All about Sunil - 3

If you have not read about Sunil, please visit the following blogs.

1) Wish him longevity

2) All about Sunil - 2

Four years later…

Sunil’s sister eloped with a guy who was working in a small-scale chemical industry in Pondicherry. Sunil’s mom was not convinced initially, but she learned to accept them a few weeks later. She rung the wedding bells, formally. His sister was happy - so was Sunil and his mother. I couldn't comprehend how Sunil would have felt when he realized that the fourth anniversary of his father and the wedding day of his sister fell on the same day. I am yet to find a word to fill this juncture...!

We were partying that day. Sunil had never boozed until then, but most of our friends forced him to share a toast - One for the happiness of his sister! He was game - plunged into the show head on. That was the first time for me as well. Sunil was very much unstable swinging between his father’s death and his beloved sister’s marriage. We were nostalgic and looked back at the days that had rolled on. Sunil felt bad about his professional life, being a helper in the vegetable shop. “I wish I too studied like you guys... I miss something which I shouldn't have... Wish He still loves me...”, said sunil, pointing to the sky wishing God to be on the tip of his finger nail.

His mother’s idli shop was yielding a considerable sum, abeting their daily needs. Still, his mother wanted him to continue working, assuming that he might discontinue from studies very soon. He joined Vetry tutorial to continue with us, in ninth standard. He was struggling to pick up the mathematical concepts and he decided to join a tuition for coming over his barrier. Mr. X. R. James, well known as the bald headed mathematician in Cuddalore, 57, engineered a way, drilling the mathematical ideas into the thick layers of Sunil’s skull. He started loving mathematics. He found a Magic, slowly reviving his days at the tuition center. Every second was precious and like he started knowing himself. I wish I declared the Magic was because he understood mathematics, but it was because of HER, that girl in the corner seat of the first bench!

Josephine, the angel of the tuition center (to whole of Cuddalore, I would say!) had the most attractive eyes. So, did Sunil leave an eye dedicated to capture every bit of her. Glances were no more glancing between those four eyes...! It was almost continous all the time. Now, Sunil understood how discrete systems become continous in presence of an external force of Intentions. That was the last day of the tuition just before the annual examination. All of a Sudden, a wave of happiness struck every one when the teacher announced that the tuition would be conducted even during the annual holidays.

Sunil couldn't resist tussling his funk when he used to wait for Josephine at the bus stop with his medium sized Captain bi-cycle. I doubt if anyone could ride the bi-cycle slower than him. Yes, he always followed her. Of course, she ever knew that. The last page of his note was filled with the color of the dress against the dates of the month. It was running through months. Sunil managed to impress our teacher staging a consistent performance and with the acumen he had gained through the days. The teacher decided to teach the English grammar for half an hour every day.

It was the day when he started the ‘degrees of comparison’. The teacher was sorting to example of superlative degrees like 'Sunil was the most brilliant student in our class' and so. Josephine looked at him. Wow… Spectacular was her sight! Sunil had that crater on his heart, that moment. That was magnetic. The teacher was explaining…. The most….!#!&# . The teacher also gave other few examples of superlative degree. He told that Josephine was the most beautiful girl in our class. Sunil romantically smiled at her. No words to express the beautiful emotions that they shared amidst the sultry summer and whole of the class which remained a tower of babel. The teacher conducted the weekly tests, every Sunday. Sunil used to correct the answer papers of all students expect his own paper. He made the rounded zeroes to look like a heart-in on Josephine’s paper. Though he would put 9.5 marks for a ten mark question frequently in most of the papers, he preferred putting 10 marks to Josephine's just to ensure that he had more chances of heart-in-ing (ofcourse, without breaking her heart! Else he would have preferred putting two zeros on ten!!). He also expressed his love in her answer sheets. He was very sure that Josephine also had the same feeling for him. The elegant Sunil with the answer sheets was riding the bi-cycle, filled with colorful thoughts. That day we had assembled at our teacher’s Living room. He was startled to know that Mr. X. R. James died of asphyxiation due to heart attack. His heart was broken. The tint of good relationship that he had developed with his most respectable teacher was stumbled to an end. He couldn't trace his feelings for Jasmine, that moment. He was totally down in tears so was the other students including Josephine and I.

He was courageous after the pains of his father's death and soon, lots of sighs and gestures were exchanged between them, but not even a single word was uttered explicitly, ever then. The answer sheet was not distributed to her and to neither of the pupil. He had never seen Josephine after that day because she never joined in any of the tuition centers. He concentrated on his 10th std public examinations. The life went on with studies and his work in vegetable shop during early morning, for a daily wage of Rs.20, curing all his physical pain in the memory of his days that he spent with her.

I am not sure if Sunil still remembers those beautiful days, but the heart-ins keep telling a beautiful story with traces of love, passion, pain, and what not... It is everything... Sunil gave me all the answer sheets just before the funeral. All I could do is smile at the heart-ins lying inside my cupboard, when ever I happened to see them. And, spend a minute or two to remember the remarkable source of inspiration Mr. X. R. James!!

TBC...