The Chocolate Boy (Book One)

Chapter 28 : Avocado Binge

Look who's back, pitches! Yo! iloveyouguyssomuch. Enjoy!

Nutrition was the last paper in the Half-Yearlies. I had fared quite well in the other subjects - just this one hurdle and I'd soon be a survivor, not a victim of class 11.

Ishan flashed me a thumbs up and I did the same as we entered the classroom. There were nameplates stuck on each table. My seat was invariably next to Tuhina's but that would be of no help since she would be writing her Physics paper.

Two seats in front of us, Manish and Riyaaz were sitting together, both from Physics. And slimy-haired Shivam sat right in front of the teacher's desk which meant no unfair means of passing the exam for him.

Ah, someone is going to fail. Or maybe both of them.

Serves them right.

It was funny how I found pleasure in their failure. 

I turned to find Ishan behind Divya, each paired up with a Physics student. There were two rows of class 12 students between us.

I'm going to be so dead, Divya gestured with her hand near her neck.

Same here, thought I.

I looked at the question paper as soon as the invigilator distributed them.

I guess, I'll pass.

I think I'll do better than just pass.

Yes, definitely. I'll do good.

Maybe I was just feeding myself crap but at that time it was helping. Just as the bell rang for the start of exams, there was a loud ruffling of papers all around as I started to write the exam.

It was about an hour and a half later when I thought I imagined someone tapping hard on my desk. I looked at Tuhina but she was immersed in her paper. I turned the other way and found the culprit. A class 12 Didi was staring at me. I raised my eyebrows at her, wondering how the hell I would able to help out a Physics student out of all people.

She pointed at something on her desk. The gap between two rows being small enough, I craned my neck a little to look at it but soon morphed my expressions into a yawn as I caught an invigilator turning to look at our direction.

Yeah, the art of cheating.

The teacher's gaze moved to some other row away from us and I finally got to look at the scribbling on the table.

Charge of electron?

I mentally groaned and cursed her in my head.

You science retard! You're appearing for the Boards this year and you don't know the fucking charge of a fucking electron? That's like the most fundamental people learn in fifteen years of school!

She went on tapping, a bit restlessly now, while I shook my head and typed out the value on my calculator. I turned the device at her and pretended to to be busy writing my answers. Once I felt she was done copying, I put it down and went back to writing. Just this last answer and I'd be done.

The warning bell rang as I finished the answer and started scanning my paper for one last time. I hadn't been able to answer all the questions but the ones I did, I knew they would all be correct. That was surely an improvement from my near-failure state.

Submitting the paper, I left the classroom to find Divya and Ishan impatiently waiting for me outside.

"There's something majorly wrong with you these days," Ishan furrowed his eyebrows at Divya.