"Oh my goodness! It looks great, English 98, maths 96..." I exclaimed in joy.
"Calculate it! The percentage," my brother shouted next to me.266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFmOEnYlQwc
"Just a second... I'll figure it out."266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbdQU2037UO
"Sister, please hurry... please, it has to be above 95," I prayed.266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC25RpTsV5c
"How did it go?" I asked her, my eyes shut, and my hands trembling.266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3bQaIwF7mO
"97," she replied.266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAntYJoedxw
"Wow... fantastic, my child. I knew you could do it," my brother praised, patting me on the back.266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyfFq3XWkQ2
"97? Is that good enough?" I asked, trying to conceal my excitement.266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjnMV1DJbf2
"Good enough? Are you joking? I only got 88. Well done!" my sister exclaimed, shaking me in excitement.266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqrSiiIqNyw
"How much did you get?" My mother rushed into my room.266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNcYl2AKU2r
"97.03," my sister shouted with joy.266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWjE4CksPCu
"Oh, it's above 90... now I can proudly show off," my mother said, looking at me.266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAwclc2yei7
"This must be the highest in your class, I'm sure of it," my brother commented as I was downloading the result card.266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1VqcshLQdv
"My highest score is in social studies, it's a 99," I shared.266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0LfXlJH4er
"Wow, maybe you should consider arts," my brother suggested straightforwardly.266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQGpKrHTIKB
"Arts? Stick with science, good students choose science," my mother interjected.266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUkVOgPUZJo
"You could also consider commerce, like Chartered Accountancy and such. Not everyone in this family is meant for engineering," my sister added.266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcvB8ciruJv
"No commerce, no arts, only science. Your father will agree with me, call him," my mother insisted, her gaze fixed on my siblings.266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlUHj5dMHt9
"I was actually thinking about arts, maybe for UPSC and other options. Arts offer a wider range of opportunities," I pondered aloud.266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOnIXuFxlhi
"Didn't I tell you? Take science then, medical..." 266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpaBkAzzRwI
"But mummy, let her decide!" My sister said to my mother, her voice loud266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsDtIVD285g
"Who do you think you're shouting at? My mother directed her voice loudly at my sister."266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvkwZsHHN6R
"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.266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDS3qaGbSey
"Why...why are you guys fighting....? I said trying to get the situation at hand266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlx6ug2Tpsi
"I am pretty sure, mummy will win", my brother stated sitting on the bed and eating an apple 266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡine6lCRqXV
"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.266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAwOehWwKez
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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.266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5mJVdigj2r
"Shut up. You ruined your own life," my mother retorted sharply.266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡM3qhwFIlL9
"I wanted to study archaeology," Apoorva expressed her frustration.266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNJYBcVBudp
"But now you are in a good college, what more do you need?" my mother questioned.266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe5Ok9dMUPV
"This is getting intense now," my brother commented, trying to intervene.266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3pE9ZfzfCt
"Go and do your work, rather than complaining," my mother dismissed him as she headed into the kitchen.266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡywnsXkK6my
"You are so mean sometimes," Apoorva shouted towards the kitchen before retreating to her room.266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCqX3Cs2s1j
The tension in the air lingered, leaving a sense of unresolved conflict hanging in the room.266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzYFOnlzBMD
266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSCw9vqVUrl
............... Meanwhile outside..........
"Hello, Amisha."266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuJTUwn4an7
"Vyakhya, I scored 98 per cent, the highest in the school!" she shouted joyfully from the other end.266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTkUD6GLuO3
"What?" I responded, my dream of securing the 1st position shattering around me. "Congratulations, well done."266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZCPgmanhnw
"I know, right? I worked too hard for this, and teachers already congratulated me. Did they call you? How much did you get?"266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmxpU6gYRhW
"97..." I replied, a tear escaping my eye.266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0JvR9qMpBG
"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.266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiOfr4ai3fR
"Did you score so bad?"266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3j2VNqO2De
"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.266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXHRz6MyjFS
"Are you satisfied?"266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvdAIteQffl
"I don't know, actually I don't care. It's just another mark for another test."266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhWtLUuCnOv
"Then, why are you crying?"266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUNJiX48yAy
"Oh, it's jealousy. You won't understand."266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK8iltT2Q70
"Another human emotion?"266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWVNZrYLh9e
"Kind of..." I replied, heading to my sister's room.266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn4JvglVN4l
"Didi, what are you doing?"266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgr1y0CDeR0
"Nothing, come in, topper girl," she said with a smile, wiping away the tears from her cheek.266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS2MCBlKL1D
"Don't lie, you were crying."266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZVKJmxf8mI
"No, I wasn't. Wait, were you crying too?"266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN9sB2nKPCI
"No, I wasn't."266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn48xFAhtfV
"Hmm... Hey, don't listen to mom. Choose whatever you want, okay?266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡai3NiVVnWY
"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."266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxRcq12V3vr
"It's nothing... just an older sibling duty," she replied, but her eyes told a different story.266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWbTp4n39vS
"Don't cry. I know you never wanted to do engineering-"266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmX2Ey5IiEA
"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.266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkc8Y6NlwGn
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?"266Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu77f2WKjGS
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