Our School Days

Chapter 3

I was standing on the balcony, drinking a can of beer. I heard the bathroom door opening and closing. Jacques emerged from the bathroom and sat on the sofa.

I didn’t go inside. I was still standing where I was, looking at Jacques. All the memories of him and me began to surface. “On one hand, you are right, and I feel sorry for you, Jacques.” I thought.

I have known Jacques since we were in the Montessori school. Even though he was as tall as an orange, Jacques was a hard-headed, stubborn boy. He always did whatever he wanted, regardless of what others said.

From Montessori school to grade eleven, we studied together. We had a group called the “Gang of 7,” consisting of three girls and four boys: Ammee, Pim, Jason, Binod, Danny, and Jacques.

“Mmm...Jacque, I can’t walk, and you know it, right? Don’t play with me. Give me my purse now.” Ammee cried in anger while sitting on the floor. She had fractured her leg two weeks ago while playing football.

We were in the school ground, under the banyan tree.

“Jason...catch it.” Jacques threw dried cat poop to Jason. Jason started spitting out. Jacques said, laughing. “I didn’t say catch it. I said, Cat shit.”

We all laughed.

“Catch it now.”

Jason let it fall on the floor and then took it in his hand.”

“Give it to Binod, man.”

Jason threw the purse to Binod. Binod caught it.

“Binod. Throw it over.” Jacques cried loudly.

“Give me my purse, Jacques, otherwise I will hit you with this stone hard,” Ammee shouted angrily.

Ammee was the tallest in our group. We all wished to be as tall as her, but she disliked it. She often felt different when we roamed around together.

“I am giving you this back because you can’t walk,” Jacques said and put her purse on her lap. “Otherwise, you know,”

We all started laughing.

“Wait and see.” Ammee glared at him. “You little dwarf.”

We all laughed again.

“Okay, okay,” Jacques said, humiliated. “Now sit down.”

“You don’t need to tell me what to do, Jacques,” Ammee said angrily. “I will sit when I want to.”

“Now put that medicine in your stinking leg,” Jacques said and sat beside her. “Captain Crutches.” Jacques laughed while applying the medicine to Ammee’s broken leg and giving her pills that the doctor had prescribed. “This is what happens when you try to dance like youre in your 20s.”

We grew up together, playfully arguing, fighting, and teasing one another. In grade eleven, we focused on the O.L. Exam and had to attend tuition classes in the evening. After the classes, we would go to the shop near the tutoring center and eat snacks.

“Did you understand the lesson today?” Binod asked.

“Why? Didn’t you understand? He was teaching in Thai.” I asked him sarcastically. “Or you don’t speak Thai?”

“As soon as John Cena started teaching,” Jacques said, and we all started laughing. “Bro was snoring. How will he understand the lesson?”

 “Jacques, we don’t call the teachers like that.”

“Sorry, sorry.” Jacques apologized quickly.

“Sorry, sorry,” Ammee said. “If you disrespect the teachers like that, knowledge will not come to your thick head, idiot.”

“Alright, Madam. Alright.” Jacques said, join-handedly. “I am sorry. I will not say it again. Please don’t start lecturing now.”

“That’s good,” Ammee said and laughed. “You should keep that fear in your head.”

Jacques glared at Ammee, falsely angrily, and said, “Just think that I said something.”

Just like that, we were studying in grade eleven and enjoying the school life. Jacques' father was working in a government office, and all of a sudden, his father received a transfer letter from his office, and they had to move to Chiang Mai, his father’s hometown. Jacques left the school and us.

We felt as though some parts of our bodies were missing. Without Jacques, the gang of 7 felt incomplete.

At that time, we didn’t have phones and weren’t allowed to use them. We couldn’t communicate by speaking or messaging each other. I remember Jacques asking us to give him a call, but how could we do that? A few months later, the number he had given us didn’t work either.

We had ten months left for the test now.

“Guys. I had a message from Jacques.” I said. We were sitting at the shop and eating snacks after the class.

“Oh. No. No way.” Ammee cried, surprised. “He has a new phone number?”

“Yes, he had messaged me too,” Binod said. “I wanted to tell you guys, but somehow I forgot.”

“See,” I said, disappointed. “He has already forgotten us.”

“Alright, alright,” Binod said, sounding sarcastic. “I will tell him that you are sad and missing him. Give a message to her.”

“Da...f...” I said and hit Binod’s shoulder. “Just think that I said the whole lot of words from the dictionary.”

“Was he dead or what?” Ammee said sadly. “I am so fucking angry with this idiot.”

“I don’t know.”

After eating some snacks and coffee, we headed home.

On a Saturday, I had a holiday. I was sitting on the sofa, watching TV. My mother’s phone was on the table, so I picked it up and replied to an unknown number.

“Hi.”

I didn't respond earlier because it was an unknown number, and I didn't want my mother to find out about the text.

I scrolled down and found a few more messages. I opened them and read, “Hi, this is Jacques. It’s been a long time, hasn’t it?”

A few minutes later, he replied to me. “Hi, Yasmin. How is everything? Why didn’t you reply to me? I was waiting for the message.”

We texted for hours.

Since that day, I have received a "good morning" message every morning from Jacques and a "good night" message at night.

We texted with each other for a few months, but later, there were changes in his words and sentences.

I.

I don’t know.

I just...

To be continued......

Hi! I am Buddhi. I am a teacher and a student of philosophy, Buddhism, and old and ancient knowledge and wisdom. My dream is to read every single book in the world and write new books for the future generation. I have written many stories, but I could not publish them because of my financial instability. That is the one reason I started this YouTube channel where I talk about the stories and some of the Buddha's teachings to meet you all, readers. Please watch the video, like it, comment your thoughts and opinions, and subscribe to the channel for more.

For work: buddhireads@gmail.com or buddhiwrites@gmail.com