The Birlas' - IKSHANA

Chapter - 10: Some Scars Run Deep

At SVM:

It was lunch time and Abhir came out of his Biology class looking rather happy. Roohi was waiting for him at their usual spot where they usually have their lunch. She saw Abhir and was pleasantly surprised. These days, she got used to a grumpy Abhir whining about Biology and how he absolutely detested the terminology. She enjoyed his rant because for once, her brother was speaking her language.

She hated studying and almost every subject made her feel grumpy. Those ranting sessions with Abhir have been her favourite timepass and she didn't want him going back to describing how enriching the process of education actually was. She cringed at the mere thought of it. Whenever she had study related discussions with Abhir, she didn't miss her Poppy even for a second because that boy was so much like her father. Their preferred subjects were different but the approach and excitement were the same.

She was counting on convincing her younger brother of her future plans before she approached her Poppy. If her magic failed on Abhir, there was no way it would work on her father. Abhir's displeasure with Biology gave her hope but as Abhir walked towards her with a broad smile, those hopes were getting crushed. She managed to hide her irritation and asked him,

"Aaj bada khush lag raha hain? Biology ma'am absent hain kya?" to which Abhir replied,

"No Di! Unhi ki class se aa raha hoon" Roohi asked him with a confused expression,

"Phir teri shakal pe aaj baarah kyun nahi baje Birla Boy? Humesha toh chidkuram banke aata hai wahan se!" Abhir laughed. He found it funny but Roohi didn't.

"Dad sab se best hain. Unhone call karke Biology ma'am ko message pahunchaya ki mujhe aaj keliye excuse karlein for not submitting assignment. Aur ma'am ne kardiya excuse. Warna kitna embarrassing hota" Abhir explained excitedly.

Roohi looked stunned. Her Poppy never did that. She wanted to know what magic, her brother has done for her Poppy to do that. But when she spoke, her tone came out harsher than she intended.

"Poppy ne exempt karne ko request kiya! Sachi? Mere liye toh unhone aisa kabhi nahi kiya. Ulta jab complaint aati thi, meri hi class lete the. Aur assignment toh likhna hi padta tha but uske saath saath mujhe use seekhna bhi padta tha. He used to ask me questions. Can you believe it? Aur yahan tujhe bacha rahe hain! So not done" she ranted.

She looked so cute when she was jealous and Abhir had to bite his cheeks to stop his smile. He composed himself and teased her,

"Woh kya hai na Di! Main na bahut acha bacha hoon. Mere uper toh koi complaints hi nahi aati thi kabhi, aur bahut rarely kabhi aati bhi thi, toh Papa samjhake chod dete the. Track record bhi toh consider karna chahiye na Di." Roohi saw red.

"Oh hello! Ladki main hoon but tu delicate darling hain. Kitni chote lagwata tha aur kitni baar bimar padta tha tu, bhool gaya kitni baar Poppy ne poora din tujhe sirf daliya, soup aur fruits khilaya? Ek baar toh tu poora hafta wahin khaya. Mere saath aisa kabhi nahi kiya Poppy ne. Toh tu zyada show off mat kar" she snickered back. Abhir was enjoying this way too much. They didn't even realize that they didn't start eating yet.

"Wahin toh Di! Track record ki baat hai. Studies mein mera record bahut acha hain. Isliye Dada ne request ki. Aap jalo mat. Main thodi na jalta hoon jab mere samne ice-cream aur pakode khate ho, when I am being fed just fruits and boiled vegetables" Abhir countered.

Roohi silently opened their lunch boxes and started eating. She realized that she was being jealous of Abhir unknowingly. She didn't want to be. She knew for a fact that her father wouldn't treat them any differently. She was busy convincing herself and Abhir didn't like that silence.