Arun and me were absolutely inseparable. We did everything together. We went to the same school, sat on the same bench, studied from the same books, ate from the same tiffin-box and practically lived at each other's house. Arun's parents were such good people. It was always a pleasure to meet them. Each time his mom made goodies, I used to get the larger share and the going was good for Arun at my place. Our parents were great friends too. So my parents didn't worry about my whereabouts at any given time of the day, because they knew I would definitely be at Arun's.

At school we didn't leave each other's sides, almost like magnets. We understood each other so well, that we could tell what the other person was thinking without even saying a word. We always looked out for each other. When he was in trouble I would go to any extent to bail him out and he would do the same thing for me. Once what happened, we were all sitting in our mathematics class. I hated the subject so much that I couldn't stand it even for a second. While I sucked at maths, Arun was a genius at it, so he always paid extra attention when this subject was being taught. Our math's teacher, Mr. Subramaniam was extremely fond of Arun and didn't hold back when praising him for doing well in tests. I don't know why but he used to sit right in the front during math's classes, leaving behind our usual sitting place. So I always tried to distract him during this period because I was bored to death every time I had to open the darn book. I was so desperate to seek Arun's attention, that I started throwing little pieces of chalk from the huge collection I had in my drawer, under the bench. But unfortunately, one of the pieces hit Mr.Subramaniam and the whole class froze. I can't tell you how scared I was, because he always used to carry a cane stick to punish ill-mannered students.

"Who did that?" roared Mr.Subramaniam, with an expression that meant that the student has had it.

No one spoke. A deafening silence engulfed the long rectangular classroom. I have never seen my class so silent in these many years. It was like time had ceased to move. No one knew what to say or do.

"I am going to ask this for one last time. Come clean or else every one of you will get a beating, which I promise will not be pleasant," said Mr. Subramanian, looking menacing as ever.    

Mr.Subramaniam had this thing. Whenever he used to get mad at us, his nose flared up and this one nerve in his temple would start twitching wildly. This sight always gave all of us the chills. One of my classmates had seen me throwing the chalk pieces and I could see the fear and confusion in his eyes. I had a feeling that he was going to puke the truth anytime. Every one feared the cane. Beads of sweat started populating my forehead. I gulped nervously. I knew today was my day. I knew I was the lamb who was going to be sacrificed. I can't say when was the last time I was this scared. My heart was pounding so hard that I felt it would come out through my mouth. Mr.Subramaniam was a terror for sure. Maths teachers, hmph! It is something to do with the subject that they teach I guess. The boring assasins. Unlike teachers of other subjects, Mr.Subramaniam never smiled. If they wish, they could kill you with their geometry and trigonometry.

"Is anyone going to speak up or should I use my ways to make you spew out the truth". Mr. Subramaniam was all business.

So the classmate I told you about, the wuss that he is, was on his feet, all ready to hang me and said, " Sir I know who did it. It was Ra...". He was just about to say my name when out of the blue, Arun stood up and said, " Sir, it was me and I am sorry." Mr.Subramaniam was shell-shocked. He was shocked and angry at the same time and it gave a funny color to his face. I was shocked. I mean how could he confess to a crime he didn't commit in the first place and on top of that in front of the person who adored him. I know Mr.Subramaniam didn't want to punish Arun, but he was a man of principles and believed that a rule should be applicable to everyone.

"Arun, I am very disappointed with you today. Out of everyone, I never expected you to do such a thing. Stretch your palms out." Saying this, he caned Arun, 5 canes on each palm. Arun did not budge, he didn't even cringe. Tears were rolling down my face. I couldn't see my best friend going through that. Suddenly in the heat of the moment, I got up and said, "Sir it wasn't Arun, it was me."

"Oh, are you trying to be a hero or something here, because it's not going to work. The right person has been punished, so sit down and get back to your studies. As for you Mr. Arun, you can get out of the class and think about what you did."

Poor Arun. But even when he was going out of the class, he looked at me and winked. And Arun has been an 'A' student throughout. What amazed me was how could someone risk all that, that he has worked for, for someone else. No one had ever done anything like that for me ever before. I was touched. After the class I rushed out to check on him. The insides of palm were a bluish, violet color. And he winced when I touched them. But that smile never left his face. I don't know why he did that for me?

I said, "Are you crazy? You know how much Mr.Subramaniam likes you. Why would you spoil your reputation for me?"

"So Mr. No-nonsense will not like me any more. Big deal. But you dimwit, how the hell could I have seen you getting caned? And I know you were almost ready to pee in your pants when you saw that look on his face."

What he said was something so sweet, I just hugged him and he hugged me back. Our friendship grew even stronger since that day. We saw many such days together after that. Before we even realized, we were at a stage in life where we had to make career decisions. He was interested in doing engineering and I wanted to make a career in writing. It was apparent that we would have to go to different colleges, maybe to different cities or countries even. It was so hard to talk about these things that we never mentioned it when we were together. But we knew somewhere that we would have to discuss these things. What caught us off guard was that we had created our own world and thought that no one or no thing could disrupt it. But when reality hit us hard on the face, we were totally unprepared. We knew we had to take each other through this. Then the day we dreaded the most, finally came. I got through Columbia University, US and he got through IIT, Chennai. That was perhaps the saddest day of our lives. We cried. Yes, the sight of two grown up, mature men crying could scare anyone, but hell, we didn't care. And all that nonsense that boys don't cry is nothing but just a stupid theory floated by someone who was perhaps in a lot of pain himself and was never taught to express himself. Just the fact that we wouldn't be able to see each other every day was tearing at our hearts. The fact that we wouldn't be able to share that last smoke or to fight for that last gulp of beer or that last piece of chicken or talk about girls, was overwhelming. Jesus. Why was it so painful?

Anyway we separated, but kept in touch through e-mails and rare phone calls, because they were so ridiculously expensive. Even though our schedules were crazy, but we still manage to find some time every day to write at least a few lines to each other. We miss each other's company like crazy. I don't know when we would see each other again. But I guess that's one of the harsh realities of life. You sometimes have to leave behind the people who matter the most to you. The key is how well you let go. Nothing could make me happier than meeting Arun some day. But hey, you know what the best part is? Well, you get to meet new people, make new friends. The last I heard from him, he was using all his charms to impress his latest fling, haha. That's Arun for you.

And I hope that the day comes when I see Arun again, for isn't hope the only thing that helps us get through life.