Chapter 13 -- The Beauty or The Beast?

Chapter 13

The Beauty or The Beast?

The next day, I felt myself light. I felt energetic too. I had never felt that me for past years. I tried to mingle with Arshitha, but I always had a hesitation to talk with her. I decided to talk with Arshitha by a call, on that day.

That night, I made a call to Arshitha. She took the call, I was maintaining the silence. “Guess who?” I said.

“Nithish are you mad, I got your contact”, she said. I realized how foolish I was.

“Sorry Sorry, just tried a joke”

“What’s the matter Nithish?”

“Nothing, Nothing”, I said repeatedly.

“Then can I end the call?” she asked

“No no”

“Are you crazy?”

“I think so Arshi”

“You are really crazy Nithish, say why call me?”

“To speak”

“About?”, she asked and followed by her question maintained the silence and she added, “Nithish I got some work to do, it would be better if you think again and then you can call me”

“So I can call you later?”, I asked with happy tone.

“Don’t bore me just go”, she said and hung the call. I felt the conversation was bore too and it was the first conversation I had with Arshi on the mobile.

Later on next day I told this to Sathya while we are sitting under a tree. She laughed on hearing that. We both leaned back to the same trunk of the tree. She moved without standing and sat in front of me. Sathya said, “Nithish you are an idiot and you don’t even know how to speak with a girl”

“You are girl right?”

“Nithish you are not comfortable when you are talking with someone you like”, she said.

“I like you, but I am comfortable. You can see it right. I got it. I am afraid of beautiful girls only”.

“So you mean I was ugly?”, she asked with an angry face.

“Is that a doubt for you”, I said with a giggle.

“Okay, what do you think about me?”

“You are Sathya, Susan’s friend on that day. Today you are my friend”

“Do you think we could make a pair?”

“What? Seriously?”

“Just answer”

“Hell no! I have a girl”, I said with a smile.

“I think not till now”, she said and added, “You are not going to talk to her too”

“I will”

“Come lets go”, she said and dragged me to search where Arshitha was. We searched long but we could not find her. But we caught Arshitha friends group. “She must be there”, Sathya said.

“Please don’t, why you are doing this all time?” I begged her. She asked me to follow her silently. We both walked near them, suddenly a girl from that group walked towards us. Someone in the group called her, “Kavya don’t leave it”. She never listened to them and walked towards us.

“Don’t you have sense. Won’t you respect a girl”

“Hey, wait mind the words”, Sathya interrupted.

“Sathya calm down”, I said near Sathya’s voice.

“You guys mind your activity”, Kavya shouted and added, “You are you irritating a girl repeatedly even you know that she hates you”

“We are not here to irritate anyone”, Sathya argued.

“Then take this fool away from our sight”, Kavya said. I could not talk as both girls are arguing.

“He is not a fool, you are a fool”

“Please behave with common sense”, Kavya said in a rough voice.

“Stop talking”

“Stop bitching”

“What? Mind the language”, Sathya got anger

“I am careful with my words, you are a bitch. You are always wandering with this fool. How was the payment for him”

I got anger, slapped that girl and pushed her down. Her friends got there and stared at me like a guilt. Archana looked at me and scolded, “What do you think in your mind?”

“What do you think?” I asked back

“Please don’t follow me in all places, my boy friend is mad at me”, she said with a pity voice.

“I did nothing”

“Please let everything be nothing”

“Okay fine”, I said and moved. I could sort, I was troubling her in someway for her relationship and it was a mistaken thought. I didn’t wished to prove I was not bad at that place. I just moved away.

I took Sathya back to the tree where we sat before. We were not sitting both were standing but with the support of the tree at our backs. We were silent, both had anger inside us.

“I shouldn’t have taken you there”, Sathya said.

“Just leave it”, I said and continued “Why you argued with her like that?”

“She was thinking that you are stalking Archana, but we didn’t”

“We never need to prove ourselves to others”

“You don’t need but I need. I expect respect and you need to have it too. That is self respect”, by saying she sat down.

“I will try to, I lost myself after one day”

“What happened on that one day”

“Leave it, I will say that one day on other day”, I said. She smiled and asked, “Why you slapped her if you don’t consider self respect?”

“I lost myself not you”

She closed her eyes and smiled. I thought she was touched on my words but she said, “Nice climate” and added, “Nithish you are.., okay just imagine I am girl you never know”

“Okay”, I agreed.

“Just be clear, I am not the Sathya you are friend with”

“Okay, I understood”, I agreed again.

She stood up and made me to stand too. She is short so she rolled her eyes upwards and looked at me. I bent my head down a little. I didn’t know what happened at that moment. She smiled a little. The whole world felt like fallen into silence. Even the whistling sound of the air was not heard.

Sathya raised her eyebrows and lowered them rapidly once. Her little eyes looked like an entire world to me. It was glowing and it looked like a twinkling star at night.

“Nithish”, she said in a light romantic voice. My hands trembled to hold her cheek within my hands. She tilted her chin a little to look into my eyes. I felt like she was handing over her little chin within my hands. I controlled my hand by tucking them inside the pants pockets and leaned against the tree.

“Sathya you are”, I started with pause.

“I am what?”

“So beautiful”, I said to myself

“A Beast”, I said aloud with a laugh. She punched my belly slowly. I acted like getting hurt. Her smile continued.

Later we went back to hostels. I did some assignment works and laid over my table, the only thought that round inside me was, Arshitha was beautiful, I like her. Sathya is not that much beautiful that last day but she looked like an angel that day. What I am doing? I wished to talk with Madhu but I want to look after myself rather than bothering him all together while he didn’t know who Sathya was and who Arshitha was.

I wished to call Sathya but I didn’t have her contact. That day, I felt myself bad for not having her contact. I sent a message in Facebook, “Hi Sathya, call me when you come online and I texted my contact number”

I was waiting at her chat for a long time, she didn’t showed up. I was going back and getting back to facebook and refreshing again and again. I hurried to Balaji’s room and saw him studying something. I just asked him, “Do you have Sathya’s contact”

“I don’t have it, did Sathya have a mobile phone?” he asked me.

“Yeah she has, she text me from her mobile”, I said. He told that he thought it was her friend’s. I left from that room later.

I was restless then too, so called Susan and inquired her contact. Susan was initially refused to share. Then I convinced her and got Sathya’s contact. I called Sathya. The call ended after a full caller ring went up.

Later I decided to wait. A call came back from Sathya, I took my mobile and accepted the call at the second ring. At call,

Hey Sathya

Yes, Mr. Nithish, I already have your number

How?

Secret[a dirty laugh sound]

Whatever thank you

For?

Arguing for me

Thank you too

For slapping uh?

No, why should I do that

Then why are you thanking?

For the call

Did you expected this call?

Not only today

[On hearing that I smiled, covered the mobile phone’s microphone and hushed “BEAUTIFUL”]

Talking with someone uh?

No No

Then I heard a word something like ‘Beautiful’

Yeah[I didn’t know how she heard it, I might not covered properly]

I was saying that to a friend here,

he was drawing EG

Oh okay okay

Are you single?

What you think about it?

I believe one is brave enough to fall in a well

But not in a pit

Yeah no one tried to fall inside a pit

What about you?

You know right?

Arshitha, my crush

Before Arshitha?

You were in my school right then

you might knew about it?

I won’t mingle much with others

Leave it, it was the thing I told you that

I will tell you on other day

Let it be today

Sathya, I am not in that mood to say

Don’t worry I won’t disappoint you by asking again

No no, I will say tomorrow

Okay Bye, I am having some record work

Bye

We hung the call and got back to our routine. That night, before sleep, my mind was thinking about the call I made with Sathya. Her call made me to feel different. I had no idea what to speak with her but I made the call. From the start of the call we have something to discuss about. Similarly when I spoke with Arshitha, all I could think about her is her beauty not more than that.

Next day, I attended the class. I didn’t met Sathya that morning, but I was thinking of meeting her. At a break she told that she has some work and told she will meet at canteen on that evening. The day was very slow for me. I haven’t had a single look on Arshitha that day.

At canteen, I was waiting for Sathya for a small time. Then I found she was waiting for me on the other table. I went there and met her. She already bought two plates of Samosas for myself and her. She greeted me with the Samosa.

Samosa attracted my eyes first, so I took the samosa and ate it. It was soft, spicy but not much warmer. Sathya was talking something after every bite on samosa. I just nodded my head and said nothing as samosa drew my attention than her.

“Idiot”, she said and beat my back with her notebook.

“Stop it”, I said and asked, “Why are you beating me?”

“Did you hear anything?”

“Yes Sathya I heard”

“You heard nothing”, she said with an acting anger tone. I was convinced with it and dropped my last piece of samosa and said, “Say it”.

She took that last piece of samosa and stuffed it inside my mouth. “Your brain won’t work until it lies opposite to your eyes”. I giggled and smirked. I pointed the samosa on her plate and said, “That also lies in front of my eyes”

She stared at me and without looking down she moved the plate near me. I took the samosa on my right hand and held her chin rapidly with my left hand and put the samosa inside her mouth. Her cheeks swelled and she looked funny. Suddenly, I took my mobile and captured her pic. She got mad on taking that picture. She tried to scold but the samosa inside her mouth didn’t allowed her tongue to spell words. Her words chewed the samosa. I was laughing. On seeing my laugh, the angry faced Sathya laughed too.

“Do you know someone named Jeni in our school?” I asked.

“Yeah, some spoke about her”, she said.

“Do you know her?”

“No”

“She was in my class”

“You loved her right?” Sathya asked at next moment.

“How you know?”

“Idiot Nithish, Don’t keep on asking how you know? How you know? It’s a common thing, if you are talking about a girl then she must be a girl whom you must have loved”

“Clever”, I said.

“I knew I was”, she said proudly.

“She left the school”

“Oh is that she? The girl who quit school as her name was written on washroom as bitch”

“Yes”, I said calmly.

“Was she your crush?”

“No”, I asked. Sathya asked back, “Then?”

“We loved each other”, I said in a low voice.

Sathya laughed on hearing that, I confused and I asked, “Was it funny?”

“No, everyone said she was beautiful and I imagined her with you”, she said and added, “Sorry”.

“Yes, she is an angel”

“Oh, ex-memories uh?” she asked.

“No, I came over them”

“How you got break up?”

“I misbehaved with her”, I said slowly and I felt guilty while saying. Sathya again laughed and asked, “Are you good at saying lies”

“No, it’s truth”

“At first you told that you loved her, I accept it. Love is blind. But, I can’t accept that you misbehaved with her”, she laughed still.

I felt some guilt feeling and sad while thinking of my breakup. On seeing Sathya’s laugh, without my realization I was smiling.

I said, “I am good at lying”

“Yeah I accept this”

“You are beautiful”, I said which I felt to

“Sometimes, you speak truth too”, she said with a beautiful smile.

“Yeah you are”

“You too”

“Accepting this lie”

“Should I argue to prove you handsome”, she said by looking downwards.

“Okay leave it”, lets go for a walk from here to the hostel.

“I am going to girls hostel”

“Will you get me in?”

“Haan”

“I always wished to get in”, I said and stood up and made her to stand. Tiny Sathya stood by gabbing her notebooks. She added, “I too wish to get in the boys hostel”.

“Dirty”, I said with an unpleasant face.

“If a boy wishes to get in its naughty, if a girl wishes then its dirty is it?” she raised a sharp question to me.

“No No”, I excused myself from her. We walked all along, on the way I asked, “Can I ask you something?”

“Yes, are you going to propose me?” she agreed and asked a question herself.

“Why you say that?”

“Because usually, in many movies I have watched, when a hero asks heroine ‘Can I ask you something?’ then he propose her”

“Am I looking cinematic to you?”

“You are not a hero, so no”, she replied with a naughty tone.

“I have been noticing you. You are talking good, very jovial but, you are not mingling with anyone why?”

She was behaving naughtily until I asked her then she dropped into silence. “Sorry”, I said.

“It’s okay”, she said.

“You told you were not good at making friends at school, so that I asked you”, I said with a sorrowful face.

“No. It’s okay”

“You can share with me if you felt anything hard for you”

“Okay Nithish”

“Is that Love?”

“Yes”

“Do you loved any boy?” I asked slowly.

“Not a boy”, she said in low voice and added, “A girl”. I was confused at that moment and I thought she was a lesbian at that time. I felt bad for knowing her as lesbian as I had interest over her. But she said a line that took away my disappointment.

“She was my sister”, she said in a low voice. It was my saving words.

“What happened to her?” I asked by making her to sit near a bench on the side walk of the college road. Sathya hold her notebooks tightly and crushed them with sadness. I felt wrong for remembering her something that shouldn’t be remembered.

She started, “I had a sister, her name is Reshmi. She completed her degree when I was doing tenth grade. I used to fight with her often and she will fight back too. She trusted me more than anyone in the world and I too. She told me that she was in a relationship with a boy his name was Ramesh. I kept it all within myself. One day we had a fight, I was scolding at her and she scolded back. While fighting I forgot what I am talking and scold her by saying that she will run away from home with Ramesh. My father heard it and he inquired about Ramesh to me. I hid about their relationship from dad to me best. But, my sister behaved boldly at that moment. She confessed that she was in a relationship and wish to live with him. It made my dad to go mad on her. She called Ramesh immediately. Then Ramesh family came in and they were very supportive for Ramesh and Reshmi. Reshmi decided to go with Ramesh and left me. If I hadn’t fought with her, she might have said in right time and she may be with me as my sister now”, she said with a tear.

I didn’t know what to say, but I wiped her tears and said, “It’s not your fault, smile”

“It’s not like that Nithish, I hurt my dad”

“Was he angry with you?” I asked.

“He was”, she said and I added, “Now?” Sathya said no.

“What about your sister did she showed up?”

“My dad hate seeing her, so she moved with Ramesh to other place and she never mentioned where”

“Even your mother don’t know care about your sister?”

“I lost my mother too Nithish”, she said with a weeping voice. I was melted at that line, I could feel her pain on weeping for the real support in her family. I could do nothing other than to cover her within my arms. I held my hand over her shoulders and tapped her hand to calm her cries. She was shorter, she tilted her head and she rested her ears over my shoulder. My eyes were sharing a tear for her too.

She noticed my tears and said, “Why you cry?”

“I don’t know”, I said.

“Smile”

“You first”, I said by releasing her from my arms. She put a fake smile with some tears.

“I need a big smile”, I said. She smiled with her eyes on hearing me and said, “Now you”. On following her words, I smiled.

“I was once the talkative person, later this situation changed me to someone who is very quite”, she said.

“You can count me even on your tears too”, I said.

“I will and you should remember Sathya is there for you always”, she said and stood up. I nodded and stood up.

“Coming to girls hostel?” Sathya asked.

“Arshi was day scholar, so I think it is useless in coming there”, I said with a smile.

“You can come to see me”, she said.

“Why the hell should I come for a beast when there is a beauty waiting for me”

“Oh my god, am I a beast to you?” she asked with a laughing smiling anger.

“Definitely, do you have any doubts in it?”

“Definitely not Mister”, she said and waved bye to me and walked to her hostel and I walked to mine. I was smiling and thinking about Sathya tilted over my shoulder. I didn’t knew how it happened, a puzzle raised in me. Did I held my arm over her shoulders? Or Did she tilted her head over my shoulders?

This puzzle made me to confuse a little but it made me to have a clear mind that there is a something inside that beast. At this point, on thinking of Arshitha. She was just a girl attracted to my eyes but Sathya drew my heart for her. Beauty or Beast? I will go the beast now.