"Oh my goodness! It looks great, English 98, maths 96..." I exclaimed in joy.
"Calculate it! The percentage," my brother shouted next to me.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbZgjiRqllA
"Just a second... I'll figure it out."162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8KPUwOcoCG
"Sister, please hurry... please, it has to be above 95," I prayed.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡY04gbIGZqu
"How did it go?" I asked her, my eyes shut, and my hands trembling.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyE8u246Gu7
"97," she replied.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzsYgTOKky2
"Wow... fantastic, my child. I knew you could do it," my brother praised, patting me on the back.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWMoCVVbyNG
"97? Is that good enough?" I asked, trying to conceal my excitement.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUCixEGcCcL
"Good enough? Are you joking? I only got 88. Well done!" my sister exclaimed, shaking me in excitement.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtokHA86eeF
"How much did you get?" My mother rushed into my room.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6ddUw72DfD
"97.03," my sister shouted with joy.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqSF4r9lJyu
"Oh, it's above 90... now I can proudly show off," my mother said, looking at me.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh9CEj35hL6
"This must be the highest in your class, I'm sure of it," my brother commented as I was downloading the result card.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc60jIQDIKU
"My highest score is in social studies, it's a 99," I shared.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1jcqA74vMM
"Wow, maybe you should consider arts," my brother suggested straightforwardly.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnImistcDQC
"Arts? Stick with science, good students choose science," my mother interjected.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsVbsEdVZCq
"You could also consider commerce, like Chartered Accountancy and such. Not everyone in this family is meant for engineering," my sister added.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoYLJpzTmMO
"No commerce, no arts, only science. Your father will agree with me, call him," my mother insisted, her gaze fixed on my siblings.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOQwWgkRso9
"I was actually thinking about arts, maybe for UPSC and other options. Arts offer a wider range of opportunities," I pondered aloud.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMNxsAsnvza
"Didn't I tell you? Take science then, medical..." 162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxDH6ElBOh1
"But mummy, let her decide!" My sister said to my mother, her voice loud162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO9OfX9c0Vp
"Who do you think you're shouting at? My mother directed her voice loudly at my sister."162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp14XZVg2s6
"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.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjmwMV9LWQw
"Why...why are you guys fighting....? I said trying to get the situation at hand162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLts3jrrsgc
"I am pretty sure, mummy will win", my brother stated sitting on the bed and eating an apple 162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMR8nTncOwG
"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.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡshsfrW8UQv
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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.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj0trhm3N0e
"Shut up. You ruined your own life," my mother retorted sharply.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlPlMQhOboD
"I wanted to study archaeology," Apoorva expressed her frustration.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqvq2dDj4vh
"But now you are in a good college, what more do you need?" my mother questioned.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzILanDLyFM
"This is getting intense now," my brother commented, trying to intervene.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR8DztPYd4g
"Go and do your work, rather than complaining," my mother dismissed him as she headed into the kitchen.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXFYGofxLZs
"You are so mean sometimes," Apoorva shouted towards the kitchen before retreating to her room.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeGGWOiogXr
The tension in the air lingered, leaving a sense of unresolved conflict hanging in the room.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvirvM6ZT52
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............... Meanwhile outside..........
"Hello, Amisha."162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcazSHkWXAR
"Vyakhya, I scored 98 per cent, the highest in the school!" she shouted joyfully from the other end.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcv3QmlYt5T
"What?" I responded, my dream of securing the 1st position shattering around me. "Congratulations, well done."162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbgRYIgzHSp
"I know, right? I worked too hard for this, and teachers already congratulated me. Did they call you? How much did you get?"162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgFQ65jcAxt
"97..." I replied, a tear escaping my eye.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOkRDIfZ8Xz
"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.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3Gb1040xyf
"Did you score so bad?"162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTkScKn3bKE
"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.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkEtk3S1AeY
"Are you satisfied?"162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9fg5KrshGY
"I don't know, actually I don't care. It's just another mark for another test."162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3E1qZUrk8k
"Then, why are you crying?"162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ70fwzN2yB5
"Oh, it's jealousy. You won't understand."162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ23j1LPCns9
"Another human emotion?"162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvfcc2cFZld
"Kind of..." I replied, heading to my sister's room.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2vd8J4GdX4
"Didi, what are you doing?"162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJuoVIsb5BP
"Nothing, come in, topper girl," she said with a smile, wiping away the tears from her cheek.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGemkbYZ78n
"Don't lie, you were crying."162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpl4I6SKhU5
"No, I wasn't. Wait, were you crying too?"162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQMAJpdn716
"No, I wasn't."162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH20pNZGYsQ
"Hmm... Hey, don't listen to mom. Choose whatever you want, okay?162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqGpopIu3My
"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."162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtilwvOvrKY
"It's nothing... just an older sibling duty," she replied, but her eyes told a different story.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx8CGhvc5Tt
"Don't cry. I know you never wanted to do engineering-"162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvevi3qDvbc
"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.162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡa7laTzq0oV
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?"162Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7PaCHCmKnn
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