Meeting my previous colleagues from my English class
My parents wanted me to excel and did their utmost to support me in my studies. It is why they wanted me to take special classes. If it was linked with my studies, my parents were ready to spend any amount of money. My father worked so hard that every time he would come back home, his whole body would be in pain. My mother has spent her whole life suffering because of an uncurable disease. Even with her sickness, she did everything at home so that I could concentrate on my studies. She cooked, prepared my cloths, cleaned all the house and so on. Some people cannot understand it but being a housewife does not mean that they do not have a job. My parents mean everything to me and I can do anything, anything to make them happy. They dedicated so much time of their life to me. The only debt that I will never be able to pay back, will be the one from my parents. I can give them any amount of money but it will never be enough to pay back all the love and time they have spent for me.
One of the special tuition I used to attend was the English class. I think that we were 6 at the time studying to brush up on our language skills. Every Saturday, we would come to a house where a teacher would start to help us improve our language skills.
I was quite tensed, it had been almost ten years that I had not met the friends from my English class. Some questions were coming to my mind: What were they doing? Did they get a job? Are they still studying or are they even in France? Anyway, meeting them was really important as my marriage is in a few weeks and I plan to move to Scotland where I got a job as a lecturer at the University of Edinburgh. I prepared a white shirt and a black trouser. I put some Brylcream and brushed my hair. I wanted to look good. I put on my glasses and my black loafers. After putting some perfume, I was ready to go. I took a bus. It was not very far, so I was the first at the gathering place, twenty minutes in advance.
After waiting for fifteen minutes, I could see some people coming. It was Cheran and Geetha. Cheran had really changed, he had an impressive moustache and was no longer wearing glasses. He did not like to come to the English class. He came because his parents forced him to take classes. However, during the classes, he used to be serious and would never disturb the other students. Geetha had the same face as before but she looked more mature. At the time we were taking classes, she was quite shy. She was hardly talking during the class except when the teacher asked her a question. Then, Saroja and Roshan came. Saroja had not changed at all, she had the same smily face, nobody could see the effects of age on her. Saroja was always optimistic and confident. She was really good at English and her confidence helped her to improve quickly. Roshan had a well-groomed beard, he looked professional. He still had that serious look on him. He was really studious but had difficulties in expressing himself. Nobody really understood what kind of person he was. He hardly talked with other students. Roshan was indeed mysterious. Finally, the last person came. That was Agash. He was tall and had a chin beard. He looked decent and much more mature. However, when he started to talk, I understood that he had not change. At the time when we took English classes, he was the person who would tell jokes to make the people in the class laugh. He was also quite mean to people and liked to turn people into ridicule. My instincts told me that something would go wrong but anyway, I tried not to show it on my face.
We went into a restaurant, and we sat on a big table. I was not feeling at ease as I was not used to eat in restaurants. I looked at how the people gave their orders and did the same. We started to talk about our achievements. People were regretting that time when we were still free birds without any responsibilities but it was quite strange as we were not so old. Anyway, after some time, they wanted to drink alcohol to celebrate the moment. As I do not drink alcohol, I took some soda. They were happy, I noticed that Agash started to consume too much alcohol. He started to talk unnecessary matters with the others. Nobody really cared. Then, after some time, he came next to me and asked me: "how are you doing Mister cry-baby? Are you still crying when you are not able to do something?". I just did not mind and answered him gently: "No".
The reason he asked me this question was linked with our last English session. At the time, we were preparing to take a test called the IELTS. As it was our last session before the exam, our teacher called somebody who was qualified in English. We did a special speaking session in which we had to talk on a particular subject. I completely failed when it was my turn. The topic was unfamiliar to me. Anyway, after some time, I cried because it was an unbearable failure. Some people talk about love failures but I have always thought that study failure can be more damaging in the life of a person. Maybe, I think this way because I never really experienced love. I was and am a hard worker, I do not like to miss opportunities that I will only have once. It was even more painful because my mother accompanied me even though she was sick. Furthermore, I felt ridiculous in front of everybody, I was ashamed. Each time, I am not able to achieve something in which I put a lot of effort, it usually finishes in tears.
Anyway, I went far from Agash. Geetha saw me and asked me some questions about my family. I told that everyone was fine and started to talk about my sister. I explained that the latter was studying law. Agash came closer to us and he asked me: "Is your sister like you? Does she cry when she fails? Is all your family like this?"
This time, it was too much, after punching him on the face as powerfully as I could, I caught his head and hit it on the table before the others separated us. He was bleeding, I shouted: "If I hear you again talking like this, you will be a dead man."
It is what would have probably occured if I was like most of the people who have some pride. However, it is not what happened. When he asked me those painful questions, I tried to smile and controlled my emotions. I told everybody that I had to go and invited them to my wedding. On my way back to home, I could not control my tears, I was angry, angry at me. Why did I not do anything? I did not even try to defend myself. I tried to reassure myself by thinking that he was drunk and that there was no real purpose of answering his provocation. Nevertheless, the questions he asked me were coming again and again in my head. My anger was expressed through imagining scenarios in which I was beating him in front of everybody and went out after telling a dialogue worthy of a hero.
After some time, waiting for the bus, I stopped crying but sadness was still inside me. Ten years after that incident, the injuries of that event were still painful. Judging people only on their past is too easy, now I am almost settled and among all the people in that gathering, I am one of the few who succeeded in my studies. Anyway, those kind of events are very common in my life. I know that after some time, the pain will be still here but it will be hidden. It will come back when I will think back at that moment of shame. Anyway, the preparations for the wedding distracted me from the incident for some time.
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