The entrance exam


 
“Vinay!!...Vinay!!!” a squeaky voice of a dominating girl lengthened in the Central mall of this not so spacious city. A boy, about 18, came rushing into the McDonald’s situated in the mall. The boy although was eye-catching but hassle and strain had washed-out his appeal. They took a table; the girl still annoyed but a feeling of perception concealed her fury.

“I am too upset about the entrance exam. With my coaching left out and everything happening around, it seems impossible for me to crack the exam……..it’s finished forever.” Vinay said without even looking towards the girl beside. His appearance spoke of strain, sob and extreme stress. The girl held his hand and lifted his face towards her.
“You fret a lot and perhaps pointlessly. You are the topper and deserve to be in the medical college. Moreover you are adapted to endeavor examinations without preparation, and clearing them, as you did with your boards. Aren’t you?” 
“It’s not a school examination for god sake, Kritika!”
“Boards are nowhere inferior to these exams. Also, you have been preparing for it for 2 years!”
“It’s not about preparation. It’s about the psychological influence!” 
“See you are speaking like a medical student now! You are going to be selected.” Kritika giggled, trying to create some hilarity.
“It’s nothing to joke about!!!!” Vinay shouted piercingly which made Kritika to back off. 
“I….I know that you are trying to cheer me up…..but the thing is that…… that….I just need rest.” He apologized and departed ignoring the constant requests from Kritika.
                                                ****

Mr. Pramod Chadda, a stock investor, had just arrived at his residence. An overwhelming angst was covering his face and lines over his forehead portrayed this deep sense of apprehension.
 After facing a huge loss and subsequently going bankrupt, there was nothing to alleviate. His possession on this house was in danger.
All this were still bearable, but the sense of remorse of ruining his son’s career was enormous. 
How has money turn out to be so crucial to humans? How could a hasty turn in life change everything including your future? Such thoughts and questions were now spilling over his mind. 
The only companion at such a calamity, as it has always been, his wife sat beside him.

“Don’t worry. Everything will be alright. Vinay is a marvelous child, he can clear the PMT easily.” She spoke with tenderness and concern.
“I know that he is brilliant, Nita. But without being able to attempt the test series and the entire crisis around, he must be in great trauma.” He explained and raised his head towards his wife. “You know what I mean to say….He is a lot vulnerable to depression. He is afraid of defeat and will be blaming himself if he failed to clear.”

“That’s why I am saying not to worry. He knows your troubles and wants to lift them up by playing his part properly. If he saw you worried like this, he’ll blame himself for it. Our duty is to keep him away from depression.” She replied with empathy.

Vinay just arrived and seeing the vexed face of his father, his tension rose up. He was now fed up of everything……..the recovery bullies that distressed and terrorized his father, now almost daily…..his annoyance towards his friends especially Kritika……….the huge syllabi too revise especially physics………his inability to contest in the test series and further preparations due to lack of funds…. and a lot more. He just went into his room which might soon be someone else’s. He dived into his books and tried to concentrate.
                                                ****

The exam day. 
Vinay was in no mood of talking and discussing about his preparation with his fellow students. He was with his parents and Kritika, who just gave her engineering entrance exam. 

“Don’t worry. You’ll clear it easily. These exams are not that tough as we all thought.” Kritika cheered him up. But it was of no use. Exams have always been easy for him. But at this condition, they appear to be horrendous.

Don’t worry dude. Just do what you are perfect in. Take it as a challenge. He thought, trying to be optimistic. 
I can’t fool myself. I can’t crack it down…Dad was always right in saying that I am afraid of loosing, although he’ll never convey it to me…I am going to mess up everything. Cynicism again overcame his mind. 

He was in the examination hall. 1 hour had just finished. All the panoramas of past 3 distressful and worst months were buzzing over his mind. He was overwhelmed with rage and frustration which he put down on the questions. He started to attempt each and every question with intuition and whatever his mind said. In this mode, he finished the exam. 
                                                ****

“It’s the last time I am parting you Chadda!!! If I didn’t get my money back, it will be you who’d face the last time!” a mammoth person with blunt head roared with Mr. Chadda in his clutches. After bawling out on him, he thrashed him over his sofa and left the house with a bang accompanied by his chartered bullies.

Mr. Chadda took a deep breath. His wife was sitting besides him thunderstruck in fear and awe. Suddenly, Vinay entered hurryingly.

“Dad!! Was that the scamp Khatri? He bullied you again!!” Vinay yelled in appalling fear.
His father nodded but didn’t disclose anything about the last word of warning they have just received. Instead, to divert the issue, he said, “Oh! Forget about that! Your result must be coming on the net tomorrow. What are your estimates?”
Vinay smiled in a mysterious note and answered silently, “Let’s hope!!” 
His mind was full of fear and awful imaginations about what is to come. He knew what that Khatri would have said to his father. He was well conscious of what their state will be after some days. He was dreadfully guilty for plundering his exam, the only ray of hope he could have received. 
He went into his room and just leaped into his bed to curb all the pessimistic thoughts that were detonating in his brain.


Vinay suddenly woke up with hassle and sweat overwhelming his body.
He saw the clock that showed 1:30 am. The Result must have been put up on the net.
A shrivel ran down his spine. He dashed out of his bed and switched on his computer. He browsed the net and finally opened up the desired link. Suddenly, he hurdled out from the chair and ran towards the kitchen stealthily. 
His hands were trembling as he approached a white shelf placed above the cabin below the chimney. He opened up with tears in his eyes and sweat over his forehead. He fetched a bottle with a label of “Rat Poison” over it.
He wanted to cry and curse his fate but he couldn’t risk waking up his parents.
He held the bottle, lifted it up and unconsciously streamed it down his neck.      
He felt a weird muddle of relief and guilt.
He came back to his room. His eyes grew larger as he gawked at the computer screen. His heart hammered the nails of remorse and extreme guilt.
He ran towards the screen and reloaded it again. Suddenly, an enormous headache struck him. He fell down with a thump leaving the computer screen to show his 7th Rank unremittingly. 



Vinay found himself fallen down his bed with strain walloping his head.
He saw the time. It was 4:00am. He realized that he was alive.
Was it a dream? He thought with great perplexity. His eyes went on his cell phone. He picked it up and saw a message from his dear friend Kritika. It was timed at 11:49pm and read, 
“You’ll surely crack it down. Remember that you perform the best in crisis. As you always say…your sub-conscious mind is sharper than your brain.  BEST OF LUCK”
 
He just smiled at the message. He never realized what he always uttered was so accurate about his own personality. 
He went to his parents’ room and found them gazing at the computer screen.
He didn’t know what the result would be, will he be selected or not...rather now it didn’t mattered that much as earlier.
The only thing that counted for him was the life and the verve to counter the toils of the same. A mystifying assurance over his intuitive mind made him comforted like never before.
He looked at his parents who were beaming at him and replied with a smile that conveyed—everything will be alright. I am always there.   





VISHAL ARORA