(Avg Reading time: 4 min 27 sec)

It's been while since Pratham visited his home ,but now during break it's his homecoming. Reaching around 11 AM his parents informed him that they'd visit his paternal uncle's home later that day.Pratham was excited to meet his small friends - Riyan and Maitri.

Pratham recalled his last visit to his uncle's 3 BHK. Passing through the hall,he had gone to the bedroom to rest but found Maitri- a small girl studying in 3rd grade, sitting in a corner crying.Maitri wasn't directly related to uncle's family, she's daughter of nephew.Yet, she spent most of her time in the house, especially when uncle and aunts were at home. Her toys were there,her photos adorned the walls not only that her wooden framed picture with uncle and aunt in living room is closest to her heart.

The news of Pratham’s aunt’s pregnancy had spread during that visit, but Maitri, being a child, didn’t understand what it meant. A few relatives teased her, saying that once the baby arrived, her uncle's attention would be divided, and she wouldn’t be his "favorite girl" anymore. That night, she tearfully confided in Pratham, “Will my photo be replaced by the baby’s? Will my toys become hers?” Her jealousy and insecurity were raw and heartbreaking.

Today, as Pratham entered his uncle’s home, the front room was filled with laughter. Maitri’s fears seemed distant as he saw 1.5-year-old Sakshi sitting like a queen on the bed, surrounded by her toys. Riyan, a second-grader and another nephew of Pratham’s uncle, was busy building his A-Z letter base, complete with parking for numbers and a small plane. Riyan”s favorite thing was to sit on that base and calling Sakshi and playing with her but not only that Riyan had even declared her his “dear sister,” kissing her cheek in secret moments when no one seemed to be watching.(though everyone secretly was).

(Riyan- boy nephew's child,

Maitri- nephew child studying in 3rd grade

Sakshi- new baby 1.5 years)

Maitri, however, still struggled. Despite Pratham’s uncle calling her his "big daughter" and Sakshi his "small daughter," Maitri felt displaced. The jealousy she’d experienced when Sakshi was born hadn’t fully disappeared, and she often avoided playing with the two.

That day, circumstances left the children home alone. Maitri, bored, arrived at the house to watch TV in the front room. Meanwhile, Riyan and Sakshi played in the bedroom as usual. Riyan was setting up his A-Z base when Sakshi, sitting atop her “queen-like arrangement,” suddenly fell. She didn’t move.

“Sakshi, get up!” Riyan called, but she didn’t respond. Panicked, he jumped onto the bed and tried to wake her, gently touching her face and shaking her shoulders. When she didn’t react, his initial thought was that she was teasing him, but as seconds passed, he realized something was wrong.

Running to the front room, he called for help, but the house was empty apart from Maitri, who was engrossed in watching Tom and Jerry.

Frustrated and unable to find anyone, Riyan ran outside for help, leaving Maitri to her show. Suddenly, Sakshi’s faint cries echoed through the house, disrupting Maitri’s cartoon. Irritated, she stomped to the bedroom and found Sakshi crying softly.

“Keep quiet!” Maitri yelled. But Sakshi didn’t stop. Irritated from her she moved to front room being indifferent to her crying.

But then the electricity is gone , Maitri is not having any phone she's just left with Sakshi.

So Maitri is roaming in the room noticing stil her photos adorned the walls & wooden framed picture is at the same place and she's again facing Sakshi by any means she wanted to stop her crying so that Maitri can have peace. So this time she smiled and say, ”Good girl, Sakshi she doens't cry”

Maitri sighed and watched her for a moment. Her irritation gave way to a flicker of concern. Something wasn’t right. “Why is she crying so much? She gets everything—everyone loves her. What else does she want?” Maitri wondered aloud.

She scanned Sakshi carefully and noticed something small stuck in her stomach area. Tentatively, Maitri leaned closer and removed the object. Instantly, Sakshi stopped crying. She blinked at Maitri and then smiled—a genuine, innocent smile that reached her eyes.

For the first time, Maitri saw Sakshi differently—not as a rival, but as a little girl with feelings, just like her. That smile melted her jealousy. Maitri smiled back and climbed onto the bed. “Good girl,” she said softly, trying to mimic the way their uncle soothed them.

Minutes later, Maitri spotted the A-Z base on the floor. Picking up the letters ‘S,’ ‘A,’ ‘K,’ ‘S,’ ‘H,’ and ‘I,’ she playfully arranged them with ‘loves’ and ‘Maitri.’ She held it up to Sakshi, who giggled and clapped, as though saying “yes” to the proposal.