It wasn't easy to recover from the heartbreak of not getting what I wanted and believed I deserved. I had already started imagining my life with a new friend, my own smartphone. But that dream was too good to become reality. I tried to console myself by saying that apart from the participation fees, I hadn't lost anything even if I didn't win. Not to mention, I had gotten a higher rank than everyone else from the entire school. I could brag about it.
Most important of all, I learned a very important lesson. A lesson to never compete in exams that promised crazy prizes and to never give in to greed. As someone who barely had anything, I used to get jealous of my peers more than I would like to admit. I wanted to have things others had, but I could almost never get what I wanted. It was no one's fault we were poor. But my childish mind couldn't understand and accept that. So, I would try to find other ways to get things. Some right, some wrong and some worked while some didn't. However, it was starting to change. I had started maturing. I was no longer a stubborn child who wouldn't accept things unless they were in his own terms; I had started accepting the reality. Even if I couldn't get everything I wanted, I should be grateful for what I did have.
I blamed everything on my fate…
Days passed normally without anything happening. Few competitions took place and I had to participate because it was compulsory. But I didn't make even a little bit of effort to win. I really no longer cared. Even if I had won, they would have just handed me a piece of paper.
The only thing I cared about was studying. And even that was because it made my mom happy when I used to get the highest marks, not because I liked it. Also, it was easy for me. Out of all the things, I had chances of succeeding in studies the most. My classmates and friends believed that I used to study all the time at home when they couldn't be more wrong. I used to study by myself twice or thrice a week and not even for an hour a day. I used to tell everyone that I wasn't a bookworm, but no one ever believed me, and I gave up on convincing them. Everything would think I was being condescending.
Paying attention to what the teacher was teaching in class was more than enough for me. I had never even cheated in a test. I believed that I didn't need to do anything else. I just needed to focus on studies and get the highest marks. That was enough. But I didn't know being smart would also end up being a problem.
Few weeks after the exam's result was declared, during the school assembly, it was announced that our annual function was going to take place in the second week of December. I heard the teacher announce it and immediately decided to not participate. It was a waste of time. Usually, students who couldn't participate because of whatever reason were allowed to just sit in the class and do anything while those participating would prepare for their act or dance or whatever. And non-participants would get days off few days before and on the day school function was held. All of these reasons were enough to make me not participate even if there were no participating fees.
For an introvert and socially awkward person like me, participating in an annual function was the last thing I wanted.
Also, there was a twist. That year's annual function wasn't not going to be a normal one. Students were still going to do the same stuff, but the theme of the whole function was strange. It was called 'legal literacy fest'. Like the name implied, every act and play had to be based on legal rights, responsibilities, duties, justice system and stuff like that. I felt it was unnecessary. I thought our school had an ulterior motive behind choosing a theme like that. I wasn't completely wrong.
Anyway, one section could do only one thing. For our section, our social studies' teacher was the one who was given the job to take care of everything. Why? Because she taught us social science. From deciding on the topic of our play or whatever to practicing it to finally performing it on the day of the function, she had to handle everything. And I was not interested in it at all. Not only the theme itself of the whole function was strange, but our teacher was also even stranger. I couldn't even imagine the idea she was going to come up with. But no matter what, if she selected me for any role, I had decided that I would refuse. I had a list of excuses ready.
However, like they say, nothing ever goes as expected in life. On the very day when our annual function was announced, during her period, my teacher told us about what we were going to do in the function. She had decided on a skit which in itself wasn't anything out of ordinary. But that skit was going to be done in parts and each part had background characters and a narrator. It was done to ensure the participation of maximum number of students.
She gave us this information and asked those who were interested to step forward. Some students left their seats and stood in front of the class. Neither me nor my friends left their seats. Then, she said names of few students who were chosen as potential candidates for the roles of narrators. Autumn and Patricia were two of those students. And that was exactly what had made me angry. All the students who were chosen for narrators were the toppers of our class while the rest of the students had gotten background roles… It was blatant favouritism. My teacher wasn't even trying to hide that she was favouring smart students.
However, that wasn't what made me angry. The fact that she had called out all top scorers for the roles of the narrators but not me was what made me angry. Not to mention that none of the narrators was a boy. While girls were smarter than boys on average in my class, not all boys were stupid. I was the topper of my class and the fact that she didn't chose me hurt my ego more badly that I had expected. Even I was too embarrassed to admit it. But I couldn't let it go.
While I had originally decided not to participate in the function, something in me took what my teacher did as disrespect. I thought she didn't pick me because she didn't think I could do a good job. So, I did something I used to do very rarely. I stood up against my teacher. I walked up to her in front of everyone and asked her to make me one of the narrators.