Chapter 11
You know when you want to do something, but you can't. You are doing it but your brain is just somewhere else, occupied with some stupid things which shouldn't really concern you yet being the nosy one, you let your brain occupied with that stupid thing. It was what I was going through at the moment. I have been reading a book since two hours and yet I have nothing in my mind about it. It was as if, my eyes were scanning the damn lines and yet my brain was unable to access it. How frustrating!
Sighing, I closed the book and walked to my balcony to have some fresh air. It was already late in the night and I looked up at the night sky. It was a full moon night and the moonlight illuminated the whole campus and I could hear the distinctive hoot of Tawny owl. The campus was home to many Tawny owls and I have been habituated to their hoots. The cold breeze of the night hit my face and I inhaled deeply thinking to finally get back in and take a good sleep, forgetting everything that took place in the whole day.
As I was about to turn, something hit me hard on my face and alarmed I jumped on my place, holding my glasses on place avoiding it from falling off the balcony. I looked down to find a piece of eraser and furrowing my eyebrows, I picked it up and looked down to find none other than Veronica. She waved at me and I looked at her she grinned sheepishly when I looked back at the eraser in my hand and then at her.
It took me some minutes, to successfully, pass through the sleeping guard and make my way to her but all the while I was cautious about the CCTV surveillance. Just what am I doing? I came here to study and reach my ambitions...but here I am, breaking rules, that could throw me out of the school, just every single day. Yet, I was doing that.
"What are you doing?" I asked once I reached the rebel girl. She shoved her hands in the pocket of her denim jacket and pursed her lips as she rocked in her place and then looked back at me. "I called you, but you didn't pick up!" she said and that made me scratch my head and I nodded.m
"I know. I was studying," I told her. I do remember my phone vibrating two to three times but I had failed to check the id as I was busy studying. But never had I thought that she would be the one to call after the fight in the afternoon. I wasn't really sorry for what I told her and in no way I was going to ask for forgiveness but the fact that she would be the one to call me and try to reach me, made me think that probably I was just being too much.
"I see. I am sorry that I disturbed you while you were studying," she said and that me shook my head.
All of a sudden, I remembered where we were and my head whipped towards the gate where the guard was sleeping. "Let's go somewhere else," I told her and thankfully she understood what I meant and nodded. We walked little far away from my wing and ended up in the middle of the road towards the girls hostel. She sat on the divider of the road while I stood there unsure, what to do.
As if she noticed my look of uncertainty, she patted the place next to her signalling me to take a sit and I obliged as I sat down and exhaled a breath that I didn't know I was holding.
There was a moment of silence, between us for some minutes and it was when I thought of breaking the silence, so it was I ended speaking up first but was intervened when she opened her mouth at the same time. Both of us, stopped in the middle and looked at each other and a few seconds later chuckled at our awkwardness.
"You go on," she said and I stared at her.
"I think, you should go on. You were the first to speak," I said and that made her sigh.
"Alright then," she began taking in a deep breath as she continued "I am sorry, Ace" she said and that made me furrow my eyebrows in confusion.
"I am really sorry for the way I talked to you this afternoon. I know what you told me was the truth and you were only concern about me, but I overreacted and told you so many things. It was almost, as if I was ungrateful to you for helping me in my studies."
"No, you don't really have to be sorry," I whispered and she stared at me. "Actually, it was none of my business in the first place, yet I told you so many things and I know it made you upset. It was why you reacted that way and honestly I don't blame you. Had I been on your shoes then I think I would've behaved the same way as you did," I said and she shook her head negatively.
"No Ace! You got it all wrong. I really do appreciate you having concern about my well being. You have always helped me since the day, I joined the school. So, I think you can tell me whatever concerns you," she argued and that made me chuckle. She stared at me for some seconds and then joined me laughing softly and again we sat there quietly for some minutes not knowing what to speak and it was when she chose to break the silence. "Ace?" I hummed in response.
"Do you think we can become friends now?" she offered and that made me chuckle. "It's usually the other way around," I said referring to the fact that it was usually a boy who takes the friendship step first. "So what!" she laughed and I joined in.
"Why do you want to be my friend?" I asked seriously and she shrugged. "May be because I will have free access to your notes," she joked and that made me laugh.
"No, seriously. You know how I am. I think you will be able to help me with my ways. I have never met a person having so much patience to be able to resist this much. Ace, you remind me of my dad sometimes. My dad's patience level is just..." she whistled as she pointed towards the sky indicating that her dad's patience level was really high.
"Really? And likewise, you remind me of my father, a lot," I told her and she whipped her head towards my direction with wide eyes. "Yes, he used to be like you. A rebel," I told her and she scowled. "Argh! I hate that word," she mumbled which made me grin.
"Oh well, I guess I'm going to use the word 'Rebel' a quite often now," I joked and she literally gave out a snort making me laugh.
"Oh c'mon!"
"Alright. Let's help each other then. Let's be friends," I said and immediately her face lit up with happiness as she beamed and forwarded her hand to me for a handshake, like a kid.
"Friends?" she asked and I looked back and forth from her face to her hands before smiling and giving her my hand. "Friends," I mumbled and she shook our hand swiftly, making me laugh.
The girl wasn't really that quite and rebel, I had actually thought her to be.
Moments later, as we sat there in silence with her whistling and looking up at the sky, I thought about the CCTV surveillance. "Don't you think we should head back now. The CCTV surveillance must be live and what if the guards gets us from it?" I asked which made her huff at me.
"They already know," she exclaimed and I looked at her in confusion.
"What do you mean?"
"The guards sitting in the surveillance room are my friends. I talk to them while I roam around," she air quoted the word 'alone' and then continued "in the campus."
To say, I was beyond shocked would be an understatement. The truth that she just revealed had me shocked and made me out of words as I sat there staring at her as if she had two horns on her head.