Suban Adhikari
The class had already begun. Our Social Studies teacher was about to write something on the board, when a voice was heard coming from the door, “May I come in, sir?” Everyone in the class looked towards the door only to find Rakesh standing there restlessly. Some students began to laugh and others started to speak under their breath… ‘Silence, please!’ the teacher’s shout echoed in the room, his eyes turning towards Rakesh. ‘Not again. Why are you late?! You’d better have a good explanation’ he shouted again. Rakesh was stumped. He knew he was done for. Embarrassed, he looked here and there. The teacher got furious. He motioned Rakesh towards him and smacked him across his face. Rakesh’s eyes glowed red with anger and embarrassment. Rubbing his face gently, he stared at the teacher. Then the teacher growled, ‘Get back to your seat, dumb fellow!’ Rakesh flounced towards the back of the room, with a creepy smile hovering across his face. He used to sit with Aarush, his best friend. But that day he sat on the last bench all by himself.
‘Let’s get a bottle of water from the filter,’ Aarush asked Rakesh during the short break but he zipped his lips and simply left.. During the next class, we smelt something strong and strange. It was like raksi, local alcohol. The teacher asked quizzing, ‘What is this smell?! It seems it doesn’t belong here.’ Then the teacher’s eyes fell upon a small liquid stream rolling over the floor finding its way. The teacher craned sideways to get a better view only to find out that it was dripping from Rakesh’s bottle. He asked, ‘What are you drinking little boy?’ Then Rakesh started to stammer, ‘Na… Na…Nothing si…si sir. It’s ju…ju …st water”. Then the teacher immediately felt suspicious. He went close to Rakesh and demanded him to show what there was in the bottle. Rakesh looked panicked. He was not ready to give his bottle to the teacher. He could neither reveal nor sweep it under the rug. Then the teacher snatched the bottle from his hand and smelt it. To his horror, he shouted, ‘Raksi?!’ It was a strong and peculiar smell filling our noses. ‘What do you think our school is? Bar? I’ve had enough. Come out!’ We heard the teacher shout, his body trembling with anger. We all knew where Rakesh’s next destination would be. The principal’s office.
Rakesh didn’t return to the class till the last period. I heard the last bell ring and everyone hurried home except me and Aarush. After a while, Rakesh showed up at the classroom door… His face was black and blue, his eyes filled with anger… He didn’t look at us. He simply took his bag and walked out of the room.
The next day there was a downpour. Everyone was in hurry to get to the classroom. Rakesh arrived earlier than usual. As he was about to enter the classroom, two boys blocked his way and said, ‘Why are you back?’
Rakesh looked puzzled and asked, ‘What do you mean?’
They replied, ‘Haven’t you seen the noticeboard, loser?’
Rakesh replied angrily, ‘No!’
‘Then, you’d better get going…’
I was puzzled too. Rakesh went for the noticeboard outside the staff room. Out of curiosity, I followed him along the corridor. I saw him standing by the staffroom, his eyes glued to the noticeboard. Standing by him, I also read the notice to find that he was expelled from school because of yesterday’s incident. Anger suddenly flared in his eyes. He shouted, ‘If I am expelled from the school, why should I be here? What is the use of these books, huh?! With these words, he flung his bag that landed in the dustbin nearby. He went out cursing everyone. With a sigh, I returned to the class with a heavy heart. Some boys were still making fun of him in his absence.
Rakesh was gone now.
Our classes ran as usual. Everyone was feeling that someone was missing from the class. Obviously, it was Rakesh. But soon he was forgotten. The incident was now water under the bridge. I could understand it was hard for Aarush to be in the class without him.
One day our principal during assembly said, ‘Listen students, if you don’t study well, you’ll end up like Rakesh from Grade Nine’. His warning reminded us of Rakesh once again. The long-forgotten incident flashed into our minds. Even though he was ill-disciplined, after all he was our friend. He would make us laugh; he would entertain us.
A week later, we heard that the school was giving the last chance to Rakesh. We also found that the school administration had tried to contact him at his number, but the number was invalid. Then no one knew about his whereabouts.
One day, Aarush and I were having snacks in the canteen. Missing Rakesh badly he said, ‘Rakesh once had told me about his family. ‘What’s that?’ I asked in curiosity. ‘His mother passed away when he was one year old. When he was eight his father was thrown under the bus by his friend causing him to end up in prison. Then he started to live with his drunkard Uncle who gave him food just to survive, but no love. He once took me to his uncle’s house. It’s in the slum by the river. Then, he never talked about his family nor did he take me to his house again.
One Saturday, Aarush took me with him to the slum where Rakesh was living with his uncle. After walking for half an hour along the bank of the river Bishnumati, we were before a small slum with about 20 huts. Pointing at one of the huts roofed with tin, Aarush said, ‘This is his uncle’s house’. We went near the hut only to find it locked from outside. There was a man sitting on a wooden bench by the hut, puffing at a cigarette and coughing. ‘Uncle, could you please tell us where Rakesh and his uncle are?’ Aarush asked the man. He turned his head and said, ‘Huh! Rakesh? The other evening I saw him being thrashed by his uncle. No idea why. He always beat the poor fellow. But that day was the worst. I haven’t seen them since then. With these words, he puffed at his cigarette once again. We left the slum with heavy hearts.
On the way back, Aarush said, ‘Rakesh never told me that his uncle was so cruel… Why did he hide it from me?’
‘Maybe because of his uncle.’ I said.
‘I guess you’re right.’ He replied.
That evening when I returned home, my mother asked. ‘What happened? Did you see Rakesh?’
I replied, ‘No’. Then I told her the whole story. She sighed, “Poor boy”.
We felt sorry for him. We tried everything to find Rakesh but in vain. After a week, we told the whole story to our friends. Even the students who would make fun of him were now feeling sorry for him. Though unruly, he was our friend. It was like missing one of our own family members.
One day when I was returning from school I began to wonder what might have happened to him. While in the canteen Aarush and I often asked each other, ‘Where might be Rakesh at this moment? What might be he doing?’ But we had no answer.
One morning, my father was reading a newspaper sitting outside. Suddenly, he called out, ‘Hey, isn’t it Rakesh, your friend? The one who got expelled from the school?’ I rushed out asking, ‘What happened to him? Has he been found? and looked at the newspaper. Yes, it was him. The newspaper heading read- A Teenage Boy Caught Carrying Drugs. There was his photo too.
I felt as if someone stabbed me. I could hardly believe my eyes. I looked at the paper once again to be sure that the boy was Rakesh. No doubt. It was him.
When I reached school everyone in the class was talking about Rakesh. He became the talk of the town for some days. As the days went by, he has forgotten again.
One late afternoon I was returning home from school, tired and bored from school activities. It was a windy and cold day. I was feeling as if something was wrong. All at once, I saw someone like Rakesh standing at the chowk ahead… I hurried towards that boy. No doubt, it was Rakesh. I was very surprised to see him. He looked tired, and his eyes drowsy. I asked him,’ Hey Rakesh, long time no see. Where did you disappear to? Then he took a deep breath and said, ‘When I got expelled from school, my uncle beat me very badly. Then he said that we were leaving the house. Later he took me to an unknown place at night. He suddenly tied my hands and tried thrusting into a sack. I somehow escaped from him.’
‘Ufff, so devilish!’ ’I sighed.
He nodded and continued, ‘Then I was left helpless and hopeless. As I was walking in the street shivering with hunger and cold at night, a man took pity on me and took me to his house. He gave me food to eat. He was a good man, I thought. That night I slept in his house. The next morning he told me to deliver a packet to a man under the Bagmati Bridge. I met the man and was about to hand over the packet. Suddenly two cops turned up there. One of them caught me by the neck. But that man managed to escape, leaving me alone there.. They kept me in prison for a week and let me out. Whatever, who cares?. With these heartbreaking words, he walked past me even without saying goodbye. I turned back and saw him limping ahead, clenching his right hand in pain and carrying a wounded heart sprinkled with the salt of sadness.
I sighed and walked my way… Then I heard myself say, ‘If only the school hadn’t expelled him that day…’
[Suban is a student of grade seven at LRI School, Kathmandu.]