"No, we cannot stop. You just hear me whatever I am saying. Don't tension yourself unnecessarily."

"Jasmine, are you still feeling positive that you can stop my parents from taking divorce?"

"Not just that Mounika" Jasmine said with firm voice. "I do make your parents love each other, like each other and you three live peacefully and happily together. It is my one more promise to you."

"Don't try to be over optimistic Jasmine." Mounika laughed. "How you are thinking that is all possible?"

"I cannot say how it is possible." With the same firmness in her voice Jasmine said. "But I am thinking it is just possible."

***

"I just cannot bear the torture of my dad anymore. I just don't know what to do." Mukund met Jasmine in the playground and said. It was not the first time that he talked like that with her. Now and then he came to her and said something or other to her. She knew why he was talking like that and she did not like it. She wanted to say to him not to talk with her often but could not say so. He appeared all like an innocent

Jasmine looked surprisingly into the face of Mukund. She remembered what Mounika has said. Her cheeks once again blushed with shame.

"Why are you saying this particularly to me? In which way I can be helpful to you?" trying to suppress her irritation Jasmine said.

"I am thinking we both are friends, are not we?" looking into her eyes, he said.

"How we both can be? We are not even studying in the same class." Involuntarily her charming smile climbed onto her lips.

"We have talked many a time before and you accepted me as your friend." Looking hopefully into her eyes, Mukund said.

"Alright, we are friends. But you sure do have other friends also." She did not want to disappoint him.

"But no one like you" he paused for a moment "Don't get angry. You have given wonderful suggestion to that Ranjan and he changed himself in no time. I think that you are cleverer than us and give a wonderful suggestion to me also." There was indeed a troubling and sorrowful expression on his face which confirmed to her whatever he was saying was true.

"What exactly is your problem?" Jasmine still irritated. She knew very well that there was more than her intelligence for his consulting like that with her for his problem.

"He is beating me everyday at home and in the school also. Indeed I want to study hard and get good marks in the examinations. But as he was just beating me all the time so and insulting me, I just don't want to study at all." He was just not weeping.

"Is he is mad? Why does he behave in such a way? Doesn't your mom come in between you both while he is beating the hell out of you at home?" even she was feeling irritated while she was questioning like that, she got angry on the principal also.

"She tries her level best, but she cannot do anything. My dad is so powerful than my mom. He overpowers her easily."

Jasmine remained silent. She just did not know what to say.

"I do want to go far away from my home. Then I escape from all this."

"Never....never....even think about such type of a thing." Jasmine hastily said. "Atleast think about your mother. Her heart shall be broken if you do so." She paused a moment before saying again. "If you are really thinking me as your friend, make a promise to me."

"What is that?"

"That you do never go away like that. That you do stay in your home itself."

"Alright. I am making this promise to you." Mukund said but still there was that pathetic expression on his face.

They both did not know what to say and a few minutes silence ensued until it was broken by Mukund.

"I am sorry. I should not have bothered you like this. Don't worry about me." Trying to go away from there he said.

"Just stop" Jasmine hastily said. "I have a weakness that I cannot remain calm when one of my friends is suffering likes this."

"Then you are accepting me as your friend?" narrowing his eyes he asked her.

"Yes, of course. Already I made that clear to you, did not I?" Her usual charming smile was climbed onto her lips again. "Tell me what is the main reason for his beating you like that?"

"He asks me all the difficult grammar questions and gives me all the difficult mathematics problems. I cannot do them and is suffering like that."

"Tell me one thing frankly. Do you study at all? Have you tried to solve those mathematics problems or try to learn grammar?"

"Of course, not much" He nodded his head in negation.

"First do that. Do your level best to learn mathematics and grammar. Try to satisfy your dad atleast some."

"But as he is beating me and insulting me like that I just don't want to study at all." There was once again troubling expression on his face.

"Shut up. Don't say like that. For whose sake you are studying? For you or for your dad?" Jasmine unintentionally became angry.

"For myself, of course." He nodded his head.

"Then however much vigorous his beating may be you should not stop your studies. Just forget about the beating and concentrate on your studies. It is very important."

"But it is difficult to me to suddenly learn grammar and mathematics."

"So the main problem is; you don't want to study but enjoy yourself all the time. There is no wrong in your dad beating you like this."

"No, it is not so." He hurriedly tried to say something more to her.

"Don't say anything." The anger in her voice was in the same measure. "Your father is not all that bad. He just aims at giving good result to the school all the time. In the same way he aims to make you become an educated person. Are you thinking he does not have any love and affection on you?"

"If he has any like that on me, he would not beat me like that every now and then."

"You have asked my suggestion. I am going to give that to you. Whether you follow it or not that is up to you. If you don't follow that, never try to consult me again like this."

"Go on. I am all eager to know about that."

"First concentrate on your studies. Put your full effort on that and apply your mind. Do it like this atleast for three months. Then we shall see what happens."

"Three months! It is pretty long time." There was an instant dislike in his face.

"But you are not wasting the time. You are using these three months for your benefit. No less, it must be three months and I hope it does take change in your father and son relationship hundred percent. I promise you, your mom also will feel so much happy if there comes a change in you."

Mukund paused for a moment and then said. "It is appearing quite hard. Alright I try to do that. Thank you for the valuable suggestion. I am not going to bother you in between at all."

"Wait" Jasmine said as he was about to move away from that place. "There shall sure be beating and insulting in between. You just don't care, alright."

He nodded his head and went away from there.

***

"Mom, we share each and everything, don't we?" while they both were alone in living room, putting her homework aside, Jasmine asked her mother Malathi.

"Of course, we are. What then? Do you want to share anything particular with me?" looking curiously into her daughter's eyes Malathi asked.

"Yes, I am." Jasmine nodded her head. "But I just don't know how to express this to you."

Malathi came near to her daughter, slumped herself in the chair beside her chair and put her hand around her shoulder. "Whatever it may be you just can share with me without any reservation. We both are like friends from the beginning not like mother and daughter. You too know about that already."

"I am indeed. But it is.....just like that...I don't know how to share." There was troubling expression on the face of Jasmine and she did not how to say that to her mother.

Malathi's heart missed a beat. What really her daughter wanted to share with her?

"Tell me in the way you want. If you cannot tell it orally, write it down on a paper and show it to me." Still thinking furiously to guess what it was Malathi said.

Jasmine smiled and said "That is not necessary." Then she told her what Mounika said to her. "Why the guys particularly showing interest in me? Why they want to take suggestions from me? That Anupama's brother and this Mukund, both felt so happy when I have given suggestions to them. Not just they both, most of the guys are showing interest in talking with me. Sometimes it is making me feel awkward."

"Is it is really so?" Malathi's forehead frowned.

"It is exactly so." Jasmine nodded her head.

Malathi nodded her head and said. "Anyhow it is not just the boys but girls also are showing interest in you and talking with you. You said most of the girls in your class and school are now your friends."

"You are right." Jasmine said.

"You are thinking boys in your school are showing interest only in you. But they may be showing interest in other girls also in the same way. You are not just observing that."

"Is it is so?" Jasmine's forehead frowned. "If it is just like that I feel so happy. But I am seeing a difference in my classmates while boys are coming to me and try to talk with me somehow or other."

Malathi understood the point. Her daughter was beautiful and it was quite natural that boys were attracted towards her and tried to talk with her. She could say that so to her but she did not want her daughter got an idea that she was beautiful.

"You are a sociable type. You want to solve the problems of other friends all the time. So it is just natural that other boys also try to take suggestions and advice from you."

"But how that much number of boys can know about my nature?"

Malathi became helpless "Then for what you are thinking it is all about?" she asked

"I am thinking it is more than their interest to make friendship with me or to take suggestions from me. What that is I cannot understand."

Malathi hugged her daughter and kissed on her cheek. There was no way to escape now. She must have to tell her why the boys were trying to talk with her and make friendship with her.

"Don't be haughty but you are a beautiful girl Jasmine. At this age it is just natural that boys attracted towards girls. Particularly they wanted to make friendship with beautiful girls. There is no wrong. Just be polite with them and don't make them as either friends or enemies. That is enough."

"Is there any attraction like that in girls also towards boys?" looking curiously into the eyes of her mother, Jasmine asked her.

"Are you feeling any attraction like that towards any boy?" meeting her eyes, her mother asked her.

(..........to be continued)

(I hope you enjoyedit so far. Please don't forget to rate and review it. I update the next chapteras early as possible.)