"Oh my goodness! It looks great, English 98, maths 96..." I exclaimed in joy.
"Calculate it! The percentage," my brother shouted next to me.333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuWKcLiIpNu
"Just a second... I'll figure it out."333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPoe99YhmZ4
"Sister, please hurry... please, it has to be above 95," I prayed.333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdleT1k95eU
"How did it go?" I asked her, my eyes shut, and my hands trembling.333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdVK4hCpQnl
"97," she replied.333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJse8rM51AH
"Wow... fantastic, my child. I knew you could do it," my brother praised, patting me on the back.333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiWAn9VDyWW
"97? Is that good enough?" I asked, trying to conceal my excitement.333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEgkzjiQgbc
"Good enough? Are you joking? I only got 88. Well done!" my sister exclaimed, shaking me in excitement.333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡD6qUeomU7L
"How much did you get?" My mother rushed into my room.333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFg8yiEOhsg
"97.03," my sister shouted with joy.333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk8dbkbcX2g
"Oh, it's above 90... now I can proudly show off," my mother said, looking at me.333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ53ClmYWaFp
"This must be the highest in your class, I'm sure of it," my brother commented as I was downloading the result card.333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy3qz5nUEIw
"My highest score is in social studies, it's a 99," I shared.333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRRkQgNvYRC
"Wow, maybe you should consider arts," my brother suggested straightforwardly.333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNIPZWtlg7c
"Arts? Stick with science, good students choose science," my mother interjected.333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLS8O5uuAmg
"You could also consider commerce, like Chartered Accountancy and such. Not everyone in this family is meant for engineering," my sister added.333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbm6wEH8QOo
"No commerce, no arts, only science. Your father will agree with me, call him," my mother insisted, her gaze fixed on my siblings.333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0TI9rz3OUL
"I was actually thinking about arts, maybe for UPSC and other options. Arts offer a wider range of opportunities," I pondered aloud.333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq6VsoOtrS1
"Didn't I tell you? Take science then, medical..." 333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIxbKLYgBbp
"But mummy, let her decide!" My sister said to my mother, her voice loud333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWusiy7avSp
"Who do you think you're shouting at? My mother directed her voice loudly at my sister."333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX9sizZgkBD
"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.333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQVFyiThRaY
"Why...why are you guys fighting....? I said trying to get the situation at hand333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7SYPt6lmRw
"I am pretty sure, mummy will win", my brother stated sitting on the bed and eating an apple 333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSwfkLCAnJp
"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.333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5pkzDVfgff
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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.333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvt2fSj0HF7
"Shut up. You ruined your own life," my mother retorted sharply.333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvUJrhsiKoc
"I wanted to study archaeology," Apoorva expressed her frustration.333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPzdShLINgL
"But now you are in a good college, what more do you need?" my mother questioned.333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2JASdO8EJZ
"This is getting intense now," my brother commented, trying to intervene.333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJQwCSy6SXY
"Go and do your work, rather than complaining," my mother dismissed him as she headed into the kitchen.333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5jSkgP7hu0
"You are so mean sometimes," Apoorva shouted towards the kitchen before retreating to her room.333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7HF60bGJAd
The tension in the air lingered, leaving a sense of unresolved conflict hanging in the room.333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbvZGYxFiR6
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............... Meanwhile outside..........
"Hello, Amisha."333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡY9VvAFQmYC
"Vyakhya, I scored 98 per cent, the highest in the school!" she shouted joyfully from the other end.333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqZNjh5h80d
"What?" I responded, my dream of securing the 1st position shattering around me. "Congratulations, well done."333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxz3KOkkV0z
"I know, right? I worked too hard for this, and teachers already congratulated me. Did they call you? How much did you get?"333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDlXAXKJhiQ
"97..." I replied, a tear escaping my eye.333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3pVYJAPn5u
"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.333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtgFSJ2qpGg
"Did you score so bad?"333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMl6zX88L85
"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.333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8mKXunHVgE
"Are you satisfied?"333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvzR7ryKTdH
"I don't know, actually I don't care. It's just another mark for another test."333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrDj6wipmaa
"Then, why are you crying?"333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2lXwuwzJ34
"Oh, it's jealousy. You won't understand."333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡolsWVxMztk
"Another human emotion?"333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWthegqa3KB
"Kind of..." I replied, heading to my sister's room.333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0O63egjaqN
"Didi, what are you doing?"333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbmiPbw5n9F
"Nothing, come in, topper girl," she said with a smile, wiping away the tears from her cheek.333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTbPG1LKs47
"Don't lie, you were crying."333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSiAyiYkBwZ
"No, I wasn't. Wait, were you crying too?"333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMZfXw3VwHu
"No, I wasn't."333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYeMpoj3gBE
"Hmm... Hey, don't listen to mom. Choose whatever you want, okay?333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3bey19IoXB
"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."333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOLsgkMIy9K
"It's nothing... just an older sibling duty," she replied, but her eyes told a different story.333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsRjBjEsGyr
"Don't cry. I know you never wanted to do engineering-"333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKPrYRqWajC
"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.333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc8JnTg4uo1
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?"333Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMkF10Nc9Ea
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