The Wait

The place- a small room in a two-roomed flat in south Kolkata.

The time-7.30 in the evening.

The main character of our story-if you think this to be an imaginary piece of fiction –is a boy in his early 20s.He isn’t what you will call good-looking.Nowadays when you want to say that someone isn’t good-looking,you say his looks are unconventional.So I guess you can say this boy’s looks are unconventional.Although the boys looks have nothing to do with this story still it is conventional(pun intended) to give the protagonist’s description before you begin.

So our protagonist is sitting in front of a computer.A movie is playing there and although he is staring at it,his attention seems to be elsewhere.You can tell this by the way he keeps looking at the wall-clock every few minutes and fidgets restlessly.As if he is expecting something to happen.Or it could be that he expected something to happen and it hasn’t happened yet-I wouldn’t know…you see…I am just a spectator like you.

The clock strikes 8.The boy gives up on the movie as a bad job.He stretches and gets up.He moves over to his desk.A bunch of thick books lay there carelessly strewn over the place.He looks at them and a for a second there is a shade of guilt in his eyes.His exams begin in a week and he really should be sitting poring over these books instead of waiting for who-knows-what.Don’t ask me how about his exams.Narrators know about these things ok?

He looks at the watch and makes a gesture of impatience.As if it is somehow the clock’s fault.He again goes and sits down at the computer and plays a song.Its a song that is as slow as his narrative and as sweet as a piece of Choco Alaska from Sugar and Spice.Somehow it manages to calm him down.He closes his eyes as if listening to the song.

He hurriedly opens his eyes and realizes he had fallen asleep.The clock says 9.27.

“Damn it!!” he mutters under his breath as he jumps up from his chair.He moves towards his cell phone and checks it.It says “1 unread message”.His pulse rate increases as he opens the message.It reads-

“Bring out the beer bottles dude.I have the question paper.call me in 10 min-Vivek”

He heaves a sigh of relief.

He pulls on a sweater and goes out.Reaches a phone booth-After all he cant use his own phone for this.Too risky.He dials a number-“Hello Lake Police Station?The question paper for the 1^st exam of AGC University has been leaked-….”

He hates doing this.After all Vivek is his friend.But he has no option.Vivek is also his biggest competition this year-and he has to win this time….