"My father is just like that. Without thinking anything he beats us so. What Ranjan can do and what I can do?" Mukund said.

"I cannot support you both in this. First tell me one thing straight. Are you trying to study at all at home?"

Neither Mukund nor Ranjan did say anything. They remained calm.

"I have a weakness Ranjan. I just cannot remain calm when one of my friends suffering for something. I do go even into her personal and private issues also to solve her problems. I have accepted Anupama as my close friend. I just cannot remain calm if she is worrying for anything."

"I don't know that my sister is worrying for me in such a way." There was a pathetic expression in the face of Ranjan. Jasmine felt happy that she could get a change in him.

"She is worrying for you a lot. She just cannot bear that you are beaten like that by the principal time and again."

The pathetic expression on the face of Ranjan was deepened.

"Not just your sister, your parents also are worrying in the same way for you." observing the face of Ranjan carefully, Jasmine said.

"Having loving sister and parents is a great thing. You are lucky. In my case only my mother loves me and I have no sisters or brothers." Mukund said.

"What Mukund said is absolutely true. You are really lucky. You have a loving sister and caring parents. Cannot you make them feel happy?" looking expectantly into the eyes of Ranjan, Jasmine asked him.

"What should I do then?"

"Study hard. Escape from the beating of the principal so. It sure does make your parents and sister feel happy."

"But I just cannot concentrate and study. I am not accustomed to do so."

"If you do it regularly you can accustom. Just remember. Your parents and sister's happiness is depended on this."

"I will try." Ranjan nodded his head and then said. "Will you vote for me anyhow?"

"I sure vote for you. I persuade my friends also to vote for you. But don't take these election results so important. These are very trivial."

"Thank you." Saying so Ranjan turned back and started walking. Mukund followed him for some distance and then came back to Jasmine.

"You may not know but you are indeed having something in you. I must say that Ranjan has got some change in himself after hearing you so." Looking admiringly into the eyes of Jasmine, he said.

"I do not have anything special in me." Jasmine said. "I have reminded him about his parents and sister's love on him. That did the magic I think."

"Alright. Anyhow you are remarkable." Saying so Mukund turned back to go.

"Mukund." With a small voice Jasmine called him.

"Yes" once again Mukund turned towards Jasmine and said with a smile.

"It is not just Ranjan, you are also receiving vigorous beating in your father's hands, I came to know." Feeling embarrassment to say it like that, Jasmine said.

"Your source of information is perfect." Mukund chuckled.

"I reminded Ranjan about his parents and sister's love on him and got a change in him. I just don't know what to do with you. What should I do to make you study and escape from your father's beating?" looking straight into his face, Jasmine asked him.

"First of all why should you bother about me that much?" with an amusing expression on his face, Mukund asked Jasmine.

"Because I have accepted you also as my friend. I just cannot bear if my friends are beaten like that." Jasmine said.

"I am feeling so happy that you have accepted me as your friend." There was an instant happy expression on his face. "So we are friends."

"Yes, we are friends" with firmness in her voice Jasmine said. "Now tell me. Do you try to study hard from now on and escape from the beating of your father? If you do so I feel very happy as your friend."

"I cannot make a promise, but I do sure try" Mukund said, nodded his head and went away from that place with that happy expression on his face.

There are three people competing as SPLs. Other two also came to Jasmine and requested for her voting. Jasmine really felt very much uncomfortable to tell those three individually that she would vote for him only.

***

The elections were conducted on the next day and in ninth class Ajay won as CPL and as SPL one of the Ranjan's opponents won. All those who could not win in the elections were frustrated.

"I thought that you all do vote for me." Namita said.

"We all did vote for you." Anupama said. "We girls usually do prefer girls."

"That much is true." Madhuri nodded her head.

"Look Namita. This is a very simple and small issue. It seems you are taking it pretty serious." Jasmine said.

"Till now, from the last three years, we did not have a girl CPL. I wanted to break that." Namita said.

"Thanks that you have thought for the whole community." Jasmine laughed. "Look, these CPL and SPL are very simple and trivial issues. In what we have to prove ourselves are different. There will not be this type of competition either."

"What are they?" Namita frowned and asked.

"You can study very hard and secure state rank in your examinations. You can secure a good job. There are so many like these if you want to prove yourself."

"What Jasmine said is absolutely true. Just forget about all these trivial matters and concentrate on your studies. Next year don't even try to think about these elections." Anupama said.

Namita pondered in herself for some time and then said "I am seeing sense in what you people have said. I shall think about this." saying so she went off from that place.

***

That was the playing period at the end of the day but drill master was on leave for one week. All children were playing in the way they want. Jasmine and Mounika went under the same tree and after seating on the same rocks comfortably, Mounika gave a full account of all the things happened in her family in the last one or two days.

"The watch is indeed very good! Branded company! It must have cost good money for your daddy to purchase it." Looking at the watch Mounika wore then, Jasmine said.

"He has that much of love and affection on me." Mounika's eyes sparkled.

"So he asked you to stay only with him after the divorce."

"Yes" Mounika nodded her head.

"What you have said?"

"I said that I do stay with him." Mounika said. "My mom also asked me the same thing. I said to her also that I stay with her."

Jasmine laughed and said "You cannot stay in both the places at the same time."

"Oh, don't take it funny." Mounika was little irritated.

"You don't take it all serious. Here is a good positive point in your case. Both of your parents are having lot of love and affection on you. You just do in this way from now on." Jasmine paused few seconds before continuing. "Whenever your dad asks you to stay with him you say to him that you want to stay with your mom. Whenever your mom asks you to stay with her you say to her that you want to stay with your dad. Say some reason for your deciding like that. "

"But they sure do hurt if I say like that."

"Let them be hurt a little. As they both are hurting you this much, your parents deserve little pain."

"But I don't want to hurt my parents. They are basically very good people and love me a lot." There was a painful expression on the face Mounika.

"You have to. You want me to solve your problem and you have to do in the way I am asking you." Jasmine seriously said.

"Alright I shall do in the way you are asking me." Mounika said. But the troubling expression did not leave her face.

"You have to say everything that is happening in your home. Don't forget anything."

"No. I don't forget." Mounika promised.

***

"What you have talked with my brother?" Anupama asked Jasmine surprisingly. "He started studying at home. I never have seen a change like that in him before."

"I said to him that you have been weeping like anything whenever he is beat by that principal. I said to him that your parents and you are having lot of love and affection on him and you all very much want him to study and prosper and that any of you just cannot bear his being beaten like that." Jasmine said.

"Just by that much he changed like this! I doubt it." With a smile Anupama said.

"What else is there then?" Jasmine narrowed her eyes.

Anupama nodded her head and said "Whatever you may be thinking, I cannot say myself, but you are having a persuasive force in your speaking and manners. That Mounika used to be angry with everyone. You have made her your thick friend in no time and she is behaving nice with all of us. My brother never heard to anyone. You have got a change in him by a little speech. Most of our classmates are very much interested in making friendship with you."

"You are making the things exaggerated. I am flattered. There is nothing special in me." Her usual charming smile once again climbed onto her lips.

"You are not a flattering type. I just want to tell you what really I am thinking about you."

"I am also feeling in the same way." Madhuri who remained silent all the time said suddenly. "Besides being pretty, this Jasmine has something with her that makes the other people her admirers in no time."

"Will you both please stop talking in this way? I don't like this conversation." Jasmine really became angry.

Madhuri was about to say something more but then the English teacher entered into the class. All the children stood up and said good morning to her and she reciprocated to that.

"In this class I am going to see how much you are all knowledgeable in English grammar. I don't want an unhappy situation with the principal once again." After all of them were seated, Manorama said.

"Alright teacher." All the students said in unison.

(..........to be continued)

(I hope you enjoyed it so far. Please don't forget to rate and review it. I update the next chapter as early as possible.)