"Oh my goodness! It looks great, English 98, maths 96..." I exclaimed in joy.
"Calculate it! The percentage," my brother shouted next to me.349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdQjrKNrvBX
"Just a second... I'll figure it out."349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3A6LxU2a44
"Sister, please hurry... please, it has to be above 95," I prayed.349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡD3hZLZ9dCV
"How did it go?" I asked her, my eyes shut, and my hands trembling.349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOchZ1XtKzJ
"97," she replied.349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBntrcrzZiY
"Wow... fantastic, my child. I knew you could do it," my brother praised, patting me on the back.349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfZTuPZPdFC
"97? Is that good enough?" I asked, trying to conceal my excitement.349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1RZpIGIUve
"Good enough? Are you joking? I only got 88. Well done!" my sister exclaimed, shaking me in excitement.349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnC6VLdyvxz
"How much did you get?" My mother rushed into my room.349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3DZRWExYT7
"97.03," my sister shouted with joy.349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq8FEMzdmUp
"Oh, it's above 90... now I can proudly show off," my mother said, looking at me.349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2PfDdN8EFr
"This must be the highest in your class, I'm sure of it," my brother commented as I was downloading the result card.349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡppK72NgWSS
"My highest score is in social studies, it's a 99," I shared.349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBKMDejgfnL
"Wow, maybe you should consider arts," my brother suggested straightforwardly.349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFLvKYnAGqV
"Arts? Stick with science, good students choose science," my mother interjected.349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOGLiGPVjFU
"You could also consider commerce, like Chartered Accountancy and such. Not everyone in this family is meant for engineering," my sister added.349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHmqtlvrr6K
"No commerce, no arts, only science. Your father will agree with me, call him," my mother insisted, her gaze fixed on my siblings.349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjfZ6EKHuQd
"I was actually thinking about arts, maybe for UPSC and other options. Arts offer a wider range of opportunities," I pondered aloud.349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoAHsSjtnsn
"Didn't I tell you? Take science then, medical..." 349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡahHjRFjItE
"But mummy, let her decide!" My sister said to my mother, her voice loud349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKmYxPDqmVh
"Who do you think you're shouting at? My mother directed her voice loudly at my sister."349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjqvepUqLfV
"No isn't it crazy I am also doing engineering, because you told me so, she has good scores she can keep it up and be something she wants" My sister shouted back standing up for me.349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzEO1sM8IVL
"Why...why are you guys fighting....? I said trying to get the situation at hand349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9JxRv5fzAX
"I am pretty sure, mummy will win", my brother stated sitting on the bed and eating an apple 349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEOtvj6LL0w
"Shut up" I said to my brother....ohh Amisha is calling.....as I went out with the phone looking at my sister who was fighting for me inside the room, I knew she went through the same things that I did or maybe worse, we all are the rotten fruits from the same basket after all.349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdAQPQPR8Ww
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.........In the room............
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"Appu (Apoorva), you don't have a say in it, got it?" my mother asserted.
"But mummy, how can you decide her life when your decision already ruined mine?" Apoorva (Vyani's sister) shouted back at our mother.349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtbDmNd7B6F
"Shut up. You ruined your own life," my mother retorted sharply.349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXfFDgMZvoU
"I wanted to study archaeology," Apoorva expressed her frustration.349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5RvI2tMnyQ
"But now you are in a good college, what more do you need?" my mother questioned.349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnuzkN6WQL8
"This is getting intense now," my brother commented, trying to intervene.349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXYUBvVuTYV
"Go and do your work, rather than complaining," my mother dismissed him as she headed into the kitchen.349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2wlAgdcu86
"You are so mean sometimes," Apoorva shouted towards the kitchen before retreating to her room.349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmuggbrWyex
The tension in the air lingered, leaving a sense of unresolved conflict hanging in the room.349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzx3wFfZr1T
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............... Meanwhile outside..........
"Hello, Amisha."349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡM0B4vdXCic
"Vyakhya, I scored 98 per cent, the highest in the school!" she shouted joyfully from the other end.349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrYglE41I2P
"What?" I responded, my dream of securing the 1st position shattering around me. "Congratulations, well done."349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTY6zmeXoXH
"I know, right? I worked too hard for this, and teachers already congratulated me. Did they call you? How much did you get?"349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpPBMWKIW53
"97..." I replied, a tear escaping my eye.349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwcovnrpaqS
"97? Oh, it's also good... you just needed two per cent to surpass me. It's also good. Well done to you too. Oh, Mihika mam is calling me, let's talk later," she said, ending the call abruptly.349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZxFb8s5VDI
"Did you score so bad?"349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOdMXsc17JC
"No, it isn't bad, until my father compares it to Amisha's score," I explained to Tis, who had approached me from behind as I spoke to Amisha.349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwW9gVR2g8u
"Are you satisfied?"349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyiaYCHfAHv
"I don't know, actually I don't care. It's just another mark for another test."349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp44Eq8aBG4
"Then, why are you crying?"349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK90ARxtDso
"Oh, it's jealousy. You won't understand."349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDEkpmVrC2f
"Another human emotion?"349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlZ2e6vZ7uy
"Kind of..." I replied, heading to my sister's room.349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0i1IHakoZv
"Didi, what are you doing?"349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDT3UIuNz4x
"Nothing, come in, topper girl," she said with a smile, wiping away the tears from her cheek.349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSbjh3xRfSJ
"Don't lie, you were crying."349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtjM35Ia4Hm
"No, I wasn't. Wait, were you crying too?"349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSzbN8kvXDH
"No, I wasn't."349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRPg1NNEjvZ
"Hmm... Hey, don't listen to mom. Choose whatever you want, okay?349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqeXMJHSNJs
"Yeah, I'll decide for myself," I replied. After that, an awkward silence followed. She wanted to say a lot, and I did too. In brown families, they might teach you to talk but not really communicate. I looked into her eyes, still wet. I wanted to thank her for standing up for me, but the words just wouldn't come. She sat there, staring at her books, which I knew she wasn't really reading. Gathering courage, I said, "Didi, thank you for standing up for me."349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs2NhibcAZ6
"It's nothing... just an older sibling duty," she replied, but her eyes told a different story.349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWLuKJKhAtu
"Don't cry. I know you never wanted to do engineering-"349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmguIBTo8eN
"It's okay. I can't fix a broken glass. I have to throw it away eventually," she said, her eyes filling with tears again.349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5jviKPQReP
I wanted to share Amisha's score with her, but it didn't feel like the right time. She was crying because she saw a vulnerable side of herself in me. I couldn't think of anything else to say as I hugged her while she cried on my shoulder. Tis was there, staring at us in disgust. I guess he hates human emotions. But how could I hate them when I'm drowning in them?"349Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzRmiTO0tL9
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