"Oh my goodness! It looks great, English 98, maths 96..." I exclaimed in joy.
"Calculate it! The percentage," my brother shouted next to me.267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP8ArFj9KGN
"Just a second... I'll figure it out."267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡofzv4nl3Tp
"Sister, please hurry... please, it has to be above 95," I prayed.267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7pt48LYqPg
"How did it go?" I asked her, my eyes shut, and my hands trembling.267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv3a81OVsSK
"97," she replied.267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU9ndEVDZ2c
"Wow... fantastic, my child. I knew you could do it," my brother praised, patting me on the back.267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHCQGvEgxOQ
"97? Is that good enough?" I asked, trying to conceal my excitement.267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGIt29qAsxp
"Good enough? Are you joking? I only got 88. Well done!" my sister exclaimed, shaking me in excitement.267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkce1eDbKVD
"How much did you get?" My mother rushed into my room.267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN7cW16P1vw
"97.03," my sister shouted with joy.267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu6JbZL8tl8
"Oh, it's above 90... now I can proudly show off," my mother said, looking at me.267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7wsfEhEyOY
"This must be the highest in your class, I'm sure of it," my brother commented as I was downloading the result card.267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkEDbw2THzc
"My highest score is in social studies, it's a 99," I shared.267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNRgLp0z5vu
"Wow, maybe you should consider arts," my brother suggested straightforwardly.267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEkRrhFWqHr
"Arts? Stick with science, good students choose science," my mother interjected.267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmQsutdc3pG
"You could also consider commerce, like Chartered Accountancy and such. Not everyone in this family is meant for engineering," my sister added.267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2HpDaThw6I
"No commerce, no arts, only science. Your father will agree with me, call him," my mother insisted, her gaze fixed on my siblings.267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbkv1XXGae3
"I was actually thinking about arts, maybe for UPSC and other options. Arts offer a wider range of opportunities," I pondered aloud.267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQZVRFZbO4V
"Didn't I tell you? Take science then, medical..." 267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCTLj6suH4t
"But mummy, let her decide!" My sister said to my mother, her voice loud267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ75IvTHBhcR
"Who do you think you're shouting at? My mother directed her voice loudly at my sister."267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcBJNAwcUU7
"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.267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoWuoyGrrcc
"Why...why are you guys fighting....? I said trying to get the situation at hand267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5A4U3lphqK
"I am pretty sure, mummy will win", my brother stated sitting on the bed and eating an apple 267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRRRSIAAL9x
"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.267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVudU36SBxR
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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.267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡen6oVFQEFJ
"Shut up. You ruined your own life," my mother retorted sharply.267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMJ7xUy9zYV
"I wanted to study archaeology," Apoorva expressed her frustration.267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhF9my7q4T1
"But now you are in a good college, what more do you need?" my mother questioned.267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmtAWpD06BW
"This is getting intense now," my brother commented, trying to intervene.267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6JOiJ2m7WS
"Go and do your work, rather than complaining," my mother dismissed him as she headed into the kitchen.267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6hpq7EByeV
"You are so mean sometimes," Apoorva shouted towards the kitchen before retreating to her room.267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE3rUxmh7LF
The tension in the air lingered, leaving a sense of unresolved conflict hanging in the room.267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbIeraXowJZ
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............... Meanwhile outside..........
"Hello, Amisha."267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFYu4EBw3qz
"Vyakhya, I scored 98 per cent, the highest in the school!" she shouted joyfully from the other end.267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXEgVjAZdEq
"What?" I responded, my dream of securing the 1st position shattering around me. "Congratulations, well done."267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSYPTehEokf
"I know, right? I worked too hard for this, and teachers already congratulated me. Did they call you? How much did you get?"267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcZRUcPiOjd
"97..." I replied, a tear escaping my eye.267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG3XTolSe2f
"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.267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHM7atVq6LJ
"Did you score so bad?"267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXbTZFtjhjj
"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.267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWOysApxs0L
"Are you satisfied?"267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrEUXI82xEQ
"I don't know, actually I don't care. It's just another mark for another test."267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhrlwTKixNP
"Then, why are you crying?"267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs9oKP1THpQ
"Oh, it's jealousy. You won't understand."267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaDGTSbMNMI
"Another human emotion?"267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2wfuAv63kl
"Kind of..." I replied, heading to my sister's room.267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXX5t6Azlza
"Didi, what are you doing?"267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8rcP83hFXE
"Nothing, come in, topper girl," she said with a smile, wiping away the tears from her cheek.267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0K4l6taYPc
"Don't lie, you were crying."267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxHHWblwYyn
"No, I wasn't. Wait, were you crying too?"267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡROliLld9Bk
"No, I wasn't."267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnXi0shWI47
"Hmm... Hey, don't listen to mom. Choose whatever you want, okay?267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOjiX40nOZL
"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."267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVeb393Dnwp
"It's nothing... just an older sibling duty," she replied, but her eyes told a different story.267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnAkRprrpDm
"Don't cry. I know you never wanted to do engineering-"267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxA8mcMjxT1
"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.267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡedi0AfYD0i
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?"267Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0AGEmxdnMu
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