Happily ever after.

What could get better than this? You and your first-grade buddies, sitting together on the park bench in school, 15 years later.

I’d say, nothing.

5^th September was special. And I can’t seem to stop smiling, as I write about it. It was not just a walk down memory lane, but re-living each and every moment we could remember. And it almost felt like we were there, behind our desks, passing comments on the teacher in front, exchanging notes, re-writing assignments, forging dad’s signature, rehearsing dance moves, singing out of tune – without a pinch of shame.

God! Am I in love with you guys!

I used to be the “singer”. Ahem. And no, it wasn’t one of those, Oh-God-sari- do-you-still-sing moments. But a oh-remember-how-funny-it-was-to-hear-her sing-that-song moment. Lol. Yeah, that was something else that made the whole evening “different” There was not once that there was a long silence, when we looked at each other, took a deep breath and went, “those were the days”. We were back in time, remember? So we did what we’ve always been doing in class and outside. Pulling each other’s legs, finding faults, blaming someone for being smarter, laughing at how girls from other schools were always more beautiful than our own (and yes, that included me), basketball court stories, exam hall goof ups, everything that brought out the worst in us. Not one single moment of feeling good. But a whole evening of being ourselves.

Two of the guys brought their wives. Praveen and Debie. And it was so funny to see them join us in teasing their husband with their old girlfriends (lines, in the typical mallu slang). Sangeetha, Praveen’s wife couldn’t stop laughing when we told her how he used to swing on the bars in the park, to impress a certain someone. Rintu – Mrs. Debie, on the other hand, was curious. She wanted to know what else her husband was upto other than tearing pages of library books, that carried women in their bare minimums. Stany, the smart ass he’s always been, didn’t bring his wife Manju. He knew one thing for sure, that that would be the last day of his “and they lived happily ever after” story. Haha! And he was soo right! Rajesh is engaged to Sandra. She will be joining us in our next get-together. We’ll make sure she does. No matter what big idea the man has in his mind! ;)

I’ll be posting pictures soon. And I’ll keep saying this to myself, very often, from now on. I’ve had the best school days ever. And the most adorable fellahs as my friends. There’s nothing that can take them away from me. Nothing that’ll replace those wonderful days. Love you guys so much.

Can’t wait for October 2, already. ;)