I was in my room, Physics book on table, register beside it, pen in hand and headphones in ears, listening to music and cracking questions when I was distracted by cheerful voice of Moksh blooming through the hallway.
"Sis, you know what happened!" He was walking and speaking in this impatient but cute manner that always charms me. I do have the cutest brother.
"What?"
"Your classmate Aarush, well he roasted Aditya really bad and the look was priceless!"
"Tell me slowly and in detail."
"So our classes were over and Aditya's group was making fun of me again and then Aarush bro mocked them for me apparently he was there cause of some stay back."
"That's good but next time I want you to roast them instead, okay!"
"Um huun.. I am hungry." And he went off always avoiding this topic. I really want him to stand up for himself. Well, looks like he still has to grow. That was so unexpected of Aarush, I'll thank him later.
I was always good at reading people's mind. My family had always been an open book. I know Moksh has been bullied since the previous year. You see, Moksh speaks a lot at home and is like a bird continuesly chirping however, he is the exact opposite in school. He is quite, shy and sensitive making him the perfect kid to be picked on. Despite me telling him repeatedly he never stood up for himself. Of course as his elder sister I am concerned for his future.
I walked in the kitchen and saw him happily munching on a slice of bread jam like it was the biggest feast ever. My sweet little brother can be silly sometimes. It was indeed nice to see him that joyous after school. He often seemed quite sad. Although he tries to hide it the comments of those bullies do really hurt him. He tries to hide his troubles and never stands up for himself. As a result his classmates see him as vulnerable and perfect to pick on.
You see sometimes teenagers can be really cruel. They try to seem cool to others by choosing anyone as their target and stabbing dagger like comments in order to destroy their target's self esteem. Sometimes it just feels like harmless fun to them, they never really do think of the person they picked on. And when the person being tormented does not stand up they feel their will be no concequences.
************
I was quietly reading my novel sitting on my usual seat when I heard a familiar sound.
"Move!"
It has become our routine to fight over the same seat every single day. But this time, out of respect and gratitude I did not rebel and quietly removed my bag. Of course Aarush was crazy surprised about it. The look on his face was one worth seeing.
"Thanks for helping my brother!"
"Hey, just so you know I wasn't doing it for Moksh's sake, those brats were being super annoying. Acting like they owned the place so I just showed them who the true boss was."
"Liar!"
"Oh I am not lying!"
Then for a few minutes he just stared out of the window just in his own world, then he suddenly turned to me.
"Hey Chandni! Your brother.... he is a nice guy. You're quite lucky to have him. Not many people have such a nice brother. He has got a pure heart. However he doesn't see his own value. Don't let some nobodies destroy his self respect."
"Okay."
It was rather unusual of him. He wasn't taking any credit despite obviously doing something nice. Then he just praised my brother in a super quite voice.
When he said it he had this distant sort of expression. His words seemed coming from a person definitely not seventeen. The way he spoke almost seemed personal, especially 'not many people have such a nice brother'. Maybe he wasn't close to Sushil. When he spoke so thoughtfully it almost seemed as if his mask of being the egoistic brat slipped even if it was just a little. Deep down he is a nice and humble guy.
The bell rang our homeroom teacher left and in came Tanisq sir our Chemistry teacher. I was attentively listening to Tanishq sir as he explained molecular structures. Chemistry wasn't exactly my favourite subject but I definitely liked the teacher. He never targated students or discriminated against them, he also teaches you in a way that makes you actually wanna listen.
"May I come in sir?" Asked Aarush
"Yes."
"Sir can you send Chandni?"
"Sure."
What was he calling me for? I quietly followed him as he lead the way to music room.
"So Chandni, unlike the usual years when we just have orchestra, we are having a band where we are gonna play and sing songs instead of instrumental music. You see, choir is going for some interschool competition on the day on which our annual day will be held. Hence, we need two singers. Well, I am gonna be the first singer and you can be the second."
"Oh okay."
"So do you play any instruments?"
At this point I dunno what the point of hiding that I do.
"Yeah guitar."
"Which guitar exactly?"
"Acoustic."
"Can you sing while you play?"
"Well yeah!'
"Even when you dot the strumming?"
"Yeah."
"Okay. The keyboards can do the tabs, and I will play the bass guitar."
"When is the annual day?"
"Two or three weeks from now. The date has not been finalized."
"Do I have to bring it?"
"No we have many guitars in music room."
"So are we doing English songs or Hindi songs or both?"
"God you have so many questions chill out!"
I just rolled my eyes.
"You are not final as the singer but since you play guitar you are definitely in the band. You see, when I was going to call you I met some juniors who said they were absent on the day of the audition."
"So like do we have to call them or something?"
"No I have sent Rudraksh for that."