classmates silently as they took her to a deserted corner on the lane, away from the eyes of random passers-by. Making sure that they wouldn't be seen or heard easily, Lekha and her friends pushed Mitra up against a wall on the side of the street and surrounded her on all open sides.
"What...?" Mitra trailed off, her assumption of peace offering evaporating.
"Why did you point at me?" Lekha snarled at her.
For a moment Mitra couldn't follow the context of the question.
"Did they ask you about who put the notebook in his bag? Why did you point me out and make me into a thief?" Lekha elaborated on her accusation, her nostrils flaring, eyes looking deadly and voice hoarse with anger.
Mitra felt an unknown panic rising in her. She knew deep down that she had done nothing wrong. Yet, it wasn't a situation to argue it out. She was hugely outnumbered. A quick decision was made, and she arched her neck upwards, holding her head high and answered, "I just spoke what I saw. I never told anyone you are a thief. I simply reported what I saw you doing. It was impulsive, not intentionally targeted at you."
Before she could realize it, Mitra got struck on her head.
She yelped in pain and looked up in shock to see Lekha gritting her teeth, her hand raised again.
Mitra was too out of her senses to speak anything. She stared in a daze as Lekha muttered angrily, "You have always been humiliating me. Why do you always go after what I like? You are just a slut who keeps flirting with boys and trying to make an impression on them with all your antics. You think we don't know what you are trying to achieve? You just want everyone's attention. And because everyone in the class likes me you tried to humiliate me. So that you can become the centre of everything. But guess what? I am not going to let you do that again. Tomorrow onwards if you speak even a word in the class, you will be subjected to all the suffering that I have been going through."