Holidays; This and That

‘You’re so cute! I hope you don’t miss your family too much’ Sk cooed to a glass jar ‘but you won’t miss them for too long, I’m gonna love you so much my dear Dan-Bug’ she hugged the jar.
‘Dan-Bug!’ I scoffed. Sk made a face at me. I put on my earphones and played my current favorite song ‘Our Song’ by Taylor Swift and closed my eyes. If Fat weren’t there, I’d have sung along, I might have even danced a little but I didn’t want to make a fool of myself in front of her. I imagined myself singing the song on the stage; causing thousands of people a sheer delight. ‘Encore! Encore!’ they shouted when I was finished. I flashed my famous smile at them and sang the song in my beautiful voice again. The crowd went wild. Hmm. This’d be just too nice. But that is never gonna happen. My voice, if not horrible, isn’t ‘singing’ type. It’s too high-pitched. I erased the image of myself singing the song and handed the mike back to Taylor swift.
‘Sidrah!!!’ someone snatched my MP4 away from me, causing me to fall flat on my face,
‘What the ….’ I started but saw Somia excited expression and stopped myself.
‘What? What’s the news??’ I asked, grabbing her by shoulders. Blue sent us the note last night that we won’t be able to go to the tunnel trip. We were like OH-NO!!-NO-FUN!-LIFE-ISN’T-FAIR!
‘He said we’ll go on Thursday morning at four’ she said, pulling herself free of my grip.
‘On Thursday?’ I was agitated ‘at four? 4 am? That’s night. It’ll be so dark’ Somia was looking at me, confused.
‘And on Thursday?’ I repeated ‘We’re going back on that day! Ms. Orla would be watching us like a hawk watches its prey’ but I was talking to myself as nobody took notice of me. Somia, who looked indifferent, was applying a red nail-polish on her nails. Sk busy with Dan-Bug, Sana was engrossed in a book and Fat eating a chocolate (yummy!).
‘Guys?’ I stamped my foot loudly. They all looked up, impatient and annoyed , as I just intruded one of those most peaceful moments of life which you’re never, as in never ever, supposed to ruin. I sighed heavily and gave up. Once again I switched on my MP4 and got lost in my ‘Rock star –Pop Star’ world.


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It was dinner time. We were sitting on the wet grass waiting to get served. No waiters (of course!) but Sana and Somia would serve us. They’d gone to take food from the ‘kitchen’, which was also in a camp.
‘Thank God, we don’t have to make food here ourselves’ I tried to converse with Sk, who was busy watching her Dan-Bug ‘You know, like in books or movies where you hunt something and then roast it on the fire. That’d be gross. But roasting marshmallows is just so romantic’
‘Yeah’ Sk said absent mindedly and then ‘You know, I might give Dan-Bug to Dan’ a smile lighted her face ‘he’ll love it, won’t he!’
‘I don’t think so’ I was being harsh but I’d to say, ‘Dan is not responsible kind of person. He’d lose him or kill him. Dan-bug is okay with you’
Sk didn’t say anything but she knew I was right. She continued watching the bug. The other when we went to study insects, Sk found this lovely colorful bug and fell in love with it. We helped her to capture it. Actually Somia was the one who captured it, but Sana and I did all the yelling. We were cheerleaders and Somia was the player. Ms. Orla didn’t approve when she found out.
‘Living things should be free of all limits. They’re meant to be. This bug needs nature, don’t deprive it of its rights’ she spoke reprovingly; her face determined and her voice strong. Sk looked doubtful but she didn’t let go, she was too much in love to think about the rights of an insect.
‘I’m still itchy’ I heard Sana talking to Somia ‘but it’s getting better. Dr. Stitch is AWESOME! And that lotion was also AWESOME! I look okay now, right?’
‘Yup, you look fine’ Somia affirmed.
‘Hey’ Sana said to us and settled herself on the clean spot and gave each of us a box. I opened mine reluctantly knowing what’d be inside it. A little hopeful that tonight they’d cooked something else. No such luck. Boiled rice, stale bread and watery stew greeted me. And an apple!!! I cheered up when I saw a familiar greenish yellow fruit.

‘Yay! I got an apple’ I said, holding the apple like a prized possession.
‘So do I’ Sk said, showing her apple. Hers was larger. Sana and Somia took out their apples too.
‘Oh’ I said ‘Lucky us!’ I shrugged and ate my food quietly. As you know, dinner with friends is gossip time too. We gossiped about Fat, Ms. Orla, Mr. Sajid, Dan-boy, Dan-bug, Farhan and Blue.
‘Farhan is such a wannabe,’ Somia was telling us about her meeting with Farhan and Blue, ‘always telling jokes, which are not even funny. He tries too hard!’
‘Poor boy’ that was our Sk, always feeling sorry for others.
‘Sk, you still haven’t decided, have you? You coming with us or not?’ I said bringing up the subject of tunnel-trip.
She bit her lip. We waited impatiently watching her to say something. But when minutes passed by and she was still thinking, we cried out ‘Sk!’
‘Sorry, sorry’ she was back on earth ‘I was just thinking’
‘We guess’ Somia gave her usual lopsided grin which means that she’s being sarcastic.
‘Guys, I was thinking that ..that if I come who’d take care of Dan-bug?’ she took a deep breathe, then continued ‘And beside I think it’s not safe to go, what if we get lost? Nobody would know, we’d be rotting inside the tunnel and no one would know. No one’ she said darkly, in the dark her face looked white.
‘Don’t be silly’ said Sana, slapping Sk on her knee ‘we won’t get lost. Blue knows the way inside out. He went there on Monday 10 times!’
‘Yup, that’s right’ I said
‘C’mon Sk! Show us that fun-girl in you!’ Somia pleaded.
‘But what if Ms. Orla find out? Sk was serious ‘she’d tell our parents and that’d mean double trouble, and triple if we get lost! Sorry, but I’m not coming. I’d be happy if you guys don’t go too but if you’re I won’t tell on you’ she smiled tentatively.
Sk had made up her mind and now it’d be impossible to persuade her.
‘Okay’ Sana and I said in little voices.
‘What?’ Somia said in ‘THAT-IS-SO-UNBELIEVINGLY-RIDICULOUS’ style, ‘You’re not going to persuade her?’
‘She’s made up her mind. We can’t do anything now’, I said, defeated.
‘Yeah, you can try if you want to’ Sana said, eating her apple.
‘I’ll’ Somia grinned ‘I’ll make her come’
‘You bet?’ I challenged her.
‘Yes. I bet’ she nodded
‘You’re on’ we shook hands.
‘You two are mad’ said Sk, laughing.
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Wednesday went by quickly. I asked Blue to change the time. He agreed and said 4:05 am would be great. The nerve of him! It was 3:45 am when Somia woke me up. I was so sleepy that I almost said that I wasn’t coming. Somehow I got up and got dressed. I was awfully drowsy.
‘I’m going to wash my face’ I whispered to Somia who was on her mission to wake Sana and Sk. I went out, it was dark as hell. I went to the lake and washed my face, singing a song.
‘Would you shut up?’ I glanced upwards and saw Fat’s furious face, her hands on her hips ‘You’ll wake everybody up in that horrible voice of yours’
‘Oh its you’ I said getting up and trying my best to ignore the insult ‘I forgot you were coming too’
‘You should let Dr Stitch check your head then, forgetting things so young’ she said, faking a concerned face.
‘Thanks for the tip, Fat’ I smiled sweetly ‘I might’
‘I’m not fat’ she said, indignantly
‘Oh Claudia!’ I put on my sympathizing voice ‘Don’t you know that! Everybody here calls you Fat because you’re! I’m so sorry. I thought you knew’ I patted on her back and went back to the camp, leaving behind a worried Fat, who was examining her waist.
‘Sk, Come on’ Somia was moaning ‘you’ve to come. Please!’
‘Somia, you can’t make her come’ Sana was telling her, ‘I’m telling you. Just come on’
‘She’s right’ I said cheerfully.
Somia pouted and let go of Sk’s hand.
‘I won’ I sang, and did a little dance, ‘you lost, I won’
‘Don’t push it’ Sana elbowed me. Ouch, I yelled silently, grabbing my ribs.
Blue was waiting for us when we went to Lunar Lake. He was wearing black clothes. To think of it, I said to myself, everybody is wearing dark clothes expect me. I felt awkward and silly in my bright pink shirt.
‘Where is Farhan?’ Somia asked Blue.
‘He chickened out,’ Blue remarked snidely 'where's Sk, your friend?' we all looked at each other.
‘Chickened out too?' He laughed. We shrugged.
'So ,what we’re waiting for? Let’s go!’ Blue winked.
Then we were on our way. I was excited but if I’d known what was waiting for me inside, I’d have never dared to go..