Karthik ran out of the school gates his head a mess. He didn't care about the hot air sticking to his school shirt. He just ran. He ran past the tea shop where a small TV was showing news about the India-Pakistan cricket series. He ran until he reached his childhood home.
He stopped, breathing hard. This house was supposed to be gone. It was still here. The hibiscus bushes were. His fathers old scooter was parked outside.
The door opened.
"Karthik why are you panting like you saw a ghost?. Why are you home so early?" his mother, Lakshmi asked.
Karthik froze. His mother looked young and beautiful not old and frail like he remembered.
"Amma..." his voice cracked.
"What is it? Did the teacher scold you?" she asked, touching his forehead. Her hand was warm and soft.
Karthik just hugged her tight.
"Aiyyo! What's this? You're too big for this " she laughed. "Go wash your face! Your father will be home soon."
His father, Sundaram walked in wearing his shirt and carrying a bag of bananas. He looked strong.
"Lakshmi petrol prices went up! Robbery!" he grumbled.
Karthik looked at his father the man he argued with for years about stability and dreams. He realized his father was younger than he was now.
"No Appa " Karthik said, wiping his face. "I'm just lucky to be your son."
Sundaram. Cleared his throat. "Go drink some buttermilk. Show me your Math notebook."
Karthik nodded, heading to his room. He took a note: This time I'm handling the money.
In his room Karthik looked around. A poster of Sachin Tendulkar was on the wall. His old desk was cluttered with pencils and a geometry box.
He sat on his bed his mind racing.
"I'm back " he whispered.
In his life he spent his 40s stressed about EMI payments and regret. He watched his parents age. He was a success on paper but a failure in his heart.
He clenched his fists. This time he won't get caught in the Middle-Class Trap. He'll build a shield for his loved ones.
* For Appa: No more stress over petrol prices. He'll retire early.
* For Amma: She'll never have to worry about gold jewelry.
* For Himself: No more being a yes-man, to bosses.
Karthik looked at his shelf. A small clay piggy bank was there. He broke it open. 450 Rupees fell out.
It was nothing. It was a start. He needed a multiplier.
He remembered the 2004 Asia Cup. India was playing Sri Lanka soon. He remembered the score and the man of the match.
"Sorry, Rahul " Karthik smirked, scribbling a name. "This time you're paying for my business license."
The morning Karthik struggled to tie his school tie. He looked at his reflection. No receding hairline, no circles.
"Karthik! The bus is here!" his mother shouted.
He grabbed his backpack. Stepped out.
On the bus the noise hit him like a wall. Pitched screaming and the smell of stale food.
"Oye, Karthik! Over here!" it was Vignesh, his childhood friend.
Karthik sat down calm. "Vicky relax. A Physics record is not a deal."
Vignesh stared at him. "The grand... What? Are you still sick?"
The first period was Math class. Mr. 'Lion' Loganathan walked into the room slamming a ruler on the desk. The whole room went completely silent. This was the man who had given Karthik nightmares for a time well into his 30s.
"Karthik stand up " Mr. Loganathan shouted. "Since you were daydreaming yesterday. Solve this math problem on the board."
The whole class started snickering. The old Karthik would have tripped over his feet and stuttered. But the new Karthik stood up slowly adjusted his glasses. Walked to the front of the room like a boss.
He took the chalk. Started solving the problem. He did not just solve it he used a method that would not be taught in Indian schools for another five years.
He finished in ten seconds dropped the chalk and looked at Mr. Loganathan. "Is that all sir?. Should I explain the formula to the class as well?"
The classroom was so quiet that you could hear the ceiling fan making a creaking sound. Mr. Loganathan looked at the board at Karthik. "That is correct go sit down " he said.
During the break while everyone was talking about cricket Karthik sat under the neem tree. He was not looking at girls. Playing cricket with his friends. He was just watching what was going on.
He noticed Rahul, the son of a contractor bragging about his new video game console. "My uncle brought it from Dubai " Rahul said. "You cannot get these games in India yet."
Karthik walked over to Rahul. To the kids it looked like two 15-year-old boys talking.. Inside a 40-year-old businessman was thinking about his first big investment.
"That is a console, Rahul " Karthik said, his voice deep and steady. ". Those games are too expensive. If you give me 500 rupees I can get you a CD with fifty of those games by Friday.. The graphics will be even better."
Rahul laughed. "500 Rupees? You? Where will you get them?"
Karthik leaned in his eyes sharp. "I have a contact in the city.. The price will go up to 1,000 rupees on Saturday. Do you want to make a deal?"
Rahul looked at Karthiks face. There was something about the way he spoke. No hesitation, no blinking. It was not the voice of a classmate it was the voice of someone in charge.
"Deal " Rahul said, looking a bit scared.
Karthik walked away from the neem tree the 500 rupees from Rahul already feeling like a lot of money in his pocket. For a 15-year-old in 2004 this was a fortune. For Karthik it was the beginning of something big.
As he walked back to the classroom his confident attitude started to fade for a second. He saw Anjali standing by the water cooler.
In his life Anjali was the one who got away. She was smart kind. Had moved to the US for her PhD while Karthik was stuck in a dead-end job in Chennai. They had lost touch because he was too shy to talk to her. Now seeing her at 14. With her braids tied with ribbons laughing at a joke with her friends. Karthik felt a pang of protectiveness.
"This time " he thought, "I will not just watch her life from a distance. I will make sure she never has to struggle for those scholarships."
After school of going to the playground Karthik went to "Sivas Cyber Cafe." The shop was dark smelled of plastic and the "High Speed" internet sign was not true. It was a dial-up connection that made a screeching sound like a dying bird.
"I want to use the internet for one hour Siva anna " Karthik said, giving a ten-rupee note to Siva.
Siva, a guy in his 20s with a poster behind him looked at Karthik. "Do you have calculus homework, Karthik?"
"Something like that " Karthik replied, sitting at Terminal 4.
Karthik opened the browser. Google was still a website. Facebook did not exist yet. Youtube was a year away from being launched.
He did not waste time on chat rooms. He went to a website where he could buy domain names. He had a list in his head. Keywords that would be worth a lot of money in the decade.
Here are some of the keywords he was looking for:
1. Local keywords like ChennaiRealEstate.com, TamilMatrimony and OnlineTiffin.com.
2. Tech keywords like App Stores or Cloud Computing.
He used Rahuls money to set up a wallet, which was a tricky thing to do in 2004 but he knew how to do it. By the time his hour was up he had bought three domain names that in 2026 would be worth more, than his fathers life savings.