Serpent in the Garden

Chapter 2

The only person she knew in St. Paul's school besides Sam was Ameena, who used to be in her tuition class. She was in the computer science batch.

When Parveen became worked up, she would visit Ameena. But first, she would stand in the corridor and check if she was free. Parveen was worried she would take up Ameena's time with her friends from class. But Ameena was not busy today and noticed her standing outside class straight away.

"Oh here comes the popular girl!" Ameena quipped as she came out to meet her.

"Stop it! You don't know what I am going through!" cried Parveen.

Ameena found her trepidation hilarious.

"I feel so sorry for you, Parveen. Tanya's antics are now the talk of the town"

"She wants to visit me on the weekend to ogle at him", whined Parveen without introductions.

"What!" Ameena looked at her incredulously before continuing, "Wow, she is dedicated!"

"I have to follow her around while she hunts him in school and now she will come to my home too!" Parveen cried and covered her face in frustration.

Ameena grimaced. She replied.

"Parveen, you should stop hanging out with them. They are known for being nasty"

Then she became thoughtful for a moment. She touched her index finger on her plump cheek.

"On second thoughts, hang out with them so that you can supply me with all the school secrets. Nothing happens in school without those girls getting wind of it!"

Parveen gave her a deathly side-eye.

"I don't want any secrets!" she cried. Parveen dreaded going back to class. She wished she had taken computer science like Ameena. She would not have been tangled with Tanya's love life nor be forced to befriend girls who were so different from her.

Ameena's friend came out to meet her. "This is my friend Sandhya", Ameena introduced her. Sandhya smiled at her. She was a chubby girl with a round face and twinkling beady eyes.

"Tanya seems to be giving you a hard time" Sandhya sympathised with her. She listened patiently while Parveen explained her troubles. But Ameena teased Parveen for getting caught up in Tanya's schemes. They talked until the warning bell rang signalling the end of recess. She felt guilty for talking ill about Tanya behind her back but it felt good to release some of the pent-up frustration. Sandhya seems like a nice girl, she thought to herself.

The second bell rang after she reached her class. Tanya and her friends were talking animatedly on the back bench with some guys. They quieted down as Tanya sat down next to Parveen

Once the boys went back to their seats Tanya enquired Parveen.

"Where were you?"

"I went to meet Ameena from computer science. She was in the same tuition class as me last year."

Tanya raised her eyebrows and smiled mischievously at the rest of the gang.

"Oh you mean Miss Kettle!" They erupted in laughter when Tanya said that.

"What do you mean?" Parveen asked even though she already had an inkling of what they meant.

"You know, she is so dark she looks like an old sooty kettle!"

Parveen turned pale.

"Maybe we should change it to Powercut, Tanya," Samara added with a giggle. "cos she will become invisible in a power outage".

"You are right, we should change it to Powercut," agreed Tanya. Fortunately, the teacher entered just then, and Parveen was spared from continuing the conversation.

Parveen's eyes became downcast. But Ameena is so pretty, she thought to herself as she gripped her fingers uncomfortably. She has smooth skin, pretty long hair, and is very good at studies and sports, she wanted to say. But she became tongue-tied at their brazenness.

If only Ameena knew what Tanya was saying about her. So much for secrets.

When the last bell rang Tanya grabbed Parveen's hands and they walked to the row of school buses. Parveen noticed Tanya scanning for Sam. He appeared just ahead of them, chatting with some friends as he made his way towards bus number 7. Tanya's pace quickened at the sight of him and pulled Parveen along. Parveen sighed quietly and braced herself for the attack on her nerves. They caught up and stood behind him in line. He eyed them in his periphery for a second before continuing to look ahead at the students boarding.

Tanya stood with Parveen with an excited glint in her small eyes. She grinned at Parveen while stealing glances at Sam who towered in front of them. Parveen half-heartedly shot an encouraging smile back.

A group of girls waved at Tanya as they walked by.

"Oh, it's time for me to go. See you tomorrow Parveen!" She pranced over to them. Sam stepped inside the bus and it was Parveen's turn.

It took around twenty minutes for the bus to reach her stop. Parveen did not get a seat so she stood in the front as she observed the scenic routes the bus took, the beautiful canopy of trees, and along the hilly terrain of SEZ Kalamasserry. The crowded bus thinned out as students alighted at their stops, and Parveen got a chance to sit.

Next was her stop, so Sam made his way to the front from the back of the school bus where he usually sits with other boys. He stood next to the exit, his hands grabbing the pole across him for balance as the bus rumbled along uneven roads.

Parveen threw occasional glances at him wondering what made him look so attractive to Tanya. It was easy to figure out, Sam was tall, with broad shoulders, and he played football after school so he had a healthy, slim physique. She observed the chunky watch on his wrists, narrow eyes with thick expressive eyebrows as he gazed ahead at the road. He had jet-black spiky hair that he parted to one side, but wouldn't stay entirely flat.

She remembered how it was even more spiky when they were younger. He used to look very naughty with his spiky hair. They used to play together when they were younger. But their familiarity diminished as they grew up and her father started getting more critical of her interactions with the opposite gender.

It was almost time for her to get down. She opened her backpack and quickly fished for her hijab. She folded the ends of the cloth lengthwise and draped it around her head with practised speed. She patted stray hair neatly underneath the veil and flicked her long braid to the front so that it was covered properly. She dipped her hands in the bag again for the brooch to pin the folds of the hijab in place. But search as she may she couldn't find it in her bag. She decided to let it be.

The bus halted and she alighted after Sam. It was a 15-minute walk from the bus stop to her house. She quickened her pace and passed Sam. She only had a few minutes before her Duhr prayer time was over, she had to get home before that.