The Exam Movie

The scraping of metal chairs on the linoleum floor.

Pencil cases unzipping and pens laid out on metal tables.

The heartbeat picking up a pace.

The digital clock on the wall.

Then, the whole scene pauses.

In a hall of more than two hundred people, there is SILENCE.

“The time is now five o’clock. You may begin.”

The voice of the invigilator over the microphone is drowned out by the sound of rustling pages as students turn over the leaves of exam paper and start frenziedly writing.

……

Did you ever feel like you were watching yourself acting out in a real-life movie? Like you’re seeing things and experiencing things through your own eyes, and yet detached from it all?

It is a strange and interesting feeling.

You watch your hand writing, writing, writing… black marks scribbled line after line to fill up a blank paper.

You suffer the fierce ache of the muscles cramping up and watch the other hand move across the table to massage the cramping arm.

You feel the keen eyes of the invigilators sweeping over you as they march pass like sentinels on duty.

You sense the tension in the air, and note again the silence.

You sit back, an unobtrusive observer, and look over your own mind’s shoulder as it recalls ideas and pulls out concepts from the mental notebook to answer the questions.

You keep a sharp eye on the digital clock on the wall which shows a different combination of figures every time you glance at it.

…….

6.55PM.

Did two hours really fly back so quickly?!??

Your hand flips through the pages, your eyes skimming the lines at top speed, double-checking your work.

There is a flurry of papers all around as the other students do the same.

“Put your pens down.”

The hardworking hand in front of you finally lays down the pen it has been clutching tightly for the last 120 minutes.

The invigilators whiz by, snatching the answer books off the tables as they make their way down the long line of desks.

You let out a sigh of relief.

The heartbeat slows to the usual pace.

Then you stand up, pick up your belongings, and leave the exam hall… never once looking back.

**She is done with her four papers of the first semester, and is ready to play!**