"Dude, what kinda host are you?" I yelled at C. "Screw" he shouts back. After all it was his place, his kitchen, his music that was blaring. But all that dint matter. His mom was returning the day after and this was possibly the last 'Home Alone' situation before the exams would run us dry for a month. What a premature end to the party...
"Big Deal", D finally speaks. "The bakery by the bus stand should be open" he says assuringly. C and I ignore him. Little did D know how things worked on our side of the world. He could have never guessed the kind of budget restrictions that came in with a little love for intoxication. Everything from the combination of food and snacks to waiter's tip was already factored in and there was no way coke could fit in. Because.. because.. coke was always on the house.. courtesy C's sister and her Multi National Company (MNC) job and a little something called the Sodexho coupon (and god bless them for that). She always used to generously( and innocently) gift these coupons to her little brother and FoodWorld was the only place in our little town where these coupons could get us anything other than strange looks!!
"12 on Fridays and 11 on Saturdays" I say doubtfully. "Doesn't matter, it is 12 and that makes it a Sunday", says D getting technical. "the first of April". And no one talks for a minute.
"when was the last time you guys pulled a serious prank on anyone?" asked C one eye-brow raised. I was still holding the empty coke bottle upside down salvaging what was left. "what do you mean?" asked D his face opening up with a smile.
"when was the last time you guys pulled a serious prank on anyone?" asked C again. "what say, we do something this time?". This time he had my complete attention as well.
I vaguely remember what transpired, but over the next 20 mins, I know we were talking in whispers and maybe we even were in a huddle.
So here goes the plot:
the idea: no idea. pick the targets first and the idea will fall in place. of course everyone had a strength to be tested or a weakness to be poked.
place: pick the idea first and then pick the place.
date: had to be the very same day. Fool's day.
The target: For no apparent reason A was the target that came to all of our minds first. "And?" I asked. "What, you mean you want another one?" questioned D. "Of course, grand plan. we need a backup if A does not show up", I explained. "Agreed" said C. "Besides it will ease some pressure off A after the fact".
We picked B. Why? Well B was again an easy, trustworthy target. With B it was like, you set the trap, point him to that and he will march right into it happily waving at you.
It was about 4 in the morning and finally the plot was hatched!! We had forgotten all about the coke long ago as we are on such a high working on the plot. Every little detail mattered!!
After a lot of debate and PRO-CON analysis we agreed that we should set up a job interview for A and B (I think it had something to do with us entering the final year of college soon). Have them do funny things, get it taped and hold them to ransom.
From that point on, the kind of improvisation we brought in to our primitive idea amazes me till date.
The interviewer - had to be someone C, D and I knew; but a stranger to A and B. That was easy. We had plenty to choose from. But we obviously picked the best.
The candidates: A, B, C and I. C and I had to take the interview too, to make it all seem real.
The company: Again the MNC that C's sister worked for. Reason: courtesy her, we had a T-shirt with the company logo that the interviewer can wear. More credibility. We even printed letter heads with the company's logo for the interviewer to scribble on. Even more credibility..
The place: Choose a public place like a hotel and make it beleivable.
Operations Command Center: My house. I still wonder why, as C's house would have worked better given the fact that he was still going to be home alone and we wouldn't have to deal with my folks through our mission.
So it was sunrise and the 3 of us set out in 3 different directions. C set out to meet the interviewer, hand over the T-shirt and give him a briefing. I was supposed to join C after securing a camcorder.
D set out to arrange for the hotel and get the letter heads printed. We had to keep the (cell) phone lines open and update each other every step of the way.
Footnote: so as to not lose the quintessential details of what I think is an amazing story, I am having to break the blog. Will let you know about the interview in part 2.
:) fond memories bro! you have to complete the story though and i suggest fictious names for e'one (A, B, C... just doesn't cut it). I recommend Optimus Prime for C...
ReplyDeletebtw, am sending this out to a couple of people who i KNOW will find this amusing as hell
@theThot: it just had to be A, B, C. That's what you call in the world of story telling.. umm .. what's the word? .. surrealism or something.
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