ᴀ ᴛᴡɪsᴛ ɪɴ ᴛʜᴇ ᴛᴀʟᴇ

9 || Drama

"Alright. Don't think I'll let go of this. But the news is important. I have decided to participate in the competition"

"REALLY?"

"Shhh...quietly! Yes I have"

"I'm so so so happy for you bhai! I'm glad you listened to him"'

She hugged him tightly and he returned the hug, still smiling thinking about his audition and the fact that Miss Annalisa had compared him to his idol.

"But Shravan, the auditions are over..."

"Yes and I have friends with connections now"

"That's kind of douche"

"I'm just kidding. Raghav vouched for me but I only got in because of my own performance"

"I know. My brother isn't a parasite who leeches onto rich friends, like-"

"Like Amit"

"Lol yes"

They shared a laugh and Shravan hugged her again.

"Thanks Aadhu, for asking him to talk to me."

"Anything for you"

"That's reminds me, Raghav is coming for dinner tomorrow and he'll probably stay overnight so can you prepare the guest room, clean it and put some blankets there?"

The fact that he was going to spend time with them made Aadhya feel super happy and she felt her cheeks redden.

"Aadhya? Will you or should I do it myself? It's ok if you don't want to"

"Oh no, you already have a lot on your plate. I'll do it. Don't worry"

"Had dinner yet?"

"Yep"

"Good night then"

"Goodnight to you too"

Shravan left for his room and Aadhya hopped onto her bed, excited about the next day.

------------------------------------------------------

It was almost 10 pm when Raghav returned home. As soon as he entered the house, he wished he hadn't. His father stood there, very visibly angry and his mother stood at the back, sadness written all over her face. In all the hustle, he had forgotten that his brother had returned too and now he was to be spectator of whatever his father was about to do. He took a deep breath and closed the door. It closed with a loud thud and Raghav cringed a little. He quietly tried to go back to his room, hoping to avoid any drama.

"Raghavendra!"

There goes his hope for no drama.

"Y-yes dad?"

"Come here. We need to talk"

Raghav turned back, painfully slow and deliberately took all the time in the world to get to the sofa his father was sitting on. His mother had retreated into the kitchen and his brother was giving him sympathetic looks.

"Hurry up, would you?"

"Of course"

He cursed his luck and walked faster. His father motioned at him to sit down and he did, on the sofa opposite to the one his father was sitting on.

"Do you have any idea what the time is right now?"

"It's 10"

"10 what?"

"10 PM"

"Hmm, so you do know. Tell me, is this any appropriate time to return home at?"

"no"

"LOUDER"

"No"

"Then why in the name of god, were you out till this late?"

"I was helping a friend out"

"Really? Are you sure this friend of yours isn't a white powder or a dark red liquid?"

"What are you saying? Don't you have any trust on me? Do you think I was out there doing drugs and drinking alcohol?"

"That's precisely what I think"

"How could you? My mother has raised me better than that!"

"Your mother you say? Well guess what, I PAID FOR YOUR SCHOOL, YOUR TOYS, YOUR CLOTHES, YOUR FOOD! I AM PAYING FOR YOUR COLLEGE AND YOUR STUPID DREAMS OF BECOMING A DANCER!"

"YOU MIGHT'VE PAID MY FEES BUT YOU'VE NEVER PAID ME ANY ATTENTION! WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT ME? ABOUT MY DREAMS? MY HOBBIES? MY LIKES AND DISLIKES? MY MOTHER KNOWS IT ALL!"

"DO NOT RAISE YOUR VOICE AT ME!"

"YOU THINK YOU CAN RIASE YOUR HAND AT ME AND I'M NOT EVEN ALLOWED TO RAISE MY VOICE? I'M 20 NOT 12!"

"SHUT UP YOU-"

"Dad please! Let's sit down and talk. Please"

"AH YES, THE FAVORITE SON! THE APPLE OF YOUR EYES! WHY DON'T YOU LISTEN TO HIM AND LEAVE ME ALONE?"

"Raghav, please calm down"

"Don't waste your time on him Abeer, he's a lost cause."

Raghav balled his hands into fists and bit his tongue. He really didn't need to cause any more drama, for the sake of his mother.

"Like mother like son, dumb and manner less"

"ENOUGH! SHE'S ALWAYS SUPPORTED YOU AND STOOD BEHIND YOU BUT YOU NEVER CARED ABOUT HER! I HATE YOU!"

And with that Raghav grabbed his car keys and left, deliberately closing the door as loudly as he could.