"Oh my goodness! It looks great, English 98, maths 96..." I exclaimed in joy.
"Calculate it! The percentage," my brother shouted next to me.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq5Mv2EFzc1
"Just a second... I'll figure it out."91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzL3IstTBCs
"Sister, please hurry... please, it has to be above 95," I prayed.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQPj9NONeef
"How did it go?" I asked her, my eyes shut, and my hands trembling.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp0yPwIWIZg
"97," she replied.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRNii3MBHWV
"Wow... fantastic, my child. I knew you could do it," my brother praised, patting me on the back.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGF1wTmoROQ
"97? Is that good enough?" I asked, trying to conceal my excitement.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB83eiE5tii
"Good enough? Are you joking? I only got 88. Well done!" my sister exclaimed, shaking me in excitement.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHpAowppWcI
"How much did you get?" My mother rushed into my room.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6Fe4qHhJ43
"97.03," my sister shouted with joy.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsusAE2cU4V
"Oh, it's above 90... now I can proudly show off," my mother said, looking at me.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe6ZW04xZFK
"This must be the highest in your class, I'm sure of it," my brother commented as I was downloading the result card.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkw3jX55wXn
"My highest score is in social studies, it's a 99," I shared.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ85J2F0L63C
"Wow, maybe you should consider arts," my brother suggested straightforwardly.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqIYNAzw1yD
"Arts? Stick with science, good students choose science," my mother interjected.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCT3T1p43DK
"You could also consider commerce, like Chartered Accountancy and such. Not everyone in this family is meant for engineering," my sister added.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8TsDDYXeB1
"No commerce, no arts, only science. Your father will agree with me, call him," my mother insisted, her gaze fixed on my siblings.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCaS6wVnm4G
"I was actually thinking about arts, maybe for UPSC and other options. Arts offer a wider range of opportunities," I pondered aloud.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH0YePL2hpk
"Didn't I tell you? Take science then, medical..." 91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFmx9FVHwEi
"But mummy, let her decide!" My sister said to my mother, her voice loud91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ05QXnmJGJv
"Who do you think you're shouting at? My mother directed her voice loudly at my sister."91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLstv232z1q
"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.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMrxftWW73z
"Why...why are you guys fighting....? I said trying to get the situation at hand91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ5j7X84Ceh
"I am pretty sure, mummy will win", my brother stated sitting on the bed and eating an apple 91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8M2gyhZXeQ
"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.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC5LF1W7WF4
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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.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡokJ11jEtEr
"Shut up. You ruined your own life," my mother retorted sharply.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBgYxs4buWT
"I wanted to study archaeology," Apoorva expressed her frustration.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡww4klHfvIS
"But now you are in a good college, what more do you need?" my mother questioned.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6hdogsDm6o
"This is getting intense now," my brother commented, trying to intervene.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwU2iMCdewm
"Go and do your work, rather than complaining," my mother dismissed him as she headed into the kitchen.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsjjBEIII5z
"You are so mean sometimes," Apoorva shouted towards the kitchen before retreating to her room.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmRTmELPMgY
The tension in the air lingered, leaving a sense of unresolved conflict hanging in the room.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBGPLs4BM1k
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............... Meanwhile outside..........
"Hello, Amisha."91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLPYxnNSqw9
"Vyakhya, I scored 98 per cent, the highest in the school!" she shouted joyfully from the other end.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoPKotSKHXI
"What?" I responded, my dream of securing the 1st position shattering around me. "Congratulations, well done."91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqxxsnfN47U
"I know, right? I worked too hard for this, and teachers already congratulated me. Did they call you? How much did you get?"91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhTMPoaPf9B
"97..." I replied, a tear escaping my eye.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmp2Sq7gkkp
"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.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZqv6y075to
"Did you score so bad?"91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvNDwStTGtF
"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.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjWThtjQEXG
"Are you satisfied?"91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTF6IWQhJv0
"I don't know, actually I don't care. It's just another mark for another test."91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjPNMHiFTcR
"Then, why are you crying?"91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSu3TKy3lta
"Oh, it's jealousy. You won't understand."91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFrPGBBpfBG
"Another human emotion?"91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLOTUX7P9sd
"Kind of..." I replied, heading to my sister's room.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6ocr6faOsa
"Didi, what are you doing?"91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGXnKRNnN1B
"Nothing, come in, topper girl," she said with a smile, wiping away the tears from her cheek.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj0hwIcp01L
"Don't lie, you were crying."91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcApdZodFX0
"No, I wasn't. Wait, were you crying too?"91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj5Uhs61OTd
"No, I wasn't."91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6abt6KUE7G
"Hmm... Hey, don't listen to mom. Choose whatever you want, okay?91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXbnjIZAeG0
"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."91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBJi8Khez85
"It's nothing... just an older sibling duty," she replied, but her eyes told a different story.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhN6GOe99aq
"Don't cry. I know you never wanted to do engineering-"91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2lFNk0hhkt
"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.91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiW8ATgdhff
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?"91Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTHAnPgypO7
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