One Lucky Soul: When Bullying my Sister Led to Shutting Her School Down With a Rambo Knife

When Bullying my Sister Led to Shutting Her School Down With a Rambo Knife by Omar Cherif, One Lucky Soul

On my freshman 1995-96 year at AUC, I one day received an unusual call from Mahmoud, the younger brother of a friend who was also a friend and schoolmate of my sister. He said that a guy and his group physically bullied her at school and he was kindly calling to let me know. They cut pieces of her hair, apparently, even threw some piss! Dafuq! My baby sister!

The very next day, a couple of hours before the school day was over, my nephew, two friends and I headed to Maadi in three separate cars. Nephew had his 20-something year old driver who for some reason happened to carry a Rambo knife. Yep. The rest of us were 19 and 18. Personally, I knew the boy was a kid and wasn’t expecting to have an actual physical fight. In fact, the guys with me were not the fighting type; they just came for the number or size.

Another thing is that we knew the boy’s father, as the parents are friends of ours. In addition to it all, it was the French Lycée Français after all, where many are foreigners and children of diplomats. So nothing even remotely close to fighting big-ass bouncers as we did in The Night We Turned ‘Beast Mode’ On was anticipated. But of course I am her older brother who felt compelled to face the boy as well as make an appearance, so that it never, ever, happens to her again.

This, by the way, was the second time to go to some school to “fight” — also with few friends because it is an entire school after all: About three years prior I had gone to the British School in Zamalek after a classmate kept bothering my then-girlfriend. The guy never came out that day, yet the whole school watched the humiliation unfolds. I remember some students having a ball making fun of him out loud.

On a parallel note, another fight-related story and article on One Lucky Soul is The Bloke Who Thought I’m Too Much of an Alpha Male.

Back to sister day outside the Lycée, someone I know saw me and came towards us. I then gave him the message: Please call … by name. About ten minutes through, more and more students gathered around and finally the boy was “brought”. But he didn’t come alone. Ha. A “surveillant”, who was a foreigner, came along with him — probably for protection. This is when the driver with us took the man aside, instructing him that it was none of his business... in street, thuggish Arabic. First, gently then when he didn’t cooperate he kind of carried him away. During this commotion, I think, is when the driver took the Rambo knife out for a couple of seconds, probably just to show off. Or mayhap to put an early end to the possible fight-to-be. Obviously the kids were petrified from the sight. Mayhem then ensued; while some began screaming, others were running left and right.

As for the 15-year-old bully, I recall at some point being surrounded by tens of boys and girls when I stood right in front of him to scold and lecture him... in French, mind you!, which was not as fluent as my fighting Arabic nor even the fighting English. Ha. But the message was loud and clear and public, and he did receive it. I then called my sister and asked the boy to apologise to her in front of the entire school. He did. And that was that.  

Back home a few hours later, my father wasn’t too happy. It seems someone from the school had called to tell him. “When something like this happens you come and tell me. Not act like a thug at your sister’s school,” he noted.

“Well, you didn’t do anything,” I defiantly cut him off — even though I never told him and took matters into my own hands. Being the youngest of 10 half-brothers and half-sisters, maybe I also did not think he would totally grok the bond between a lone brother and younger sister; the protective role you find yourself assuming as soon as she’s born. But then again, she is his only daughter and of course we would have done something, likely something more adulty though.

“Now, you are not allowed to enter the vicinity,” he carried on. Apparently I was banned or something, or he said. He also took my car keys… for 24 hours.   

After this little adventure no one dared to even be mean to my sister for her remaining three years at school. She’s got a wacky brother who carries around a Rambo knife, may have been the impression left; or dare we say, legacy. Oh there she comes. Smile! Smile!

While there was nothing to do inside the school, I actually went several times afterwards to pick up two girlfriends who were students there. Not together of course, it just happened that I dated one after the other around the same year.

Sadly, almost a decade later the same boy died in an accident. Yeah. That was tragic. May His Soul Rest In Peace.

As with my few other storytelling that involves fights, let us be clear that I do not condone violence in any way, shape, or form. The same for carrying weapons of course. These memories are simply true life stories shared mainly to entertain. Being real, sometimes they may also offer us a glimpse into the Human Condition. Now, the pen is my sword as my tongue remains sharper than any metal. It still wouldn’t hurt if you remained nice to her, huh. Bwahaha.