The painful process of emotionally shifting. Physically, all I had to do was board the plane. Emotionally I had been a mess.
The goodbyes had been the worst. I had run around the entire school, promising everyone, I’d write. I had ended up writing, not to everyone, but a select few. Of course, many of those select few chose not to write back. I had written to them for days, assuming that my letters were getting lost in the mail.
After a couple of days of trying to “settle down” dad had announced that I would be going to school from the next day. I still remember the crushing disappointment I had felt as we had pulled up next to the “best school” in the city.
“I’m not going to study there!” I had exclaimed.
“You have to sweety, no other school is accepting admissions in the middle of the academic year.” My dad had looked down at my aghast face and laughed, “Oh, come on! It can’t be that bad. Besides, its closer to home, so if you think its that bad, run off and come home.” He had joked.
Little had I known, that the school and the people I was going to meet there, would change, who I was, forever.
I had reached the part of my first day in my new school. I resumed my reading, a smile fixed on my face.
23th September 2000
So, here I am. In this crumbling building they call school. I’m scared the roof might collapse any moment. The class is pretty silly too! Everybody’s staring at me. I don’t quite know how to react, so I’m writing, because I have NO FRIENDS here, that I can talk to.
I don’t know, I feel the students here might be a tad bit slow. I have already finished my assignment for this class, while the others are still struggling to get past question number one. Of course, I’m not going to tell them that we’ve already covered this lesson in my previous school.
The teacher’s asked this girl called Anjali to help me settle in. She was quite nice and all, but as soon as that teacher left, Anjali changed her place to sit next to some friend, making me promise not to tell the teacher.
As if I would! I don’t need her. I’ll just sit here, alone and happy. Yeah, what’s the point trying to befriend people here. I would eventually realize they aren’t smart enough and probably get bored. I think I’ll save everyone the trouble.
But that Anjali, she seems to be quite popular in the class. And she seemed nice. Besides I need someone to talk to during the lunch break.
Well, lunch was certainly weird. All twenty girls in the class sit outside and eat together. Anjali had quite forgotten about me. but she came right over when she saw me. She stood beside me and announced loudly, “Listen up everyone! This is Ramya! She’s new!”
God! I was so mortified. Now, people across the playground were staring at me! But it was nice in a way. Everyone introduced themselves to me and were being very nice.
Maybe this place won’t be all bad after all.
Before Anjali’s little stunt, nobody had quite noticed me. I had been the painfully shy kinds. But with Anjali by my side, I couldn’t have stayed shy for so long. She knew way too many people. And I was like some brand new toy she had, she had taken me under wing, and suddenly, all her friends were mine. Of course, her friendships were a little too scattered and random for my liking, but I had done pretty well as the new girl.
