The Unlisted: The Forgotten Girl

Chapter 1

Dru's hands were tied to the dentist's chair.  Eyes wide, heavy sweating could be seen on him as an invisible drill drew closer to his mouth. He struggled against the tight ropes binding him to the chair, but it was no use. He tried to scream for help, but no sound came out of his mouth. Then, out of the corner of his eye, he could see his twin brother hold a finger to his lips, indicating not to acknowledge his presence. Dru's mouth was yanked open, and he panicked now more than ever. His eyes widened as the drill drove into his mouth-

"AAGH!!" Dru Sharma yelled sitting bolt upright, sweat streaming from his face. It was just a nightmare, He told himself. 

"Keep it down, will you?" A voice that belonged to his brother, came from the bed next to Dru. 

Kal Sharma was the twin brother of Dru. They were identical but easily told apart as Dru had glasses and Kal didn't. They were quite different in personality, however. Dru was brainy and liked computers and was a very good hacker. Kal, on the other hand, loved sport and was very fit. 

"I had that dentist nightmare again," he informed Kal. His brother yawned in reply. Ignoring Dru like this was normal, he rolled over to get some more sleep. His efforts were useless, as their Dadi walked in with a party popper.

"Rise and shine my little wombats!" Dadi let off the party popper in front of Dru. "Up, up, up! It's Diwali!" 

She went to Kal. "Happy Diwali, Dadi," Kal said sleepily. She smiled at him and left. 

Kal turned to his brother. "Even Dadi scares you! How are we related?" 

Dru rolled his eyes. 

Later, At breakfast:

Dru and Kal joined their family at the dining table. Their family consisted of their sister Vidya, Dadi, their mom, and dad. Dadi had cooked Indian flatbread called parathas and Hindi music was playing from the radio. 

The boys sat down as Dadi served them their food. "Dru and Kal, cleaning duties for you after school," She informed them. "I want to see my reflection in everything."

Kal, who was being the wonderful brother he was, said with a smile, "Dadi, you look beautiful this morning. But I think it's Dru's turn to clean today." 

"Nice try," Dadi smiled at him. "The two of you will work together."

Dru glared at Kal. Dadi noticed them. "Now, no fighting on Diwali, wombats. It breaks your dadi's heart."

The parents chuckled at the grumpy boys. But there was no arguing with Dadi. The twins' dad turned up the volume of the radio, which was now playing the news. 

"World leaders gather in Shanghai to debate the long-term effects of climate cha-" The radio was switched off by Dadi. 

"Mum!" Her son complained. "I was listening to that!"

"Too bad," Dadi said unsympathetically. "The leaders are all corrupt anyway. They're hiding the cure for cancer, you know."

"No, they're not Dadi," her daughter-in-law said. "What have we said about filling the kids' heads with conspiracies?"

Dadi ignored her and turned to Vidya. "You're in charge of all the decorations, my little emu!" She said. 

"It's officially my Diwali wish to change that nickname," Vidya replied. 

Dadi grinned. "Well, good luck to you then."

"Won't Ganesh be angry if you don't listen?" Vidya urged.