**[12 June 2025, Goldy's Residence]**
"Good morning, Mom," I said, grabbing my backpack from the couch.
"Good morning," Mom replied, stirring her tea. Her eyes looked tired, like she hadn't slept.
After a long pause, she gave a small smile. "So, what's your plan today?"
I shrugged. "Just heading to college, as usual."
Mom's smile faded. "Sometimes I wonder how Angel would've looked in her school dress. It's been so long since I saw her like that."
Her words hit me like a stone. Angel. My little sister. We never talked about her—not since that awful day four years ago. It was like a silent rule in our house. My mind flashed back to that nightmare.
*Four years ago after waking up I found out that my sister was in coma due to the shock she got from encountering the monster in store, after this incident many government officials came to my room in the hospital and asked for me to tell them the details about the monster and the one who saved us, I told them everything that the monster did to the civilians but for some reason when I tried to tell them about the man who saved us I kept remembering the words of that man "Don't tell anybody". After telling them this they didn't believe me as they thought after encountering a monster like that no—one can escape that easily. According to them, they found the body of the monster and keeping it secret from the world so there will be no panick created in India and they told us to not tell the details about this to anyone.*
I snapped back to the present, my heart racing. Mom was staring at her tea, lost in her thoughts. I wanted to say something, but my throat felt tight. "Gotta go, Mom. See you later," I mumbled, rushing out the door.
As I walked to the bus stop, my phone buzzed. A text from Rohit: "Landing in Delhi tomorrow. See you soon, Goldy." My stomach twisted. Rohit, my older brother, had been in the US for years, even before the incident with Angel. He left for college there after high school and never looked back. His texts were rare—short, cold, like "Busy" or "Call you later." He didn't come when Angel got hurt, didn't call when Mom cried for days. I always felt he hated us, like he blamed us for something. Why was he coming now? I pushed the thought away and got on the bus to college, but my mind wouldn't settle.
At college, I met my friends, Harjot and Lucky, under the big tree during lunch. They were the only ones I could talk to about the incident. "You ever think about that day?" Harjot asked, munching on his paratha.
"All the time," I said. "That monster… and that man who saved us."
Lucky leaned in, keeping his voice low. "The guy in the coat? You think he was some kind of secret agent? Or maybe something supernatural?"
I shook my head. "I don't know. He fought like he'd done it before. That glowing weapon… it chopped off the monster's hand. It wasn't normal. But he told me not to tell anyone."
Harjot frowned. "The government covered it up, right? My uncle knows someone in the police. He said they found something weird that day, but it's all hushed up."
"It's been four years," I said. "I still see Angel in that hospital bed. And now Rohit's coming back."
Lucky raised an eyebrow. "Your brother? The one who never visits?"
"Yeah," I said. "I think he hates us. He's always acted like we're nothing to him."
"Maybe he knows something," Harjot said. "About the man, or the monster."
I didn't reply, but his words stuck with me. What if Rohit knew more than he let on? The thought made me nervous.
That evening, I got home late. Mom was in the kitchen, chopping vegetables louder than usual. "Rohit called," she said. "He's landing tomorrow."
I nodded, setting the table. Dinner was quiet. Neither of us mentioned Angel or Rohit's return. I could feel the tension, like we were both waiting for something to break.
Later, in my room, I couldn't sleep. I pulled out my secret journal from under the bed, where I'd written about that day. Details I couldn't share with anyone except Harjot and Lucky: the man's piercing blue eyes, the glowing weapon that sliced off the monster's hand, leaving it writhing on the ground, the way the creature screamed before it collapsed. And those words that kept me silent: "Don't tell anybody." I wondered if the mysterious man was still out there, fighting other monsters. Or was he gone, like the government said the monster was?
The next day, June 13, I skipped college. Mom was at the airport to pick up Rohit. I stayed home, pacing the living room. My mind was a mess. Why was Rohit coming back after all this time? Did he really hate us, like I'd always felt? When he left for the US, he barely said goodbye. After the incident, he didn't even call to check on Angel. Mom said he was busy with his tech job, but I never believed it. It felt like he wanted nothing to do with us.
The door opened around noon. My heart stopped as Rohit walked in, taller than I remembered, with a beard and glasses. He hugged Mom, but it was quick, almost cold. Then he turned to me, his eyes hard. "Goldy," he said, his voice flat. No smile, no warmth. Just my name, like I was a stranger.
I stared at him, my chest tight. This was my brother, but he didn't feel like family. The way he looked at us, the way he stood there, it was clear—he hated us. I wanted to ask why he came, what he was hiding, but the words wouldn't come. All I could feel was the distance between us, like a wall that had been there for years.