Chaper 1: the beginning of my journey
✨ BIC AND JAL: The Girl Who Sat Next to Me
Written by Bismi Fazil
Chapter 1: The Beginning of My Journey
It happened a long time ago…
A memory so precious that no matter how hard I try, I can’t forget it.
It’s my story. My journey.
And in the end… I learned something simple, yet painful—
no one is perfect.
Not even me.
My name is Bismi Fazil.
But honestly? People call me all kinds of names.
You might think this is just another story about a normal school girl.
…It’s not.
---
One day.
April 9, 2012.
The day my life decided to turn upside down.
---
I was just a normal girl from India.
Because of my parents’ work, we moved to Japan.
New country. New people. New life.
And somehow… I ended up in an international school in Tokyo.
Sounds exciting, right?
Yeah… I thought so too.
Until reality hit me.
---
You can call me Bichu. That’s my nickname.
---
It was a quiet morning.
Too quiet.
The kind of quiet that feels suspicious.
Bichu slowly opened her eyes…
…then looked at the clock.
8:30 a.m.
Silence.
Then—
“WHAT?!”
She jumped out of bed like her soul had left her body.
School started at 9.
This wasn’t just any day.
This was her first real day.
And she was already late.
“Great. First day and I’m going to make history,” she muttered, rushing toward the bathroom.
Water splashed. Things fell. Time ran faster than her.
---
“Bichu! What are you doing? School starts at 9! You’re going to be late!” her mother shouted.
“I KNOW!” Bichu yelled back. “I’m handling it!”
(She was, in fact, not handling it.)
---
“Dear, stop arguing and come eat first,” her father said calmly.
“I’ll drop you at school.”
Bichu appeared like a storm.
“Oh, thanks, Dad! You’re the best!”
She grabbed a piece of toast…
…took one dramatic bite…
…and was already halfway to the door.
---
“HEY! Finish your breakfast!” her mother shouted.
“You’re not going anywhere like that!”
Too late.
Bichu had already grabbed her father’s hand and started dragging him.
“I’m sorry, Mom! I’m very busy today!” she said, laughing. “Bye-bye!”
“You’re going to regret this, Bismi Fazil!” her mother yelled.
“I’ll deal with you when you come back!”
---
But Bichu just smiled.
To her, everything was still a joke.
Her parents worried about her sometimes.
She was stubborn.
Didn’t listen.
Did whatever she wanted.
Independent.
Like a rock no one could move.
---
Soon, they reached the school.
Bichu stared at the gate.
Big building.
Unknown faces.
A completely new world.
---
“Should I pick you up later?” her father asked gently.
“No need, old man,” she said with a grin. “I have legs.”
Her father laughed. “Alright. Don’t come crying later. And try to make at least one friend this time.”
“I know, I know,” she said, waving her hand. “See ya!”
---
She stepped out of the car.
Closed the door.
And started walking.
---
Class: 5B.
First year of middle school.
New country.
New life.
New beginning.
---
But suddenly…
That confidence?
Gone.
---
“What if I say something weird?”
“What if no one talks to me?”
“What if I embarrass myself?”
Bichu scratched her head.
“…Yeah, I’m definitely embarrassing myself.”
---
She didn’t know how to talk to strangers properly.
And now?
She was about to enter a classroom full of students from all over the world.
Different languages.
Different personalities.
Different lives.
---
And among them…
There was someone.
Someone who would change everything.
---
The girl who sat next to me.
---
Continue…
