My First Love Letter

It is again a rainy season. The holidays are over. Like always, I was happy. I was in fourth standard from where I passed the examination and now is to sit in fifth.

Sanadhana Dharma School is in a big compound two other schools are there as its neighbors. In all the class of Sanadhana Dharma School there are three batches A, B and C. I was in B batch but when the class was reshuffled I came to C batch. I was not so happy to change the batch. I was so sad to lose my old friends and to come to the new batch. With me two other students from B batch were also changed to C and those two where the only friends that I have as of then . Sunil Paniker A fat bunny spacey boy and a lean fair boy Amith Menon. With these two friends I sat on the first bench with Menon on the left and Paniker on the right. A new teacher came to his class a lean young lady with long fingers and sharp nails. She is in a cotton sari, which is her specialty. Her eyes are sharp and the stick seems to be an extension to her left hand, which she always carries. Even though her name was Mary none called her so. The name Parunthu that students call her seems to suite her more.

My mind was still in my old class. In old batch he has a friend Sangeetha Mallan. The fat Konginy girl with wheat colored complexion was my best friend. One day Paniker came with a proposal. Chapter No 1 love. Kochurani a girl with big eyes and dark complexion is the daughter of a teacher of the same school is a good in Barathanathyam too. A simple proposal Paniker just wants to know whether Kochurani, the top ranker of B batch loves him or not. Good three of them liked it vary much.

"But how to know?" asked both of us to Paniker. Three of us start thinking. It longed for two days. Paniker came with a solution.

"A love letter," said Paniker. But the Paniker is not the one who is going to write letter and Kochurani is not the one who is going receive. I should write the letter and that to Mallan. That was the solution Menon liked it. I with little hesitation accepted the proposal. I was happy that he can start loving Mallan who was just a friend to him. Two birds with one bullet.

Now the problems aroused How to give? On what to write? What to write? Where to give?

"You put the letter before her on the way and she will take it" it was a suggestion by Menon to me.

"Good" said Paniker.

"Okay first problem is over. What is about the second? This is not an ordinary letter," I said. For that Paniker took a paper from the bag. It was an advertisement notice of sunflower oil. One side it is full of picture of sunflowers. And on the other side it is blank. The paper is good. Three of us got satisfied.

" Now what to write". Asked Menon

"One thing is fixed. “ I LOVE YOU “. But it is not the solution of the real need. And what is the next thing we should write to know that whether Kochurani loves Paniker or not" I said.

"Dose Kochurani loves Paniker", Menon suggested.

"No that should not be asked like that". Said Paniker.

Then what" I exclaimed."

"You should not mention my name ", answered Paniker.

"Whom does Kochurani love?" Paniker said.

"That is not bad," said Menon. I wrote the letter. It had only two sentences "I love you. Whom does Kochurani love?" I took a red sketch pen and drew a picture of a heart.

"That is enough," said Paniker.

"Now next is the interval you drop the letter before her then she will take it " said Menon to me .

It was the last interval of the day. I took the letter and went to the ground I saw Mallan playing in the ground. The bell rang. Everybody was rushing to the class. I dropped the letter before her. Without understanding any thing she gave a good smile and went in to her class. I looked all around and took the letter and kept it safe in my pocket. I came back to the class and told my friends about what had happened.

"Now what? " Menon was curious to know. They started to think again.

"Got it, " I said. Both Menon and Paniker were looking very curiously in to my eyes.

"You and Mallan are in the same school bus. You jut give this letter to her and say that I have sent this for her," I said to Paniker. Paniker looked troubled.

"That is not a good idea," said Paniker.

"No that is the only idea left and it is a good idea" interrupted Menon. It was the last period the bell rang.

"Where is Sunil?" I asked Menon. We both had no idea on where he had gone. We searched for him all around.

"There he is " shouted Menon pointing towards the school bus.

"Why didn’t you take this letter?" I asked him.

"Oh I forgot about it," said Paniker with a smile in his face. I kept the letter in Panikers pocket.

It was very difficult for me to pass that day. Next day I ran to the school even without doing the homework given by Miss Mary. Menon was also there.

"Why is this Paniker’s bus so late…there it comes". I Said to Menon. Both of us ran to Paniker to know what had happened.

"Success", I inquired with a smile.

"You just say Sorry and that you won't repeat it. Don’t say any thing else." Said Paniker to me .

"What?" exclaimed Menon.

"I kept that letter in my pocket which a boy took who is a friend of Kochurani's brother. And he gave that letter to Kochurani's brother. "Paniker said it in one breath. Even before Paniker could complete I saw a boy coming with his friends towards him. He is a student of the same school of class tenth. I turned back just to find both Menon and Paniker missing. That boy came to me and showed the same paper to him on that he pointed his index finger towards the heart sign in red colour. It looked redder than when he drew it.

"Did you draw it?" the first question from him.

"Yes" I replied in a low voice.

"Did you write it". He showed the two lines in it and asked.

"Yes" my answer was again in the same tone. He tore the paper into pieces and threw it on the ground.

"You are lucky enough that it is his sister if it was to my sister," Threatened a friend.

"What dose it mean" I thought about the sentences in the letter. "I love you, whom does Kochurani love, Is he thinking that I wrote this letter to Kochurani…! Yes that's it" I confirmed.

"But it is not me and not for Kochurani ". Before I could say that they were far enough to hear me. I couldn't move from that place. I stood there looking at the pieces of papers that was flying in the gentle breeze.