Dually Devoted ✓

CHAPTER 18

Arpita entered the room to find Arnav with her marksheet.

He was staring at it, immobile, as his face slowly blanched of colour, thinking- he... was the cause of this!

In a swift movement, she grabbed her report card from him, prompting his attention. He looked pained, stunned, as he stared back at her. "Why?" He whispered, not hiding how hurt he was.
How could she have got such low scores?!

Arpita chewed on her lip, at a loss of words. "I...uhm-," she stuttered. "I'll do better next time," she softly finished in a breath.

"A scholarship student. Never before having a rank less than on the top five. Marksheets filled with top grades. Suddenly gets a 'just pass' mark in every damn subject! Why?" He demanded, his voice firmer, but the worry in his voice was too much to remain hidden.

Her fingers went to her curls. "I didn't study, Arnav. Now, will you let this go?"

"...Are you a child?!" He scoffed, his voice raising. "You do know how hard it is to save for our future expenses. You need every scholarship you can get, if you want to pursue higher studies. Don't you want to join a reputed college? Like all the teachers believe you will?!... What is this shit?" He seized the marksheet and shoved it to her face. "Answer me!" He glowered.

"Just- this once."

"Don't lie!" He yelled. "This isn't the first time, is it?" He rhetorically asked.

Arpita stared at him like she was looking at him for the first time. He had known All this while! - her frown deepened.

"You think I'm blind? I thought you would realize it yourself. I believed in you." His voice weakened, "...and this is what I get," he dropped his hands to his sides, exhaling a heavy breath.

"It's not that I didn't try. The syllabus has gotten harder," she complained, aware in the back of her head that it was an excuse, not a reason.

Arnav furrowed his brows, not believing what he was hearing. She had always been the one to never give up; to blame herself for things that weren't even her fault. After which, she would try her best to find a solution. But for the past few months, all she had been doing was following him, cleaning his room, organizing his stuff, finding the books he would need for his quizzes and everything else which she could do, For Him. He had reprimanded her, sent her away repeatedly, warned her and lectured her numerous times to stop all this and concentrate on herself, on her studies. Nevertheless, she seemed stupidly stubborn on not listening. He could see the outcome of it all.

All the small tests and assignments that she had scored less in, he had dismissed, trusting that as the main exam nears, she'd know what to do. Oh, how wrong he had been!
It is her stupid delusion of being in love that is ruining her so, he had long concluded. He just didn't know what to do to stop it, to make her see what she was doing to herself, to her life.

Knowing how she was always behind him, caring and admiring him beyond what he deserved, he had started to talk and flirt with every other girl whom he cared not for. He had thought jealousy would give rise to anger and he could use that to make her see he wasn't the right guy for her. It had been more than just a few days since he had planned that, but she still hadn't lashed out at him. The admiration stayed; the concern stayed; so did her liking for him. Just what did she even see in him? He found himself asking, fearing he'll go crazy if she keeps being so.

"Plus, marks don't matter, Arnav," she continued to explain, trying to be more truthful. "I may not get into a top college. So what? I would be studying the same thing, no matter which college I get into," she shrugged uncaringly, something that was very out of her character.