The date was March 20, the final day of my UP Board Exams.

The date was March 20, the final day of my UP Board Exams. The last hurdle was Sanskrit, in the morning shift from 7:30 AM to 10:45 AM.Instead of revising, I woke up at 5:30 AM fighting for my life in the bathroom.

The culprit? A few slices of old bread I blindly ate during my late-night study session. It was full-blown food poisoning.

My mom heard the bathroom door slamming for the fourth time and knocked anxiously.'Kya hua re? Itni subah-subah baar-baar bathroom kyu bhaag raha hai?'

'Mummy, pet me bohot bura dard ho raha hai," I groaned. 'Raat ko jo bread khayi thi na, woh kharab thi.'

'Hey Bhagwan! Aaj ke din hi ye sab hona tha?! Ek kaam kar, thoda paani pee, mai dawai lati hu,' she said, stressing out.'Nahi Mummy, dawai ka time nahi hai,' I said, checking my watch. 'Sade chhe ho gaye hain. Mujhe nikalna padega warna exam chhoot jayega.'

'Par beta, is halat me cycle kaise chalayega? Tera centre yahan se poora 8 km door hai!'

'Mummy, aur koi rasta nahi hai. Bas pray karo ki mai ye teen ghante jhel loon,' I said, grabbing my cycle.

That 8 km bicycle ride with severe cramps was pure torture. Every single pothole felt like an attack.

I somehow reached the centre by 7:15 AM on pure willpower.When the exam started at 7:30 AM, adrenaline took over. I wrote furiously for the first hour. But by 8:45 AM, the food poisoning hit back with a vengeance.

After an emergency washroom break—with an assistant teacher awkwardly guarding the door—I went back to my seat pale and shivering.

By 9:45 AM, the pain was blinding. Sitting on that hard wooden bench became impossible. I knew I couldn't survive another hour.I started writing like a maniac. I stopped caring about neatness.

My handwriting turned into chaotic scratches as I aggressively skipped long explanations to just hit the core points of the Shlokas.

By 10:15 AM—with exactly 30 minutes left on the clock—I reached my breaking point. I stood up, clutching my stomach.

The invigilator looked shocked. 'Kya hua? Itni jaldi paper de rahe ho? Abhi bhi aadha ghanta baki hai.'

'Haan sir, ho gaya mera. Mujhe jana padega, emergency hai,' I choked out, slammed the paper on his desk, and bolted.

The 8 km ride back home was a blur of pure agony. The moment I burst through the front door, ran to the bathroom, and finally staggered into my room, the emotional dam broke.

I collapsed onto my bed and started crying uncontrollably. My mom rushed in with a glass of ORS. 'Kya hua beta? Itni jaldi kaise aa gaya? Sab theek toh hai na?'

'Nahi Mummy! Mera paper bilkul kharab ho gaya!' I sobbed. "Dard ke maare mai baith hi nahi paa raha tha. Mai aadha ghanta pehle hi paper jama karke aa gaya! Handwriting bilkul gandi ho gayi hai. Meri poori mehnat kharab ho gayi!'

She sat beside me, rubbing my back. 'Idhar dekh meri baat sun. Itne kharab pet ke sath tune 8 km cycle chalayi, exam hall me baitha aur paper bhi poora likh ke aaya. Itna bohot hai! Ab marks ki chinta chhod aur chupchap aaram kar.'

The anxiety stretched on until April, when the UP Board results were declared.I entered my roll number with a shaking hand, fully expecting a disaster.

The page loaded, and I froze.I had scored 89 marks in Sanskrit, and my overall result was a massive 90%!