Chapter 8:
Chapter 8
Captain O Captain
Captain O Captain
Chapter - 8
One day, Manoj brought sweets for Akshita, but she didn’t eat them. Another day, he brought paneer curry for her, but she didn’t eat that either. Gradually, Manoj began to realize that Akshita never ate his lunch, nor did she share hers with him. Even when he asked, she would clearly say that she simply didn’t like such things.
Not eating food was still understandable, but Akshita never even drank water from his bottle, nor did she let him drink from hers. At first, she said she didn’t drink from someone else’s used bottle. But even when Manoj stopped taking a sip before offering it to her, she would still refuse, saying that his bottle wasn’t clean.
At such moments, Manoj would get irritated. He felt that Akshita considered him inferior, which is why she avoided touching his things—or perhaps she simply didn’t think much of him.
Seeing Akshita, Manoj also began paying attention to cleanliness. Just like she kept two types of tissues—wet and dry—he started keeping them too. At first, his family doubted him, but now they were convinced he had gone mad. Manoj began keeping all his belongings spotless. For the first time, he cleaned his water bottle. For the first time, he polished his shoes. For the first time, he styled his hair.
But even after all these changes, Akshita’s behavior did not change. However, seeing these changes, his old friends certainly grew jealous.
“Captain, your story was extremely good. I couldn’t stop my tears.”As soon as Akshita came to the field for lunch that day, Manoj started talking about this. Sitting down calmly, Akshita said, “That blood donation thing… yes, you donate blood, right?”
Manoj hesitated a little and replied, “No, I haven’t done it till now. I’m very scared of injections, Captain.”
Akshita looked at him silently for a couple of moments, then said, “You should do it. It’s such a beautiful thing—that your blood can help someone else.”
“If you say so, I’ll do it,” Manoj replied. “So? Have you donated blood?”
“I can’t do it,” Akshita said while taking a bite, but immediately seemed flustered.
Manoj quickly asked, “Why?”
“I myself have a deficiency of blood,” she answered instantly, as if she had already prepared the reply.
Scratching his head, Manoj said, “Oh, that’s why you take such care of your health. Now I understand. No problem, Captain. If you ever need blood, I’ll give you mine.”
Akshita looked at him for a moment, then returned her attention to eating.
Whenever she looked at him like that, Manoj would feel shy. But now, gathering a bit of courage, he would sometimes say things like, “Is there no handsome boy around your house, Captain, that you look at me like this?” or “Don’t look at me like that, Captain, I feel shy,” or even, “Hey, I’m not that special.”
At such remarks, Akshita would laugh heartily.
Both of them didn’t even realize when half of their 12th-grade year had passed. The S A 1 exams arrived. Once again, Akshita secured the first rank and Manoj came second. But neither of them cared about marks. More than school studies, they were deeply engaged in literature.
Now, even during free periods, Manoj would go and sit beside Akshita in the library. If she refused, he would quietly go and sit behind her. In the eyes of the other students, Manoj had started to become bothersome—just like Akshita once was. After all, foolish people are always irritated by those who are aware and thoughtful.
But Akshita and Manoj continued their studies, no matter how much they bothered others.
One day, Manoj was very happy. He had watched an anime called *Assassination Classroom*. He spent the entire lunch break explaining its story to Akshita. Whether she understood it or not was another matter.
Finally, with great enthusiasm, Manoj said, “I’ve decided, Captain—I will become a Hindi teacher.”
This caught Akshita’s attention. She began staring at him intently again. Manoj felt shy as usual, but today he was filled with excitement, so he said, “Do You really like me this much, Captain?”
He expected Akshita to burst out laughing as always. But instead, her face turned stiff… almost dark. She sat silently for a while, then stood up and walked away.
Manoj immediately began apologizing—“Sorry, sorry”—but Akshita neither stopped nor turned back.
Manoj felt a deep fear—that the relationship he had built with Akshita might break today.
Chapter - 8
One day, Manoj brought sweets for Akshita, but she didn’t eat them. Another day, he brought paneer curry for her, but she didn’t eat that either. Gradually, Manoj began to realize that Akshita never ate his lunch, nor did she share hers with him. Even when he asked, she would clearly say that she simply didn’t like such things.
Not eating food was still understandable, but Akshita never even drank water from his bottle, nor did she let him drink from hers. At first, she said she didn’t drink from someone else’s used bottle. But even when Manoj stopped taking a sip before offering it to her, she would still refuse, saying that his bottle wasn’t clean.
At such moments, Manoj would get irritated. He felt that Akshita considered him inferior, which is why she avoided touching his things—or perhaps she simply didn’t think much of him.
Seeing Akshita, Manoj also began paying attention to cleanliness. Just like she kept two types of tissues—wet and dry—he started keeping them too. At first, his family doubted him, but now they were convinced he had gone mad. Manoj began keeping all his belongings spotless. For the first time, he cleaned his water bottle. For the first time, he polished his shoes. For the first time, he styled his hair.
But even after all these changes, Akshita’s behavior did not change. However, seeing these changes, his old friends certainly grew jealous.
“Captain, your story was extremely good. I couldn’t stop my tears.”As soon as Akshita came to the field for lunch that day, Manoj started talking about this. Sitting down calmly, Akshita said, “That blood donation thing… yes, you donate blood, right?”
Manoj hesitated a little and replied, “No, I haven’t done it till now. I’m very scared of injections, Captain.”
Akshita looked at him silently for a couple of moments, then said, “You should do it. It’s such a beautiful thing—that your blood can help someone else.”
“If you say so, I’ll do it,” Manoj replied. “So? Have you donated blood?”
“I can’t do it,” Akshita said while taking a bite, but immediately seemed flustered.
Manoj quickly asked, “Why?”
“I myself have a deficiency of blood,” she answered instantly, as if she had already prepared the reply.
Scratching his head, Manoj said, “Oh, that’s why you take such care of your health. Now I understand. No problem, Captain. If you ever need blood, I’ll give you mine.”
Akshita looked at him for a moment, then returned her attention to eating.
Whenever she looked at him like that, Manoj would feel shy. But now, gathering a bit of courage, he would sometimes say things like, “Is there no handsome boy around your house, Captain, that you look at me like this?” or “Don’t look at me like that, Captain, I feel shy,” or even, “Hey, I’m not that special.”
At such remarks, Akshita would laugh heartily.
Both of them didn’t even realize when half of their 12th-grade year had passed. The S A 1 exams arrived. Once again, Akshita secured the first rank and Manoj came second. But neither of them cared about marks. More than school studies, they were deeply engaged in literature.
Now, even during free periods, Manoj would go and sit beside Akshita in the library. If she refused, he would quietly go and sit behind her. In the eyes of the other students, Manoj had started to become bothersome—just like Akshita once was. After all, foolish people are always irritated by those who are aware and thoughtful.
But Akshita and Manoj continued their studies, no matter how much they bothered others.
One day, Manoj was very happy. He had watched an anime called *Assassination Classroom*. He spent the entire lunch break explaining its story to Akshita. Whether she understood it or not was another matter.
Finally, with great enthusiasm, Manoj said, “I’ve decided, Captain—I will become a Hindi teacher.”
This caught Akshita’s attention. She began staring at him intently again. Manoj felt shy as usual, but today he was filled with excitement, so he said, “Do You really like me this much, Captain?”
He expected Akshita to burst out laughing as always. But instead, her face turned stiff… almost dark. She sat silently for a while, then stood up and walked away.
Manoj immediately began apologizing—“Sorry, sorry”—but Akshita neither stopped nor turned back.
Manoj felt a deep fear—that the relationship he had built with Akshita might break today.
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