The face of Jamila Miss popped up in front of his eyes. She was his class teacher in the tenth standard and taught maths and science. Her house was nearly two kilometres from the school. Once, when the peon was absent, Asrar had carried the geometry notebooks to her house. Miss had corrected the notebooks in three or four days. She then asked Asrar to bring them from her house. She was a very hard-working and talented teacher, and her husband was also an educated man. He was the headmaster of a government school in some other district. Her only son was pursuing a course in hotel management from Mumbai. None of her relatives lived around this area. She herself was very busy with the job at the school and therefore many of her chores remained incomplete. She started calling Asrar regularly to assist her. Getting entries made in her bank passbook, paying the electricity bill, booking the gas cylinder, etc., were the chores that Asrar would do for her. Miss would make tea for him quite often. She served delicious glucose biscuits along with it. Asrar would generally refuse them, but while watching a television programme or film, he never realized when the biscuits vanished from the plate.

When Miss started trusting him completely, she asked questions about his personal life and family. Asrar elaborately explained everything about his family and household to her. His eyes watered while talking about his father’s death. Miss Jamila also became emotional. Then she had put her head lovingly on Asrar’s head and consoled him. From then on, whenever he went to Miss Jamila’s house, he divulged all the stories and details of events that took place in Mabadmorpho. Sometimes he carried fresh fish along with him too. Once Miss pressured him into eating at her place and he gave in. He was interested in watching television at her house. He had told her that he didn’t have a TV at home. It had broken down a couple of months ago and was yet to be repaired. Miss smiled and advised him to bring his schoolbag with him when he came to her house so that he could watch television and simultaneously study.

August was the month when it rained heavily in Ratnagiri. The thunder and lightning were terrifying.