"Oh my goodness! It looks great, English 98, maths 96..." I exclaimed in joy.
"Calculate it! The percentage," my brother shouted next to me.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWL087UtEzt
"Just a second... I'll figure it out."75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaCFHJ4qrJJ
"Sister, please hurry... please, it has to be above 95," I prayed.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXm0el3CsDO
"How did it go?" I asked her, my eyes shut, and my hands trembling.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDpjWzzR8JO
"97," she replied.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXpSKVuvwQk
"Wow... fantastic, my child. I knew you could do it," my brother praised, patting me on the back.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ06Vl2TLWaf
"97? Is that good enough?" I asked, trying to conceal my excitement.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXX4hQY0Y8Q
"Good enough? Are you joking? I only got 88. Well done!" my sister exclaimed, shaking me in excitement.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ2qHEfEbDG
"How much did you get?" My mother rushed into my room.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqwC4kpdt4V
"97.03," my sister shouted with joy.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ85mdSvKJEZ
"Oh, it's above 90... now I can proudly show off," my mother said, looking at me.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4Ja5KXGDD4
"This must be the highest in your class, I'm sure of it," my brother commented as I was downloading the result card.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFziauYCvXk
"My highest score is in social studies, it's a 99," I shared.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfsYlL1KIAV
"Wow, maybe you should consider arts," my brother suggested straightforwardly.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtkVm6LlIup
"Arts? Stick with science, good students choose science," my mother interjected.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbxmUGOst64
"You could also consider commerce, like Chartered Accountancy and such. Not everyone in this family is meant for engineering," my sister added.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAhyvqoNmLX
"No commerce, no arts, only science. Your father will agree with me, call him," my mother insisted, her gaze fixed on my siblings.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHNGW513rib
"I was actually thinking about arts, maybe for UPSC and other options. Arts offer a wider range of opportunities," I pondered aloud.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEpgepJbK31
"Didn't I tell you? Take science then, medical..." 75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdFuZjWBkp3
"But mummy, let her decide!" My sister said to my mother, her voice loud75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW09tPEV1Nn
"Who do you think you're shouting at? My mother directed her voice loudly at my sister."75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQveUTNvlvN
"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.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjE77diEWAe
"Why...why are you guys fighting....? I said trying to get the situation at hand75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2f3QkeW0Kw
"I am pretty sure, mummy will win", my brother stated sitting on the bed and eating an apple 75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ38gshmOqdl
"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.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO687CigM6S
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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.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuS1DhW3zQJ
"Shut up. You ruined your own life," my mother retorted sharply.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbf9imEjEF6
"I wanted to study archaeology," Apoorva expressed her frustration.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsen4TmlkTT
"But now you are in a good college, what more do you need?" my mother questioned.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhduCzOQnqF
"This is getting intense now," my brother commented, trying to intervene.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVNjRWU27xU
"Go and do your work, rather than complaining," my mother dismissed him as she headed into the kitchen.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡih5iFzAVy9
"You are so mean sometimes," Apoorva shouted towards the kitchen before retreating to her room.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMiUhVjTk1p
The tension in the air lingered, leaving a sense of unresolved conflict hanging in the room.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp15FoqXlLy
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............... Meanwhile outside..........
"Hello, Amisha."75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSGWXE0ENll
"Vyakhya, I scored 98 per cent, the highest in the school!" she shouted joyfully from the other end.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH1gozasrS9
"What?" I responded, my dream of securing the 1st position shattering around me. "Congratulations, well done."75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkGSE4d1ePE
"I know, right? I worked too hard for this, and teachers already congratulated me. Did they call you? How much did you get?"75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEWFb3dV2nT
"97..." I replied, a tear escaping my eye.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1WUhMsYYz3
"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.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQGIJOd27rL
"Did you score so bad?"75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeJbyNlTy6S
"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.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAB3CRfXbEl
"Are you satisfied?"75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsKylwpVykF
"I don't know, actually I don't care. It's just another mark for another test."75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU2924gkndT
"Then, why are you crying?"75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ03RBYCeEJN
"Oh, it's jealousy. You won't understand."75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZTza07aMQ5
"Another human emotion?"75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ93zXuGs7Al
"Kind of..." I replied, heading to my sister's room.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQpVwbHgqeK
"Didi, what are you doing?"75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIggoe7zQcp
"Nothing, come in, topper girl," she said with a smile, wiping away the tears from her cheek.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBNqJqUq71Y
"Don't lie, you were crying."75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlPQ87I9tSw
"No, I wasn't. Wait, were you crying too?"75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuaiFrgD4wr
"No, I wasn't."75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCTeqkngMRy
"Hmm... Hey, don't listen to mom. Choose whatever you want, okay?75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQUwPQoiBkU
"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."75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxfR68gEd6u
"It's nothing... just an older sibling duty," she replied, but her eyes told a different story.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9yk1NFTt0q
"Don't cry. I know you never wanted to do engineering-"75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQrN8aNVUOF
"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.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhIYXBFoEn3
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?"75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDII1HWIOLa
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