Underground

And there was more.

The questions had no sign of finishing up. The exam had started two hours before and the questions kept coming in, one after other. And she kept answering them one after other. She did not have time to think how long it took to answer the questions. All she had in mind was one minute=one complete question - and she did not want any incomplete ones. The black Dell with an slanted 'E' stared back at her with radio buttons all over.

'Continue' she clicked and waited for the page to load. The false ceilings gave the room a claustrophobic feel. The tubelights made it cold. The black monitors seemed professional and the whole atomosphere was serious.

She hardly remembered the farewell party she had a week ago, the glasses of wine she'd drink, the stubs of ciggis she'd put out.

She had forgotton that she would be celebrating her niece's b'day party that evening with a bunch of people she'd hardly met. And she had forgotten that she would be embarrased at her absent mindedness when everyone brought out neat parcels of colored gifts for the girl and she would be empty handed. At the moment all she thought of was the next question and the next minute.

That evening the niece waited for her aunt. The cake waited for the aunt. And the rest of the guests waited for her aunt. Even Tiger, the black Alsatian waited for the aunt. But the aunt was somewhere in the undergrounds, among insulated wires, biting her nails, waiting for the next question and praying for the next minute.