When Rohit came home from school, he found his mother sitting on the sofa with her head resting on its back and her eyes closed. She did not look good. 

“What happened, Ma?” he cried. 

“I’ve had a tiring day at school,” said Ma, who taught at a school close to their house. 

Rohit touched her forehead. 

“You seem warm,” he said. “Should I get you some milk?”

“That’s sweet of you, son, but no, I think I’ll just go lie down,” said Ma. “There are some snacks for you and Suchit on the table.” She got up slowly and went into her room. 

A moment later, Suchit dashed in. He always came home later than Rohit did because he would stop to play a mini-game of football with the other boys who got off their buses around the same time. Once a goal was scored, the game was over, so sometimes it was a short game, and sometimes much longer. 

Suchit picked up a cold cutlet from the table and bit into it. 

“You haven’t even washed your hands,” said Rohit. 

“So, what are you? My big brother?” asked Suchit, laughing and thumping him on his back.

“You’re the big brother—you should set a good example, you should make sure I’m safely home, you should heat my food…” began Rohit, but Suchit turned away. 

“You should learn to be independent,” he said. 

After he left, Rohit sat down to complete his homework. He knew that Ma would ask him about it as soon as she woke up in the evening.

When Ma woke up that evening, however, she did not get out of bed. Instead, she called out to the boys. Suchit, as usual, pretended that he hadn’t heard, so Rohit went to her. 

“I’ll make tea for you, Ma,” he announced as he went in—then stopped short. Ma had spots on her face and she was flushed. 

“Don’t come closer, beta,” she said. “I think I have chicken pox. I don’t want the two of you to get sick so close to your exams.”

“I’ll make tea,” Rohit repeated, and raced to the kitchen to put the kettle on to boil. Then he ran to Suchit. 

“Ma’s got chicken pox!” he said. 

“What?” exclaimed Suchit, pushing past Rohit to see their mother. “Does it hurt, Ma?” he asked. “Should I call a doctor? Should I tell Papa to come home immediately?”

Ma smiled weakly. “No need. Pa will be back from the tour in a week. I’ll get Sujatha didi to help a little more until I’m well.” Sujatha was the maid who came in for an hour twice a day. 

For the next week, the two boys were on their best behaviour. Suchit came home without playing football and did all his work, even studying a bit for his exams, before asking to go out in the evening. Rohit hung around Ma’s room when he was not at school, but he neglected his homework and did not study, even when his mother urged him to.

The day that Pa was to arrive, Suchit came home dragging his bag behind him. 

“I’m not feeling good,” he said, flopping onto his bed without bothering to remove his shoes and socks. Rohit was alarmed. He had never seen his elder brother looking so subdued. He pulled off Suchit’s shoes and was removing his socks when he saw the angry red dots on his leg. 

“I think you’ve got chicken pox, too!” he said.

“Oh no!” cried Suchit, “I’ll miss the house football matches!” Then he closed his eyes and suddenly said, “But oh yes! If I’m ill long enough, I’ll miss the exams too!”

Pa arrived that evening and took charge at once. “I’ve had chicken pox when I was young,” he announced. “But you stay away from the sick people,” he told Rohit. “I don’t want one more patient on my hands—plus, you shouldn’t miss your exams. They’re only a fortnight away.”

Rohit made some quick calculations in his head. Suchit had fallen sick a week after Ma got the infection. Maybe in another week, he would fall ill, too, and wouldn’t have to take his exams! That would be great!

Rohit soon became the most helpful member of the household. He brought Ma and Suchit their meals, then carried out the empty trays. He brought them juice and took back the almost-empty glasses. Nobody saw him sip from those glasses and wipe his face with their towels. 

“I need to get ill soon so I can skip the exams!” he thought. Until Suchit had fallen ill, he hadn’t thought about this, but now it seemed highly likely that he would be next in line, and he had to make sure that it happened!

Every morning, Rohit inspected his face and body and felt his forehead to see if there were any signs of spots or fever, but the days passed and there were none. Ma recovered and went back to work. Suchit began to recover faster than he had expected. The exams were around the corner. Suchit had been sure that he would be able to skip them, but it seemed like he wouldn’t. He began to study frantically.

Rohit, however, did not. “The later I get chicken pox, the better,” he told himself. “I won’t have to write a single exam—and by the time the holidays start, I’ll be fine!”

But nothing happened. No spots, no dots, no fever, nothing. Rohit was dismayed. There were only two days left before the exam and he was still fine! 

“I can’t go to school!” he wailed the next morning. There were several revision tests scheduled by his teachers. 

“Why? What’s happened?” asked Ma anxiously. “Are you feeling sick?”

“Yes, I think I have a fever!” he cried.

Pa felt him and looked at him carefully  “You’re fine!” Pa pronounced. “Off to school!”

“But I can’t go…” said Rohit. “My exams…”

“I think I recall your mother telling you to study for them,” said Pa. 

“I thought I’d get sick…”

“...and miss your exams?” asked Pa.

Rohit was silent. Suchit looked in and said piously, “I studied in spite of being ill, Pa.”

“I think Rohit got his idea to skip the exams from his big brother,” said Ma, not getting taken in by Suchit’s act of innocence. “But it’s not too late. You can study for each subject as it comes, Rohit. Go do your revision tests and then study one subject at a time from now on.”

Rohit groaned. He had thought Ma would at least allow him to bunk school today—he had looked after her so well, didn’t he deserve at least that much? But she just ruffled his hair and said, “Learn to be prepared, beta! You can hope for things to go the way you want them to—but always be ready for the worst!”