Long Live The King
By Aishwar Kumar
23
My name rang through the halls with prestige, as loyal subjects touted my numerous accomplishments as their shrewd king. “Make way for His Excellence, His Intelligence!” the servants would shout, bowing down at my feet as I swaggered to my throne. My superior intellect allowed my reign as ruler of Ottawa Hills Elementary School to be fruitful and prosperous, but all great empires eventually fall. My intellect ultimately failed me, and my world collapsed when I got a D in social studies because of my “World Map of Religions” project. Thus, the peasants, otherwise known as my classmates, saw their pedantic king’s reign come to an end.
On the Thursday before winter break, I checked my grades on Powerschool (our online grade checker) and noticed that my social studies grade was a D because my “World Map of Religions” was put in as a zero out of thirty. I was confident that I had turned it in, but upon further contemplation, I conjectured two possible situations that could have happened: Mrs. Morris either lost it, or gave my project a zero because it was that atrocious. Since I was a young Indian child with the stereotypical pressure to exceed academically, my instinct was to dramatize the moment. I was engulfed by a wave of panic, panic that accompanies my constant over-analysis, as I pondered the consequences of getting a D. “Oh my god, if my parents find out, I’m gonna get yelled at and thrown out of the house for disgracing them. A...a...and then, I’m gonna be homeless and live on the streets. And then, I’m gonna get addicted to heroin, and then I will lose my teeth and die at 28 because of an overdose,” I thought, hyperventilating.
I cried myself to sleep that night. Just the idea and the connotation of the grade “D” in my mind was repugnant. However, I could not willingly endure the loss without any protest, and on that brisk Friday morning, I stormed to Mrs. Morris’ class with determination. “Good morning Mrs. Morris, do you have time to talk?” I asked her, as soon as I walked into class.
“Sure sweetie” she responded, her dentures gleaming as she smiled. Mrs. Morris was not the most likable teacher, as she was extremely strict and had zero tolerance for any misbehavior, but that day she seemed like she was in the holiday spirit. My luck came in clutch because confronting her about my D was rather easier than I had expected.
“Yeah, my grade for social studies is a D because my map project was put in as a zero, but I specifically remember doing it,” I explained to her. I could feel a puddle form in my pockets where I stuffed my clammy hands. “Please tell me that it was a mistake,” I thought as I anxiously waited for a response. As Mrs. Morris began to open her