A Case For Me

When was the last time you stood at a junction, waiting to cross the road, with a briefcase in your hand, and which, just like that, had accidentally fallen from the sky just in front of you? That's what had exactly happened to me today. I don't know what is there in that. But I just feel there's something very valuable in it. 

Money, diamonds, anything. It's locked, of course. And that's why I am now hurrying out to the case openers. But…

"But what? What are you waiting for?"

He was on his cell, yelling at someone. Probably to someone who works under him. Phew! After I get to open this case, I'm sure I'll not be going to work under someone. I will give jobs to people. Yeah! That's it.

"Sir"

"Yes"

"That's a pretty nice case. Are you an investment banker?"

"No. Why?"

"Nothing, I just thought you were one"

"Oh. Thanks. But I'm not. Umm… I quit my job"

"Oh, okay"

The cell guy thinks I'm a banker. So much for a miracle! Let's keep it that way. 

No! I didn't quit my job. I didn't have a job actually, and that's why such a divine intervention happened to me after all. Well, that's what I think.

The red city bus passed by us pedestrians. Mad honker driver was irritating us. 

By the way, I knew questions would come into people's minds on the case. I knew someone's looking for this. And I also knew that this case might not have what I think it might have. It's all a matter of luck and I'm riding on it. 

"Sir, sir, could you spare some change for me? Could you?"

Beggars! Just looking at them, kills my ambitions. Such poverty in the nation and no one cares. Damn those politicians. As I think about this, I also think about how hypocritical I am by not even giving out some change for the poor guy. 

"Is this important now? Huh? Is this really?"

It felt as though that guy was asking me that question. And it sounded the right one in this situation. Who cares about the nation now, anyway? Got a case filled with anything-that-could-be and you have questions on socio-economic disparity? Stupid!

"Come on. It's a rough day for me. Don't disturb the customers, please. Sir, what do you want?"

"Umm… Juice, yeah"

It's a hot summer day. It's noon time. Well, the case can wait for some time. 

Refresh myself with some natural refreshers. 

I paid the twenty rupees. And it was time to rush. Yes, and I literally need to dash through the people to get my job done. 

A little more speed on my heels would do no harm. After all, I am rushing am I not? This wasn't a problem for me. But some idiot among the crowd of walkers had a slight problem, I think. 

"Oh, he's running off with a briefcase. Thief, thief, thief"

My heart beat faster and I started panicking. That idiot gathered a few more idiots who are most probably chasing another idiot who's rushing with something in his hand, which he doesn't own. Don't mind, after all we all are idiots in this idiot world. Oh, not here. You Philosophical Nazi running like a lunatic to get a briefcase opened. Not now!

"Get him! Get that thief, now!" 

I am not going to blame them. I used to do athletics at school. College time was a wasteland, where nothing was done, except getting into stupid relationships and what not. But yes, these people got my athletic DNA going now. I appreciate that one. Even though it was for the wrong reasons. Second, you would think too, if you were on that road, and watched me scurrying like this. It's a natural human tendency. And that was what Darwin told too. Evolution, people. Okay, so now I'm an unemployed, philosophical idiot thief who jabbers about Darwinism. Right!

So the bottomline here is that, I can't blame them. I can't stop and look around either. That would be suicide. One, because they would surely bruise me up. And then find out that I was running around with something that didn't belong to me. Two, because even if they caught me, whether they beat me or not, they're going to take this case away from me. Which means I'm not going to be giving jobs to people. The latter part of the second point would be possible only if the case had really something in it, which would help me. And that's why I need to run faster than ever, to remove myself from their sights and get into a case opener's and finally find out the contents. 

"You take the street on the left. I'm going straight. We'll get the thief"

So, you'd be thinking. How jobless are these people, after all? I would say, that's a valid question, if you're really thinking the same. Yes, they've been chasing me around since I last saw the time on my watch. Then, it said 12.12 P.M. Now, when I look at my watch again. It says, 12.43 P.M. If the calculations worked out right and if my watch showed the correct time, then 31 minutes of utter running around had been happening here. Now, I blame them for this. Idiots!

As I neared a corner store that opened locks, I saw one of the heroic thief-catchers at a distance, about to prance upon me, for something I did that I forgot as to what it was, now. 

"Brother, help me out, please. Quick. Open the case, now"

Suddenly, a large hand slammed the door behind.

"So, you're here. You thief!"

"Hey no. It's...it's mine. Okay? I didn't steal it. It's mine"

"Then why were you running like that"

"That's because I wanted to get my case opened"

"You don't know to open your own case? Huh?"

"It got locked and I forgot the key"

"So, why didn't you go to the lock openers' who was on the way earlier"

"Oh, there was? On the way?"

"Oh, yes"

"Well, I missed them. I was in a hurry, okay?"

"You're lying. Get me the case"

"Hey, no man. It's mine"

This was no short of a brawl. Fighting for no reason at all, fighting loud and one of them was drunk too. Well, that qualifies to be a brawl. 

"Sir, sir, sir, please"

The lock opener seemed quite sad. Maybe, we were so loud. And fighting. 

Maybe he want us to get out. But no. He had opened the chamber of secrets. 

The hero over there, opened his eyes widely. Well, I was the one who was waiting to know what's inside of it since the second it fell from the sky. So, I jumped over and pushed the lock person and….

                                 .....................

"I'm very sorry, principal sir. I was having lunch at the canteen. I didn't realise that I had kept it on the ledge. I'm very sorry sir. Please"

"You are irresponsible, mister. As a teacher you should have been very careful. 

After all, these are students' answer papers. That decides their life. And you say, you carelessly pushed it down the window?"

"Yes sir. I realise that. But I didn't do it on purpose. I'm sorry. Very sorry"

That one noon, when I saw the case. I should have thought, why would any God help me? I should have been a little more sensible. I should have ignored like anyone else. But I'm not to be blamed. The careless teacher, the principal who employed the careless teacher, the heroic idiots who ran after me, the lock opener and finally the students who wrote the exams, who were the root cause of it all were also responsible.

This incident caused me immense pain in my legs, immense disappointment to the idiots, termination for the teacher and finally, happiness to the students who wrote the exams terribly. Well, I take comfort in that.