ALMOST THERE

CHAPTER 1. Mendel's Law of Segregation

Besabriyaan - Armaan Malik
🍃🌧️🌌🌎

"You can't be serious." My voice came out strained as my grip on my phone tightened, holding it to my ear.

"I wish I wasn't." A deep, feminine voice greeted me from the other side of the line, ringing through my eardrums.

"But it isn't fair!" I flopped onto my bed, letting out a frustrated breath I realized I'd been holding for a while. "They're going to separate all of us that way."

'Us' referred to my close-knit pack of people I'd managed to hold on to for the past two years. Or better say, they held on to me. I was a good person, but probably not the exact kind someone would want to hold on to.

"You'll still have me," came the reply from the other end. That made me smile-something I hadn't done in the past month.

Hell, I couldn't even remember the last time the corners of my mouth turned up, my eyes crinkled, or heavy air left my chest as I broke into a lighthearted laugh.

Because I didn't.

I could recall it all like it was yesterday.

March 18, 2022.

Cool air hit my face as I sat in the backseat of our car, with the window open, fidgeting with my hands, unsure of what to do with them. I grabbed my water bottle, twisted the cap, and chugged some water down my throat. A meek attempt to dissolve the forming lump.

I looked out the window as I felt my heart rate spike, beads of sweat trickling down the sides of my face. My gaze dropped to the folded cardboard sheet resting on my lap.

Grids, boxes, and numbers lay scattered yet perfectly organized on its surface.

Every time I looked at it, I couldn't help but stare at that one particular box among all the boxes, holding a pair of numbers.

A longer, rectangular box sat right next to it, typed in alphabets to indicate the use of the numbers in the box next to it.

Percentage.

76.

"Saysha?"

Tejal's voice brought me back to reality. My eyes felt blurred with tears I didn't realize had been there. I wiped my eyes with the back of my palm and cleared my throat.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm alive."

"You better be," she chuckled. "There's no way I'm surviving tenth grade in a section almost full of strangers."

Our school always had a strange way of managing things, which somehow worked out at the end of the day.

Like that one time when the principal decided to ban speaking in any languages except for English inside the campus, which would supposedly push the students to try and be better at English.

Sounds messed up, right?

Because it was.

But weird enough, more kids started becoming fluent English speakers by the day until every student in third grade and above spoke pure, uncontaminated English. That rule was taken down after a few years though.

Not sure why.

But anyway, this time, the new rule wasn't strange or weird or illogical in any sense. Segregating students into sections according to their initials. It could hurt no one.

Only, it did.

It hurt us.

All ten of us.

Our names were diverse as hell, starting from A extending upto T.

Needless to say, we were devastated by the news, but there was very little we could do other than to suck it up. Or curse the principal.

Bro probably thinks he's Gregor Mendel or something.

Had the old method of segregation been in action, I would've still been separated from them. 76% marks isn't exactly what saves you a seat in section A. Section of toppers.

"At least we have each other," I said. "Oh God, tomorrow's going to be hell." I tossed around in my bed, wincing as I rolled over a pencil and felt like it stabbed through my stomach. I excel at overreacting.

"No lie. Anyways, I gotta go. Prepare for tomorrow, love you." Tejal disconnected the call, a weird urgency evident in her tone. I laughed to myself. Must be her dog stealing my share of her attention.

I sighed, staring up at the ceiling. Tomorrow loomed like a dark cloud, filled with unknown faces and the anxiety of new beginnings.

I wished there was a way to turn back time, to stay in the cocoon of familiarity a little longer. But reality was relentless.

I glanced at the clock, realizing it was getting late. I needed to prepare for tomorrow, even if I didn't feel like it.

Grabbing my backpack, I started packing my books and stationery. Each item I placed inside felt heavier with the weight of uncertainty.

As I zipped up my bag, my phone buzzed again. It was a message from Bhavin, one of my closest friends in the group and probably the first friend I'd made.

"Hey, heard the news. This sucks. But we'll get through it, right?"

I smiled faintly and typed back, "Yeah, we will. Stick together, even if we're apart."

He replied almost instantly, "Always."

I felt a bit better. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad. At least we had our bond, even if circumstances tried to pull us apart.

I put my phone down, pulled the blanket over me, and decided to get some sleep.

Tomorrow was a new day, after all, and I couldn't let some dysfunctional management decision ruin it for me.