Chapter 32: Treat

“Well, I’ll be leaving now. Got some work to catch up on.” Harshil stood up and lightly stretched. “See ya all, later!”

“Wait a minute.” A hand reached out and grabbed his wrist. “Are you thinking of escaping and considering this a treat?” Jatin tilted his head to one side.

Rolling his eyes, Harshil pulled out his wallet and waved it in front of the spectacled man’s face. Jatin let go and leaned back into his seat.

Harshil smartly stepped back, dropped his wallet back into his pocket, raised an arm in farewell and yelled “Thanks for the treat” before making a hasty retreat.

By the time he had exited the shop leaving the door swinging wildly, Jeet had barely managed to half-rise from his seat and Jatin jerked forward, startled.

“No way…” He muttered. “Is he a kid?! He just ran away like…”

“Calm down. We can just make him fork it over whenever we meet next.” Cabir laughed.

Jeet, who was ready to tear out of the shop in pursuit, was grabbed by Aakash who was sporting a helpless grin, “Just let it be. You know how he is, that annoying prick.”

“He’s a frigging middle-aged man! Has he no sense of shame?” Jeet sighed heavily as he plopped back down onto his chair.

“He’s always been a prankster. He never really matured.” Cabir laughed as he bit into a strawberry-flavoured donut.

“Well, he was good at scamming people from a young age.” Aakash yawned. “Remember Kamal sir?”

“Who?” Jeet bit his lips.

“Our Economics teacher in Class 10th. The Goa guy.” Aakash said.

“…oh! That person…” Jeet snapped his finger in remembrance. “Well, he wasn’t such an honest guy himself. Braggart.”

“Hey, he was our teacher. Some respect!” Jatin tapped him on the head.

“C’mon, I’m just stating a fact!” The lanky man shrugged.

“What event are you talking about?” Cabir asked, brows furrowed.

“That one! When Harshil sent that letter to the headmistress with everyone’s signs! After he scammed a treat from Kamal sir!”

*****

“What are you boys playing?” The heavyset and bald man ambled to the four desks joined together on one side of the classroom where five boys were sitting.

“Oh, we’re playing Truth and Dare, sir.” The spiky-haired boy grinned up at him, pointing at the bottle that was lying horizontally on the desks.

“You spin the bottle and when it comes to a stop-”

“I know what the game is, Harshil.” The teacher laughed. “I’ve been teaching for years; I have seen kids play it. Can I join in?”

“Uh-” Harshil frowned imperceptibly; irritation flashed past his eyes, he seemed to have remembered something unsavoury. Plastering a smile the next moment, he cast a quick glance around and seeing no disagreement from his buddies, replied, “Sure.”

Even as he enthusiastically nodded, a mischievous glint appeared in Harshil’s eyes. Jeet pulled out an empty chair for the economics teacher to sit down on who obliged with a comfortable sigh.

“Spin the bottle, Jatin.” Harshil urged.

The spectacled boy closed the book he had opened while his teacher and friend were talking to lean forward and exert some force on the yellow-and-grey bottle.

“…and it’s Jeet’s turn to choose Truth or Dare! Aakash, you get to ask him a question or give him a dare.”

“I can see that, Harshil…stop commenting…” Aakash rolled his eyes.

“Dare!” Jeet chose confidently.

“Hmm…what to…oh, yeah.” Aakash smirked playfully. “Mimic Kamal sir! You do it so well!”

“Oh, that so?” The economics teacher raised an eyebrow in surprise, “You do it ‘well’? So, you’ve done it before? Why don’t you show me?”

“Aakash, you…” Jeet forced the words through teeth.

“Oh, nice one! Aakash, you are becoming more and more like me! Pushing people into a tight spot so well!” Harshil thumped the spectacled boy’s back heavily.

The person in question gazed at him with a disgruntled expression.

“What?” The spiky-haired boys raised his hands in surprise.

“Becoming like you…I don’t think that’s much of a compliment.” Aakash mused. “You know what, Jeet? Let me change the dare!”

“Hey, you!” Harshil aimed a punch at Aakash who dodged with a snort.

“Boys…” Kamal sir smiled at them, “I might be easy-going…but that doesn’t mean I’ll allow you to be rowdy like that.”

“Of course, sir…um…sorry.”

“Sorry, sir.”

“And Aakash,” The man thumped him lightly on the back, “No need to change the dare. I want to see Jeet’s mimicry of me. C’mon, Jeet!”

“You asked for it.” The boy murmured under his breath which only Harshil caught as he was sitting next to him and stood up.

With all the exaggerated air that Mr. Kamal normally had around him when bragging, Jeet proclaimed in a slightly nasally voice and loud enough so that the whole class could hear, “Listen up, class!”

Everyone turned their heads towards the tall boy’s direction.

“Before you all are promoted to Class 11, I’ll make sure you all can go on a trip to Goa!”

He wagged a finger as he continued, “Not just any trip! It’ll be for 2 nights and 3 days! But most importantly, it’ll be co-ed!”

He spread his hands as if embracing the whole class, “You hear me?! We’ll go on a co-ed school trip to Goaaaaaa!”