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I and my friend Anika were writing our exams, and that morning we were to write one of the hardest papers of our exams.
Throughout the time before the exam, we were preparing, from when we woke up to when we met at school. The pressure from the exams was so intense that Anika didn't even remember she had no writing materials or calculator.
“Wait,” Anika said, handing her book to me and searching her bag.
"I forgot everything I am meant to use to write this exam at home," she said, dropping her bag and putting her hands on her head.
I saw how worried and nervous she became as she couldn't stop shaking.
“Don't worry, we will find a way," I said to her as I searched my bag. Luckily for her, I always carried a backup set of writing materials in my bag. So, I gave her my second set. The only problem left was that I didn't have a second calculator.
“I can't write anything without my calculator," Anika said, panicking. Time was running out, with just a few minutes left before the exam was to start.
I searched the crowd for anyone with an extra calculator. After searching around, I was about to give up—who would carry two calculators?
But then I spotted one of our classmates with two calculators in her hands.
“I think I found one," I said, dragging Anika with me as we rushed over to the girl.
“Hi," I greeted her.
She didn’t respond, just looked at me and Anika, who was almost crying.
“Are both calculators yours?" I asked, hopeful.
She hesitated for a moment before she replied, “Yes."
"Thank God," Anika muttered to herself, relieved.
"Can you help my friend with one?" I asked politely.
"Yes, please," Anika added desperately.
“Sorry, I can't," the girl replied, her expression stern.
"But, I thought you said they both are yours,” Anika asked, confused.
"I said no," the girl snapped, almost yelling, and walked away looking irritated.
Anika became frustrated all over again. At that moment, the exam commenced, and we had to take our seats.
For almost the entire first half of the exam, I kept checking on Anika. Each time I looked, she seemed more frustrated and scared. One of the invigilators noticed her crying and asked what was wrong. Fortunately, he was kind enough to find a calculator for her to use for the rest of the exam.
When the exam was over, I waited outside the hall for Anika, who came out a few minutes later.
"Thank you," she said, returning the writing materials I had lent her.
"You’re welcome," I replied.
"Do you know that girl's name?" she asked, referring to the one with the calculators.
"No, like you, I only know she’s a classmate,” I said. Our friend group was pretty tight-knit, and we didn't know many people outside it.
“She’s really wicked. I saw her in the hall with both calculators, and she was only using one," Anika said, hissing.
“Just forget her. Thank God you were able to finish the exam," I said, too tired to dwell on it. We both went home and tried to put the whole thing behind us.
Three days later, we had a practical exam, and I don’t know if it was karma or fate, but the same girl we begged for a calculator, who looked at us like we were begging for scraps, ended up being my bench mate. And she had no idea what she was doing.
I watched her struggle for a while, waiting to see if she’d ask for help. Everyone else was helping each other out in the hall. But I guess she remembered me clearly and was too ashamed to ask.
“That’s wrong," I said after watching her make mistakes over and over. She didn’t respond, but I noticed she stopped what she was doing.
I moved closer and started helping her. The entire time I helped her, she kept her head down, speaking in such a low voice, humbled, and we never made eye contact. I bet she never thought our paths would cross again so soon and in a reversed situation. That was the last time I interacted with her.
After the practicals, I couldn't wait a second to tell Anika who I’d sat next to.
“She’s really lucky it wasn’t me,” Anika said. “I would’ve watched her make every mistake and laughed at each one.”
I laughed so hard. "I trust you. You can be very evil," I said.
Anika kept me laughing the whole day, telling me how she would’ve gotten her revenge on the girl.