"Oh my goodness! It looks great, English 98, maths 96..." I exclaimed in joy.
"Calculate it! The percentage," my brother shouted next to me.315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtz157EYAez
"Just a second... I'll figure it out."315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfPzuhbo6CS
"Sister, please hurry... please, it has to be above 95," I prayed.315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdHah0yhmMx
"How did it go?" I asked her, my eyes shut, and my hands trembling.315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhzcDHF8Zt9
"97," she replied.315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf4pmbIfypJ
"Wow... fantastic, my child. I knew you could do it," my brother praised, patting me on the back.315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXPJsQFgYTe
"97? Is that good enough?" I asked, trying to conceal my excitement.315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFD9AnjngEU
"Good enough? Are you joking? I only got 88. Well done!" my sister exclaimed, shaking me in excitement.315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdMo6BWeupr
"How much did you get?" My mother rushed into my room.315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu1QnOCUIZX
"97.03," my sister shouted with joy.315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhR09o84E9V
"Oh, it's above 90... now I can proudly show off," my mother said, looking at me.315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHcM0Zn052P
"This must be the highest in your class, I'm sure of it," my brother commented as I was downloading the result card.315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFGvRI3cQf8
"My highest score is in social studies, it's a 99," I shared.315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmJWtMsxMzV
"Wow, maybe you should consider arts," my brother suggested straightforwardly.315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNE8KLyN5jb
"Arts? Stick with science, good students choose science," my mother interjected.315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡD5fgkdX0wo
"You could also consider commerce, like Chartered Accountancy and such. Not everyone in this family is meant for engineering," my sister added.315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzlLWJK4ltk
"No commerce, no arts, only science. Your father will agree with me, call him," my mother insisted, her gaze fixed on my siblings.315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRw8dgwBjhQ
"I was actually thinking about arts, maybe for UPSC and other options. Arts offer a wider range of opportunities," I pondered aloud.315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRR4DredOZe
"Didn't I tell you? Take science then, medical..." 315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOetk5E3gV8
"But mummy, let her decide!" My sister said to my mother, her voice loud315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm7EaLtZ6v7
"Who do you think you're shouting at? My mother directed her voice loudly at my sister."315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡviLaBgOlKN
"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.315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKHFOmy5PR7
"Why...why are you guys fighting....? I said trying to get the situation at hand315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGyBjGL7ZOI
"I am pretty sure, mummy will win", my brother stated sitting on the bed and eating an apple 315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL7fUu2hTRt
"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.315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqHwL5lAKiM
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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.315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnzrlyd3Tna
"Shut up. You ruined your own life," my mother retorted sharply.315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQEduD3kaak
"I wanted to study archaeology," Apoorva expressed her frustration.315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMmiS52DgjP
"But now you are in a good college, what more do you need?" my mother questioned.315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡev8kmIwX97
"This is getting intense now," my brother commented, trying to intervene.315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzXXhnqlTDR
"Go and do your work, rather than complaining," my mother dismissed him as she headed into the kitchen.315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡorBXTpJxBJ
"You are so mean sometimes," Apoorva shouted towards the kitchen before retreating to her room.315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRagkyMPhR8
The tension in the air lingered, leaving a sense of unresolved conflict hanging in the room.315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVIPGo3GhX1
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............... Meanwhile outside..........
"Hello, Amisha."315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUoihIDeSpJ
"Vyakhya, I scored 98 per cent, the highest in the school!" she shouted joyfully from the other end.315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7P3WVEuGZK
"What?" I responded, my dream of securing the 1st position shattering around me. "Congratulations, well done."315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡndDiB22ofX
"I know, right? I worked too hard for this, and teachers already congratulated me. Did they call you? How much did you get?"315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlBLEraNlqb
"97..." I replied, a tear escaping my eye.315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwGKYUPJNFc
"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.315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTJXgIHSx74
"Did you score so bad?"315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfduXhOqoHt
"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.315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL2dHiWXrmv
"Are you satisfied?"315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFzjU7UKkFU
"I don't know, actually I don't care. It's just another mark for another test."315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdr2agUAr5T
"Then, why are you crying?"315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGkOlztlyu7
"Oh, it's jealousy. You won't understand."315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5glKqyKk83
"Another human emotion?"315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbe8P3TVXGn
"Kind of..." I replied, heading to my sister's room.315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXWei8z6hp9
"Didi, what are you doing?"315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ9ljZmM6jA
"Nothing, come in, topper girl," she said with a smile, wiping away the tears from her cheek.315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTW6w9iUcnx
"Don't lie, you were crying."315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFtBqlQawZz
"No, I wasn't. Wait, were you crying too?"315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDcCm0YdaHD
"No, I wasn't."315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2UurV23ozN
"Hmm... Hey, don't listen to mom. Choose whatever you want, okay?315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAikQgNUHWk
"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."315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdLc90ZYhWs
"It's nothing... just an older sibling duty," she replied, but her eyes told a different story.315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ46ZiTzagFA
"Don't cry. I know you never wanted to do engineering-"315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIRbrRcJNU7
"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.315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZ6gOg7ltVH
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?"315Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA6cx8sNXzg
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