"Balls and Stains" "Shut up and eat it up Teetli!"
"Mom please I can't. I have had enough!" I pushed back the plate of parathas and chugged down my glass of orange juice. My mom sighed and went back to taking care of the omelette she had left on the stove.
"Teetli, remember to be nice to everyone and try to make as many friends as possible."
"Kiki I'm not in kindergarten, please I don't need this lecture."
"Okay fine but at least for all that's holy don't sit in the corner and try to hide yourself."
Kiki will always be Kiki. She usually took care of me when we went to school because it always had all the grades in it, from KG to grade 12. But as college stumbled on she felt the need to caution me as she wouldn't be there with me.
"Don't worry Kiki, I will be fine and I promise I will try my best to be more social," I gave her a reassuring smile and she pecked my cheek and wished me good luck.
Sne and mom gave me a tight hug and bid me goodbye.
I stepped through the front door and took a breath of relief. Being the baby of the house I was pampered a lot but at the same time I was always protected by my lady bodyguards. I walked down the sparse sidewalks of Mumbai. I could spot the dudhwala on his bicycle and the bai sweeping the streets. The morning sun was shining and only a few people were around.
"Ek minute Uncle, aap bata sakte hain St. Louis College kahan hai?" I asked an old man who looked like he had just came back from praying at the temple.
"Beta tumhare baju mein toh hai...dekho," he pointed to the campus and I realized that I was only a few steps away from the huge black gate with the imprint of St.Louis' logo.
"Thank you Uncle!" I bid him goodbye and made my way through the main gate.
Damn. This place looked like one of those colleges that you see in Bollywood movies. The building looked vintage and prestigious while the finely mowed lawn and well-trimmed garden reflected the status of this college.
As I looked around while making my way to the main entrance I saw many different groups of people. I could see the girly girls in the corner painting their nails, the nerds quizzing each other, the jocks mocking the freshers etc etc...
"Excuse me." I gained the attention of the secretary that sat at the main office, "Can I get the class schedule for Tanusha Gujral please."
"Oh yes of course dear," she smiled through her glasses and after promptly searching for the schedule amidst hundreds of piles, handed it to me.
I looked at my schedule and found it satisfying so I decided to make my way into my first class.I slammed my bag down and took out a pen and paper to write down a few things that I could remember as review for the first lesson.
Summer breaks make me forget everything and I don't want to look stupid if the teacher picks me randomly for something. That would be embarrassing.
"Hey, can I join you?"
A very sweet male voice echoed through the classroom. I looked up to see a fairly tall guy with wavy medium length hair smiling meekly at me. He seemed a bit nervous, maybe confused. I wasn't sure.
"YEAH! Sure!" I replied with a big smile. This guy seemed genuinely nice, he gave me good vibes.
"So are you new here?"
"Yup, just moved here a month ago. Oh by the way...Tanusha Gujral." I extended my hand forward which he grabbed on and shook.
"Swayam Shekhawat."
I and Swayam started to talk casually about school and everything that would be occurring this year. Apparently he assisted the Cultural Secretary Sharon Rai Prakash. The way his face turned when he talked about her clearly stated that this Sharon girl and him had something in between. But I didn't ask much about that part as I didn't want to intrude in his personal life. Also, Swayam came from a rich background but was a complete down to earth man.
"Oh and I'm also part of the Weaklings Dance Team!"
"The Weaklings?"
What kind of a name was that? And isn't there an official college dance team?
"Yeah well there was always a divide between the popular and the unpopular or uncool people in the college. So obviously then there is also a divide in the dance teams. The Dazzlers which initially represented the whole college and had the popular people. Then the Weaklings, which came recently and gave motivation to all the uncool and isolated students. But overtime the two teams gelled really well, and surprisingly we are all very close now."
"Well all's well that ends well," he nodded in agreement and soon we heard the bell ring.
I didn't notice the time passing but I had gotten to know a lot about Swayam in these past fifteen minutes. Before he could open his bag and start working he offered to introduce me to his 'gang'.
As the class settled the Professor gave a brief intro into what this course would cover and then proceeded to take the attendance.
"Simmi Chopra"
"Here"
"Tanusha Gujral" I heard my name and quickly raised my hand and said "Present"
...
"Sharon Rai Prakash"
"Here"
My eyes instantly flew to the pretty figure a few spaces across me. She looked like a diva with her hair in curls and body draped in an elegant white dress. This girl reminded me of Sne, someone humble yet authoritative and confident.
As my classes ended and lunch came by I was dead tired. First day of college was always boring for me. I never felt excited to meet old friends because I never stayed in the same place and never found the introductions amusing either. I yawned and pinched myself to keep away.
"Seems like you slept a lot yesterday night," Swayam teased me as he started walking beside me.
"Oh shut up. I feel like I will die any moment. Ugh." He chuckled and casually placed his arm around my shoulder.
"Come lets go to the canteen to grab you some food and also you can meet the gang," I nodded and followed him to the busy canteen.
He brought me to an extra-long rectangular table at the corner of the canteen and asked his friends to give me some attention.
"Guys, this is Tanusha Gujral...she's new here." I stared at the group of nine who gave me welcoming smiles and greeted me. I got to know everyone's names in brief before I settled down between Swayam and Vicky.
"So where did you move from?" Vicky asked me.
"When did you move here?" A girl named Rinni asked simultaneously.
"Do you like it?"
"Have you been to Mumbai before?"
"Do you have siblings?"
"OMG guys! Let her speak!" Sharon spoke and signaled me to carry on. I smiled to thank her and began answering the questions.
"I just moved here from Nanitaaal a month ago. No I have not been to Mumbai before, so far I do like it. And yes I have 2 other older sisters."
"Well welcome to the gang Tanusha!" Vicky gave me a hug but then pulled back, "Yeh...tumhare naam ka koi short form hai kya? Itna lamba choda naam mein every time nahi bol paounga."
I laughed. "Taani. You can call me Taani."
"That's better."
I sat there with the gang and for the first time I felt like I belonged. They were crazy, different and far from normal but still were open enough for me to feel comfortable. I learned about Nil's rapping, Neha's twisted English, Bharat's problem with English, Vicky's pranks, Rinni and Simmi's gossip, Aashi's 'types' add-on and Swayam and Sharon's love story. Could you believe it that they were all perfectly paired couples? It seemed like the perfect clich story.
But apart from that there was one name in particular that I missed.
Rey.
Who was he and where was he I had no clue, but the gang mentioned him many times. I assume that he is part of the gang as well but why he wasn't here I had no idea. Maybe he was busy or had something to do, who knows.
After eating I went to the basketball court hoping to shoot a few baskets. I borrowed the ball from the coach and started to dribble and do a few tricks; it was my stress buster. I had learned basketball at an early age thanks to my father and had kept improving after that.
As I dribbled the ball once again it accidentally bounced on my running shoes and slipped out of my hand. I heard it slam into something hard.
Shit!
It had bounced into a man wearing a white shirt and black pants, the shirt really defined his fine physique and muscular stance. As I stood there admiring his well-built body and fine ass...urrmm...well he did have a pretty bum.
Don't judge.
Okay okay, stop staring at his ass Teetli and look at that spot said my inner conscious.
Shit! SHIT SHIT!
The dusty basketball had left an imprint on his extremely white shirt and the mark was nowhere near faint.
Next thing I knew the man had taken off his shirt (which by the way had another tank top underneath) and angrily turned towards me.
I gasped as I looked into his serene hazel eyes and handsome face but the admiration didn't last long.
"Dekh ke nahi khel sakti ya phir andhi ho?" He spat at me and I could clearly see a hint of dislike and hate in his eyes.
"Look I'm sorry...it was just a mistake..." I tried to explain but he cut me off once again.
"Oh please save your excuses. Khelna nahi aata toh khelti kyun ho. Mera shirt kharab kar diya."
WHAT THE...? Why was he so rude for?
"I said I'm sorry." I stated firmly.
"Aur kar bhi kya sakti ho," with that he took a 180 degree turn and walked off.
I was left mute; no one has EVER talked to me like that. Who the hell was this guy?
Precap:
"How was your day Teetli!?" Kiki asked while painting her nails.
"Well nothing out of the blue...made a few friends, met a few professors and then collided with a khadoos asshat."
NOTE!
So guys let me know how this chapter was. I know most of it was of Taani and the gang but that was because I really wanted to show that she actually has made some really good and REAL friends (unlike the show). Also how did you all like TaaRey's first meeting?
Please do leave your own suggestions and ideas...I'd be glad to read them!
Thanks all!
Book Talk
Aami Daakini
44