"𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐛𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐤 𝐦𝐲 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐰𝐨, 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐢𝐭 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐬 𝐢𝐭'𝐥𝐥 𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐛𝐞𝐚𝐭 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐲𝐨𝐮."
Heartbroken.
Just a word for many people across the globe. But for Annika Malhotra, it was the word that define...
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I woke up to the sensation of ice-cold water splashing over my face, shocking me awake. Gasping as loud as a woman in labor, I sat up, water dripping from my hair and shirt. My eyes squinted through the haze of sleep, locking onto the culprit—my older sister, Komal di, standing there in her pristine white suit, grinning like the Cheshire Cat.
"What the fuck, di!" I shouted, shaking the water off like a wet dog.
She laughed maniacally, thoroughly pleased with herself. "It's 9 a.m raja ji. The puja is in an hour, and Mumma's got no chill about it," she said, crossing her arms like she had done me the biggest favor.
I groaned, rubbing my eyes. The puja. Right. Ever since I made my international debut against Zimbabwe last week, my family had been riding high on pride. The first match had been a bit of a mess—nerves got the better of me—but the second? The second was golden. I'd scored a century, and that had sent my entire family over the moon. So, of course, Mumma had organized a puja to celebrate.
"Alright, alright, I'm getting up," I muttered, dragging myself out of bed. Di smirked at me one last time before strutting out of the room, satisfied with her handiwork.
Yawning, I grabbed my phone off the nightstand and headed to the washroom. As I stood in front of the mirror, brushing my teeth, I scrolled through the messages that had piled up. A couple from teammates, some family friends congratulating me again, and one from Yuvi paaji reminding me of the next practice session. I replied half-heartedly, still feeling the weight of sleep, but my mind was already wandering to the puja and how long it would take.
After replying to all the formal messages, I opened the group chat me and my friends have. Well, I didn't want to reply to their obnoxious messages, but it was an obligation because they would literally bury me alive if I seenzoned them. Rolling my eyes, I started reading their bullshit.
Raisha lover 🎀: I'm at the airport, reaching in 30.
Shahneel di 2.0: I'm about to leave as well.
Raisha lover 🎀: Is this bitch even awake?
Daanav 💀: I just woke up.
Shahneel di 2.0: Thank fuck.
Raisha lover 🎀: I thought you'd wake up directly when we threw you in the fire.
Daanav 💀: What problem do you guys have with my sleep?
Shahneel di 2.0: Abhay we don't have a problem with your sleep, we have issues with you going into hibernation. Nobody in their right mind sleeps 14 hours continuously.
