Falling, Fallen

Their story was not the ‘love at first sight' one. Raj was always the best in his class until Ankita came. Ankita - the beautiful, tender faced girl with long silky tresses of black hair caught everyone’s attention on the first day of the class, and so did her crutches. 

Yes, Ankita was physically incapacitated. Her right leg was polio-affected and was thinner than the rest of her limbs. Yet, she was determined not to go to the school for the specially-abled. She knew that she was intelligent and would fare well enough in her studies. She wanted her identity for her merit, not her disability. After completing her schooling up to class 8 from the school near her house, she insisted on being admitted to St. Stephen’s – one of the most renowned schools in the city. 

Raj, who had been studying in St. Stephen’s since class 1, had always come first. He took pride in holding the position of a diligent topper as well as a sports enthusiast. However, the grading of the First Unit Test of class 9, was a shock for everyone, especially Raj. The usually quiet Ankita had come first, surpassing Raj. At first, Raj blamed himself for not working too hard and made up his mind to be the first-position holder the next time. But, when every teacher’s attention started shifting towards Ankita, Raj got jealous of her. He started a fierce competition with her and started working day and night tirelessly, hoping to beat her in the next term. However, when Raj came second in the next First Term Examinations too, outranked by Ankita, he could not contain his anger.

Jealousy, loss of pride and anger blinded him to such an extent that it seemed to him that it was Ankita's fault for coming first. He had to win. This thought overcame his decency and he started following Ankita and even checked her bag in her absence. Then, one day, his friends pointed out to him that Ankita was gaining the sympathy of the teachers because of her disability. This fact got her more marks than him. That is unfair, Raj thought. Hatred started building inside him. Ultimately, his anger got the better of him. He just needed a chance to avenge his defeat from her. And then, one day, he got just this chance. Ankita was returning from the washbasin at the end of the corridor at lunchbreak. Their school's washbasin was near the staircase. Ankita, leaning on her crutches, was walking slowly towards her class, followed behind by Raj. Just when she came near the staircase, he shoved her down the stairs. That part of the corridor was empty. And Raj decided that he would lie and say that it was not intentional but by mere accident if ever he got caught in the cameras. He ran off, only after catching a glimpse of Ankita tumbling down the stairs, falling from the crutches and screaming. She rolled down the stairs until her face hit the landing. Blood trickled down from her head and her leg was throbbing with immense pain. She had only seen the boy's black wristband before he had shoved her down the stairs. 

Raj did not tell anybody about what he had done to Ankita, not even to his friends. Ankita was taken to the sickroom where her head was bandaged. Her parents were called immediately. When everyone asked her whether she remembered anything about the person who had shoved her, she kept quiet, not even revealing that it was a boy who did that. There was a fracture in her leg and the doctors had asked her to take complete bed rest for two weeks at least until her swollen head and fractured leg got any better. 

When Ankita did not appear in school for days, inexplicable guilt burdened Raj down. He never knew that he could be so inhuman to inflict such cruelty on someone who was doing better than him.

Even after two weeks, when Ankita still did not come to school, fear and guilt began suppressing his spirits. He had to apologize. He decided that he would go to Ankita's home and then confess his mistake. 

He went to Ankita's house. He had carried with him all the notes taught in the class when Ankita was absent and a box of chocolate. Ankita's parents were nice. Her mother took him to Ankita's room. Ankita was lying propped up against the pillows on her bed. She seemed fine, but her leg was still plastered. Ankita had made fewer friends in school, that too, never a boy. She blushed at seeing Raj in her room. She said looking sadly at her leg, “Sorry. I cannot welcome you properly.” 

-“No, that's okay. I thought that you might need help in studies because you have missed so many classes in school. So I brought you the notes written in class.” 

-“Oh! But I don't think I can return to school anymore. My parents won't allow me to go to school after that accident”, Ankita said in a depressed voice. To which, Raj feeling a terrible pang of guilt, replied, “I am sorry. That was me who did it. I had pushed you down the stairs that day. Please forgive me.” And then, he blurted out the truth in front of her. Ankita swallowed the lump in her throat. Tears flowed down her cheeks uncontrollably. She could not forgive someone who was the reason that her parents were thinking of changing her school. Yet, when she looked into his eyes, something stirred in her heart. She smiled weakly and said, “Yes. Your wristband told me that. I had seen that wristband on the hands that had pushed me that day, that you are wearing right now.” 

That day after he had left Ankita's place, Raj pondered whether she was looking more beautiful than usual or not. This meeting extended to exchanging phone numbers, sweet messages and of course, chocolates! 

That day was the answer-scripts distribution date for the Final Term Examinations. The students had come to school to collect their answer scripts for the Final Examinations. After a general calculation and prediction about everyone's marks, it was found that Ankita had come second, preceded by Raj. Raj seemed unbothered by the praises but Ankita seemed very contended though. At the end of the school, Raj cornered Ankita at the classroom end. “Did you do that for me?”, Raj asked. 

- “What?” Ankita was not surprised. Rather, she was smiling.

- “Leave them.” Raj said, pointing to her crutches.

- “I would fall.”

- “Not anymore.” And he removed her crutches from her grip, slowly supporting her body against his, sliding his hands around her waist. He was tightly holding her, pinning her head against his chest. He whispered, "I love you."