No Escape From the Result

Sleep has abandoned me.

My thoughts are spinning, faster than the fan above my head.

Today, the results of my 12th-grade board exams will be announced.
And I’m not ready.

Not because I didn’t care.
But because deep down, I know the truth—I never prepared the way I should have.
I kept telling myself, “Tomorrow, I’ll study. Just not today.”
Now there are no more tomorrows left.

It’s noon.
My phone won’t stop buzzing. Notification after notification.
I finally pick it up.
Tushar is calling.

“Satyam… the result is out. Check now,” he says.
His voice is quiet. Not excited. Not loud. Just… serious.
Like he already knows something I don’t.

We’ve been friends for two years.
Our new classes are about to begin. This is supposed to be the start of everything.
Dreams. Effort. A better life.

But dreams lie sometimes.
They make you believe you can do anything—until reality smacks you in the face.

And the truth? Dreams don’t begin with talent.
They begin with hardwork, discipline and consistency

I thought I’d crack the entrance exam and walk straight into my dream college.

Simple. Easy.

But nothing was simple.

My very first class—Physics—felt like another language.
I went home that night and forced myself to study. Only then did it make a little sense.

Our teachers were good—really good.
People say if you don’t understand a subject, maybe the teacher is the problem.
But in my case, the teachers were fine. I was the problem.

Then came our first test.

I was not feeling well.  

It hit me hard. That was the moment I realized this wasn’t a game.

The chapters kept coming, one after another.
Heavier. Faster. Darker.

At first, I had energy.
But slowly, everything blurred.
The excitement faded. The fear grew.

And I did what I always do—
I ran.

Ran from tests. From hard work. From the truth.
I told myself it was fine.
That I had time.
That I could fix it later.

But today…
There is no more “later.”

Today is result day.

And now I finally understand—

We can escape stress.
We can escape pressure.
We can escape people.
Even escape reality for a while.

But we can never escape the result.