It was lunchtime when he reached home, and upon arrival, his mother asked him to have lunch, as any typical family would. Aric wanted to decline, but he knew it wasn't possible since he lived in this family. Going hungry was not an option.
Even though he had just drunk a healthy drink on the other side. So reluctantly, he sat down for lunch with his father.
"What did you do with the grandparents?" His father asked as both of them sat at the dining table, under the overhead fan. It was August, and the summer was at its peak. Air conditioning wasn't something they could afford as of yet. Even if they could, their parents refused to buy one since they loved living frugally, and luxury was not what they were brought up with.
"You know, I just had fun with them and moved around the village."
"Did you go to the riverbank?" His mother barked from the kitchen, busy arranging the food for the family to be brought to the dining table.
"No, you told me not to."
"Good. You shouldn't. That river is filled with rapids, and you will drown," his mother said as she brought the food and served it at the table. She then went on to tell of how she heard someone from the far town drown in the same river. Aric didn't want to add to this pointless conversation and was just busy eating.
As he was eating, his mother noticed a very odd thing.
"Aric, how come you can eat green chili raw? As far as I remember, you are always in fear of eating them raw," Avni asked. Aric, who had just torn a piece of green chili with his front teeth, stiffened. His habit of eating a green chili came from living on the university campus.
The food wasn't good at all, so all of them used to find ways to make the food taste better. Eating a green chili was helpful, and even though he was very fearful in the beginning due to the hotness, he overcame it and made it a habit. This was something he had learned while in university and not at home.
Now that he was back, his mother found it odd that Aric could do that.
"I... I tasted it for the first time at grandpa's home. And I like it," Aric had to lie here.
"Something you feared all your life, and one small vacation was all it took to take away the fear. I think I will have to talk to your grandma because I want to see you study more and get better results," Avni said, while his father just ate and listened to their interaction.
"I am already in the top 5, and the results of today wouldn't matter anyways in the future," Aric said.
"Who told you that your results won't matter in the future?" Avni seemed to get agitated and defensive. Aric loved his parents with all his heart, but that didn't mean that his parents were always right. While he was in university, he understood a lot, and after getting into the job, he also saw a different world.
Maybe in previous times, in the old generations, one would get a great job with better marks/grades on their certificates. But not in his time. Of course, with the best grades and being the first in the class, you would get a good job and a stable life, but they needed to be the best of the best. And Aric wasn't one.
His worldviews had changed a lot, and this time he would do things right.
"Nobody. I just feel that the marks of school won't matter in the future. Maybe the university entrance examination could evaluate me better," Aric replied.
"And in order to get a passing grade on those examinations, your foundation needs to be better, which in other words means your current marks matter," his father chimed in. Aric didn't want to argue against it and continued with his food. He also did this in order to divert from the chilli topic, he needed t be more careful of his habits that he had gained over the years. His parents too didn't push the topic more and asked about his time with his grandparents.
Aric was glad, and thus after lunch, he went to his bed. He still felt a bit tired and went to sleep soon. When he woke up again, the sun had already set, and the lights of his room were shining brightly overhead. While lying on his bed, he was thinking of ways to let his parents have a 'hospital-free' life.
He had already seen on the internet in Echorysia, one could buy some health packs from the medical websites around that would take care of someone who has the chances of contamination and relieve the human body of all potential diseases and strengthen the immune system by at least 5 times.
But the cost of it was 100,000 Sora credits. And it would take a month to deliver since it would be for humans. He didn't have the money at the moment, but once he did, he would order two for his family at the earliest.
There were still 2 years' time for the first diagnosis, so he was sure he would be able to get his mother the help she needed. After freshening up and feeling rejuvenated, he needed to show that he was a good student and thus portrayed himself as one as he did his 'homework.'
This went on till 9 pm, and after dinner was done, he was free to do what he had been waiting for. After calming his mind, he started to draw in his consciousness again, and this time he was doing it with more determination and drive.
The circle? Drawn.
The lines? Drawn.
The curves? In progress.
While drawing the curves, he became extra attentive and gave his full concentration. The first curve came out beautifully and according to the parchment drawing. After the first success, he didn't let it get to his head and continued.
There were 54 distinct curves, and he had to draw every single one with the same level of concentration.
