This Ain't a Love Story

Fellow sufferers of a mild form of Facebook addiction may agree that the famous social network occasionally throws people you might know at your face when you least expect it. Most times, while you might have a friend or two in common, it's quite likely that you may not know who they are. At other times, let's just say that there's a reason (one that you're not exactly willing to divulge) why you're not already friends with that particular person they so excitedly think you may know.

Earlier this year, FB decided that it was time to throw *Jimmy L across my path, and since he belongs to neither of the categories above, I approached it with my brand of curiosity and a trip down memory lane - though most of it is a bit hazy, and dusty and (for the lack of a better word), downright strange. This is because Jimmy L happens to be the very first boy I was teased with, at the crazy age of ten -  a very, very long time ago.

It was towards the end of the 1990 school year, the day right after the school prize giving ceremony. Jimmy L was seated or standing under a huge rain-tree that was right in the middle of the school (The school had some of the most lovely trees, and sadly one of them actually got struck by lightning on 1st April 1992 (no joke!) - a year and a few months after this story, and fell right across the roof of the Standard 6 building one stormy night) for reasons I can't remember. At the same time, a classmate and I were walking together from one part of the school to another, passing the tree Jimmy L was so carefully taking care of. (Note: I suspect the reason for us not being in our respective classes was due to it being recess, but I could be mistaken)

He suddenly called out to me and asked me if I was (insert real name here), to which I said yes, with raised eyebrows. He then proceeded to congratulate me on my big win the day before in the school prize giving ceremony, asking if I was willing to give him any of the books I won (The school at that time gave us story books for every academic prize won) I have no idea what I told him in response, but seeing that I was a smart ass at that time it would have been a pretty smart ass reply as far as smart ass replies for a ten year old go. 

And for some equally strange reason, after what could have possibly been the strangest exchange in my entire life till then, my classmate decided that the most appropriate thing to do was to tease me with Jimmy. It went on for about a year, and spread to quite a number of our other classmates like wildfire - ten and eleven year old kids seriously have nothing better to do with their lives (Jimmy was a year older and left the school after that year, possibly contributing to the end of the teasing) Even worse was the way the teasing was done.What they'd do is they just stop calling you with your own name, and call you with his name instead. And after some time, you get so desensitized by it, that you actually turn to look when they call you by a name that was never yours. And that, is the story of the how I got teased with the very first person I got teased with!

*No need for fake Russian names to protect his identity here