9
'From then on I worked full time instead of my mom. Went to school and did studies in small portions of the day that I got,' continued Ethan.
'2 years passed by quickly.'
'I graduated from school. Had given RIT's admission exam in 12th but couldn't make it due to the low hours of study I was getting. I then tried for another year.'
'Now there was no school so got more time for study. I studied like a madman for that entire year. At times, when my mind was not into studying then dad's voice would scold me and put me right back into it.'
'But I had no access to tuitions like others. No reference books to study with. Even getting notebooks for practice was difficult as they all were very expensive.'
'I knew that I was again going to fail. But this time failure was just not an option.'
'And then I heard about the exam broker.'
'The exam broker was quite popular in those days. He had contacts with RIT personnel and used to sell the questions before the paper took place. But there were major risks in it.'
'For this service, he charged hefty prices and the government was always looking for these guys as it was illegal. Many students made headlines each year after getting caught and they were barred forever from RIT's entrance exam.'
'But I was different. I was poor. I was pathetic. I knew that I was not passing this exam due to lack of study material. I thought to myself that even though I did get caught, what could happen in the worst case? I might get barred. That made no difference. I was bound to fail. My life was already worse than anything.'
'I took the risk.'
'I went to a cyber cafe and went to their shady website. I registered myself with an unknown identity and a fake email id. Got a deal for myself for the exam problems but the price was just too much. It was more than my entire savings till date.'
'I had to also pay the college fees but failure was just not an option. So I took a bet.'
'I put together all my savings and for the remainder, I asked the old lady. Being the kind person she was and her history with my mom, she agreed to lend me.'
'In those days there were no online payment services so the broker asked me to meet him under the old city bridge which had been a popular occult site.'
'I went there as instructed with the money in a pouch and there he was, waiting for me.'
'He was a man in his 40s with long hair and a beard.'
'Have you brought the amount kid?' he asked.
'Yes,' Ethan told him.
'I gave him the pouch and he counted the money. It was sufficient. He handed me the problem paper.'
'We will never meet again and you will not tell a soul about this deal,' he said.
'I agreed.'
'Just as he was leaving a train of thoughts ran over my mind.'
'I got the exam paper. I can score well now. But greed took over. I wanted more.'
'This guy was going away with my savings of a lifetime. The money for which I had sweat and bled all the time. I already had the exam paper but what if I can also get my money? My greed knew no bounds.'
'Dad's voice then came in.'
'Ethan! Take your money back from this bastard. He is an evil person who is taking bribes. You are strong son. Get your money back and then you will have everything,' he said.
'I rushed to him and to my surprise, there was already a knife in my pocket. Dad had placed it in my pocket before leaving the house even without me knowing. He was always flawless.'
'I stabbed the bastard right in his back and he screamed. I couldn't afford him screaming. So I did it once again. But this time I was not subconscious. I was fully aware. A sharp cut to his neck.'
'So beautifully done this time as compared to the last one. He fell dead on the ground instantly.'
'Do you know Adam what I was feeling then?'
I couldn't see Ethan. His voice and the visuals on the screen were the only thing I could see.
I stood mum when he asked me. What could I have said? My old friend was now not just a murderer but he was on the way of becoming a serial killer.
His voice didn't bother with my reply and continued.
'You are such a bore, Adam. You should be more active in the discussions. That's why you always get so low in class participation. Doesn't matter. I'll tell you how I felt.'
'I felt so ecstatic. I felt for the first time in my life that I was not weak. I used to get beaten up in school by bullies but I never said anything back. I just cursed being born into this shitty poor family and moved on. But now I was the one who was in control. I was strong. I felt I could do anything now.'
'I looked at the bastard lying down on the ground. His face was twisted by fear.'
'By fear? Fear of what? He was afraid of death. Afraid of me.'
'For the first time, it was not me who was afraid. I laughed aloud. I just couldn't control laughing. And that was my first experience with the devil. And man it felt great.'
'I left him there itself and came back home.'
'After I came back, to my surprise I slept so comfortably and peacefully. It was the best sleep I had in ages. I had finally transcended from being weak to being strong.'
'I watched the local news and read the newspapers for days.'
'There was no mention of the dead guy.'
'See, how insignificant the world considers us. A guy disappears and no one is bothered.'
'The exams came around. I gave the paper with confidence. The cheat sheets only covered 50% of the problems which I got correct. Damn. The paper was tough as always. You guys who solve the paper on your own aren't you guys just geniuses? Unlike me.'
'But it didn't matter. Now I also cracked the exam. I was no longer that pathetic poor orphan. I was going to be an RIT graduate.'
'The city went wild with my performance. Even a newspaper took my interview as to how a poor orphan like me got into RIT. I spouted lies about working hard and those bastards published the same in the newspapers.'
I was just listening to Ethan. It was as if I was watching a crime TV series or a documentary of a serial killer unfold right in front of my eyes. The only difference was that unlike TV series this was not fiction. Everything was real. And for a year this guy lived just a few steps away from my room.
10
'So eventually I came to RIT,' said Ethan.
'The infrastructure, the roads, the library, everything spell bounded me. I was now a part of this great institution.'
'On the very first day itself, I went straight to the seniors. Got their view on placements and again life hit me hard.'
'The only jobs were there in CSE and rest everybody was there for the RIT tag or would do masters. '
'I never had any money for masters so getting a good job was the only thing for me. I had my goal set again. I wanted to be the class topper and get into CSE.'
'The best thing about RIT was that everybody was equal.'
'Anybody can take any book from the library and study to their desire and no one would ask a penny for it unlike those pricey coaching classes back in Vaxa.'
'I finally felt free and it seemed that I had left my days of poverty behind.'
'But then I met you.'
'A free-spirited creature virtually just the opposite of me. Somebody who just came to the college without any plans, any goals. Just to live the college life.'
'I'll tell you pal, be grateful that you were born in a rich household. Be grateful that you did not have to work hard a single day in your life and your parents laid down the world in your feet. Because if you were in my shoes then you would have crumbled way back,' said Ethan.
Even though he seemed to be a monster channelized by his greed but I could not disagree with him. Probably I am not mentally tough to survive if I was like him. At that time, I appreciated all the things my parents did for me which I had forever taken for granted.
He continued his narration.
'The first term was a breeze. I studied, I played with you, went to the movies. It finished within a blink of an eye.'
'Dad used to warn me at times that you are wasting my time but guess you were the first friend I ever made. I was confident that I can balance your friendship and my goals comfortably. But I was just so wrong.'
'That bastard Seth came out of nowhere and took the first spot.'
'The first spot which I had always owned from the day I was born. I can't remember when was the last time I was this furious.'
'Dad used to say to me that he is always correct. His words held true. He was correct again.'
'Your friendship was just a poison for me. A poison that was meant to distract me from my goal. I listened to my dad and cut you off,' said Ethan.
As he again and again mentioned his dad, I finally asked him about his dead father.
'Tell me, Ethan. Your dad was dead a long time ago. Then how were you getting phone calls from him all the time?' I asked him the question that had been on my mind for months now.
'Haha,' Ethan laughed.
'Boy, aren't you sharp? Had you applied your tiny brain in studies as well then you would have been the topper instead of me or Seth,' he joked.
'I am in no mood to listen to jokes. Just tell me, Ethan,' I asked again.
'So they were reminders for me that I need to stop wasting time and study. Alarms if you want to hear in simple words.'
'What nonsense alarms? I saw phone calls from your dad,' I insisted. 'I have seen your screen many times. Your dad's name flashed on it many a time.'
'Yeah it was kind of an indirect call,' he said. 'It was an app that makes reminders in the form of calls and it is blank after you pick it. But I can always hear my dad's voice so it felt that he was actually talking to me on the call.'
I was speechless. This guy was a total psychopath. I was just at a loss for words, but what could I have said? In this video of his, I can clearly hear his dad's voice so he is not wrong in that way.
'He really can hear his dad's voice. Is this some mental issue? Damn. Did Ethan have some spilt personality?' I thought.
The video continued from there.
'I was all alone again. I started the 2nd term differently.'
'I did as dad told me, without asking a single question. I continued to study hard. Never missed a class.'
'I also started to act like the prof's pet. Greeted and talked to them whenever we met. Helped them for their papers without any stipend or writer's credits.'
'My whole day vanished before I had even grasped as to what was happening. I started to miss my food timings. Started to ignore haircuts and shaves. Result was that I became really skinny for a guy being 6'1.'
'But it was all worthwhile. The results started to show.'
'The profs started favoring me.'
'Even though Seth was a genius but he was an absolute anti-social bastard. He never talked to the profs after the class and that's where I started to shine.'
'The lack of intellect was filled by making connections.'
'After a while the end terms of the 2nd term were over and results came out.'
'Seth again scored 9.2 GPA and this time I matched him. Got 9.2 as well. Overall he was 9.2 and I was 9.05 now. Dad was correct again. I felt I could beat him now.'
11
'I never talked to Seth. But then at the start of the third term all of us were put together in the same group,' said Ethan as he continued his story.
'I swallowed my pride and went to his room so that atleast I can assure myself of good grades. And rest you know what happened.'
'That stone faced bastard was just giving exams and beating me for fun. He had no ambitions. And because of him my life was a living hell.'
'I could feel my blood boil. Each and every word from his mouth seemed like an arrow right across my pride. I wanted to kill that bastard.'
'And before I even knew it, my hand was already over his face and I had punched him.'
'Damn. That felt so good. Had you fools not been around, I would had had definitely killed that bastard. But then in an instant he got my gut.'
'The boys back at school used to beat me a lot but never had I seen a punch so sharp. My body couldn't control itself and I just puked.'
'My rage knew no limits. That was the day I decided I'll make that bastard pay for this.'
'Then the end terms came near.'
'I decided to stalk Seth.'
'That bastard paid the mess workers to bring his food to his room and leave it in front of his door.'
'Come on man. I thought I was anti-social but this guy made me look like a child. And seeing that he was that rich that he could afford to pay the workers just to get his food delivered really pissed me off.'
'But this habit of his worked for me.'
'I observed him for a month. During dinner, the worker left the plate at his doorstep at 7.30 p.m. and everyday around 7.45 to 8 p.m. he came and took the food in.'
'I only had a window of 15 mins.'
'Luckily since the exams were starting, most of the students were either in library or holed up in their rooms.'
'Even luck was in my favor.'
'I poisoned his food with poison droplets that I got from the chemistry lab. The poison could easily make a person sick for a week with vomits and heavy fever. And that bastard ate the same food without any thought.'
'You bastard!' I shouted. 'You even poisoned a fellow classmate.'
'Poisoned a fellow classmate you say. Haha,' Ethan laughed aloud. 'I only mildly poisoned him so that he will only miss the exams.'
'I wanted to kill that bastard. But we are in RIT. If he had died, then that would had led to strict investigation. And I would had been definitely caught. There is no place to run away in RIT. So you can say that bastard was lucky. Really lucky I must say.'
'This guy is a monster. No doubt about it. He holds no value for life,' I thought.
'Oh. Come on Adam. Don't make that disgusted face else the things that you are about to hear next will make you puke.'
'So where was I? Oh yeah. That bastard Seth.'
'When he vomited blood and passed out I felt such a relief. Now finally I felt he was out of my way. But he came back the next day. His face as expressionless as it was before. How the hell did he recover so quickly? I was out of my mind. But still he missed the first exam. No way in hell he can cover up for that. I was still winning the battle.'
'But then the unthinkable happened. God again played with me.'
'On the night before the second last exam, I felt that my throat was sore. My body had pains.'
'I immediately understood that I was going to get sick.'
'What the hell?? It was just a matter of 2 days. Why this pathetic body had to give up now of all times?'
'And as expected I had a high fever the very next day. I took some meds and painkillers and gave the exam. But when I came back in the evening, my body's condition became worse.'
'I didn't have any thermometer but I was sure it was more than 103 degrees. I did not study a single thing and just laid down in pain.'
'The only thing which came in my head was why me? Why only me God? You had given me such a miserable life to live. But I still somehow survived. What else do you want? Did you create me to just be miserable? And then what? Should I just die to get rid of this pathetic life?'
'All these negative thoughts tortured my mind but I knew I was done. I slept off.'
'The alarm rang in the morning and my condition worsened.'
'There was no water in my room.'
'I just left my door to get some water and then I collapsed.'
'The next thing I remember was opening my eyes in the college hospital and the exam was well over.'
'All of my dreams and aspirations were finished. I was finished.'
12
'Now it's time for the conclusion Adam,' said Ethan.
'After two days I went to prof Samuel,'
'He looked at me with sympathy.'
'Ethan my dear, are you feeling better now?' he asked.
'Yes sir. I am all good now.'
'But Sir, I have a small request for you.'
'I probably know what it is. You want to take your exam again right?' he asked me.
'My eyes lit up.'
'Yes sir,' I replied back with some life back in my voice.
'Unfortunately child that cannot happen.'
'But why sir?' I asked desperately. 'Because even Seth did not take the 1st exam again'.
'I again fell in despair. Can I never come out from Seth's shadow?'
'I pleaded to him. Reminded him of all the papers I wrote for him but they fell upon deaf ears.'
'There is a way I can help you Ethan,' he said.
'Huh?? Really sir?' I enthusiastically asked him.
'Yes its very simple. Your exam re-take has a cost. Bring me some money and I'll let you take the exam,' he said with a smile.
'So this is the nature of humans. The ones who are entrusted to guide the future generations are slaves of money. It was happening all over again. And this time I couldn't hear dad's voice. But still somehow I knew what I had to do.'
'I accepted his offer and took a day's time to arrange the money. He asked me to come to his office the next day at 10 p.m. I agreed.'
'At night I left the hostel and reached his office.'
'He was already there in his chair.'
'So Ethan have you brought I had asked for?' he asked.
'I threw a bag at him.'
'Oh nice.'
'Greed was dripping from his eyes.'
'You can count and I'll wait.'
'The bastard opened the bag and saw the notes. He took them out and looked carefully.'
'Hey! These notes do not seem rea........'
'The next thing he knew; he was on the floor bleeding. His ear was lying on the floor. Detached from his body.'
'He screamed in pain. He cursed me.'
'You bastard. What have you done?' he shouted.
'With my knife I cut his finger off which he pointed at me.'
'The blood loss was severe. Even though he was screaming but he felt weak enough to get up. I jumped on him and sat over his chest.'
'You freak. What have you done? You think you will get away with this. This is RIT. You will be dead,' he shouted at me.
'I grabbed his hair and looked him into the eyes.'
'I had always been dead from the moment I was born because I was born poor. I fear no one. Do you want me to spare you Samuel? If yes, then beg for it.'
'Please don't kill me Ethan. I am sorry. I was at fault. I beg you. Please spare me,' he pleaded.
'I laughed.'
'I am just a cursed bastard. I don't keep promises,' I shouted at Samuel.
'I could see his face turn red from anger. And then with my trademark cut to the neck he died in an instant. I then took the hoodie out from my bag which I had brought. Wore it to hide the blood stains and went back to my room.'
13
'You bastard! 'I shouted at Ethan. 'How could you??'
'Even though he was corrupt but he was still a person. Just for a useless exam you killed him,' I asked him.
There was silence for a minute.
'You see Adam, only those who have lived a valuable life can understand the value of life. For poor folks like us, life ends the day we are born.'
'Do you really think I cared one bit for that greedy bastard? I decided I'll end my life the day our final results came in. At least before going out, I took an evil bastard with me. You should be grateful to me. The world should be grateful to me.'
Tears started falling from my eyes.
'How could you put so less a value on your life?' I asked him.
'Just because you failed a stupid branch change, you decided to die. You were so smart. Even as a civil engineer, you could have got CSE jobs after college. Why did you have to die?'
'Because I had nothing left to live for,' replied Ethan.
'No family, no loved ones. Just my pride of being the topper was all I had. That too got shattered in the end. You know before I hung myself, what was the last thought I had?'
'I was tired. Tired of working hard when in the end I had nobody. When that bastard prof asked for money, I realized the simplest truth of this wretched world.'
'It was never education that I valued. I only valued my greed. My resolve to get rid of poverty. But even after putting everything on line, even after trying my best, in the end, it all came down to money. Money which I never had. Money which I never could have.'
'I hung myself with the thought that if there is a God then please let me be born in a richer family. I wanted to be happy like the other children.'
'I am dead now. Let's see what plans He has for me.'
'Thanks for listening to me, my one and only friend.'
Then the screen vanished and so did his voice. Maybe he had left.
I hated him for being a murderer. I hated him for being so weak that he never depended on me as a friend but I wished that God maybe could fulfil his final wish.
In the end, I just thought that if I were in his place, could I have been any different? Of course, I would never kill anybody. But would I have made this far like Ethan? I don't know. I was still overwhelmed by his story to think further.
I just opened the door and left.
* * *
I then opened my eyes.
My eyes were wet. I knew the ceiling which I was seeing. I was back in my room 506.
I heard voices outside and got up. As soon as I opened the door I received the biggest shock of my life.
It was Ethan with his luggage opening the door of 505.
My mind went blank. He looked at me and came forward.
'Hello. I am Ethan, 1st year from civil engineering. I'll be staying in 505.'
Ethan is alive. 1st year? What the hell was happening??
I couldn't speak a word and just stared at him blankly.
Suddenly a lady and a man came in with more luggage.
'Ethan is this your room?' she asked.
'Yes mom it is. Dad leave the things at the door. I'll take them in.'
His dad looked at me and asked if I also was a 1st year.
I had heard this voice countless times in that video. I had seen the faces of his mom and dad. They were the same people but alive. How can this be??
'I am Adam, 1st year from civil engineering.'
'Oh! So you are also in the same class as my son. Please be good friends with him.'
I greeted him and came back to my room.
I quickly took out my phone and looked at the time. It was 1.30 p.m. on July 26th, 2018, the first day of our college.
I pinched my arm. It hurt. I pricked my hand with a pen. It bled. I was not dreaming. This was all real.
So was I dreaming before or am I dreaming now? I felt my head would burst. I did not think much and again went back to sleep. I then woke at 7 p.m.
It seemed Ethan's parents went back and I could hear voices from his room.
I opened the door and went in.
Both Charlie and Seth were sitting in his room.
'Charlie and Seth, what are you two doing here?' I immediately asked them.
They turned towards me.
'Oh, you must be from 506. And you already know our names. Man you are quick,' said Charlie.
'By any chance are you a stalker?' asked Seth with his usual stone face.
'No no. It's not like that,' I said.
'I am Adam from civil engineering, room 506.'
'Yeah brother, all of us are from civil engineering only. This 5th floor is ours,' said Charlie.
'Is this the first time I am meeting you all?' I asked.
The three of them looked at me with surprise. And then started laughing.
'Brother you have a good sense of humor,' said Ethan.
'Of course, we are meeting for the first time, You idiot,' said Seth.
I sat with them and we all talked.
Charlie said that he went to meet up with seniors and it seems that civil engineering has very bad placements.
'I already know that,' said Seth.' My parents want me to change my branch to CSE.'
'Oh! You must be quite smart then,' said Charlie.
'Of course. I am the opening rank for this civil batch.'
'That's how it is. I see,' said Charlie in his regular childish voice.
'What about you Ethan?' I asked.
'I am aiming for a government job like my parents. So I will stay in civil only. And I know I can't study that much to change the branch,' he said.
'What the hell is this bastard saying?' I thought.
He killed a prof and poisoned a fellow classmate for a stupid branch change and now he is not interested in it.
'Ethan you look like a topper. I thought you were also aiming for branch change,' I said to see his reaction.
'No brother. From my childhood, I had scored only in the 60s and 70s. I am not made for torturing myself with this headache of studying. I have come here to enjoy my college life,' he said.
Either my ears were betraying me or something has happened.
I talked to them for a while and came back to my room.
All that I saw was just a dream? How could that be? It was not real?
They said today was the first time that we met then how the hell did I dream so much about these strangers?
Did I die when I was asleep? Or did the whole world reverse in time? My mind was a mess. This was not a damn sci-fi movie. It was reality. It was my reality. I was in utter disbelief.
But after thinking for a while the only thing left for me was to accept what was happening and move on.
And luckily our main villain Ethan was now such a good boy. Maybe God did listen to his last wish.
After a few days, I forgot about my dreams and moved on.
Life had become quite fulfilling now with Ethan, Charlie and Seth being my good friends.
Maybe all that nonsense was really in my head. And I am glad that all of it was just a mere dream.
Or so I thought. Later on, I would get to know the truth but that day was still far.