It was Lucky’s birthday, and the gang of four planned to go on liberty to celebrate. Apart from the gift they wanted to buy for the birthday girl, they had other agendas. Billi wanted to enjoy a good meal, Lucky wanted to shop and Nutty wanted to catch a movie. As luck would have it, Nutty was denied an outpass because she was caught taking a shortcut during the cross country run.
‘Why the hell did you have to take a shortcut?’ raged Billi, as the gang gathered to discuss the matter after dinner. ‘Didn’t you see the ustad hiding behind the bush?’
‘How the bloody hell would I know that?’ retorted Nutty. ‘You guys go ahead and enjoy. I will stay back.’
Everyone was aware that the girl had spoken out of anger. She knew that they would not leave her behind.
‘Grow up, my dear Doughnut,’ Lucky urged the sulking girl. ‘We are seniors now.’
Shiny began pacing around her room, while the other members of the gang sat in a pensive mood.
‘It’s a sad situation,’ said Billi dejectedly.
‘Let’s cancel our plans,’ suggested Shiny. ‘We have two options. We can celebrate in the room with some music and snacks, or go to the cafeteria.’
‘It will not be the same,’ Lucky looked disappointed. ‘Papa Ferdy’s food sucks. I am quite sick of it.’
‘We can postpone the celebrations till the next liberty,’ Billi came up with the idea. ‘And hope that our friend will not commit some blunder and be denied an outpass again.’
The suggestion didn’t go down very well with the gang. There was silence as the girls tried to come up with a better idea.
‘I have an idea,’ Nutty suddenly announced.
‘NO!’ there was a cumulative protest.
‘Please, Nutty, don’t torture your pea-sized brain,’ snapped Billi. ‘We’ve had enough of your ideas.’
‘Listen, this one is sure to work,’ Nutty exclaimed. Eyes sparkling with excitement, she continued, ‘You guys proceed as per the initial plan, and I shall join you at the mall by 11 a.m.’
Familiar with her madcap plans, Shiny threw Nutty a disparaging look. ‘Forget it!’
‘Please Doughnut, don’t…’ Lucky tried to intervene, but the daft girl cut her short.
‘It’s a bloody fantastic plan, which just can’t fail,’ Nutty continued. ‘I know the exact spot from where I can jump over the perimeter wall. Once that obstacle is cleared, it’s easy-peasy to reach the bloody mall.’
The girls looked aghast.
It was a risky proposition, one that could get Nutty relegated. One by one, everyone tried to dissuade the girl. Their attempt at persuading her against carrying out the foolhardy plan failed, and the girls gave up.
On Sunday morning, as planned, the three girls trotted out of the campus at 10 a.m. While they made their way towards the mall, Nutty headed for the perimeter wall.
Moving stealthily, she managed to reach an isolated spot and climbed the wall, unobserved by anyone. She heard something rip as she jumped down the other side of the wall. Horrified, she realized that the seams at the back of her trousers had come apart.
It would be impossible to proceed to town in her present condition. Determined to return to her room and change her trousers before heading for the mall, she clambered up the wall, once again. Jumping back into the campus, she realized that her escape route to the company could no longer be used. The ground through which she had come was now occupied by a few GCs who were practicing for the upcoming football match.
Desperate, Nutty looked around for some other route. There was none. Shrugging her shoulders, she decided to wait behind the bushes. The wait was a long one, as it took more than an hour for the GCs to leave the ground.
Once the ground was clear, she dashed back to the company and headed for her room on the first floor. The putti parades had been a great help, she realized, as she changed into a fresh pair of trousers within minutes and skipped down the stairs.
The next moment, she came to a screeching halt. The Reichsführer was in the lobby, barking at a few first-termers. Exhibiting her legendary foul mood, Shera had embarked on a punishing spree.
Swiftly reversing her steps, Nutty managed to evade the officer’s eyes. There was nothing to do, but to abort her plan of joining the gang.
Meanwhile, the trio waited at the mall, the inordinate delay in Nutty’s arrival worrying them.
‘She must have been caught,’ opined Billi. ‘I had warned her against carrying out this stupid plan.’
‘Does she ever heed good advice?’ retorted Shiny. ‘That girl is reckless beyond reason.’
‘Not just reckless, she is an idiot.’
‘Let’s give her some more time,’ suggested Lucky, ever patient. ‘She might have had to delay her plan due to some reasons.’
‘We will give her another hour, and then we are going for lunch,’ decided Shiny. ‘If she isn’t here by then, she is not likely to make it.’
Dispirited, they roamed around the mall, peeping frequently into the bookstore, which was to be their meeting point.
Back at the academy, Nutty waited for the lobby to be cleared of the officer and the rolling first-termers. Minutes were ticking by. She had promised to reach the mall at 11 a.m. and now it was almost 1 p.m. Should she wait indefinitely for Shera to stop the punishments or go to the mess for lunch? Missing a meal was not in her plans.
She decided to wait a few more minutes.
At 1 p.m. sharp, Shera finally decided to let the exhausted LCs go. She ordered them to proceed to the mess for lunch, and took off on her bike. Grabbing the opportunity, Nutty sprinted back to the secluded spot, and clambered over the wall, this time taking care that her seams didn’t rip. Jumping down the wall, she flagged down an autorickshaw and headed for the mall.
It was past 1.30 p.m.
At the bookstore in the mall, Nutty found no trace of her friends. Recalling that they had discussed going to a famous Thai restaurant for lunch, she headed there.
As she had expected, the gang was surprised to see her.
‘Welcome!’ greeted Lucky. ‘Join us.’
‘You are only a couple of hours late,’ commented Billi sarcastically. ‘It’s quite a commendable feat for an aspiring army officer.’
‘You won’t bloody believe what happened,’ Nutty grinned unapologetically.
‘Well, we are waiting for your story,’ remarked Billi. ‘I am sure it’s an interesting one.’
‘It’s a bloody long story, and I am starving. Let’s order food before I start narrating it.’
Over mouthfuls of butter garlic prawn, Thai green curry and phad Thai noodles with crunchy peanuts, Nutty shared the story of her escapade.
The rest of the afternoon was an enjoyable one, as the gang moved from one floor to the other, shopping and joking with each other. Lucky decided to buy a packet of cigarettes to replenish her stash.
‘It will be impossible to jump over the wall with all this food inside me,’ Nutty rued when it was time to return to the campus.
‘You are not going back the same way,’ said Lucky. ‘It was risky enough to escape from the campus, but jumping right into the arms of an alert DS or ustad will be worse.’
‘I agree with Lucky,’ seconded Shiny. ‘You are coming with us.’
‘You want me caught at the gate?’ screeched Nutty.
‘We will find a way to smuggle you in,’ Lucky allayed her friend’s fears.
Hailing a cab, they made their way back to the academy. As Lucky had promised, smuggling Nutty into the campus proved quite easy.
‘Thanks to the lectures and film on tactics, we managed to hoodwink our way through the obstacles,’ laughed Nutty, excited with the day’s happenings. ‘I wish I had returned by the same route. It would have been more adventurous.’
‘There is always a next time,’ consoled Lucky, who was satisfied with the way her birthday had been spent.