"What do you mean I was gifted to you?"
"It is not good to eavesdrop but you heard it right. You are a gift that was forcefully imposed on me."
"Y-You... are.... lying..."
"Am I? You know what? Gift is a very fancy term for you. 'Trash' suits you be...
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I was dancing like it was Ganpati festival when I found out that Lokesh Uncle wasn't going to visit our house any more. Mom told me that she discussed the issue with Dad, and surprisingly, he agreed with her. It was kind of a shock to see my father agreeing — it only happened in my dreams.
I wished that Dad would stop meeting those men entirely, but I was not in the mood to get a beating. Just like every day, I went to my dance classes after school. My dance teacher, Indira Didi, was very fond of me and always encouraged me to pursue dance as a career.
I was putting my bag in the corner when I heard two older girls, Likita and Damini Didi, gossip about me. There was nothing new in that, so I ignored them; I knew they were jealous of me and my close relationship with Indira Didi. I took out my clothes to change and headed towards the changing room but stopped as I heard one of those girls comment something that triggered me.
"Seriously, what the hell is she wearing? Just look at that skirt! Attention seeking whore."
Whore? I knew it sounded like a bad word, but I didn't know the meaning.
"What's whore?" I asked.
I knew some beautiful curse words but it was the first time I was hearing that particular word. Those girls made a disgusted face and told me to mind my own business. I was not satisfied with their response, so I pestered them to tell me why they commented on my clothes and why they called me something I didn't know.
"Reyna, don't you have clothes to wear at home?" Damini asked.
"Do I look naked to you?" I taunted.
Both of them rolled their eyes and gave me a once over. "You always wear such slutty clothes. You know my mom says that girls should only wear salwar kameez and sarees. These jeans, short skirts, and tops are not good for us."
"Yeah. You are no longer a kid. Just because of you, we hear taunts in our homes. Our parents think that we will also start behaving like you and run away with boys. At least wear something decent," Likita Di scolded.
I furrowed my eyebrows. "Why would you run away with boys?"
Likita and Damini Didi shot me a murderous look and told me to leave. What they said reminded me of yesterday's events, and I was sad to hear that the girls were blaming me for what I wore. They pushed me into the changing room after mumbling something about cheap character and poor parenting.
I joined my group after getting changed and Indira Didi began teaching us a new choreo. While dancing, the earlier words kept ringing in my ears. It wasn't like it was the first time I was called names and talked behind my back for my attitude. In school too, teachers would look at me like I murdered their cat whenever I used to ask questions.
I had recently transferred to an English medium, so it was hard for me to adjust and make friends, but in four months, I was able to get a grasp of the syllabus and the school system. I even performed well in English exam, but my class teacher didn't give me full marks on purpose - I knew it.
