two minute sketch

The first thing that you notice about him is his eyes. You can tell that he’s the nervous kind just by watching the way his eyes dart around in his head like a pair of goldfish in a bowl, never resting, never staying focused on one thing for longer then a few seconds. Even if he’s talking to you, his eyes never actually rest on you. Instead they are focused on the wall hanging behind your head, or the last bit of ice cream melting in your hand. He can hold a full conversation with that bit of ice cream without even realizing it. With a million things going through his head every second, it is wonder that he manages to follow the thread of his conversation at all.
‘Did I remember to lock my door?’ ‘Is that assignment due today or tomorrow?’ ‘Do I look ok?’ ‘Is that guy staring at me or is it just my imagination?’ You can almost see these thoughts and many more zipping around in his head like a swamp of hummingbirds. No wonder he’s perpetually nervous, not to mention slightly obsessive compulsive. He’s probably the only boy I know you can come close to a nervous breakdown simply by misplacing his stock of post-its; maybe that’s how he developed that little nervous tick at the corner of his eye. Or maybe that was due to the great I-forgot-to-make-my-bed-this-morning disaster of ’98.

As for the rest of him, he is quite an unremarkable 19-year old. With his dark hair, dark eyes and dark skin, he’s your average Pakistani male, though maybe a little on the tall side with his 6” 3 frame. He always manages to look uncomfortable in his own body though, like maybe it’s a size too big and he’s still hoping to grow into it. I wonder sometimes what he’ll look like in a suit and tie once he’s done with his studies and doing a job as an accountant somewhere. I wonder how he’s carry it off. Somehow though, his choice of vocation seems to suit him just fine. With his little glasses, his darting eyes and his obsessive compulsive mannerisms, I think he’ll fit right in as an accountant. Who knows, maybe in his professional life he won’t be the most obsessive one around.