The Green Room

In The Washroom

Rohan could not eat his lunch. He only thought of Chandni, blissfully unaware of students continually pointing and looking at him. He went to meet her immediately after lunch, but she was sleeping. With Anjali and Chandni away, there was no practice that night. Rohan dreaded what was to come later that night. He knew he would be called by the seniors and punished for his carelessness. He sat quietly on his bed after dinner and waited. Dreadful hours passed. No one called him. The warden took the night roll-call, with his hands in his pockets, and left. Still no summon. The lights were switched off. Rohan crawled into his bed and tried to sleep. But sleep wouldn't come. What had he done? How could she ever forgive him? And her blazer. It was still with him. How cold it must have been...

All of a sudden, the lights were switched on and a group of prefects and seniors barged in and pulled him out of his bed. They had brought hockey sticks; and before Rohan could react, they began showering him with blows and kicks. He didn't know for how long it continued, all he saw was shoes and sticks and heard abuses. He covered his head with his hands as he fell on the floor and felt excruciating kicks in his stomach. He felt himself being dragged around. And just as his head hit something, knocking his lights out momentarily, he heard footsteps hurrying up the stairs. The warden came in with some other seniors. "Come on, guys, let it go." It was Arun Trivedi, his House-Captain. Apparently, he had brought the warden, and, Rohan now noticed, the Head-Boy with him. But they continued to kick and punch him.

"Okay, boys, now," said the warden coldly. "Go back to your dorms!"

Sharma intervened and pulled Rohan out. The seniors left, flipping his bed as they did. The warden scrutinized him as he stood in the center of the dormitory, his night-suit ripped off, shivering from head to toe. He was not visibly hurt, so it would not be much of an issue. "Everyone back to bed!" the warden shouted. "You!" he turned to Rohan, his voice devoid of any sympathy. "Change your night-suit and go to sleep. You can go to Infirmary tomorrow if you want to." With that, he left.

Rohan stood awkwardly in his spot. His cheeks were burning. His legs hurt. He didn't know what to do. So he just stood there and let the bitter night numb his body.

"Are you all right?" Ayush rushed to him the moment the warden was out of sight.

Rohan didn't reply. He looked at his upturned bed. All he wanted to do was to jump inside and... hide. Ayush might have sensed it, for he immediately began making his bed, more neatly than he had ever done for himself. Manav brought him another night-suit from his locker. Rohan didn't change. He crept into his bed as soon as Ayush had finished and pulled the blanket over his face. He was fighting back his tears.

He had not cried when he watched his parents leave nine years ago and he would not cry now. He had felt something painful gnaw at him as they walked away. He had wanted to run to them and pull them back, but was forbidden to leave the Junior School premises. All he could do was catch hold of a railing for support and watch, desperately hoping that they would change their mind and take him along. And then, they were gone. He just stood there, watching the bend around which they had disappeared, half expecting them to come back any moment.

They didn't.

Rohan was all alone in that daunting place. He kept waiting for them. And when it began to get cold, he went to his dormitory and sat on his bed. He had to unpack his trunk and put his belongings into a wooden locker allotted to him, and then unroll his bedding and make his bed. The matrons were busy with kids who were crying, giving instructions to others to make their beds. His mother had bought him a Mickey Mouse bed-sheet he had always wanted. They were very tight on budget. One night he saw her go through her jewelry and the next day he had everything he wanted. And he had literally danced around his house with his new soft fur blanket, while his pet dog jumped around in synchronization, seeming equally happy.