Some things are expensive
Chapter 2
What else could I do?
Ammu forcefully took me to school that day.
A new school.
A new place.
And unfamiliar faces everywhere.
Fear slowly wrapped around my heart.
Ammu made me sit inside the classroom and then stepped outside, standing near the door. The moment she disappeared from my sight, my eyes filled with tears. Before I could stop myself, I started crying.
Hearing my sobs, Ammu rushed back into the classroom. She gently spoke to the teacher,
"Ma'am, today I didn't bring Ifty's books. Can I take her home for today? I'll send her tomorrow with all her books."
The teacher smiled and nodded in agreement.
At that moment, it felt like I had won the whole world.
As soon as we reached home, I started jumping around happily. But my happiness was short-lived. There was no escape anymore. From the very next day, school became a regular part of my life.
Days turned into weeks.
Weeks turned into months.
And just like that, two years passed right before my eyes.
Now, I was in Class 4.
Sometimes, I couldn't even believe it myself. It felt like only yesterday I had walked into school holding Ammu's hand, scared of everything around me. And now—here I was, already in Class 4.
Somewhere along the way, I made my first true friend.
Her name was Aditi.
She was a sweet girl, with a warm smile that made school feel a little less scary. Almost every school day passed with her by my side. Later, I became friends with Himu and Anika too. They were just as kind—and always together, inseparable, like they were glued to each other.
Class 4 passed quietly, wrapped in laughter, friendships, and routine.
And then, in the blink of an eye—
I stepped into Class 5.
That day, my heart was filled with excitement. For the first time ever, boys would be sitting in the same classroom as us.
The moment Aditi and I entered the room, we froze.
Boys.
They were actually there.
To us, they looked nothing less than aliens from another planet. We whispered, stared, and tried to act normal—but failed miserably.
Suddenly, a strange thought crossed my mind.
What if… I became friends with a boy?
Aditi and I exchanged glances and noticed one boy in particular. After a while, we found out his name.
Tonmoy.
And without knowing it, that simple moment was about to change everything.