The Tale of Two Timelines

The handshake had sealed it. A month. One month to prove who would come out on top.

The days started moving quickly. Each morning, Neil woke up early as usual. Jog, a few push-ups, a quick bath, clean uniform, and that faint smell of perfume that somehow made him look even sharper. After breakfast, he sat with his books, neatly underlining, solving question after question.

Sometimes he even made small notes, organizing everything like a soldier preparing for battle.

Aarav’s mornings were… slower. He’d hit the snooze button three times, roll out of bed like it was the hardest task in the world, and finally splash water on his face. Books stayed on his table, piled unevenly. He would open them, yes, and even read a few pages. But soon, his head would tilt, eyes heavy, and before he knew it, the textbook became a pillow.

Still, he wasn’t completely careless. Some evenings he’d push himself, scribbling answers, muttering formulas, trying to remember definitions. But his focus slipped often—phone buzzing, games waiting, his mind drifting elsewhere.

Neil, meanwhile, was a machine. After school he laughed with friends, but once home, he studied again. He even helped his classmates when they got stuck. “Here, look, do it this way,” he’d explain, patient and cheerful. His energy seemed endless.

Aarav noticed it sometimes. From his room, he’d hear Neil’s steady voice reciting notes or solving problems aloud. And though he’d never admit it, it pricked something inside him. A quiet guilt.
(Thoughts): He really tries so hard… while I just… mess around.

Days turned into weeks. The brothers walked to school together, their challenge always hanging in the air. Neil teased him lightly whenever Aarav yawned in class stories. Aarav snapped back with sarcastic lines, but deep down he knew the exam was coming fast.

And then—it came. Mid-term week.

The exam halls smelled of ink and chalk. Papers were handed out, pens clicked open. Neil bent over his sheet, focused and calm, words flowing as if he had rehearsed each answer a hundred times. Aarav stared at his paper longer. Sometimes the answers came, sometimes they didn’t. He scribbled, erased, tapped his pen, fought to keep his mind awake.

When the final bell rang on the last day, both brothers walked out together, bags heavy but shoulders lighter.

“It’s done,” Neil said, exhaling.
“Yeah,” Aarav muttered, stretching his arms. “Finally.”

For a while, life went back to normal. A small gap of waiting, waiting, waiting. Until finally, the day arrived—

Result Day.

Teachers called out names, papers shuffled, students whispered nervously. Both Neil and Aarav sat in their classrooms, hearts beating fast for different reasons.

And that’s where it would all be decided.