Sleep hasn’t come easily these days. I toss and turn, my mind circling the same thoughts over and over again.
What if they find out? What if Nargis opens my laptop one day, or overhears a call with Aira? I can already picture the storm in her voice, the venom in her words.
She will call me selfish. Ungrateful. She’ll say I’m abandoning the family, running after pointless dreams. Baba will sit silently, as always, his silence burning more than her insults.
Sometimes, I try to prepare myself — running conversations in my head as if they were rehearsals. “Baba, this is my chance. I’ll make you proud.” But the scene always crumbles into arguments, into Nargis shaking her head, accusing eyes cutting through me.
I sit by my desk tonight, staring at the glow of the laptop screen. The cursor hovers over my inbox. My stomach is in knots. For days I’ve been refreshing, waiting for that one email.
I close my eyes, press my palms together, and whisper to myself, Please. Please let it be good news.
When I open my eyes, I see it. A subject line bolded at the top of the page:
“Congratulations on Your Admission – Imperial college london.”
For a moment, I can’t breathe. My eyes blur. I click it open, my heart racing. The words on the screen confirm it — not just admission, but a scholarship. My dream, my way out, is real.
Tears spill before I can stop them. I press my hand to my mouth, muffling the sound.
But the joy doesn’t stay pure. The fear creeps in immediately. How will I tell them? How will I make them see this isn’t betrayal, but hope?
I lean back in my chair, staring at the ceiling, my chest rising and falling with uneven breaths. I can already hear Nargis’s voice in my head: “Studying abroad? Who will marry you after that? What will people say?”
I know the battle is coming. And I’m terrified.
But tonight, even in fear, I allow myself one truth — I did it. I got in. Imperial College London.
Now the real fight begins.
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