She walked towards the sugarcane stall with 12 rupees secured safely in hand. After all, her nana had given them to her. It was the first time he had ever shown any affection towards her—even if he had just wordlessly handed it over to her… maybe it had got something to do with her jaundice. On the other hand, her brothers got a handsome 1000 rupees each. But she was happy with her 12. All she wanted was a glass of sugarcane juice, or maybe half. And as she waited in line patiently, she almost instantly got hypnotised by the machine engulfing the canes. Before she knew it, it was her turn, so she dutifully handed over her precious 12 rupees and waited for the sugarcane man to oblige her with the juice. There it was, inching slowly towards her. She reached out to grab it, but the glass was presented to a different owner. Perplexed, she waited. Maybe the next glass would be directed towards her. But it didn’t. Neither did the one after it.

Her little squeaky voice turned into a forced bark as she said, “Where is my sugarcane juice? I’ve even paid you for it!” The sugarcane man looked at her as if she were scum off the streets and he said, “Don’t try these tricks with me kid. Get going.” Her tiny heart shattered into fragments as a tear dropped from her eye. She had been cheated for the first time in her life. From the corner of her eye, she saw her brothers buying expensive balloons with their handsome rewards and blowing them up into the air. While she sat by the footpath, feeling like a loser, being tempted by the passers-by with sugarcane-frothed moustaches relishing the sweetness of the drink.

Her nana scorned at her foolishness for not being able to buy herself a simple sugarcane juice on her own. He said it was something to do with her being a girl. But she wished he would be here today to see where this girl had reached. She was the owner of an award-winning cold pressed juice brand today. And her bestseller was the sugarcane juice—the demand for which was more than its supply.