Ahamika is standing outside the class on one leg as a punishment for being late, while Dihan, not noticing her, hums a song and walks towards the class. Just then, Anushree Madam, who is inside the class, says:
“Wait. What time is it?”
Hearing this, Dihan stops and looks at his watch, replying:
“9:30.”
“What time is the class?”
“At 9.”
“Then what are you doing here?”
Anushree Ray is known throughout the school as someone all the students are afraid of, and Dihan is no exception. It’s often said that where there’s fear of a tiger, there will be night, and that’s exactly what happened with Dihan. He had thought he could manage the teacher as usual, but he forgot that today was Anushree Ray’s first class. Otherwise, he would never have been late.
“Sorry, madam, it won’t happen again.”
“Shut up. Without saying another word, raise one leg and stand quietly outside.”
Without saying anything more, Dihan, with a gloomy face, moves away from the door and stands by the wall, lifting one leg. Seeing this, Ahamika smirks and says to him:
“Okay then, I’m not alone. My darling is here with me. It will be boring standing alone, so let’s have a chat while we stand on one leg.”
Dihan, hearing this, looks at Ahamika with a raised eyebrow and replies:
“Shut up, idiot. You’ll never be good.”
“Do you think you can be good by having a beauty like me by your side?”
Just as Ahamika was about to say something, Anushree Ray steps out of the class. Everyone outside, standing on one leg, lowers their heads when they see her. When she leaves, they quickly rush into the class.
“How did it feel standing on one leg? You’ll never learn, Dihan. You’ll never be good.”
As Dihan sits down next to Tripti in the class, she teases him:
“How did it feel standing on one leg?”
Hearing this, Dihan kicks Tripti’s foot and replies:
“Shut up, you idiot. Don’t rub salt on my wounds.”
Seeing this, Ahamika starts laughing. Dihan, noticing her, says:
“Shut up, you were standing on one leg too. Now you’re laughing? Don’t you feel any shame?”
Ahamika stops laughing and says:
“Shame? Me? You’re the one who’s sitting there with no shame! Anyway, I’m not like you, standing on one leg all the time. But today was an accident, you could call it that.”
Without saying anything further, Dihan grabs his bag and says:
“Let’s go, Ruhan. We’re skipping class today. These two idiots ruined my mood.”
“Let’s go then. I’m not feeling like attending class either today.”
At Dihan’s words, Ruhan gets up and throws his bag over his shoulder. The two sneak out of the class, followed quietly by Tripti and Ahamika. Once they’re outside, Ruhan says:
“What are you two doing here? When did you come out?”
“We came out right after you guys.”
“What if the teachers saw us?”
“Then I would have blamed you for dragging us into skipping class.”
At this, both Tripti and Ahamika start laughing. Dihan glares at them and says:
“You two will never be good.”
“Were we ever bad?”
“Living in goodness, right? Then why did you skip class?”
Hearing Ruhan’s words, both Tripti and Ahamika pout and reply together:
“Would we ever attend class without you two? It’s boring without you.”
After hearing this, Dihan and Ruhan burst into laughter.
“Hey, what’s up? What are you thinking sitting there all quiet?”
Ruhan, seeing Dihan sitting absentmindedly by the riverbank, places a hand on his shoulder and asks. Dihan snaps out of his thoughts and looks at Ruhan, replying:
“I’ve told you so many times not to call me an idiot.”
“What should I call you then?” Ruhan teases.
“Shut up.”
“Alright, I’ll shut up. Now tell me, what were you thinking?”
Dihan takes another deep breath and looks back at the river, then says:
“I was thinking about Ahamika.”
“Do you remember, Ruhan? Our school days? How we spent those beautiful moments together? Do you remember? Tripti was so playful and naughty. And now, she feels so unfamiliar. And Ahamika? What can I say about her?”
Dihan sighs deeply without finishing his sentence and continues:
“Today, for some reason, I’ve been thinking about those days a lot. I got so lost in those memories that I didn’t even notice when you came.”
“Those days are gone, Dihan. Lost days are only stored in our memories.”
“Ruhan, did I do something really bad to Ahamika? She was my good friend. Why did she do this? Didn’t she even try to understand me?”
“Not at all. What you did, you did for her good. You tried to explain, but she didn’t understand. It’s her misfortune.”
Hearing Ruhan’s words, Dihan sighs in relief and says:
“Anyway, forget it. What’s the situation with your relationship?”
“It’s going well now. But when you find out, who knows what will happen.”
Ruhan says this quietly, his face turning pale. Dihan, noticing his expression, asks:
“You’ve been in a relationship for so long, and you still haven’t introduced me to your girlfriend?”
“How could I? What if you find out that my girlfriend is your beloved little sister, Shubhra? I’m hitting on your sister. I don’t even know what you’ll do when you find out.”
Hearing this, Dihan mutters to himself, “What’s going on with him?” and then says:
“Why are you being so quiet now?”
Ruhan snaps out of it and says:
“What? Nothing. Let’s go home.”
“I’ve noticed something about you, Ruhan. Do you know what it is?”
“What?”
“Whenever I bring up introducing me to your girlfriend, you always avoid the topic. Why?”
“Everything will be explained in time. Let’s drop it now, bro. Let’s go home.”
Without replying further, Dihan stands up and starts walking, with Ruhan following him.
“What’s going on with your studies, huh?”
While taking a bite of food, Tripti answers her father, Ahiyan Ferdous’s question:
“Everything is fine. The first semester exams are next month.”
“Oh, then focus more on your studies now.”
“Dad, I need a tutor.”
“Okay, I’ll arrange one for you very soon.”
“Thank you, Dad.”
“Welcome, my dear.”
“Can’t the father-daughter duo talk only? Or are you going to rescue me after I finish my food?”
Hena Ferdous interrupts them, and Ahiyan Ferdous says:
“Can’t you see we’re talking? Why are you interrupting?”
Hena Ferdous, irritated, says:
“My mistake. Excuse me. You two go ahead and talk. I’ll leave now. Call me when you’re done eating.”
After saying this, Hena walks away, and seeing her, both Ahiyan and Tripti laugh together. After their laughter subsides, Ahiyan Ferdous speaks again:
“One more thing, Tripti.”
“Yes, Dad?”
“Be a little more careful in your movements, dear. These times are uncertain. You never know what might happen. I’m really worried about you.”
“Don’t worry, Dad. I’ll be fine.”
“Everything will be fine as long as you’re safe. I have a big fear about you, and you don’t even know what it is.”
Ahiyan Ferdous says this while looking at his daughter’s smiling face.
“I’m coming over tomorrow, you know?”
Ruhan says on the phone, and Shubhra’s eyes widen:
“What are you saying?”
“Yes, you know. I haven’t seen you in so long.”
“That doesn’t mean you should come to my house. How?”
“You might have forgotten, but I have another troublesome friend in that house besides you. I’m coming to see him.”
“Oh, that’s right. I almost forgot. You really drive me crazy.”
“Just wait, if you think this is bad. There’s so much more to come. Stay ready.”
“Alright, let’s see. I’ll keep the phone now.”
“Just say one last thing before hanging up. It’s almost midnight.”
“You call midnight just ‘late’?”
“Why, what else?”
“I don’t know anything. I’ll hang up now. If my mom sees, she’ll get suspicious. Bye.”
Without saying anything else, Shubhra ends the call. After she hangs up, Ruhan sighs and mutters to himself:
“If I have this girl, I don’t need anything else. You’ll always be my Shubhra and no one else’s.”
