"Oh my goodness! It looks great, English 98, maths 96..." I exclaimed in joy.
"Calculate it! The percentage," my brother shouted next to me.59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWjGdkPEjIZ
"Just a second... I'll figure it out."59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAVeekBFRE7
"Sister, please hurry... please, it has to be above 95," I prayed.59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe1leXxElah
"How did it go?" I asked her, my eyes shut, and my hands trembling.59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZ3J8hXBAKj
"97," she replied.59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡawKbApNMiK
"Wow... fantastic, my child. I knew you could do it," my brother praised, patting me on the back.59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtPw67Dqdxl
"97? Is that good enough?" I asked, trying to conceal my excitement.59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvqHR7VqqWB
"Good enough? Are you joking? I only got 88. Well done!" my sister exclaimed, shaking me in excitement.59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUm2gMvAJ10
"How much did you get?" My mother rushed into my room.59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDxJw6AT631
"97.03," my sister shouted with joy.59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUMxpKT9lUJ
"Oh, it's above 90... now I can proudly show off," my mother said, looking at me.59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiwI4jwiDDz
"This must be the highest in your class, I'm sure of it," my brother commented as I was downloading the result card.59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbLrkoZUjmO
"My highest score is in social studies, it's a 99," I shared.59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡV73jq5VJQ9
"Wow, maybe you should consider arts," my brother suggested straightforwardly.59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK5tZhLdyMv
"Arts? Stick with science, good students choose science," my mother interjected.59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtzMLbJ2jBE
"You could also consider commerce, like Chartered Accountancy and such. Not everyone in this family is meant for engineering," my sister added.59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnbnzKbuocw
"No commerce, no arts, only science. Your father will agree with me, call him," my mother insisted, her gaze fixed on my siblings.59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyexsNIacA9
"I was actually thinking about arts, maybe for UPSC and other options. Arts offer a wider range of opportunities," I pondered aloud.59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyRkA7y8EJs
"Didn't I tell you? Take science then, medical..." 59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWYTAHZMIqB
"But mummy, let her decide!" My sister said to my mother, her voice loud59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyBCf6N2Ue0
"Who do you think you're shouting at? My mother directed her voice loudly at my sister."59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcYo784qAR7
"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.59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSOUHMm72zd
"Why...why are you guys fighting....? I said trying to get the situation at hand59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQab0As62Tb
"I am pretty sure, mummy will win", my brother stated sitting on the bed and eating an apple 59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKdg4XKBDxJ
"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.59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3tfMThUVQi
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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.59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7EaQKYBekN
"Shut up. You ruined your own life," my mother retorted sharply.59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyW0wZUYGOq
"I wanted to study archaeology," Apoorva expressed her frustration.59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2RTfIt3EaC
"But now you are in a good college, what more do you need?" my mother questioned.59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL5t5rSy7V0
"This is getting intense now," my brother commented, trying to intervene.59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG99NxdRMDW
"Go and do your work, rather than complaining," my mother dismissed him as she headed into the kitchen.59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYULUqMGCLu
"You are so mean sometimes," Apoorva shouted towards the kitchen before retreating to her room.59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzWx7ljey03
The tension in the air lingered, leaving a sense of unresolved conflict hanging in the room.59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpjrLh3zCyp
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............... Meanwhile outside..........
"Hello, Amisha."59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVL2iFbRwYe
"Vyakhya, I scored 98 per cent, the highest in the school!" she shouted joyfully from the other end.59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRnUbI61W3T
"What?" I responded, my dream of securing the 1st position shattering around me. "Congratulations, well done."59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9UFGgYXoa2
"I know, right? I worked too hard for this, and teachers already congratulated me. Did they call you? How much did you get?"59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJX71Iyaa3d
"97..." I replied, a tear escaping my eye.59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE57xiuHqkS
"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.59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVvb0O3BQNo
"Did you score so bad?"59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfetxEAbr1A
"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.59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrOtXnmVJnY
"Are you satisfied?"59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmNetCjYSrI
"I don't know, actually I don't care. It's just another mark for another test."59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3Nzg923oAd
"Then, why are you crying?"59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGzYNWwm8MN
"Oh, it's jealousy. You won't understand."59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO2xzjrAEei
"Another human emotion?"59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcROV2F7bmC
"Kind of..." I replied, heading to my sister's room.59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrqBhHBt9kB
"Didi, what are you doing?"59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9vpA4Ex2VC
"Nothing, come in, topper girl," she said with a smile, wiping away the tears from her cheek.59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDssQYdYpL1
"Don't lie, you were crying."59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrqdiEdoqZG
"No, I wasn't. Wait, were you crying too?"59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEOK9qjybTH
"No, I wasn't."59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9M3VAe8H0z
"Hmm... Hey, don't listen to mom. Choose whatever you want, okay?59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhdFQb4HHOH
"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."59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0Iqx55OBsT
"It's nothing... just an older sibling duty," she replied, but her eyes told a different story.59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJDjHZ9b8Tb
"Don't cry. I know you never wanted to do engineering-"59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8FDRi31FUy
"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.59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6fop9HlLcM
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?"59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2HFIdPMCYT
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