Tag: family

Chapter Thirty: Relative Trouble

Praveena enjoyed her leisure time. She didn’t do much the first couple of days; she ate well and gave herself a lot of rest. ‘You deserve it,’ her inner voice convinced her it wasn’t laziness.

A week later, Kamal mentioned Aunt Kameela. “Hey, I forgot to tell you,” he began with an enthusiastic greeting. “Kameela called yesterday,” he lowered his pitch a notch at Praveena’s look. She didn’t care about aunt Kameela, and it showed well on her face. He continued, “She asked me what you decided.” He hesitated. “And…” He haltered, worried about Praveena’s reaction. “She said she’d speak to you,” he looked up at her, wondering.

Praveena said nothing however. Kamal knew she was irritated. But he had wanted to convey the news; he didn’t like the idea of Kameela catching Praveena unprepared.

Praveena’s remained impassive. But fumed within. Glad that her father had warned her beforehand, she smiled musing on the prospect of giving aunt Kameela a piece of her mind. This should be interesting, she thought.

“You’re smiling,” Kamal observed.

“Yeah,” Praveena said defensively. “If she wants to ask me why I don’t want to marry her son, I’ll tell her why,” she said tauntingly.

Kamal looked a bit worried now, “Well,” he shrugged, “you know what to do, just remember, she is your mother’s sister” he said. “In a way,” he added in haste, catching Praveena’s disbelieving look.

“No worries, Pa. I’ll take care.” she smiled mischievously.

That evening, aunt Kameela called Praveena.

“Hello, Praveena!” aunt Kameela sang in her sugary voice. Praveena could imagine her wide smile on the other side, displayed all of her vain betel stained teeth. She was thankful aunt Kameela hadn’t decided to come over in person. It had been difficult enough the last time, a second encounter could have ended disastrous, Praveena thought.

“Hi, aunt Kameela, how are you? How’s everyone at home?” Praveena planned to stick to the conventional basics. She did not need a lecture on that.

“Oh, everything here’s alright of course,” aunt Kameela replied lighthearted. Praveena couldn’t help but notice the extra emphasis on the word ‘here.’ It was easy to discern the route of the conversation. She decided to wait for it however. If Kameela was going to confront her, Praveena didn’t want to help her by opening the matter herself.

“Oh, that’s good.” Praveena tried hard to bring a smile in her voice. She wondered if it conveyed when aunt Kameela replied.

“But things are not so ok over there, is it?” Praveena hated the way Kameela spoke. She used the same annoying tone she had had at her mother’s funeral; the tone of talking to an over emotional preschooler.

“There’s nothing like that,” Praveena shrugged, more out of habit before realizing aunt Kameela couldn’t see her.

“Your father told me everything, Praveena” she said slowly as if to emphasize that her knowledge wasn’t useless.

“What did he say?” Praveena was now getting curious. How much of their conversation would have Pa told her? She was still lost when Kameela’s strong voice bombarded her thoughts.

“Why don’t you like to marry Prem?”

‘Finally!’ thought Praveena.

“It’s not that I don’t like Prem,” she tried to make it sound right. “It’s just that I’m not ready for marriage. I need some time.”

“But, why?” There was hones curiosity in Aunt Jameela’s voice.

“I need to mentally prepare myself” Praveena remained patient. She needed to get the thoughts out of her head. She was glad she got an opportunity to express herself.

“That’s what college was for,” Praveena imagined Kameela’s earnest and confused face. But after listening to what Kameela just said, Praveena was a little surprised. She had been wondering the purpose of her formal education. ‘Was that supposed to mentally prepare you for marriage?’ her inner voice probed her, disgusted. ‘So, it wasn’t for the knowledge?’ She was crestfallen.

“Praveena? You there?” aunt Kameela yelled from the other side.

“Yes, yes. I’m listening” Praveena realized she had been silent for a while and spoke in hurry.

“I was saying, that after college –- or maybe a couple years after work — girls settle down and raise a family.” She took a deep breath. “And since you’re not planning on working, I thought — “ she left the thought hanging.

Praveena remained silent, reflecting on aunt Kameela’s statement. How easily she had said it! Praveena couldn’t accept it. Aunt Kameela’s voice interrupted her thoughts again.

“Alright, Praveena. You think about it. Bye,” Aunt Kameela disconnected the line even before Praveena could react.

Praveena wondered if her long periods of silence had offended aunt Kameela. ‘So what if it had?’ her inner voice reasoned. And Praveena agreed.

“After college — or maybe after a couple years of work — girls settle down and raise their families.”

Aunt Kameela’s words haunted Praveena. She still couldn’t accept it. Her mind raced. Why had it become such a common notion? She had seen women who worked. But, she thought. Almost all of the working women she had known had already been married, even Ms Marrie — wait — ‘what could have happened to Ms Marrie?’

She was curious. She wanted to know if Ms Marrie had been married. ‘Of course she would’ve married’ her inner voice said, exasperated.

‘But, why didn’t she invite you?’ it was now the second voice.

While her two inner voices imposed contradictory theories, Praveena tried focusing on the bigger matter: Why did girls marry after a certain stage and start living for another person altogether? It sounded as if a girl’s final destination was marriage, as if they don’t have the freedom to choose a life after that.

Praveena wondered whether it was right to limit a girl’s potential after marriage. She knew a lot of women who had chosen their own careers, even after marriage. They didn’t think marriage was the stop point. For them, marriage meant companionship and fellowship, and a family was moral support.

Marriage is just a part of a woman’s life and not the end of it, she concluded as she sat cross-legged on her bed.

Aunt Kameela and her son Prem would disagree, she thought. They were an orthodox family who expected people to behave just like them. Living there would be a pain, for them and her. ‘That family is certainly not for you.’ she decided.

Chapter Twenty Six: Getting Along

“I’m amazed, Praveena.” It was James’ class on a Thursday evening. He had just appreciated one of her drawings in front of the whole class. She had forgotten she had cast her drawing inside her assignment essay, and James had happened to come across it. Praveena felt her face redden. She hadn’t expected this reaction from James.

She had drawn three stallions grazing a green meadow. She had thought of Niveda, Anil, and herself while drawing the picture. ‘Maybe that is why it looks so good’, she thought. Three stallions, away from civilization; away from the people who would hurt them. She had such strong feelings that it had reflected in her drawing, even without her realizing it.

When she took her seat, Anil whispered, “nice one.” She smiled. The two of them tried to act as if they had gotten over Niveda, when neither hadn’t. They did it for each other despite knowing it was obvious.

College went back to normal in a few days. For them, it was an excitement of a holiday and a day of supposed mourning. They all went back to their studies and examinations. The second year drew to a close, and students and teachers alike clamoured the corridors clarifying doubts and exchanging last minute notes.

Praveena, oblivious to all that, could neither concentrate on her subjects or sleep. Those days of youthful sleeplessness threatened to take her over again. She longed to speak to someone, she wanted the comfort Ms Marrie had given her. She wanted to hear herself speak the truth. That was the hard part; even though her mind knew Niveda would never come back to sit by her side laughing, her heart still clung to that thin rope of hope. Speaking the truth out loud would mean accepting the inevitable, and it would break her heart. She shuddered every time she thought of Niveda. She spent weekends in her room all alone, staring into space lost in her thoughts about Niveda.

Anil tried calling her, though she wouldn’t respond. Whenever she answered him, she’d put him off with some excuse or the other.

Anil grew worried and scared at her sinister behaviour. He told James about Praveena’s condition and James asked her to meet him.

“What’s happening Praveena? You seem unlike yourself, I hear,” they were in James’ room, and Praveena had her eyes cast down.

“I’m not myself anymore” she mumbled.

“Neither are we.”

Praveena looked up, surprised. James looked at her, with a look that meant what he had said.

“I’m not asking you to forget it, Praveena. Just learn to live with it.” Praveena looked confused.

“Accept the fact and go on with your life. It doesn’t stop for anyone.”

Even years afterward, Praveena would consider that as the best piece of advice she had ever received. Simple truth.

So Praveena tried to take the advice. She realised the difficulty in getting over a loss, but she tried. She attended the final exams, and left home for the term end holidays. She was looking forward to a few good solitary days.

Praveena was leaving Bangalore; she was going home, home to Chennai, and her lonely father. She was glad to get away from college. She needed a break, and she expected good couple of weeks. She had ten days of freedom; freedom from college, lecturers, pity stares, and assignments. She arrived at the Chennai Central Railway station with high hopes. And there he stood waiting, her father. Looking older than she remembered him, making her realize that even as she grew older, so did her father. It came as quite a shock; she hadn’t seen Kamal for nearly half a year, she had been too involved with Niveda and her treatment – ‘Okay, don’t go there!’ her inner voice interrupted sternly.

“Hi, Pa. How are you?” Drained of energy, she gave him a weak hug. Something in Kamal’s embrace comforted her more than anything had had in the past few months.

She hadn’t told Kamal of Niveda’s addiction and suicide. She had told him all about their friendship, but decided not to open up the sad part. She didn’t know if she could handle saying it out aloud. Now though, she knew she had to. She wondered how he would react. Kamal wasn’t the type of father who would shower his daughter with too much concern, but he would take it seriously. ‘Not Ma, though’ her inner voice reminded her. ‘Yes’ she silently agreed. Her mother would have taken it in a different manner. She would have offered suggestions to help Niveda. Her mother had been a good friend, a place Niveda took over. They were both great companionship. Except they were dead. Gone.

“Shall we?” Kamal stepped aside, gesturing Praveena to take the lead. She did. As Kamal drove the motorcycle, Praveena enjoyed the ride. It was early in the morning, the streets dust and smoke-free. As they drove past the tall buildings, Praveena felt the cold wintry breeze playing across her face, making her locks bounce in ecstasy. Praveena thought back to her first weekend in college, when she had stood facing the green valley, letting the wind kiss her face. She thought back to the day she and Niveda, along with Anil, had sat on the grass looking on, savoring a moment of bliss. Those were memories that wet her eyes.

When they reached home, Kamal turned to her, “what do you want for breakfast?” He became excited, clapping his hands and walking with a spring in his step.

“Anything, Pa” she shrugged, smiling. Kamal nodded and left for the kitchen, whistling her favourite song.

Praveena smiled to herself. She was happy that she had got to spend time with her father. She spoke to him over the phone quite a lot, but her physical presence meant a lot to Kamal, and Praveena knew that. ‘Pa, looks dull,’ her inner voice observed. ‘talk to him,’ it urged.

Praveena didn’t know what to say. Niveda was the only thing on her mind, and the guilt that she hadn’t told her father about almost being expelled.

She followed him to the kitchen.

National Blog Posting Month – Day 30

Chapter Twenty Four: Letting Go

Niveda began enjoying her day to day activities. The lack of college work lightened her mood. Every evening, as Praveena finished her daily assignments, Niveda sat with her, helping her out and sharing random conversations.

One day their History of Psychology professor, Mr Brown, questioned Niveda.

“You girl!” He exclaimed at her. He had quite a bad memory when it came to students’ names. “James told me you were doing some assignment for him,” he shook his head showing his disapproval. “What’s that about?” He peered hard at her through his round glasses.

Niveda stood up wondering what to say. She glanced at Praveena who looked back at her mutely, egging her to come up with a convincing lie.

“Er — ” Niveda began, “I’m doing a research on—er—I’m analyzing the greatest psychological experiments, and writing a paper suggesting alternative experimentation methods.” she smiled weakly.

“Experimental psychology, hmm…” Mr Brown nodded, wondering. “I thought it was the psychological effects of experiments on subjects?” He stared at her over the top of his glasses, as if he had caught her red handed doing something illegal, “that’s what James told me.” He added tilting his head to a side, a nasty grin playing on his lips.

“Er—yes, that too—Sir” Niveda added as an after thought. Praveena noticed her swallow hard. She couldn’t manage a lie without squirming with fear and insult.

“Oh, really?”

Anil stared at Mr Brown with contempt. “He doesn’t buy it,” he whispered to Praveena. She looked at Mr Brown who threw a crooked smile at Niveda.

“Sit.” He barked at her, who cowered with fear.

Praveena was a little astonished to see Niveda react the way she did. She would always speak back and bite anyone who dared to insult her. Praveena saw Niveda wasn’t the same anymore; she had changed a lot, giving in to others to stamp her down. ‘Could it be an effect of the drugs?’ She wondered.

After class, the three friends sat in the canteen discussing the event.

“It was so unlike you, Niveda.” Praveena voiced her thoughts. Anil turned to her disapprovingly. She shouldn’t have said that.

“I know,” Niveda said miserably. She hung her head. “I got scared. For some stupid reason. I feel like a coward. I couldn’t even face the old toad.”

Anil held her hand and smiled reassuringly. “No you’re not,” he said. “You’re very brave, you’re fighting this — this — thing, when the others are worrying about facing the exams. You’re braver than the whole lot of them.” He finished with a smile, and so did Praveena. Niveda, however, still looked unconvinced.

That night, Niveda sat on her bed, sleepless. Praveena lay awake as well. They were quiet, each lost in her own thoughts. Praveena had a sudden urge to speak to Ms Marrie. It had been long time since they had spoken with each other. Though Praveena had never accepted it, Ms Marrie had been a second mother to her. She remembered Ms Marrie telling her about getting married. She wondered if the marriage was over. She picked up her phone. She called Ms Marrie, but she disconnected the call when the phone had rung twice. ‘No,’ she thought. It was almost midnight, and Ms Marrie would be asleep now.

With a deep sigh, she put her phone away, and as she did, she saw Niveda meddling with her phone. She was messaging someone. ‘That’s odd,’ Praveena thought. She had never seen Niveda messaging anyone before. ‘but then again,’ her inner voice piped, ‘you had never seen her doing drugs either.’ She shut the voice down.

“Niveda?” she spoke softly a little uncertain.

“Hmm?” Niveda responded without looking up.

“You’re texting someone?” Praveena asked trying hard to keep the astonishment out of her voice.

Niveda looked up. Her eyes reflected confusion. “Yeah,” she snapped. Praveena remained silent. Then Niveda cast her phone away lazily and said in a plain voice, “I felt like talking to my mother.”

“Oh,” Praveen’s eyes widened. “Oh, that’s — that’s good.” She said. ‘What had she expected? That Niveda was messaging someone else?’ She should have known better than to suspect anything sinister.
“Sorry,” She apologized, “I thought — ” She began, but Niveda cut in with a simple, “Never mind.”

“So,” Praveena continued now a bit happier, “what did your Mom say?”

“She told me to go to hell,” Niveda shook her head in exasperation. Praveena couldn’t believe her ears. How could a mother say something like that? “And you know what I said?” Niveda continued, turning to face Praveena, her eyes sparkling. When Praveena shook her head, she said “I said, ‘I will’.”

Praveena stared at Niveda, now scared. ‘What’s got into her?’ She wondered.

“Come on now, Niveda — ” she began, but Niveda interrupted again.

“Don’t worry, I didn’t mean it.” Even in the dim light of the night lamp, Praveena could make out Niveda’s crooked smile.
Praveena didn’t say a thing for a while. “Okay,” she said at last. “Good night.”

“Good night. Sleep tight.” Niveda smiled widely, lay down on her bed, and turned over to the other side.

“Yeah…” Praveena trailed off as she pulled the sheet over her.

Praveena woke up early the next morning. It was Friday and she was expecting a good weekend. She turned to Niveda. Seeing her lying face down on the pillow, Praveena let her sleep a little more.

She left the bed and got ready. Twenty minutes later, she was combing her hair when she realized Niveda was still asleep. Putting her comb down, Praveena went over to wake Niveda up.

“Niveda?” she called tentatively touching her shoulder. That’s when she saw Niveda’s sheets wet. With ‘blood,’ she realized a split second later. Horrified, she turned Niveda over and saw her bleeding on her slashed arm. Paralyzed with shock, Praveena opened her mouth to shout for help, but no sound came out. She ran away from the room in panic and banged on the warden’s door nearby. Seeing a hysterical Praveena, pointing towards her room, the old lady led Praveena back to the room. There on the bed, they found Niveda’s body, lifeless.

National Blog Posting Month – Day 27

Chapter Twenty Three: Catching Up

For the whole of the following week, Niveda took the medicines Rasheed had prescribed. She looked tired all the time, and though the medicines were supposed to make her feel better, they didn’t help much. When she returned from what others assumed her sick leave, Niveda had a lot of work to cover. They were at the end of their second year, and the lecturers pressured them to work harder. Amidst all this, Niveda had to catch up with her lost work and concentrate on the current projects at the same time.

Niveda was working overtime. None of them had realized that missing a few days would lead to such a heavy workload. Praveena helped Niveda catch up. Every evening, both of them would sit in their room, working and chatting. Praveena enjoyed those few days. She thought Niveda was recovering well. She stressed herself, but at least she managed her work without the drugs.

Every time Anil met Praveena, he spoke only of Niveda, and of her treatment. He warned Praveena never to leave Niveda alone.

“Watch out for her, will you?” he kept saying, sounding a little worried.

“Why are you so worried?” Praveena was curious, “she’s going to be alright,” her confidence grew with every day.

“Perhaps not,” he relied, ominous. When Praveena responded with a quizzical expression, he continued, “She’s vulnerable now, coping without the drugs is hard enough, not to mention the assignments and the curious looks. She could easily lose herself.” Praveena had never seen him so serious. She nodded. She took his word for it; he had been there, and he knew Niveda well.

Another uneventful week went by, and on a Sunday morning, James phoned Praveena.

“Hello,” she yawned, her eyes opened in slits.

“Hi Praveena, it’s James.” came James’ muffled voice taking Praveena by surprise. “Hi, Sir—” she sat up in bed hoping it might help her sound a little more awake. Not knowing what to say she asked, “what’s up, Sir?” She became queasy at the awkwardness of the situation.

“Rasheed’s here, he wants to meet Niveda. Could you come along?”

“Sure, we’ll be there, Sir.” she disconnected the call.

“What was that all about?” Niveda was staring at her, nonplussed. She had woken up to the sound of Praveena’s phone, and now propped up on her elbow.

“Rasheed.” Praveena stood up, adjusting her hair and walking to the dressing table. Seeing Niveda laying dumbfounded, “get ready!” she added in surprise.

“Praveena,” Niveda sounded a little unsure. Praveena turned to her confused, “do I have to do this?” Niveda beseeched.

Praveena stood in the middle of the room with hands on her hips looking stern, “We have to do this.” She said decidedly. “Now, where is my comb?” she wondered aloud turning back to the dressing table.

Niveda smiled at her, and got ready.

Twenty minutes later, they met James in his room. Anil joined them a little later. “Good, let’s get started.” Since it was Sunday, the corridors were all deserted. Niveda had her session of therapy in the same classroom as before.

When James spoke to the trio, about an hour later, he looked grim. “Guys,” he said folding his arms across his chest, “this is going to be more difficult than we imagined.” he paused and took a deep breath. He then turned to Niveda, “Rasheed thinks your progress is slower than it should be. Are you straining yourself too much?”

Niveda shook her head, looking worried.

“Yes, you are,” Praveena spoke up. Looking at James she continued, “we stay up late catching up on her assignments”.

James was quiet for a while before saying, “I’ll talk to the other teachers,” When the trio looked shocked, he said, “I’ll tell them I’ve given you a special, time consuming assignment.” Catching the look of glee on Praveena’s and Anil’s faces he added smiling, “The assignment is only for Niveda.”

James and Niveda smiled at Anil and Praveena’s crestfallen looks.

“But then,” James turned seriously to Niveda, “I want you to has as much fun as you can; enjoy the small things. Read a book, eat well, sleep early, and take your medicines regularly. You’ll feel better in no time.

“Yes, Sir.” Niveda affirmed. It was a nice feeling, to imagine what James said. She was excited to experience her life like that; in a way she had never done before. But she was still unsure if she could manage without the drugs. It had been the life in her, she was scared to give it up. She never spoke of her doubts with anyone though. She felt guilty of not confiding in Praveena and Anil. She knew she ought to discuss with them. They might perhaps have a simpler solution, but she couldn’t bring herself to do it. She had learnt to keep herself private.

James was still talking, “Rasheed’s increased your dosage, Niveda. Remember that, and stay strong.”

James was motivating her to help her give up the addiction. Praveena had learned from Anil that encouragement did a lot to help someone get out of the habit. She kept that in mind, and every time she got a chance, she used it to boost Niveda’s will power.

Praveena was confident, Niveda would recover for sure. The treatment would work well, and the three of them would be friends forever. Even as a girl, Praveena had loved fantasizing, but she knew this was more than that. There was something more than a mere friendship between the three; it was a family that none of them had had.

‘Aren’t you sleepy?’ her inner voice questioned her, stifling a yawn. It was late, and Praveena had to stay awake at class the next day. She turned over, and closed her eyes.

National Blog Posting Month – Day 26

Chapter Fourteen: Life Goes On

After their little conversation, Praveena grew less tensed and less angry. She felt like a new person altogether. After a long time, she slept well that night. The next morning, she sought Priya and apologized.

“Hi Priya” she greeted brightly.

“Oh, I — hi” Priya replied sounding weak. Praveena could see her cowering at the sight of her. She decided to set things right.
“Listen, Priya. I’m really sorry for what happened the other day. I shouldn’t have spoken to you like that.” She meant it, she wanted to make things normal between herself and her other classmates.

After that, Priya and Praveena became friends. They weren’t what you’d call soul mates, but they were a pair of school kids hanging out, trying to tolerate each other. In the years that came, Praveena became the person she had always wanted to be: a normal student.

She thought of her mother almost everyday but not with the same self pity and distress; she now remembered her mother as a person she cherished and whose memories gave her bliss. She sat on her bed everyday and spoke into thin air imagining she was speaking to her mother. It was easier now to tell her mother everything she felt. Ms Marrie seemed to have somehow unlocked the invisible barrier that had stood between Praveena and her expressive abilities, and for that, she was ever grateful.

As days and months rolled on to years, Praveena grew up to be so different from what she would have turned out if not for the little chat with Ms Marrie.

Every time she thought of that day, Praveena couldn’t help but wonder how easily things seemed to have changed. One moment she was full of confusion and fear, and the next, she had felt so positive.

Bearing that positivity in her mind, Praveena got through to the final year of her school life. Students were in high spirits, glad to get away from school tension. They looked forward to join college. It was a prestige itself, to call yourself a college student. College meant a lot of freedom, yet under the student banner. It’s the age many students experiment with their habits and end up miserable later on in life.

Praveena wasn’t aware of those things, yet. To her, college was a senior form of school with limited freedom. With her happily misunderstood concept, she prepared herself to face her final examinations.

Ms Marrie and Praveena had grown closer to each other. Though Praveena didn’t spend time with her in any more talking sessions, they shared a wave of understanding that remained a mystery to others. On her last day in school before the examinations, Praveena was walking down the school corridor when she came across Ms Marrie.

“Good morning, Miss,” she greeted her as usual, noticing that Ms Marrie was unusually happy. She beamed wider than Praveena had ever seen before. ‘Well, there aren’t many reasons to be happy in this school, even for a teacher.’ Nowadays, her inner voices came and went freely without bothering Praveena. They were a part of her after all.

“Morning Praveena. Guess what?” she sounded excited too, like a child who had just cleared her exam with distinction.

Praveena shrugged shaking her head, “You’re happy for some reason?” They had crossed the point of a teacher-student relationship. Praveena and Marrie were more like friends now.

The other teachers in the corridor had begun staring at the pair of them. They never conversed so easily with their students. ‘What’s up with Marrie?’ They’d wonder, not having the courage to voice their thoughts.

“Let’s go into my room,” Ms Marrie replied quietly. Disapproving stares followed them, all the way to Marrie’s room.

Once inside, Marrie turned to Praveena and announced, “I’m getting married!”

“What – wow! Congratulations!” Praveena was too happy and surprised to say anything. She spread out her arms wide and embraced Ms Marrie in a long hug; she didn’t know why she did it, it sort of happened instinctively. Praveena had never before thought of Ms Marrie becoming someone’s wife. She was an individual, a strong single person. That’s the way Praveena had seen and come to respect her. News of her marriage came as a happy surprise that Praveena didn’t know how to react.

“You upset?”, Ms Marrie asked incredulously. Pulling away from the hug and looking into her face.

“Oh, no. No, no” Praveena stuttered. “I’m just – happy.” she smiled widely. And she hugged Ms Marrie again.

“Thanks so much Praveena!”

“So,” Praveena asked, breaking the hug. She paused mulling the words over. Ms Marrie looked questioningly at her. “where’s he from?” She gave an extra emphasis on he.

“He lives here, in Chennai.”

Praveena was relieved. She didn’t want to lose contact with Ms Marrie. “And,” Ms Marrie added, “I’ll be working even after marriage,” smiling knowingly.

That’s exactly what Praveena had wanted to hear. Her joy knew no boundaries. A few seconds of hesitation later, she hugged Ms Marrie again, the only person she had spoken her heart out besides her mother.
Ms Marrie returned the embrace, patting her gently on the head. She knew.

That was the last time Praveena saw Ms Marrie. For some reason after that, Ms Marrie had never called her, or answered her calls.

Soon enough, Praveena was engulfed in other worldly matters. She fared her exams well, and like all others her age, busied herself wondering which course and college to join.

She wasn’t sure what to do. She was attracted towards creative thinking and psychology. She chose to to do a Psychology course. After some thought, her father gave in though she was surprised he hadn’t opposed to her wishes as other parents had. She knew he had hoped she would enrol in Engineering.

So, she decided to take up psychology. She wasn’t the curious kind who had read all about the subject on the Internet. No, she was just another girl, who saw the mind as a fantastic beast. She was intrigued, but she was a novice. And she accepted that on her interview.

“You never read anything on Psychology before?” Her new principal raised his thick eyebrows. He looked quite young and puzzled.

Preveena shook her head, slightly smiling at his surprise. ‘That’s what they teach here, right?
“Ok,” he seemed to have recovered. Stroking his short boxed beard, he said, “would you like to take a small questionnaire. Now?”

Praveena was taken aback. She hadn’t expected this. ‘You should have’. Shut up, she advised her inner voice. And, for once, it did.

So, Praveena took the test. She sat in a classroom, with no supervisor and plenty of empty benches. The blackboard was wiped clean and the teacher’s desk sparkled. The questions were all about patterns and boxes; questions about which matched which, and which line looked similar to the other. There was even a question that had asked her to describe the shape of a circle. Her father sat outside the room, waiting patiently. He wasn’t sure this would work, but he held his silence.

An hour later, she stood in front of the principal while he examined her work. He looked at it for about five minutes without saying anything. He then turned the paper upside down and stared at it.

Praveena started to have doubts. What was he doing? Was he really an esteemed Psychologist, or just a raving lunatic?

At last, he put the paper on his desk and said with an impassive look, “You’re admitted. Congratulations.”

National Blog Posting Month – Day 16