The clinks of our chopsticks being placed on our bowls echoed loudly through the room.
We all stopped as we stared intently at the envelope in front of us.
Dad quickly swallowed the food in his mouth, followed by a sip of water, before letting out an obnoxious laugh in an attempt to reset the mood.
"Hihihi. What's this, Son?"
Big Brother continued eating dinner, his gaze fixed on the bowl like nothing had happened.
"Shouldn't you know? It's my report card for the semester I just finished. I thought you'd get an email about it like you always do."
Mom glared at Dad from the corner of her eye, silently demanding an answer.
Ever since Big Brother reached middle school, it was his responsibility to pick me up. And Dad's email was the only one tied to the school, so he was the only one who got school news. Which meant Mom had no way of knowing about any of this unless Dad told her.
Dad let out a strained chuckle as he hurriedly replied.
"No, I was busy at work today. And when I got home, I went straight to the shower, so I never checked my email. Hahahaha!"
It was a believable excuse for him. Dad was a little bit of an airhead, after all.
Yet—a heavy, disappointed sigh cut through his laughter. Dad flinched, his mouth snapping shut.
We all turned to Mom—well, Dad and I did.
"We will talk about this later, honey," Mom said with a subtle edge in her voice. "But first things first…"
Mom stood up, leaned over the table, gently picked up the envelope, and returned to her seat. She opened the envelope and pulled the contents out for everyone to see.
Usually, we'd do this after dinner—but lately Big Brother holed himself in his room the moment he finished eating, so it was now or never.
In the midst of the silence that followed, the only sound was Big Brother's chopsticks scraping against the side of his bowl as he ate.
Then, a shocked gasp broke it. Dad lifted his gaze from the papers to Big Brother.
"S-son, y-you…"
The words wouldn't form. So, he grabbed the cup of water, took a big gulp, and set it down.
"Sorry, I didn't mean it like that," he said with a sigh. "It's just… when did you get this smart?"
I was still a little behind, so I didn't know what Dad was talking about—until my eyes landed on the marks.
There's… no way!
Math: 100%. Science: 100%. Language: 97%. Geography: 100%. History: 98%. Physical Education: 100%.
This was the first time I've ever seen someone score a 100% on a subject before. And to think the person in question was…
I turned towards Big Brother and stared in awe. It was only then that he stopped eating and lifted his gaze from the bowl.
"What is it?" he asked, his mouth half full. Under the cold tone was a hint of embarrassment. Our parents wouldn't have caught it, but I did.
"That's all you have to say for yourself?!" I exclaimed. "These are the best scores I've ever seen! You're amazing, Big Brother!"
The lump travelling down his throat stopped mid-way. He should have choked or coughed, but instead, he just shrugged.
"It's not a big deal. It's not that hard, anyway."
"Don't say that," a gentle, soothing voice cut in.
Mom gathered the papers spread across the table and slid them back into the envelope without a single sound. She set it in her lap—as if unwilling to let it go—before speaking again.
"This is something you should be proud of, Son. We should go celebra–"
"No thanks."
Big Brother interrupted before Mom could even finish her offer.
Whenever I did well, Mom would take us to a nice restaurant—completely ignoring Dad's protests about money. She probably wanted to do the same for him.
Mom's eyebrow twitched just a tiny bit.
She drew a sharp breath, then opened her mouth, but Big Brother had already finished eating.
He stood up from the table, placed his empty bowl in the sink, and retreated into his room.
Mom let out a long sigh, her body deflating into her chair.
Her hair fell in front of her face, and she dug her thumbnail into the side of her index finger.
"Why is he acting this way…?" Mom muttered, her voice carrying something—defeat? Anger? I couldn't tell back then, and to this day, that feeling still eludes me.
Dad hurriedly patted her back and put on a childish smile.
"It'll be fine. We can just go out to eat this Sunday and say it's a simple dinner. How does that sound?"
Mom responded with a blank nod.
"Yeah… that sounds nice. Thank you, dear."
Dad shook his head warmly.
"...It's no problem at all!"
He picked up his chopsticks and began eating as loudly as he could. Dad was a natural loud eater, but after Mom scolded him countless times to stop, he eventually did—until now.
She didn't scold him this time.
She just followed his lead and began doing the same. So did I—but the food tasted… like nothing.
All I could think about was Big Brother's score.
This is great!
Now, he doesn't have to get hurt anymore!
We can be geniuses together!
I was genuinely happy for him. Why wouldn't I be? He was my beloved Big Brother. And yet, there was a small part of me that felt… off.
…I've never gotten grades like that before.
But as I swallowed the last of my food, those thoughts disappeared as quickly as they came. They felt insignificant, and at the time, they were.
That is—until the end of that school year, when Big Brother and I got our report cards back.
***
*ding* *dong* *ding* *dong*
The bell rang, signalling that the end of the day had arrived. Everyone stood up, gave the teacher a bow, and went through the usual dismissal routine.
Being kids, we had to form a single-file line to be walked out of the school by the teacher.
Normally, the kids who walked home were free to go, but since it was the last day, everyone lingered a little longer.
"Well, class, it's been a pleasure teaching you this past year," the teacher said, her voice cracking with each passing moment, but she held firm until the end. "Before I hand out your report cards, I'd like to say that I'll miss you all very much. I hope you continue to succeed in your studies. Thank you all very much."
Students began sniffling as they struggled to hold back their tears.
The teacher waited for the sniffles to settle before handing the report cards. As she did, she leaned into each student's ear and whispered individual parting words.
Then, it was my turn. She greeted me with a warm, tender smile. She handed me the report card, which I put in my bag, then leaned in close to me and gently held me by the shoulders.
"Lily," she said, her voice soft. "You have been a wonderful student. Actually, you remind me of your Big Brother a lot. I hope the two of you continue doing well."
Being compared to Big Brother… filled me with a certain sense of pride. Why wouldn't it? Big Brother was my idol! It was nothing but a compliment to be compared to him!
A wide grin spread on my face as I gave the teacher a nod. "Thank you so much, miss! I'll be sure to tell him that, too!"
The teacher chuckled softly and slowly pulled away. Before she moved on to the next student, she whispered one last thing.
"I hope you two never change."
The teacher continued handing out the rest of the report cards until there were none left. Once she finished, she gave us one last farewell before dismissing us.
The students gave her one last thank you before finally departing.
The number of students who remained in the yard shrank with each passing second.
Eventually, it was my turn to leave as I noticed Big Brother's figure in the distance. I gave my friends one final goodbye before running across the yard and into his arms.
"You're late!" I huffed with feigned irritation.
Big Brother rolled his eyes and ruffled my hair.
"Stop being dramatic. You told me yesterday you wanted me to come later so you could play with your friends for a little bit."
I pulled away and extended a hand with a pout. He grabbed it without hesitation.
"Okay, so what?!" I shot back. "I said, give me more time, not keep me waiting!"
He sighed. "Yes, yes, my bad. I'll keep that in mind for next year."
I couldn't help but giggle. "You better!"
Big Brother and I proceeded to walk home, taking the path we always did. On the way there, we passed by the park—the same one that had stood there for years. My eyes lingered on the park for a moment before I forced myself to look away.
That was when Big Brother asked out of nowhere, "Do you want to go play for a bit?"
I flinched and snapped my head toward him, my mouth falling open.
"Can I?!" I blurted.
He shrugged. "Sure—and before you ask, no, I don't care. If Mom says anything, I'll deal with it."
If it had been the first time, I would've been hesitant. But somehow, Big Brother had found ways to get away with these types of things, so I took him up on it.
I spent the rest of the afternoon playing at the park with the other kids while Big Brother watched from a nearby bench. We asked if he wanted to join, but he shook his head and kept fiddling with his phone. I guess you grew out of things like this at some point.
Once the sun began to set, Big Brother called me over, telling me it was time to go home.
Just like earlier, I held his hand, and we walked the rest of the way—together.