I was eight and I hated that girl.
I hated her the most.
Location: A small town called Anantapur in Andhrapradesh, class III of a small government school.
I was new to the class and the town. I was late by a month to join the batch. I came from another town. My dad got transfered to this new place.
As I sat down on the floor in the first row, someone pulled my hair. I turned back and I see a chubby fair girl with two plaits laughing with few more girls sitting next to her.
(I was the only one with a bob cut and every one had braided plaits)
I was new to the class and the town. I was late by a month to join the batch. I came from another town. My dad got transfered to this new place.
As I sat down on the floor in the first row, someone pulled my hair. I turned back and I see a chubby fair girl with two plaits laughing with few more girls sitting next to her.
(I was the only one with a bob cut and every one had braided plaits)
“Are you new to the class? What’s your name?”, she asked.
“Yes! Sarah” I said.
(I heard the laugh again. Sarah sounded unique or to them.)
Few minutes later, someone poked me from behind. The same girl. When I turned back, she showed me an empty refill and with a witty smile on her face asked me if I have an additional refill or a pen. I said ‘No’.
Thank God! our teacher entered at that moment but bullying did not stop there.
During the break, I sat near the wall with my back and head touching the wall. This time, she dared to come and sit next to me. After few seconds, all of a sudden, she held my head with her two hands and banged it against the wall. I was shocked. Every one laughed.
I did not cry. I did not complain. I was quite. I was new to the town, school and everyone around. I was a tough girl.
The next day when I went to school, I was scared but I acted brave. During the class my teacher asked few questions and every time I raised my hand to answer. My teacher praised me for giving the right answers even though I was new to class and missed many classes at my previous school. She gave us two sets of dictation and I scored 9/10 and 10/10 respectively.(I still remember the word that went wrong in telugu. Shatchakravarthulu.)
Everyone was silent. No one could dare to tell me anything or bully me that day after. My answers and scores made every one silent. In a months time I was our class monitor and then the next year assistant school monitor and a year later school monitor. I was a favourie student for all teachers.
This bubbly foe of mine and her family shifted to a house near to my house. We had a huge play ground and she was new to the area. Slowly we started speaking and she started coming to the ground to play with me.
This foe started being nice to me and very soon we became best friends.
The day came when we had to go to high school. We joined the same school and every day she waved her hand from her house hinting me to start and I used to take my bag and run to join her at a common spot from where we walked to school. We were paired for badminton and we played at school and home. Whenever she couldn’t come to school I was there at her home in the evening giving my notes and help her in homework.
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| In pic: My siblings 🙂 I had to crop mine due to… you know what ! 😉 |
I never liked music and sewing classes but she loved. I always bunked and she enjoyed teaching me some tunes just before our exams and assignments. She would complete her knitting and sewing and come to my rescue quickly.
We laughed out loud many times remembering her banging my head against the wall.
We completed X and it was the time to join college. She chose maths while I opted biology. We joined in different colleges. We met at our physics and chemistry tuitions every day morning but the time we spent together was very less.
Then ater few months, her dad got transferred to a different town and there ended our interactions.
There was no internet, no facebook and no emails. I do not remember her full name to find her now using social media. I wish if some miracle could happen and I find her again.
If it hadn’t been for this prompt by blogadda, this memory would have been buried for more years or forever.
P.S: Looking back on it all, I’m amazed how I managed to handle bullying at school so very well. at that young age. A pat on my back. 🙂
the tin trunk 