Chapter 62: The Price of Stability
Raghav spent the rest of the day after the selection announcement grinding. He completed his daily system tasks, ran his sprints, and worked for an extra hour in the gully, his focused concentration a cold shield against the exhaustion. He was preparing for the eventual, inevitable confrontation with his father.
The confrontation arrived on a Tuesday afternoon.
Raghav was practicing his bowling in the gully—working on the mechanics of his newly acquired Skidder—when he heard his name being called, the sound tight and urgent.
He walked out of the gully and saw his mother, Nirmala, standing by the roadside. Her face was pale, drawn tight with anxiety. She was twisting the corner of her saree in her hands, a nervous habit she used when facing the inevitable.
"The Headmaster called, Raghu," she whispered, her voice low and strained. "Your father... he left the office early. He is waiting."
