Chapter 12

In the beginning of the year, our seats weren't fixed with anyone. Students could sit anywhere with anyone they wanted to sit with. But it wasn't exactly good for studies. We would keep talking and teachers would get tired from telling us to shut up. If physical punishment was allowed, teachers would have left no ass unbeaten. And it had been only few weeks since the classes had started. The lesson to learn from this is that kids are extremely annoying. So, don't have them.

In the end, they changed all students' seats. And like every single time, girls listened while boys did not. In only a few days, boys went back to doing what they were good at. Rebelling and ignoring. We started sitting with whoever we wanted to once again. I sat with each of my friends in turn. Dirk, Prat, Paul, Steve, Kevin… we sat with each other alternatively. But mostly, I sat with Prat, Paul and Kevin. I was better friends with them than others. All boys still used to play that sport, a modified version of rock, paper, and scissors. But the pioneer Gary didn't talk with other boys a lot. He was a member of Bob's group and mostly talked with them.

Our physical educations' periods were few and far between, and we needed something to pass time during the boring lectures. It's not like we were there to study…

Days went by and soon, it was the last working day before the summer vacation. Like every year, there were no classes on that day and teachers designed some activities for students to enjoy. We could sit however we want and do almost anything we wanted. But for me, it didn't go too well. That day, we arranged all the benches along the classroom walls. But we still had some benches left over ever after lining them along the walls. Our classroom was too small. Those who sat on those benches were either the best of friends or those who didn't have anyone else to sit with. Yep, I belonged to the latter. When everyone else was laughing and talking with each other, I was busy sitting with loneliness. A great pair! Both of us were destined to be together forever. It wasn't that I didn't want to talk but others seemed happy with themselves. It was as if no one was interested in me and wanted me with them.

But Kevin was there, and he came and sat with me. My mood lightened up without even realizing it and I decided to give up only after fighting. I started talking with others and I wasn't ignored or rejected. I always expected something from others while not giving anything in return. Everyone else talked with me normally. However, for some reason Dirk was not talking with me. I thought it was weird, but I ignored it. In fact, it was not only that day. I had noticed that he had not been talking with a lot. I didn't think there was a reason behind that and ignored it as a misunderstanding.

Our last working day could have been a great day. But my school had an aim, never let students get what they wanted and be happy. It's an exaggeration but it's not that far-fetched from the truth. What happened? Nothing, we just got some homework for summer vacation. A lot of homework. We already knew where we were going to go for summer vacation… to hell. It was evil. Every year, teachers would give us holiday homework only on the last working day. It was to make sure everyone came to school. Isn't that brilliant? Nope, it was stupid. Students who were absent could just ask their friends. If they had planned it properly then, they should have given different homework to every student.

In summer vacation, I did nothing special like every year. I just did my holiday homework and went to my maternal grandmother's home because my grandfather had died just a couple of months before. After one month of summer vacation, our classes resumed, and I was one of the few students who had finished his homework. How sad it was, I thought. But it was better than going to school after vacation, asking those who had finished their homework for their notebooks and doing it in the school. And if you weren't done before teacher's patience ran out, then be prepared to get humiliated in front of the whole class or even stay at school after the final. It happened to few students. Our section was supposed to be comprised of only the smartest students in the whole class who were school's hope...

But the worse part was when teachers would ask students about what they did during the holidays. I would pray to not get asked anything.

Fortunately, all that studying ended up helping me. We had our mid terms just few days after the summer vacation and that time as well, I was one of the toppers in my class. But not everyone did well. Many students performed very poorly. That's what happened when instead of paying attention in class, you talked with your friends and then, wasted all your vacation having fun. Even though I didn't like studying, being better than others at something felt great. It was finally time for the teachers to take matters in their own hands. There was a reason to be serious. To make sure that students were studying and not wasting their time in chit-chat, our seats were finally fixed. There were three rows of benches with a pair of girls and boys sitting alternately on each bench. The day our sitting arrangement was decided, I just happened to be sitting with Paul. I didn't hate him or anything, but I didn't like that I was going to have to sit with him for a whole year. But no one else objected so, I didn't say anything either. I just accepted my fate.